Tag: Spirituality

Posted in MindBody, Practices

A Guide to Creating Conscious Change: Alignment vs Action

Posted on by Sabrina Renee

Awakening to Your Life

Mindfulness is the practice of moment to moment awareness, awakening to your life as it is. This is a simple yet powerful practice that allows you to adopt a new set of attitudes, to view your world with a fresh pair of eyes. Becoming aware of who you are and what you are doing at this moment brings you out of the thinking mind and into the body, where experiences have been happening unnoticed. By bringing your attention to the experience of your physical sensations you are learning to ground into the present moment, whereas the thinking mind will take you away from it.

Awakening to your life as it is will bring opportunities of profound change into your life. Often people choose only to look at the future to dream, or to the past for reflection as a reference for the change they want. These ways of viewing experience and creating change can only get you so far. It’s the present moment that will reveal all the things about yourself that you’d like to change and how your current lifestyle choices are shaping you as a person. Therefore, if you want to become a better version of yourself tomorrow you have to start paying attention to how you’re showing up today.

The Steps of Conscious Change

A conscious change is one that you are involved in, have contemplated thoroughly, and decide on deliberately. Now is always the best time to time to create conscious change in your life. The first step, as you already learned, is becoming aware of what needs to change. But before any change occurs willingly most people wait until they’ve become frustrated with their own ways or circumstances. The laziness will begin to annoy you, the tardiness will impact your relationships, he procrastination will ruin yet another weekend, the doubts will no longer hold up as truth. You know deep down it could be better, and you also know that the responsibility for these changes falls on you. At some point, you will have to break up with your way of living and welcome change. Choose to do it before you’re at your wit’s end and save some energy for what’s to come. Here are the 3 steps to creating conscious change or A.C.T.

  1. Awareness

    Becoming aware of what needs changing is the first and most important step. Nothing can shift in your life until you become aware of what needs to. This is the starting point for inviting the new and releasing the old, where you learn to focus on what is serving your highest good.

  2. Choice

    After taking some time to observe there’s of your life you’d like to change, you’ll then get ready to make a choice. Sometimes this choice is a giant leap into the unknown, while other times it’s a simple step in the right direction. Even if it’s a small change it can conjure up some indecisiveness within you. This step is about deciding on what feels the best rather than comparing what “would be” better. You can’t see how things will play out exactly but you can tap into your intuition and figure out what course is best for you to take.

  3. Trust

    Finally, it’s time to trust this entire process. Trust in your ability to observe what behaviors, thoughts, or habits need to change in your life. Trust that your choice is a stable one that will bring you closer to who you envision yourself becoming. Trust within your ability to consciously create an overall improved lifestyle for you. Each time you actively build inner trust you strengthen the foundation of your relationship with yourself and your ability to make things happen in your life.

Observing Misalignment

To understand whether you are on the path bringing you closer to who you wish to become, it’s important to know when you’re misaligned or veering off course. An indication that you are experiencing alignment is when you are feeling positive and pleasant emotions. Alignment is the experience of feeling good and allowing more good feelings to find you. This happens when you are thinking healthy thoughts, making choices that line up with your idea of happiness or success and position yourself in a way that invites more of this feeling. An indication of misalignment is when you are feeling negative or unpleasant emotions. In this state of being, you are allowing more of these experiences to gravitate toward you. This happens when you’re thinking of harmful or uneasy thoughts, making choices out of emotional reactivity that do not align with your idea of happiness or success.

Although alignment is the ultimate goal, it’s important that you learn to notice when misalignment is occurring. The most notable thing to become aware of is the experience arising in your body. When you’re thinking troublesome thoughts or experiencing an unpleasant moment, it does not stay only in your mind. It travels throughout the body depositing stress in pockets of your muscles, bones, and internal systems. If you can begin to link your mental experiences with your physical ones you’ll begin to uncover certain patterns of behavior that follow your thoughts. For instance, if you are thinking thoughts of self-doubt your shoulders are likely to slouch and round forward; if you are experiencing an anxious thought that may appear in the body is a fast heart rate or sweaty palms.

Once you’ve become aware of misalignment in your mind you can locate it in your body. The thought patterns you’ve created over the years are powerful and often difficult to shift into a more pleasant experience. That’s why it’s important for you to recognize how misalignment shows up in your body, because that you can change by moving. Move your body in a healthy way, go for a walk if you can, stretch your arms, roll your shoulders back and release the tension in your face, unclench your jaw and take a deep breath. All of these simple choices will help bring you toward feeling better. The closer you are to feeling better the closer you become to alignment. Once you have tapped into the feeling and experience of alignment you can begin to take action toward your goals.

