questions to find out :
- Do you get overwhelmed by stimuli such as lights, noises, and smells?
- Do other people’s moods and emotions deeply affect you?
- Are you easily startled?
- Do you become uneasy when someone is watching you complete a task?
- Do you become tired easily after a “normal” day of activity?
- Are you aware of other things in your environment that most other people are not aware of?
- Do you become agitated or anxious when you have a lot of tasks to do and not enough time to complete all of them?
- Do you avoid disturbing or violent movies, books, or T.V. shows?
- Do you feel the need to escape and retreat when there is too much going on around you?
- Are you deeply interested in the arts or music?
- Do you dislike changes in your life?
- Do you enjoy delicate tastes, scents, sounds, soft fabrics, or beautiful works of art?
- Have you always been labeled as shy or sensitive by other people?
- Are you overly conscientious?
- Do you seem to be more sensitive to pain than other people?
- Are you sensitive to certain foods such as foods containing caffeine, sugar or alcohol?
- Do you become unpleasant when you are hungry?
- Do you easily sense the energies of places or situations?
- Are you easily touched by others' experience, stories of kindness, and courage?
- Are you attracted to the deeper things such as spirituality, self-development and philosophy?
- Do you need time alone?
- Are your feelings easily bruised?
- Do you have a vivid imagination?
If you answered "yes" to the majority or all of the questions listed above, you are most likely a highly sensitive person. If you answered yes to only a few of the questions listed above, you may still be considered a highly sensitive person.
Friday, August 14, 2009
are you a highly sensitive person (HSP) ?
The definition of the Highly Sensitive Persons ( HSPs )
In defining the Highly Sensitive Persons , Dr. Aron provides examples of characteristic behaviors, and these are reflected in the questions she typically asks patients or interview subjects:
- Are you easily overwhelmed by such things as bright lights, strong smells, coarse fabrics, or sirens nearby?
- Do you get rattled when you have a lot to do in a short amount of time?
- Do you make a point of avoiding violent movies and TV shows?
- Do you need to withdraw during busy days, into bed or a darkened room or some other place where you can have privacy and relief from the situation?
- Do you make it a high priority to arrange your life to avoid upsetting or overwhelming situations?
- Do you notice or enjoy delicate or fine scents, tastes, sounds, or works of art?
- Do you have a rich and complex inner life?
- When you were a child, did your parents or teachers see you as sensitive or shy?
Dr. Aron explains that in the past HSPs have been called "shy," "timid," "inhibited," or "introverted," but these labels completely miss the nature of the trait. Thirty percent of HSPs are actually extraverts. HSPs only appear inhibited because they are so aware of all the possibilities in a situation. They pause before acting, reflecting on their past experiences. If these were mostly bad experiences, then yes, they will be truly shy. But in a culture that prefers confident, "bold" extraverts, it is harmful as well as mistaken to stigmatize all HSPs as shy when many are not.
Attributes and Characteristics of Being Highly Sensitive
Emotionally, Highly Sensitive People (HSP) are mainly seen as shy, introverted and socially inhibited (or can be socially extroverted). They are often acutely aware of other's emotions. Sensitive people learn early in life to mask their wonderful attributes of sensitivity, intuition and creativity.
Physically, HSPs may have low tolerance to noise, glaring lights, strong odors, clutter and/or chaos. They tend to have more body awareness of themselves and know instinctually when the environment they are in is not working for them.
Socially, introverted HSP may feel like misfits. They actually enjoy their own company and are totally comfortable being alone. Both introverted and socially extroverted HSP often find they need time alone to recover after social interactions.
Psychologically, HSPs compensate for their sensitivity by either protecting themselves by being alone too much, or, by trying to be 'normal' or sociable which then over-stimulates them into stress.
Work and career is particularly challenging for HSPs. They are often overlooked for promotions even though they are usually the most conscientious employees. They are excellent project oriented employees because they are responsible and thorough in their work.
Relationships can be difficult. In relationships they may be confronted with their unresolved personal issues. They can however, offer their partner the gifts of their intuitive insights.
Culturally, HSPs do not fit the tough, stoic and outgoing ideals of modern society and what is portrayed in the entertainment media.
Childhood wounds have a more devastating effect on HSPs. It is important for them to heal their past hurts because they cannot just forget them and go on in denial.
