inner peace
Give Your Nervous System A Break
Given the fast pace of today’s world, the expectations of others, as well as the pressure we place on ourselves, giving our nervous system a break, and understanding the ways to support and strengthen this system, is physically, emotionally and spiritually important.
Stress is something we all experience – some more than others. Those of us who are empathic, psychic, or highly sensitive, can experience stress more intensely with more profound consequences.
The stress that empaths, psychics and sensitives experience may be tied to that of another person, or situation, as well as their own stress. This ability to experience the emotions, thoughts and feelings of others can create a rebound effect of high stress.
Racing heart, anxiety, quickening of breathing, tensing of muscles, sweating, feeling faint or nauseous, are all signs of a nervous system in flight mode. Add in the compounded impact of experiencing this in another person, on top of yourself, and your nervous system is off and running, literally.
The body’s ‘fight or flight response’ is controlled by the sympathetic nervous system, which is one part of the autonomic nervous system. The other part is the parasympathetic nervous system, which works to relax and slow down the body’s response.
The sympathetic system acts like an accelerator, to ‘rev up’ our body and make us run, to remove us from danger. The parasympathetic system acts like the ‘brake,’ slowing us down when danger isn’t present.
Spiritual Courage
When most of us hear the word courage, certain ideas come to mind of going beyond our normal range of responses to life, or beyond our perceived comfort zone. We may think of courage as standing up to a bully, or taking a risk in life, or leaping forward in blind faith.
Not only are we treading into new territory when we engage courage, but we are leaving behind an old pattern or belief system that has prevented us from stepping beyond what we have feared most. To be courageous and to step beyond our fears, we need to be willing to succeed, or fail.
Failure to most people means not meeting a goal. But what if failure also means to remain stagnant? When we look at courage to help us break free of limiting circumstances or beliefs, it becomes easier to be courageous, because we see that not being courageous has only kept us trapped in repeat cycles. Furthermore, to varying degrees, it often causes unhappiness in an area of our life.
I had a male friend who looked much younger than his age, and always looked happy. When I asked him what his secret was, he simply replied, “Courage.” He said he would do something to scare the pants off himself at least once a month! I laughed, but saw the point he was making.
He loved being in nature. He would ski off huge cliffs, go skydiving, and participated in many other activities that take guts to do. My friend is on the Other Side now, but he visits me often with his message of courage.
Spiritual Or Religious?
There are those of us who describe ourselves as “spiritual, but not religious.” But what does that really mean? Spirituality can be defined in many different ways, and it is a very personal matter.
Everyone has the right to decide for themselves what belief system or philosophy resonates most with their heart. In my view, there are many different spiritual paths that all lead to the same destination.
To be spiritual, for me, is to practice being kind to others and myself. It is simply about the ‘golden rule’ of treating others the way you wish to be treated. Truly spiritual people, no matter what their personal beliefs or values may be, are appreciative of life’s blessings and practice gratitude daily.
Spiritually aware people have hope and faith. They look at life challenges as possibilities and opportunities, instead of as limitations and setbacks. They strive to see the glass half full, as opposed to half empty.
Spiritual people also have compassion for others, and all life forms. They are usually concerned about global issues. They respect the natural environment and see the beauty in the world around them. The simple things in life become the extraordinary things bring them joy. Look at trees, mountains, ocean, birds, animals, flowers and plants! That is what I called my church. How can one be out in nature, surrounded by all its beauty, and not believe in something greater than yourself?
Spiritual people are always aiming to become better people. It’s about living your own truth, living with principles and integrity. They realize that money does not necessarily bring happiness and fulfillment, which is not to say that one cannot be wealthy and happy at the same time. I know some very wealthy people that are highly spiritual, happy and grateful, doing good things for the world we live in. Wealth often affords people the ability to contribute to making the world a better place.
Miracles Are Real
Our first family dog was a lovable, crazy beagle. She was the light of our lives and I adored her so much. She also reminded me of the power of intention and that miracles happen in our lives every day.
She was only six years old when she started showing signs of back discomfort. It was wrongly diagnosed and she was put on muscle relaxant medication, but it got worse. Eventually she could not move at all. That morning she screamed and was in so much pain, it was unbearable. I begged the vet to refer me to the specialty animal hospital.
I needed to do all I could to save her life. She was part our family and I couldn’t imagine life without her. So, I rushed her to the city, once I got the referral. When I walked in, carrying her, she was seen immediately by a neurologist. Thank God for him. He took one look at her and sedated her, as she was in so much pain. He then did a brain scan, to see what the problem was.