Planning Your Action

Deciding to take action or make an important decision isn’t something to be done without consideration. The right plan of action taking at the wrong time could push you further back than when you started. This is where the importance of alignment comes in. Making decisions in a state of clarity will bring you closer to the change you wish to see, whereas making decisions in a state of emotional reactivity most likely won’t. Although there is a huge difference between allowing your emotions to overcome you and channeling their energy for change, some people can’t quite point out those differences. For most people, emotions running high isn’t something that you thrive off of. It’s actually more likely to stress you out than bring you clarity or confidence about what’s next. This is why alignment and action go hand in hand.

By orienting yourself in the direction of joy, happiness, and success, you are aligning with your higher self. The more you consciously align with yourself the easier it will be to take action. Think of alignment as making your way to the diving board, each step bringing you closer to what you want to do, have, or be. The closer you get the more intense you’ll experience feelings of excitement, joy, and maybe a tinge of apprehension, but you keep moving. toward what it is you want. Now imagine jumping off the diving board as your plan of action, diving into the unknown whether it be by a single step or a massive leap. Don’t rush your way into action without appreciating the role and significance of aligning yourself with what’s meant for you.

Let’s Review

Mindful awareness is the key component in creating any conscious change. Awakening to your life as it unfolds means to release resistance to the state of your life now, so that you may invite new opportunities to find you. Before you begin to make changes you must first become aware of the areas in your life and things involved that need change. In this article, I’ve mapped out 3 steps of creating conscious change that can serve as a guide to making strong decisions that instill your inner trust. By first becoming aware of what needs changing, then making a conscious choice of how to move forward, and finally learning to trust the outcome and your ability to handle it. After you’ve made your decisions and have begun to experience that inner trust, you can learn to build on it by practicing alignment.

The simplest way to practice alignment is to become aware of the moments you’re feeling good and work to invite more of that feeling. This does not mean resisting negative emotions or rejecting unpleasant experiences, these are all apart of the journey. Instead, it’s about becoming aware of both alignment and misalignment, observing and understanding how they both show up in your experience. Misalignment will be tied to negative emotions and bodily sensations of feeling contracted or tight. Being in alignment will feel more open and flowing, with pleasant thoughts and positive feelings. After you’ve become familiar with how it is you want to feel continue striving for that feeling, building up the opportunity to take action. A plan of action is powerful on its own, just like aligning yourself with how you want to experience life is powerful. however, together they become an undeniable force propelling you toward the life you are creating.

You are the creator of your life experience and you are responsible for the ways you choose to respond to the world around you. Every day you are capable of bringing yourself closer to your higher self. It’s in the choices you make, the thoughts you observe, and the behaviors you begin to uncover. Bring a sense of curiosity to what it is you’re noticing within yourself and work on releasing judgment. Who you are today doesn’t have to be defined as good or bad, right or wrong, success or failure. Practice mindfulness with how you are showing up each day as a means for understanding the person you’ve become, not condemning or judging but welcoming. Allow your experience to be one that reveals deeper levels of yourself and uses them as ways to expand.

If you want to create conscious change in your life never stop paying attention. Keep aligning with what feels good and releasing what does not. Keep coming back to the present moment and all of the wonders it has to offer. And when this road gets more challenging than you had anticipated, keep coming back to the breath. Because as long as there is another breath cycle flowing through your body, you have another chance to begin again.

Posted in MindBody, Practices

A Guide to Creating Conscious Change: Alignment vs Action

Posted on by Sabrina Renee

Awakening to Your Life

Mindfulness is the practice of moment to moment awareness, awakening to your life as it is. This is a simple yet powerful practice that allows you to adopt a new set of attitudes, to view your world with a fresh pair of eyes. Becoming aware of who you are and what you are doing at this moment brings you out of the thinking mind and into the body, where experiences have been happening unnoticed. By bringing your attention to the experience of your physical sensations you are learning to ground into the present moment, whereas the thinking mind will take you away from it.

Awakening to your life as it is will bring opportunities of profound change into your life. Often people choose only to look at the future to dream, or to the past for reflection as a reference for the change they want. These ways of viewing experience and creating change can only get you so far. It’s the present moment that will reveal all the things about yourself that you’d like to change and how your current lifestyle choices are shaping you as a person. Therefore, if you want to become a better version of yourself tomorrow you have to start paying attention to how you’re showing up today.