Spiritually, sensitive people have a greater capacity for inner searching. This is one of their greatest blessings.
Nutritionally, HSPs may need more simplicity in their diet. They may be vitally aware of the effects of food on the health of their body and their emotional stability.
Overwhelming Stimuli
HSPs respond strongly to external stimuli, and become exhausted from taking in and processing these stimuli. They are born with a nervous system that may see, hear, smell or feel more than others. As adults, they may also think, reflect or notice more than others. The processing is largely unconscious or body-conscious. HSPs grow up feeling flawed, especially when loud music, crowds of people, or simply a busy day stresses them. At such times, they need quiet time alone to recover.
Childhood
Problems can begin in childhood if their sensitivities are not recognized. They can experience deep trauma, even in the womb if they were not wanted. Highly sensitive babies are more peaceful when alone. Certain people terrify them; toy mobiles upset them, rocking irritates them, and changes in weather make them restless. They may be colicky, and their digestive systems may not tolerate food that is too hot or too cold. If the needs of the baby are ignored the child becomes insecure.
Sensitive babies are also very creative and aware. They may walk early or smile a lot. As infants and toddlers they may experience sensory overload from the newness of things. When old enough, they spend time alone to regain their balance and energy.
iam a sensitive person
I am a sensitive person. Please don't tell me that I shouldn't be this way. It's the way I am, much as you are the way you are. Accept me for myself as I accept you for yourself.
I am an adult who sometimes has the need to cry. It takes a lot of courage to do that, more than you can possibly imagine. Please don't remind me that in our society grownups don't cry. Some of us do, difficult though it may be, and you trivialize and diminish me when you attach shame to this act.
I often feel what you feel. Your emotions become mine. I cannot explain this, it is just part of my gift. I am not trying to frighten you. When you communicate with me, at times I will see very deeply into your innermost nature. Perhaps without knowing, you are laying bare your soul, and later on, you might be anxious about this, or even angry with me. But this is something that just happens. It is not something I've asked for; sometimes I see things that I would rather not see, and I learn things that I would much prefer not to know, especially if you are deceitful or trying to hurt. Please understand, though, that I will keep your confidences, I will not betray your thoughts and feelings, and above all I will not use what I learn to hurt you, even if you are trying to hurt me.
My gift is a gift from God, and like all such gifts, I did not request it and often don't want it. Yet, I was given it for a reason, and it is not for me to question. With this gift is attached much responsibility and much difficulty. I know I am to use this gift for the good of others. Please allow me to do so, but please give me the understanding and the space that I need, for sometimes it becomes more than I can bear and I must withdraw for a little while, lest I become unable to cope.
But my friendship and caring is without limit and is yours for as long as you wish it. As a sensitive person I am capable of deep emotion, genuine feeling, and abiding love. I treasure relationships, and though I don't make a lot of them, the ones I do make are lasting and meaningful.
I place before you my gifts and my talents, ****ets and my flaws, my achievements and my failures, my hopes and my mission, and, ultimately, what I am. I ask only acceptance and understanding. Grant me that much.
Highy Sensitive People Are Talented
Highly Sensitive People are very often talented, whether they know it or not.
As a general rule, their sensitive nature actually brings them closer to their innate talents
We all have our unique talents.
Here are some pointers on how one can go about unearthing hidden talents:
When you connect with your Source,
you will unearth talents you never dreamed you had.
- - - Wayne Dyer
We can connect with our Source Energy, or God through our "Higher Selves"
Every one of us has our own unique talents.
(... Although Some of us can not speak about them in public. [image] )
Many of us just haven’t found them yet.
When you connect with your higher self, you become more and more like your "Ideal self".
You feel better, you think better,, you become happier.
You'll become more enthusiastic, and more passionate.
These powerful feelings are what can promote or activate the talents within you.
Why are Highly Sensitive People more talent more than those who are (unfortunately) normal?
* Our feelings are often more intense than our less fortunate normal cousins.
* We are more likely to pay attention to detail.
* Our attention to detail can be documented in art and our writings.