The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan showed she had a herniated disc in her neck. The MRI also showed a piece of bone that had somehow broken off and had moved into a dangerous position. Fortunately, the vet said the cervical spine was the better place, rather than lower back, to have this kind of problem, as treatment and recovery in this area is more likely to be successful.
He did add, however, that the little piece that had broken off was too close to her spinal cord and had moved, so he could not get to it during surgery. He would have to leave it where it was, since he was not able to reach it. He said it may cause her some discomfort, but nothing more. He said it was possible it could shift over time, but hopefully would not cause more damage.
So, I said yes to the surgery. I just had to have faith.
Seeing The Real World Of The Heart
As a woman and mother, I have questions about things happening in my world. As an intuitive empath, I receive questions that others have about things happening in their world. A recent experience sums up what I consider to be the most reliable source of inner wisdom, and where answers can be accessed by all of us.
I was awake one night with the energetic sensation of a specific situation permeating my experience. I could feel the energy in each expansion of my chest, as I inhaled. It filled my every breath, my every sense. My mind questioned, but I heard the guiding whisper of God in my soul say, “The real world is in the heart.”
There are spiritual dimensions of reality that are deeper, finer, subtler, more substantial than what is evident on the surface in the physical world. The door that opens to them is within the heart. There is truly more than meets the eye.
This realization reminded me of the illustration plates in the anatomy section of my parents’ encyclopedia, which fascinated me when I was a child. It wasn’t the human body per se that so intrigued me; it was the way the transparencies overlaid one another to form the whole picture.
At the top of them all was the skin, creating a picture of a human the way I was accustomed to see. As I turned the first page, I got a glimpse of something I had felt but never seen directly before with my eye, namely muscles. Page by page continuously showed deeper levels of anatomy beneath the surface, including the circulatory system, organs, and skeleton.
Soul Group Zen Connections
I love when you meet a new friend and they are on the same wavelength. It usually feels like you have known them forever and you can just talk for hours, completely losing track of time. Time does fly when we connect with those who are in the same soul group.
I recently had the rare experience of talking with someone who, like me, is also intuitive, emphatic, sensitive, and loves the Tarot and crystals. It was a blessing and rare opportunity to talk to someone with whom I have so much in common on a spiritual level.
We soon discovered that we have both learned to set up healthy boundaries in our lives, including with our in-laws. We also lived in the same city for the first five years of our lives. There are also many other personal things we have in common.
I call this state of resonance with someone or something ‘to be in zen.’ When we are in zen with someone, we are connecting with a kindred spirit. It happens smoothly and easily, as our energy is in alignment with our own truth and theirs. No hang-ups, no snares, no issues, no resistance.
I also believe we are divinely guided towards those who share our soul group. Like attracts like, and this creates a positive domino effect with everything just smoothly energized and aligned. Our health, happiness, well-being benefit from it on all levels.
My Spirit Guide once put it to me like this and it makes perfect sense: “When you go through life not recharged or reenergized, you tend to not connect well spiritually.” There are many ways to recharge our spiritual batteries, including meditation, a healthy lifestyle, being charitable, and so on.
Letting Go Of Those Old Branches
As winter arrives, it is always a time of reflection for me. Winter storms are so bittersweet. They are beautiful, but they also can be very destructive. In a winter storm last year, I have observed some of the strongest, oldest trees losing their branches. Those large branches were the first to snap. They looked so strong and have weathered so many storms, yet they could not withstand the wind.
As I analyzed the results of that winter storm, the realization came to me that the smaller, more supple branches had the ability to bend with the strong winds. The large, majestic branches, however, had become rigid over the years and broke easily in the powerful, icy wind.
The same principle could apply in our lives. How well we handle a challenging situation will depend on our ability to remain flexible and adapt. A very strong, experienced person may appear on the surface to be able to move mountains and handle most situations with ease. But if that same person is unwilling to listen, refuses to compromise with others and cannot remain open-minded, they will most likely be doing a lot of ‘snapping’ when facing adversity.
If we can ‘bend’ to at least agree to disagree with others, and keep a more flexible, adaptive attitude in difficult times, it makes life a lot easier to maintain harmony with the world. If tunnel vision is how we choose to see life, it is impossible to see that others may also be right sometimes, or have a better solution. When we become rigid, stiff, closed and inflexible, it becomes harder to see the bigger picture and to have a more peaceful approach to life.
When we are rigid and think our way is the only way, it is also hard to make and keep lasting relationships. In a group situation there are always people that see the opposite side any situation for a problem. Sometime these people may play devil’s advocate. They listen to each point of view to arrive at a compromise.