The Steps of Conscious Change

A conscious change is one that you are involved in, have contemplated thoroughly, and decide on deliberately. Now is always the best time to time to create conscious change in your life. The first step, as you already learned, is becoming aware of what needs to change. But before any change occurs willingly most people wait until they’ve become frustrated with their own ways or circumstances. The laziness will begin to annoy you, the tardiness will impact your relationships, he procrastination will ruin yet another weekend, the doubts will no longer hold up as truth. You know deep down it could be better, and you also know that the responsibility for these changes falls on you. At some point, you will have to break up with your way of living and welcome change. Choose to do it before you’re at your wit’s end and save some energy for what’s to come. Here are the 3 steps to creating conscious change or A.C.T.

  1. Awareness

    Becoming aware of what needs changing is the first and most important step. Nothing can shift in your life until you become aware of what needs to. This is the starting point for inviting the new and releasing the old, where you learn to focus on what is serving your highest good.

  2. Choice

    After taking some time to observe there’s of your life you’d like to change, you’ll then get ready to make a choice. Sometimes this choice is a giant leap into the unknown, while other times it’s a simple step in the right direction. Even if it’s a small change it can conjure up some indecisiveness within you. This step is about deciding on what feels the best rather than comparing what “would be” better. You can’t see how things will play out exactly but you can tap into your intuition and figure out what course is best for you to take.

  3. Trust

    Finally, it’s time to trust this entire process. Trust in your ability to observe what behaviors, thoughts, or habits need to change in your life. Trust that your choice is a stable one that will bring you closer to who you envision yourself becoming. Trust within your ability to consciously create an overall improved lifestyle for you. Each time you actively build inner trust you strengthen the foundation of your relationship with yourself and your ability to make things happen in your life.

Observing Misalignment

To understand whether you are on the path bringing you closer to who you wish to become, it’s important to know when you’re misaligned or veering off course. An indication that you are experiencing alignment is when you are feeling positive and pleasant emotions. Alignment is the experience of feeling good and allowing more good feelings to find you. This happens when you are thinking healthy thoughts, making choices that line up with your idea of happiness or success and position yourself in a way that invites more of this feeling. An indication of misalignment is when you are feeling negative or unpleasant emotions. In this state of being, you are allowing more of these experiences to gravitate toward you. This happens when you’re thinking of harmful or uneasy thoughts, making choices out of emotional reactivity that do not align with your idea of happiness or success.

Although alignment is the ultimate goal, it’s important that you learn to notice when misalignment is occurring. The most notable thing to become aware of is the experience arising in your body. When you’re thinking troublesome thoughts or experiencing an unpleasant moment, it does not stay only in your mind. It travels throughout the body depositing stress in pockets of your muscles, bones, and internal systems. If you can begin to link your mental experiences with your physical ones you’ll begin to uncover certain patterns of behavior that follow your thoughts. For instance, if you are thinking thoughts of self-doubt your shoulders are likely to slouch and round forward; if you are experiencing an anxious thought that may appear in the body is a fast heart rate or sweaty palms.

Once you’ve become aware of misalignment in your mind you can locate it in your body. The thought patterns you’ve created over the years are powerful and often difficult to shift into a more pleasant experience. That’s why it’s important for you to recognize how misalignment shows up in your body, because that you can change by moving. Move your body in a healthy way, go for a walk if you can, stretch your arms, roll your shoulders back and release the tension in your face, unclench your jaw and take a deep breath. All of these simple choices will help bring you toward feeling better. The closer you are to feeling better the closer you become to alignment. Once you have tapped into the feeling and experience of alignment you can begin to take action toward your goals.

Planning Your Action

Deciding to take action or make an important decision isn’t something to be done without consideration. The right plan of action taking at the wrong time could push you further back than when you started. This is where the importance of alignment comes in. Making decisions in a state of clarity will bring you closer to the change you wish to see, whereas making decisions in a state of emotional reactivity most likely won’t. Although there is a huge difference between allowing your emotions to overcome you and channeling their energy for change, some people can’t quite point out those differences. For most people, emotions running high isn’t something that you thrive off of. It’s actually more likely to stress you out than bring you clarity or confidence about what’s next. This is why alignment and action go hand in hand.

By orienting yourself in the direction of joy, happiness, and success, you are aligning with your higher self. The more you consciously align with yourself the easier it will be to take action. Think of alignment as making your way to the diving board, each step bringing you closer to what you want to do, have, or be. The closer you get the more intense you’ll experience feelings of excitement, joy, and maybe a tinge of apprehension, but you keep moving. toward what it is you want. Now imagine jumping off the diving board as your plan of action, diving into the unknown whether it be by a single step or a massive leap. Don’t rush your way into action without appreciating the role and significance of aligning yourself with what’s meant for you.

