There’s been a lot of talk about stress and anxiety this year, and it’s hardly surprising given what we are all going through.
When we are stressed and anxious, we start up a part of the body/mind called the sympathetic nervous system, this system is to keep us safe and is a really good thing, it gets us up and moves us to action really quickly, this is commonly called our “Fight or flight” response, a great system however not if you are operating from there all the time.
The opposite of this nervous system is called the parasympathetic nervous system and it is responsible for the body’s rest and digestion response. When the body is relaxed, resting, or feeding. It basically undoes the work of sympathetic activation after a stressful situation. This is the activation of the fight or flight response, what we would generally call anxiety, stress or feeling “on edge.” The parasympathetic nervous system decreases respiration and heart rate and increases digestion allowing the immune system to rid the body of toxins and create a mind body balance.
To create a balanced life, we need to activate both systems in relation to our actual experience, there and then, so as not to constantly operate from one over the other or be “stuck.”
If we operate constantly from the parasympathetic state, rest and digest and healing, where we are completely shut down and unable to feel anything this is what we would call “freeze” mode where the strategy is that the body conserves energy. When this happens, it then becomes necessary to step out of the freeze and turn on the sympathetic boosting the immune system to attack. Our body has insane wisdom and energies. Emotional storing gets stuck in the body.
Eastern teaching tells us we hold onto so much in the body, the body and mind are connected, and as soon as we recognise this, we can start engaging the whole system.
Traumas in childhood, even micro traumas can set the stage for us to operate from the sympathetic more often than we should, now don’t get me wrong the sympathetic nervous system is an amazing state, it keeps us safe, gets us up in the middle of the night because of a noise or the smell of gas, stops us from eating rotten food and saves us from stepping onto the road and being run over, however when we are operating from this state as our default it can cause long term damage.Feeling Trapped in Patterns. Photo by Chris F from Pexels
We Can Become Pattern Locked.
To resolve the trauma, to break the “Pattern” loop of thoughts, feelings and behaviours of what we have stored In the body we need movement. Now I don’t just mean physical movement I mean something as simple as moving your conscious awareness to another part of your body, or for some not even engaging with the body but purely becoming aware of the movement of breath, attention and awareness. It’s so important to release the beliefs we hold. This then lets us know that we are where we are; we are safe, we are present, we can heal from the past.
When we move our body or move our face, and change position this has a huge impact on our system and can change our mood, energy levels, hormones and everything about our body and mind. When we laugh our body and mind do not know if we are laughing in response to something or just laughing, it does exactly the same thing, releases the same chemicals allowing us to feel happiness, joy, comfort.
Get out of the thinking mind to step outside of that pattern.
We excerpt so much energy just to survive, our patterns operate in our shadow, and no matter how hard you look you can’t see them. Or so we are told. Consider this, the world mirrors back to us our inner parts. Aspects of ourselves are triggered by what we see in others, but what you are seeing is really a part of you. What you love in others is what’s inside you, what you don’t like in others is what’s inside you. Maybe not operating right now but at some point, in your life, some version of you reaching all the way back to birth, used the exact same strategy to have your needs met. If this weren’t in you, you wouldn’t see it in others.
The only danger is our perception, our fear patterns and scarcity patterns; I am not enough, I do not have enough.
Our Belief systems dictate our physiology.
These beliefs and patterns come from childhood. We learn that the easiest thing to do is focus on what is wrong. I remember having a go on my friends horse, and he began to gallop through the field with me holding on for dear life, my friend was shouting “Focus over the fence” this stuck with me, you see if you focus on what you want (to not be thrown off the horse) what we need, where we are going then everything shifts (the horse will jump the fence and slow down.) this happened and I felt amazing in my body. A lesson that has stuck with me for almost 40 years.
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What happens though is we get caught in external evaluation, so we keep ourselves super busy for fear of slowing down.
Why not try and set intention from the heart then let go of expectations, I don’t mean goal setting, I mean simply believe, let go and allow your heart to lead you there, just continue to show up and keep going.
When intentions are genuinely from the heart and you keep in the moment your intention will unfold. Continue to show up and participate by resolving these patterns.
Your perception will shift the more you heal. The inner knowing of wellbeing, a state where you can be happy, sad, angry, joyful whatever state is present at that moment and you allow yourself to be balanced within it will lead you to know everything Is going to be ok.
Why not try to set an intention that is real. Something like “I am going to heal” you may have no clue how to get there but using your own personal will, will guide you.
Believing your heart led intention will bring you what you need, but so often we close down these messages due to fear. The only thing to fear is fear itself.
Is it time you felt resolved, healed, and integrated?
The most powerful thing you can do with this approach is be consistent, keep smiling, keep moving, keep being aware of yourself, it is by far the easiest way to break patterns, unlock potential and heal from the inside.
Reminds me of a great saying, “Living longer won’t make you happy but being happy will make you like longer”
The choice is yours.
