TALK + MEDITATION: RELEASING FEAR, ANXIETY + LIMITING BELIEFS FROM YOUR BODY AND MIND
In the midst of times of either personal crisis or collective community crisis, it is both necessary and imperative for our own well-being that we are discerning about the people and the messaging that we allow into our lives.
Extended periods of receiving anxiety-provoking information - whether in a community health crisis or in chronic illness or long-term toxic relationships, create a cumulative impact on our nervous system and adrenal glands.
Like carrying a cement cinder block, most of us can carry one or two, and keep moving though the strain and discomfort, but with every additional block placed on our backs, after an initial energy burst when our nervous system spikes in attempts to carry the heavier load, we quickly fatigue and sink lower and lower into the ground.
Fear is a visceral reaction in our body. We feel it deeply. The problem being, while we may intellectually understand the difference between non-life-threatening fear and life-threatening fear, our bodies don’t always understand the difference. We can experience the same heart-racing, chest-pounding, muscle-clenching response, whether we’re just watching the news and absorbing the collective fear of anxiety-provoking stories, or whether we ourselves are in distress. ::
When we think about our Black, Indigenous and racialized families and community members, we need to remember that this fear response isn’t new. Racialized, Trans, Queer, and Disabled individuals, along with those who experience pervasive oppression-based trauma don’t have the luxury or the privilege of fear being a novel or new experience. We’re already two cinder blocks deep, before a new crisis kicks in.
So, how do we release excess fear from our bodies and our minds? How do we cleanse and detoxify and take our power back before we crash? Before we risk our most sacred health and relationships?
JOURNALLING QUESTIONS:
Where do you feel fear in your body? Where do you feel anxiety? What physical sensations do you notice your body is displaying to alert you, that your nervous system is in over-drive?
Do you have discouraging thoughts or languaging that you find yourself reverting back to, during times of worry? What self-limiting beliefs come out of hibernation when you feel emotionally taxed?
What cinder blocks are you currently carrying? Some of these can be joyful (but, still require energy), such as caring for children or loved ones. Sometimes these can feel exhausting, like carrying the weight of “fear of getting sick” // “fear of dying” // “fear of a loved one dying” // “fear of going into work at a frontline job” // “fear of financial collapse” // “fear of past pain or trauma resurfacing”
Are you a Black, Indigenous or racialized individual? A member of the Two Spirit, LGBTQQIA+ community? Elderly or living with a developmental disability? Fear is not a new experience for many in these communities. When evaluating the amount of news you can absorb or the amount of heaviness you can carry for loved ones, it’s important to remember that we are already carrying a few cinder blocks, just moving about in the world.
List ten people or activities that uplift you:
Can you re-write each of your limiting beliefs, shifting your perspective to focus on being gentle, nurturing or more tender with yourself?
Please feel free to comment or send me a personal email at: carla@infiniteoceans.com to share your answers.
xo Carla