Let’s Review

Mindful awareness is the key component in creating any conscious change. Awakening to your life as it unfolds means to release resistance to the state of your life now, so that you may invite new opportunities to find you. Before you begin to make changes you must first become aware of the areas in your life and things involved that need change. In this article, I’ve mapped out 3 steps of creating conscious change that can serve as a guide to making strong decisions that instill your inner trust. By first becoming aware of what needs changing, then making a conscious choice of how to move forward, and finally learning to trust the outcome and your ability to handle it. After you’ve made your decisions and have begun to experience that inner trust, you can learn to build on it by practicing alignment.

The simplest way to practice alignment is to become aware of the moments you’re feeling good and work to invite more of that feeling. This does not mean resisting negative emotions or rejecting unpleasant experiences, these are all apart of the journey. Instead, it’s about becoming aware of both alignment and misalignment, observing and understanding how they both show up in your experience. Misalignment will be tied to negative emotions and bodily sensations of feeling contracted or tight. Being in alignment will feel more open and flowing, with pleasant thoughts and positive feelings. After you’ve become familiar with how it is you want to feel continue striving for that feeling, building up the opportunity to take action. A plan of action is powerful on its own, just like aligning yourself with how you want to experience life is powerful. however, together they become an undeniable force propelling you toward the life you are creating.

You are the creator of your life experience and you are responsible for the ways you choose to respond to the world around you. Every day you are capable of bringing yourself closer to your higher self. It’s in the choices you make, the thoughts you observe, and the behaviors you begin to uncover. Bring a sense of curiosity to what it is you’re noticing within yourself and work on releasing judgment. Who you are today doesn’t have to be defined as good or bad, right or wrong, success or failure. Practice mindfulness with how you are showing up each day as a means for understanding the person you’ve become, not condemning or judging but welcoming. Allow your experience to be one that reveals deeper levels of yourself and uses them as ways to expand.

If you want to create conscious change in your life never stop paying attention. Keep aligning with what feels good and releasing what does not. Keep coming back to the present moment and all of the wonders it has to offer. And when this road gets more challenging than you had anticipated, keep coming back to the breath. Because as long as there is another breath cycle flowing through your body, you have another chance to begin again.

Posted in Growth, Practices, Spirituality

Be Mindful of Your Focus: Conversations With The Universe

Posted on by Sabrina Renee

Identifying Your Focus

The dance between desire and resistance is constantly pulsating throughout your life. It lives in every thought that arises, every emotion that surfaces, every decision being made, as well as the consequences that follow. Each day you are sifting through what you want and don’t want. As you identify your goals, dreams, desires, planning out the next steps, and learning all that you have to overcome, you are co-creating your life with the universe. Figuring out what you desire takes energy, just as figuring out what you do not desire takes energy. If you want to attract a better, more improved lifestyle, it’s essential to understand what you are constantly focusing on.

Co-creation has a great deal to do with focus and decisiveness. Whatever you focus on is what will begin appearing in your life. Once you’ve decided on what action needs to take place, the momentum will begin to shift the sails of progress in your favor. When you know what you want, and believe that there is a force out there helping you reach it, life will propel you toward the next steps. Co-creation is happening whether you or not you are aware of what your attention is on. Therefore, if you’re focused on fearing the worst and catastrophizing all of the ways your life can unfold, you are aiding in that particular co-creation in your life.

A common mistake in co-creation is focusing the majority of your attention on that which you no longer want. You may think you’re simply separating that which you desire from what you do not, but that’s not what your energy is saying. Each time you talk or think about what you wish would change in your life, what you’re lacking in your life, how unfair circumstances are for you, what you don’t like anymore, and all the ways you are suffering, you are focusing your energy on resistance. Resisting what you WANT by focusing on what you DON’T WANT. See, the universe doesn’t respond to the words you’re speaking. It doesn’t hear “don’t” “can’t” “no”. The universe speaks in energetic frequency or the feeling you experience when thinking those thoughts and speaking those words.

When your attention is focused on what you don’t want you to feel contracted, closed, limited, frustrated, and far from that which you’re searching for. The more you experience this feeling, the more you share the energy of resistance to what it is you truly want. because that is the frequency you are strongly emitting. Therefore you have to become attuned to the energy and feelings that your thoughts are generating so that you are aware of what it is you are calling into your life. It’s very important to distinguish what you want from what you don’t but what comes after is monumental.

