The importance of creating some sort of daily practice for ourselves has never felt more important and necessary, at least that's my experience. Each day, in my therapeutic practice, I hear and feel the pressures we're under, the overstimulation, the layering of past, present and future expectations that we are carrying. It's no wonder we experience difficulty sleeping, increased anxiety, feelings of overwhelm, profound grief and sadness which often can lead to shutdown and collapse of the system.
Right about now you may be thinking how
tired you are of hearing about how you can moderate and reduce these stress related responses....try this, this is what helps, etc. Commercialism and hyper capitalism materializes our experience, our resources and our identities, it's no wonder that you may recoil at the thought of taking on something else to do, to follow, to ascribe and identify with. I completely understand. There are however innate biophysical reactions and responses that are triggered by our environment, both external and internal environments and that can be neutralized by our ability to regain balance within ourselves.
This ability to recognize the body's communication, (the emotional, mental as well as the physical body), when we are in the far ends of the spectrum of pressure vs. ease, is an innate and miraculous gift. It does require attention, however, and awareness to be able to read your body's response as communication and invitation to auto correct. Usually, we resist and push forward, we avoid and ,and ignore until we can ignore no more. We actually go so far as to call ourselves weak for feeling the emotions and sensations we may feel and sense due to the pressure's we're carrying. We really can't be blamed for this, we do this naturally, we're wired to push, survive, focus on the negative and to fear. After all, two of our oldest brains only purpose is to focus on what's wrong and to utilize the energy that comes from fear to survive. We can't help it. We can however, also engage innate systems that regulate, nourish, comfort and heal whatever is requiring healing in us. Thorough our Parasympathetic nervous systems activities and Ventral Vagal functions we can nudge the body of the edge of the precipice of fear and stress.
With tools, practice and an active curiosity we can increase awareness for ourselves and especially for our most fearful parts whose true aim is to protect. This awareness and ability to create this context of recognition, acceptance and change requires practice however. I wish things could be easier for us, i wish our thoughts/emotions could instantaneously and permanently create the patterns that can sustain and expand healthy ways of being in our life. It is not this way, as you may well know. We carry with us, eons of DNA data in our cells, transferred from generation to generation that continue to inform and pull in the direction of fear which had been so helpful to our survival in the past. The good news, however is that our neurology is also neuroplastic in its ability to adapt, change, expand and release and our very cells, imprinted by eons of trauma, can function in new contexts in an evolutionarily, innovative and epigenetic way. Is it easy? well no, of course. Can it be done, yes of course, but it requires PRACTICE. Lots of PRACTICE. Continuous PRACTICE. Imagine the pull, the drag, the evolutionary purpose and benefit of keeping these old patterns in place, regardless of the corrosive consequences to our bodies, minds and emotional states. It will default again and again, this is why daily, constant practice is necessary.
Through a daily practice of acknowledging the experience of being human, living within polarized systems so difficult to control, we can begin to create a platform where the pressurized information/sensations/emotions/beliefs can be met with more space, more acceptance and lovingly nudged to find that more neutral space of experiencing life. You may already do many things in your life that you consider a daily practice, that help, support, contain, nourish and expand you in healthy ways and if you're honest, you may begin to notice what happens to your experience of your life when that practice recedes. It's just how it is. I invite you to read through this list, it is just a small sample and an invitation to use it as you like. My hope is that you may find something useful and that it may inspire you to research and learn more ways to create the daily practice that can help especially when you find yourself in that far end of the spectrum of pressurized existence. With practice you may find that there are more inner resources to experience life from when you do it from a more neutral and resourced place. Enjoy.