* We feel more and are more passionate about what we do
* Our greater passions and drives may come from a desire to prove to the world that we are worthy
Famous Highly Sensitive Persons ( HSPs )
actors/actresses
Woody Allen - Judy Garland - Jim Carey - Mira Sorvino - Adrien Brody - Melanie Griffith - Kim Basinger - Anthony Hopkins - Drew Barrymore - Glenn Close - Mr. Rogers - Andy Kaufman - Jon Favreau - Greta Garbo - Joaquin Phoenix - Elijah Wood - Kevin Kline - Kenneth Williams - David Hyde Pierce
writers
Edgar Allen Poe - Ralph Waldo Emerson - Emily Dickinson - W.B. Yeats - Paul Celan - The Bronte Sisters - Marcel Proust - Virginia Woolf - Marina Tsvetaeva - Jean-Jacques Rousseau - Sir Thomas Moore - E.E. Cummings - Hermann Hesse - Sylvia Plath - Anne Sexton - Allen Ginsburg - Fyodor Dostoevsky - Anton Chekhov - James Baldwin - Angela Carter - Kahlil Gibran - DH Lawrence - Henry David Thoreau - Robert Frost - Walt Whitman - Tennessee Williams - Wendell Berry - Rabindranath Tagore - Yukio Mishima - Paul Celan - Primo Levi - Charles Baudelaire - Franz Kafka - Deepak Chopra - Marianne Williamson - Spike Milligan - Selma Lagerl?f - Thomas Mann
artists
Leonardo Da Vinci - Vincent Van Gogh - Salvador Dali - Georgia O'Keefe - Picasso - Frida Kahlo - Frank Lloyd Wright
Musicians
Beethovan - Mozart - Morrissey - Tori Amos - Bjork - Jewel - Celine Dion - Babyface - Jean Sibelius - Shostakovich - Roky Eriksson - Sid Barrett - John Coltrane - Neil Young - Janis Ian - P.J. Harvey - Lara Fabian
others
Abraham Lincoln - Franklin D. Roosevelt - Harry S. Truman - Martin Luther King - Malcolm X - Jimmy Carter - Thomas Beckett - Steven Spielberg - Kate Bush - Hildegard von Bingen - Princess Diana - Elisabeth, Empress of Austria - Carl Jung - Einstein - Newton - Edison - Christy Turlington - Dalai Lama - Buddha - Jane Goodall - Mother Teresa - Eleanor Roosevelt - Saint Francis - Joseph Campbell - Ingmar Bergman - Gandhi
How can you take advantage of your talents?
First of all, think positively about being sensitive.
I know I do.... Because the key to activating these talents within us,
is to look positively at ourselves, and feel good about being sensitive.
Realizing that we do have our unique talents - is especially important.
Once we can see them, we need to work with them to fully activate them.
I write whenever I can, and that has lead me to the recent breakthrough of becoming much more prolific.
I have been blogging my ideas extensively over the last few days.
It's been like a faucet that wasn't turning off, and so I just kept going (following my bliss)
Where I once have had trouble even with small posts in the past,
now it just flows out, and I don't always know where it all is coming from, but I know it's good.
These concepts are a part of our "sensitive" human nature,
and I can guarantee it will work for you - if you stick with it.
Follow your bliss and have a joyous life
Highly Sensitive Persons in Love
Highly sensitive people accept & offer love differently. Some highly sensitive people fall in love faster & harder than "regular" people, & others avoid love altogether.
Highly sensitive people don't necessarily have introverted personality traits, and they view love, intimate relationships, and romance differently.
"In respect to falling in love, my research suggests that highly sensitive people do fall in love harder than others," says Dr Elaine Aron in The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You. But, highly sensitive people don't fall in love indiscriminately, and are known to avoid it completely.
"Highly sensitive people vary more than others in the kinds of arrangements they work out in [love], choosing being single more often than the general population, or firmer monogamy, or close relationships with friends and family members rather than romance," writes Dr Aron.
Sensitive Love: Highly Sensitive People Love Deeply
Feelings of overwhelming, intense love happen more often to highly sensitive people because they're more easily aroused by external and internal stimuli. "Arousal" in this case doesn't simply refer to intimate feelings; highly sensitive people are more sensitive to sounds, sights, and touches. Their nervous systems are fine-tuned and they're in touch with the moods of other people.
Why Sensitive Love is Often Rejected
When highly sensitive people reveal their intense love, they're often rejected. Their love can be too demanding, unrealistic, and smothering. Highly sensitive people may have "no real understanding of the loved one, only some impossible vision of perfection."