Tapping Into Your Desires

Visualizing the best version of yourself is a powerful form of communicating exactly what you want. It’s a practice of building up the muscle of your mind to create goodness in your life. It’s easier to play out the negatives in your life because you spot them easier. The brain was designed to keep you safe, out of harm’s way, so you’re likely to notice the wrongs over the rights in your life. All this means is that you’re practicing focusing on one more than the other. So it’s important to implement a visualization practice into your daily routine. Start building your imagination muscle to create the wonderful abundant things in life you label as “impossible”, “some-days”, or “dreaming big”.

Start by asking yourself questions that dare you to dream big. There are no limits to your imagination unless you put them there, so when you begin to notice them start dismantling them. It may be hard at first if you’re someone struggling with self-doubt, disbelief, and fear of that which you have yet to see. That just means you have to practice shifting your thoughts into the limitless possibilities more often. Remember that all things that exist today began in the mind of someone, just imagine what’s waiting in yours.

In your mind’s eye play out what it would look like to be successful, how it would look to feel peaceful, how it would look to be happy with yourself and in your relationships, how it would look to have a job you love providing a service you believe in. If you’re not sure of what exactly you want out of the next phase of your life start by focusing on what brings you joy now. Think of the activities where you’re smiling not worried about the time, experiencing flow, feeling fulfilled and exploding with love. Bring to mind the people who make you feel good, the places that ground you, the events that are forever etched in your memory bank as magic. The longer you hold your focus on a thought, the stronger you emit that frequency, the more clear the universe gets your request.

Aligning with that which you desire is simple to do, but requires constant awareness of your energetic focus. Once you’ve become aware of the many ways you are feeding into low vibrations, distracting thoughts, and negative feelings, you can start bringing yourself into that which you do want. Start looking for things that make you feel good and appreciating those moments while they are happening. Practice visualizing the life you want to live when you notice you’re focused on all that you want to change. Begin strengthening your focus on better feeling thoughts and you’ll start attracting improved circumstances.

Walking Forward in Faith

It’s called co-creation because you’re not alone in making things happen, although there is still work to be done on your part. Identifying your desire, practicing gratitude for your current blessings, focusing your attention on what is on it’s way to you, and taking the practical steps to make this shift into abundance-these are all your responsibilities. Spirit is all-knowing, therefore it has a different role in the co-creation of your life. Spirit’s role is to guide you on the path. Not reveal the next 2 miles ahead, you’ll only get a few hundred feet. Not to give you the answers outright, but will give the guidance on the next step IF you ask. Not to provide all the solutions for you, but to lead you to the resources to help build your levels of knowledge, resiliency, and awareness on this journey. If you’re lost on the path you can, and always should ask for guidance. Release the idea that you know how life should unfold for you, or the specific steps you think need to happen. Let go of the idea that you are in control of the how because you’re not. Set up the best plan you possibly can, take action on it every day, keep moving forward in all the ways you possibly can, and then let go of the outcome.

Releasing the reins on the how is one of the hardest things for humans to be. The ego drives you into thinking that your perspective, your plan, your idea, your way is the right way. This kind of thinking can cloud your judgment, sometimes taking you away from what’s best for you. Spirit is all-knowing and always knows what’s best for you. Walking forward in faith is about trusting that the higher power you are co-creating is orchestrating life to work in your favor. The connection you share with Spirit is one of unconditional love. Just as a parent wants nothing but the best for their child and will do anything to make that happen, Spirit wants that very same for you. When your desires are clearly communicated, your energy is aligned with your purpose, and you are taking action on your goals, Spirit begins paving the unknown for your arrival.

On top of all of your concrete actions that need to be taken, there is yet another powerful decision to make that can’t be seen or measured. It can only be felt, believed, understood, and experienced. That is having faith in that which you cannot see but already believe. A prerequisite of acquiring the life you want is believing it will show up, even before there is any evidence proving you right. Keeping a strong sense of faith during times of uncertainty, suffering, loss, change, illness, and fear is going to be difficult. With each challenge you find yourself facing you will have a choice: strengthen your faith or strengthen your doubt.

