What Choices Will You Make?

I made a point to ground myself over the weekend and it felt so good.

How did I do it?

I went outside and stood barefoot in the grass.  I stood in the sun and enjoyed its rays.  I also diffused essential oils that were grounding and rested when I needed it.  All of these things are so needed for me right now.  Last week, I wrote about not being anxious & relaxed at the same time.  For me, these grounding practices were part of my choice this weekend to alleviate anxiety & be more relaxed.

How to create change in your life

I often write about awareness being so important if you are wanting to make a shift or a change in your life.  That because if you’re not aware of where you are right now, then how can you know what choices to make in order to get somewhere else?  The answer is that you can’t.  You have to know where you are starting before you can make a shift.

On Saturday, I was aware that I was feeling ungrounded.  For me this leads to more anxiety and that is not something that I wanted.  With this awareness, of how I felt, I then had the choice to be more grounded and have less anxiety or I could stay ungrounded and watch my anxiety increase.

For me, this was an easy choice to make.

I know that all choices aren’t this easy to make, but when you practice awareness, then it does get easier to make choices.  It’s like a muscle that you have to use in order to make it stronger or more flexible.  It’s a skill that we have to use on a regular basis or it will get rusty.

Awareness.  It all starts there!

Most people through your life living from your minds.  We don’t take into consideration how our body is feeling or the wisdom that is retained in our bodies.  I know that has been true for me at times in my life.  Occasionally, I get stuck in my thinking mind & ignore my body and what it has to tell me.  It’s usually not a helpful way to go through life.

Often, we’re taught to ignore our bodies or to work through the pain.  You’re probably familiar with the saying ‘No pain, No gain.’  Sayings like this teach us to ignore what we are feeling in our bodies in order to accomplish a certain goal.

Of course, this could be helpful.  If you’re running from an attacker & you feel pain in your legs, then you will want to ignore the pain so that you can get away from your attacker.

Fortunately, this isn’t the case most of the time.  You do have the time to stop & notice your body.  But, do you take the time?

With so much social conditioning in ignoring our bodies, it’s not surprising that most of us don’t take the time to notice what our bodies are saying.  Here’s an example.  As I write this, I’m noticing that I’ve been sitting for too long & my body is asking to get up and move a bit.  Now, I’m wanting to get this done & not wanting to stop before I do.  My mind is saying to stay just a bit longer and ignoring my body’s cues to move.

Now, imagine doing this hour after hour, day after day.   Slowly your awareness muscle is getting weaker and weaker.  Your body has to speak louder and louder in order to be heard.  Maybe that explains that ache that just gets worse and worse in your body.  If you stop to listen to what it’s trying to tell you, then you might just get up and move for a few minutes to relieve the strain in your body.

Checking in

Checking in with your body can be as simple as stopping what you are doing for just a few moments.  Take a deep breath & notice what is happening.  How does your body feel in whatever position that you are in?  What do you smell, see & hear?  What do you notice in your arms, legs & back.  Notice what is happening inside you as well as around you.  Become aware of your present moment.

This is what happened for me on Saturday.  When I got up that morning and checked in with how I was feeling in my body, I could tell that I wasn’t grounded.  I knew that I would feel less anxious and more at ease with just a few tweaks to my day.  It can be as simple as that to make a change in your life.

Stop.  Notice what is happening & make any adjustments that you like.

Right now, for me that means pausing what I’m doing & getting up for a few minutes to walk around.  I’ll feel so much better & be able to focus on my next tasks.

For you, what does your body tell you.  Take a deep breath & check in.  Then make adjustments to your day as you need.

If you’ve spent so long ignoring your body’s cues that you can’t even begin to practice awareness, then let’s talk.  I can help you begin to listen to your body again.  Schedule a session and we’ll begin the process of getting to know what your body is telling you.