Dr Aron states that the intense feelings of highly sensitive people often have little to do with the person they love. This sensitive love is more about intense pent-up feelings that are finally allowed out. In this way, highly sensitive people are similar to introverts.
Highly Sensitive Love: Understanding Overwhelming Love
Highly sensitive people tend towards two extremes in love: overly cautious or overly intense. Dr Aron reassures us that this is normal: many people, highly sensitive or not, do lean towards one extreme or the other. This is why fear of intimacy is common: most of us have been burned in love at one time or another.
The fact that highly sensitive people are easily aroused by their environment makes them more prone to falling in love. Research shows that when people – highly sensitive or not – are aroused, they're more likely to fall in love. Arousal includes more than a sexual state; it's emotional, intellectual, social, and spiritual as well. "…we are more likely to be romantically attracted to someone else if we are aroused in any way, even from running in place or listening to a tape of a comedy monologue," says Dr Aron.
Sensitive Love, Highly Sensitive People, & Low Self-Esteem
Another reason highly sensitive people may experience quick, intense love is low self-esteem. "Highly sensitive people are prone to low self-esteem because they are not their culture's ideal. Sometimes they consider themselves lucky if someone wants them at all." The fear of being alone can induce a highly sensitive person – or anyone at all – to fall in love when they otherwise wouldn't.
Highly sensitive people are more likely to have strong, healthy love relationships when they and their lovers understand and accept the nature of their personality type.
14 Success Strategies For Highly Sensitive People
1. Accept your sensitivity.
Your sensitivity is a gift. I know it doesn’t always feel like it. But it is. I spent more than half of my life denying that I was a highly sensitive. Until you acknowledge and say “yes” to your sensitivity you cannot begin to learn the tools that will help you leverage that sensitivity into a positive benefit.
2. Choose to empower your sensitivity rather than minimize it.
It has taken me many years to get to the place where I can truly claim my sensitivity and use it as a powerful tool on my journey of self-discovery and deliberate creation. As a Highly Sensitive Person in an often over stimulating world, dampening your sensitivity sometimes seems like the best solution. And while that may be helpful, and even necessary, at first, ultimately you want to empower your sensitivity and turn it into a powerful ally in the creation of a truly brilliant life.
3. Spend time with other sensitive people.
It is very easy to get caught up in the stress and overload of our frenetic, chaotic world. Sometimes it seems as if there is no one else as sensitive as you. And from that thought it’s a short slide down the slippery slope into feeling like you are crazy or weird or strange. So find some other folks who are highly sensitive and create a support group where you can go for encouragement and to remind each other that you are not alone and that you are not crazy. One important note on this: This group is not a complain and whine group! The point is not to compare notes on how horrible and insensitive the rest of the world is. You connect with other Highly Sensitive People in order to know that you are not alone and discuss ways to leverage your sensitivity to create positive changes in your lives!
4. Hang out with successful, not-so-sensitive people.
I know this seems like a contradiction of the last one. But I have seen it happen (in myself and others) where a sensitive person basically says “screw you” to the rest of the world and all of the less sensitive people and finds someplace to curl up in a little ball and hide. While this can certainly be a beneficial and sometimes necessary short-term strategy, it’s not an effective long-term solution. Those of us who are highly sensitive can learn a lot from people who are not sensitive. So find some not-so-sensitive people who are successful and begin hanging out with them. Observe them. Learn from them. Watch how they move through the world. Not so that you can dampen your sensitivity but so that you might learn how to bring your sensitivity into the world in a balanced manner.
5. Start a regular practice of “mindful exercise.”
Exercise is important for everyone. But especially so for Highly Sensitive People. Moving your body helps to get any environmental, emotional and energetic toxins out of your system. While any type of exercise is beneficial, workouts that incorporate your mind, body and spirit can be especially helpful. Try things like Yoga, Tai Chi, Akido. and Pilates. Dancing and rock-climbing can also be great opportunities for the body, mind and spirit to move. The bottom line is to find a form of exercise that touches YOUR body, mind and spirit.