Doubt comes from the inability to believe that something is possible, mainly because we are focusing on the specific tools, knowledge, and circumstances currently available. Doubt creeps in and plans it’s hostile take over when there isn’t enough “proof” that everything is going to work out. Doubt is strong, and the mind has had plenty of practice in building its case with it. Faith, on the other hand, comes from the ability to believe in something that is felt but not seen. Faith is the medium of communication between who you are now and who you are becoming. Faith is harder to keep around than doubt because it’s asking you to keep going when it feels impossible, to keep your head up when you’re exhausted, to keep moving when you “think” you have nothing left. But faith will bring you to the other side of fear, where all of your desires are waiting, while doubt will keep you complacent and safe from change.

Piecing It All Together

There will always be the labeling of the wanted and unwanted, desire and aversion, attraction and resistance. This is how people sift through categories of life, creating mental vision boards of what you believe is best for you, and what is not. Now you understand the energy that goes into this process and just how powerful that energy is. The energy you release with the thoughts you experience and the words you share are creating a conversation with the universe. You are communicating the details of the life you want to create, whether you are aware of it or not. And now that you’re aware of it here are 10 practices you can start today.

  1. Be mindful of where your focus is throughout the majority of the day

  2. Spend less time focusing on what you DON’T want

  3. Practice shifting your attention toward the blessings you already have

  4. Begin thinking of how good it feels to have what you are attracting into your life

  5. Build a plan and keep working toward attaining these goals, successes, accomplishments

  6. Surrender the outcome to a higher power, release the how

  7. Actively choose faith over doubt once you become aware of the choice

  8. Practice building your imagination muscle and visualizing your future

  9. Stop limiting what is possible for you

  10. Be gentle with yourself in the challenging times, you’re doing the best you can.

Spirit has been waiting for you to finally commit to co-creating your life with a conscious effort. Each time you practice you release what no longer serves you and gain clarity on what is best for you. Lean into the process by having fun with your imagination and conversations with the universe. Asking for help can be as simple as “I don’t know what I’m doing, please help guide me”. Just be sure to practice patience for the answer to the surface within you. Keep an eye out for your surroundings and anything that could be seen as a sign, you’ll just feel it. The more you practice communicating with a higher power the more comfortable and clear your relationship will become.

Love, heal, grow.

Posted in Healing, Practices, Spirituality

Staying Well in Times of Uncertainty

Posted on by Sabrina Renee

There is a constant swirl of mixed emotions surfacing in all of us. For some, there are incredibly drastic transitions occurring. Changes in their work schedule, the amount of pay if any, the responsibility of payments weighing heavy, concerns of educating their children while trying to maintain their own sanity. Other people may be focused more on the virus that has struck globally, concerned bout flights back home, elderly loved ones receiving proper care, trying to keep their immune system functioning optimally, making trips to the grocery store only to find what they need is out of stock. Then there are people who are struggling with the transition of being busy to being alone with their thoughts, no longer making plans with friends and trying to find an outlet to distract themselves from all of the emotions that are forcing themself to the top. There is also the possibility that all of these things are being experienced by one person, a nasty cocktail of overwhelm, scarcity, and fear.

There is no doubt that this pandemic is to be taken seriously, it’s important that people are preparing their homes with the essentials to keep them healthy and safe. However, one thing that continues to be overlooked is how all of this is affecting your wellbeing. Health is not limited to the physical responsibilities of washing hands, disinfecting surfaces, eating healthier, and maintaining a safe distance from crowds. What also falls under the category of health and wellness is mental, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing. I’ve created a workshop to help you navigate through these troublesome times.

Mental wellbeing

The wellbeing of your mind has a great deal to do with what it is you’re consuming on a daily basis. If you’re constantly watching the news, refreshing your social feed, surrounding yourself with people who are only sharing negative stories, you are aiding to a negative and low vibrational mental state. This way of thinking will begin to create deeply rooted beliefs about what is and what is not possible for you. As a result, you’ll begin to see a limited world where you lack control of everything, rendering you a victim to what happens to you.

This virus has absolutely taught the world there is an incredible amount of circumstance that will always be out of an individual’s control. However, what you always have control over is your perspective and the way in which you CHOOSE to respond to something. For instance, there is no changing the bad news of the world today, there are unfortunate things happening to people all over the world. What does not help is constantly reminding yourself of all the bad things being experienced, sharing more heartbreaking news than groundbreaking, bonding with people over what is wrong with the world rather than what is right with it. The mind needs you to set boundaries for what it consumes because what you consume shapes the person you become. It’s important to remain informed but not overwhelmed, prepared but not paralyzed with fear, connected with others but not through the energy exchange of worry and stress.