6. Find HSP role models, sensitive people who have leveraged their sensitivity to create a great life.
Do you know any Highly Sensitive People who have learned to not only survive in this world, but thrive in it? What lessons can learn from them? What life strategies can you emulate? If you can’t find role models in your own life, look in the wider world. What teachers, authors, artists, and entrepreneurs (yes there are successful AND highly sensitive entrepreneurs) can you find? Once you find them, again look for lessons and strategies that they are using to leverage their sensitivity into success.
7. Gently push yourself beyond the level of your sensitivity.
Your sensitivity is a gift and strength. But in order for this gift to be of any value to you and to the world, you must learn how to put it into use. That means you have to stretch yourself and bring your sensitivity with you into places and situations where it feels uncomfortable. Just as you build muscle mass through resistance, you increase your ability to bring your sensitivity into the world by practicing and exercising.
8. Know your limits.
Don’t push yourself so far that you blow a fuse! Become aware of the internal signals that let you know you are reaching maximum capacity. And when you notice them back off. You want to push yourself and strengthen your sensitivity, but not to the point where it causes you to blow a fuse!
9. Set up a consistent self-care routine.
As a sensitive person you need more self care than others. Don’t compare yourself to less sensitive people. Get clear on your needs and take steps to ensure that those needs are met. If you need a massage every week, get one. If you need to take a bath with sea salts every night, do it. Your sensitivity is of no use if you are not able to function in the world!
10. Connect with nature as often as possible.
If there is one consistent theme I have found among sensitive people it is the restorative capacity of nature. Even if you live in a city get outside every day. Connect with a tree. If you don’t want to look strange, pretend you’re leaning up against it waiting for some. But while you’re there, feel the restorative, grounding energy flowing through that tree.
11. Create safe, sanctuary spaces.
It is very important for sensitive people to have safe spaces to go to when the world gets overwhelming. You need to know that no matter what is happening in the wider world, that you have a safe space, a sanctuary to which you can return and restore yourself. Ideally, your home is your sanctuary. If it’s not, start by taking a small space and turning it into a safe, private, sanctuary where you can go when you need quiet and solitude.
12. Limit your exposure to news.
In some ways, this one suggestion may be the easiest and most powerful success strategy for Highly Sensitive People. And yet, I find it amazing how often this suggestion triggers people. They feel that if they don’t read the newspaper they’ll be missing out on important information. My response is that if reading the newspaper makes you feel like crap what good does that information do for anyone. I would much rather see you feeling great and doing positive things in the world, than see you feeling depressed and hopeless because you’re reading too much news.
13. Explore energetic healing modalities.
My training at the Academy of Intuition Medicine has been the most powerful work in my quest to empower and balance my sensitive nature. Try acupuncture, homeopathy, reiki, energy medicine, flower essences and other forms of energetic healing. When you find one that works, schedule regular sessions.
14. Learn how to create positive energetic boundaries.
There are wonderful resources that can teach you to setup positive energetic boundaries. Start with my course, The Energetics of Attraction and explore Energy Medicine University (the distance learning wing of the Academy of Intuition Medicine). Read books by Caroline Myss, Donna Eden, and others. Once you venture into this world you will be amazed at how easily you are led to the information and teachers you need to get learn how to thrive in this world!
If you are a Highly Sensitive Person, I encourage you to begin using some of these strategies. Look through the list and pick one or two of these that resonate with you and begin integrating them into your daily life. You may be surprised at how quickly and dramatically your life can change when you actively employ success strategies specifically designed for Highly Sensitive People.
Please leave a comment below and let us know which of these strategies you already use and what other techniques you use as a sensitive person in this world.
The HSPs Subcultures
A brief explanation of these HSP subcultures, the tasks they each face, and the gifts they have to offer are below:
The Social Justice/Activist HSP
Deeply moved to action by injustices whether upon people or the environment. Usually dedicated to many causes to improve human and earthly conditions...view new paradigms for a new world.
Challenges: Being overwhelmed with too many causes, not finding like-minded support groups to work with, feeling isolated, and perhaps feeling judgmental of others.
Tasks: To find support, choose causes wisely, and realize that small changes do make a difference. Avoid burn out.
HSP Physical Reactor
HSPs who are unusually physically reactive to certain foods, noise, lights, stress. Physical reactions may include allergies, sweaty palms, nervousness, nausea, migraine headaches.
Challenges: Creating, seeking, or finding supportive environments which honor your physical sensitivities.