Your brain is an incredible tool that is constantly working to serve you, just as long as you know how to navigate it. A perfect example of this is if you ask yourself (your brain) a question it will search for the best answer or solution possible-based on the quality of your questions. Therefore, it’s important that you’re asking yourself proactive questions that are bringing you closer to a calm state and peace of mind. Instead of asking with a tone of fear, self-doubt, overwhelm “what can I do about what’s happening?”, try asking with the intention to create change in YOUR life, right now. What you can do is turn off the news and connect with the people around you, Skype with friends, step into your yard for some fresh air, read a book about self-improvement. Start creating healthy boundaries of what you allow your brain to think about, that’s how you prepare a mind for changes.

Emotional wellbeing

Honor the feelings that are surfacing for you at this time. If you’re feeling sad for the people around the world dealing with the loss of family, connection, and access to income-then feel it. If you’re feeling scared because you of YOUR loss of structure, connection, and access to income-then feel that too. The emotions that each of us experience are being triggered by an event. They may feel too intense, overwhelming, and maybe burdensome, but they deserve your attention more than the news or social media. Because each of these emotions is a gateway to get to know yourself on a deeper level. You are meant to feel all emotions, even if they aren’t pleasant or coming at a convenient time. Don’t shut out what you’re going through because it’s too hard to face, because the longer you push away the feelings the more challenging they become to face. An introspective perspective is a powerful tool that will help you navigate the brand new difficulties you’re facing. Instead of distracting yourself with substances, the latest news, food, video games, or any other stimuli, stop to ask “why am I running away from this?, how can facing my feelings help me heal?”

Sometimes it’s not about taking action but rather just being with what you’re experiencing. If you experience judgment arising about your feelings examine it. Try understanding why you’re not letting yourself feel authentically and what you can do to work through that belief. Get to know the activities that elevate your mood, help you relax, bring you peace, or make you feel a sense of safety. Learn the difference between when you need to feel connected to other people who understand what you’re going through and when it’s time to be alone with your thoughts.

Each of us is experiencing a unique awakening that is bringing to light our greatest feels and that which we are most grateful for. There is bound to be a mix of emotions, strategies to handle them, and community to share in this time of change. Express a little more self-compassion by tuning into what it is you need most. Whether it’s a really good cry, a self-soothing journal session, or a phone call with a friend, it’s just as important as stocking up your pantry. Take care of your emotions seriously, they’re here to help you.

Spiritual wellbeing

Your soul is the vessel in which Spirit/God/Universe/All-That-Is is communicating with you. In order for you to hear the messages meant for you, it’s your job to turn the noise down in your life. An important part of spiritual practice is removing the layers of junk that are not serving your highest good. Lot of these examples were mention in mental and emotional wellbeing such as distracting yourself with coping mechanisms to hide what it is you’re really feeling A great way to expand your connection with the source of life force is by strengthening your intuition and slowing down the chatter of the mind.

There are many different forms of meditation, but the one I am suggesting is Vipassana. The goal of Vipassana meditation is to become aware of the present moment. This means bringing yourself out of the thinking mind which is either meandering in the past or trying to create the future. Both of these places take you away from the only focus that really matters, this moment. The present moment is all that ever matters because it is the only moment that truly exists. Therefore, at this moment lies your control over how you can respond to life unfolding. Instead of worrying about what you have lost already, or stressing about what may never happen, you can rest your attention into what is right now.

Vipassana meditation is best when you wear loose-fitting close, make sure your waistband isn’t too tight and that you’re dressing appropriately for the temperature where ever you are. If you’ve never meditated before or practiced focusing your attention on anything for more than 10 minutes, I suggest starting in a chair preferrably without arms on the side. Rest the arms on your lap with palms facing down, keeping your back straight without being rigid, placing your feet firmly on the ground. One last and very important piece, bring an intention to your seat with you. A common one I like to use is to be patient with myself and with others because your thoughts are bound to take you away from the moment and into what is bothering you. Another one is to be kind to yourself and others. The intention you choose is not as important as the fact that you choose one. You’ll need something to anchor you back to the reason you sat down in the first place. This practice, done daily, will help increase your awareness and the level of calm in your life.

Let’s Review

Life will always be unpredictable, filled with circumstances and events out of your control. The way to navigate through tough times is by focusing on all that you can control. This pandemic has opened the eyes of the world to what truly matters, what never did, and how fragile life can be. It is not enough to prepare your pantry and refrigerator with foods that will give you a strong and healthy immune system. If you’re worrying, living in a fearful state, and not taking care of your soul’s needs, you’ll continue to lower your vibration every day.

Set boundaries for your mental health, create space to allow your emotions to surface, and cultivate a practice of awareness into your daily routine. Even after the chaos of the world begins to settle, and life proceeds to merge into a new normal, these 3 ways of improving your health will still be just as significant. Don’t ignore the relationship you have with yourself because it’s uncomfortable to face. Start by bringing your attention to the parts of you that need it the most. Be gentle as you adopt these practices into your daily routine and be kind to the person you are becoming. Life does not get easier, but you do get better, as long as you keep going consciously.

Love, light, and kindness my friends.

Posted in Healing, Practices

Transcending Darkness Into Light

Posted on by Sabrina Renee

 

In what ways are you loving yourself?

 

A great way to find the answer to that question is to listen to the voice inside your head that responds to the question. Take a moment to be the awareness behind the answer that pops up for you.

 

Was the voice defensive?

How did it feel to answer that question?

Were you able to answer quickly or was it something to think about?

Are you happy or displeased with the answers?

 

 

Truthfully the answers that surface for you are neither right nor wrong. This exercise is simply expanding your awareness of how your thinking already works. As humans, we layer up our experiences with judgments that later turn into beliefs that ultimately decide the course of our growth. Either people are growing toward loving themself deeper or they are moving further away. Only by asking questions about your relationship with yourself can you begin to expand your awareness of self. Learn who you are, who you were, and start to create the visual of who it is you wish to become.

 

 

The dark is costing you the light

By remaining in the same spot, with the same knowledge, surrounded by the same energy all of which are holding you back from thriving, you are living in the dark. The dark is a great place to hide. Plenty of people turn the lights off to particular parts of their life because it hurts too much to face, or rocks the very foundation of who they’ve chosen to be. But just because something is placed in the dark doesn’t remove it from existence. It simply means it’s taking up more dark energy than light. You are feeding the energy of lack, resistance, negativity, and denial of your truth. 

 

The light, however, is a place of creation and higher frequency. The light in your life shines to help illuminate the way ahead. In order to live in a world of light, all things must surface and be acknowledged. All things that have been pushed away in the deepest corners of your past have the capacity to transcend into the light. Once you allow the dark to surface, it can be seen for what it truly is and loved entirely, not in spite of anything.

 

Choosing light over darkness is the way to unconditional love. Therefore when you express love to the dark parts of who you are, love will embody that experience. The more you choose to love, the more you choose to feed the energy of abundance, allowance, growth, and acceptance of your true self. 

 

When you choose love you choose to steer yourself toward a healthy relationship with yourself, first and foremost, and then with others. When you choose to see the light where there is darkness you slowly begin to build a peaceful resilience within yourself. Being able to forgive your past pain while simultaneously allowing it to create a more evolved version of self. Both light and love are principle foundations for a successful, compassionate, and strong relationship with who you are, as well as who you’re becoming. Which will, in turn, open the doors of opportunity to thrive in relationships with family, friends, and loved ones. Being at peace with yourself means not letting things outside of you define you because you are confident in the person you are. The power over your emotions and mindset will always reside within you.

 

 

So what is it costing you?

Now that you understand the power of bringing the darkness to light, it’s time to do just that. Take stock of the areas of life you haven’t been ready to face, handle, or deal with properly. There is a proper season for living in darkness, life gets hard and sometimes unexpectedly crippling, but it’s not meant to be a forever destination. At some point, you have to shine the light on your needs, your desires, and the inner healing it will take to get there.

 

Focus on the voice inside that answers your questions. Start asking yourself more proactive questions about how you’re treating yourself.

Are you neglecting your needs and desires for the benefit of others?

When you neglect your needs, what are you losing and gaining?

When pouring from an empty cup, how is it impacting the person you are becoming? 

What values are you aligning with?

What are you losing as a result?

 

Shifting from a dark season of life into one of light and love will not be easy. It will challenge the parts of you that haven’t built up immunity yet. You’ll feel tired, weak, and possibly want to quit on yourself. Keep going. It’s in these moments of exhaustion that you’re building the next version of yourself. The result of loving yourself by transcending darkness into light is a glorious and peaceful place to live. The road to it, however, may not feel as such. Keep the end result in mind and honor the struggle that this journey brings. Each hard decision you make, each time you cut out negative behavior, each time you set a boundary to keep yourself safe, you teach yourself a lesson. If you’re being aware of these lessons you won’t make the same mistake twice.

 

There is so much to learn and so much to love about yourself. Turn the lights on to your true self.

Check out this podcast episode titled Love vs Fear: Seeing is Believing