Task: Devoting investigative time to determine what triggers physical reactions and what alleviates the reactions. Accepting that not all people will understand these reactions.
Reserved Intellectual HSP
Usually introverts with keen intellect. May appear arrogant, but may not necessarily be that way.
Challenges: Finding ways and motivations to develop intellect and to share oneself and one's gifts with others and the world.
Tasks: Avoiding isolation, and learning to accept others of 'different' intellect. Reaching out, becoming involved.
Creative/Artistic HSP
Those HSPs who need to create and manifest their ideas or visions. Medium may be music, drama, art, ideas, books, poetry, painting, etc.
Challenges: Accepting, honoring and understanding the creative process and finding a medium for this expression.
Tasks: Learning how to manifest creative urges, finding support, education and time to create. Patience, perseverance.
The HSPs Healer
Medical doctors and alternative healers who are unusually intuitive using their gifts to offer healing to others. Alternative healing modalities may be Reiki, massage, medical intuitive, etc.
Challenge: Accepting one's gifts and finding expression for them.
Task: Finding support and encouragement from like minded individuals and learning to trust your own gifts and use them appropriately.
Empowered Priestly Advisor
Evidenced by energetic, purposeful and spiritual direction in their lives.
Challenges: Taking on too many causes and expecting others to think like them. Periods of loss of faith or "dark nights of the soul."
Tasks: Finding support and like-minded individuals to work with. Avoiding burn-out. Accepting small change as progress.
The HSPs in Transition
The person who has just discovered the trait of high sensitivity. May feel alone, misunderstood, judged, and may also feel relief at knowing about the trait.
Challenges: Self-identify, reframing, healing from past negativity about trait. Must learn to set boundaries and assert new self.
Tasks: Taking time to investigate the trait, set new boundaries, practice new coping skills.
The Core Issue HSP
The HSP from a traumatic, troubled and sometimes abandoned childhood. May have suffered from some type of abuse.
Challenge: Healing from past traumas, learning to integrate the HSP trait in a positive way.
Task: Reaching out for help, staying committed to 'recovery,' finding new kinds of support, friendship and community to be part of.
The Introverted Intellectual HSPs
Somewhat different from the "Reserved Intellectual HSP" in that this HSP is drawn either to the scientific fields of inquiry (The Thinker) or to the psycho-spiritual fields of study (The Feeler) (or both?).
Challenges: Self-identity, reframing, and perhaps readjusting to a new HSP self.
Tasks: Finding ways for self-expression and to share gifts with others and the world. Avoiding isolation. Accepting others who are 'different' from them.
Fortify Sensitive Kids
Children are likely to interpret and respond very differently to their experiences, depending on their temperament. Sensitive children are likely to be wonderfully compassionate, bright, creative and imaginative. They may also have a difficult time dealing with stressful situations and may be prone to being worried and anxious.
Of course, every child is an individual with his or her own unique traits. We don't want to label our children but at the same time, it's important to accept the nature of their temperaments. It's particularly important that we teach sensitive kids to handle stressful situations in a healthy, effective way. When children don't have a handle on anxiety, it's likely to escalate when they become teenagers. Children who struggle with anxiety are more susceptible to developing depression and mood disorders and anxious teens are at risk of becoming involved with drugs and alcohol in a desperate attempt to relieve their discomfort.
Rescuing Versus Empowering
As parents, we naturally modify our parenting to suit our child's temperament. However, when children go to school, they will interact with all sorts of children and teachers who will be unlikely to modify their behavior to suit our child's disposition. This can cause a sensitive child to become frustrated and anxious. There are times when it's appropriate to step in and help our children and there are times when they must learn to stand on their own two feet.
Parents of a sensitive child will continually be making judgment calls regarding how much their child can handle without assistance. However, whenever possible, work towards empowering your children to stick up for themselves. By jumping in to help our children too quickly, we teach them that they are helpless and that the things that happen to them are beyond their control. Learned helplessness is a surrender of the spirit. Remember, even though you're trying to be helpful, rescuing generally shows a lack of faith and reaffirms your child's belief that he (or she) does not have the ability to handle difficult situations.
Children Who Aim to Please
Sensitive children are often particularly susceptible and vulnerable to the actions and words of other children and adults and tend to get their feelings hurt easily. In some ways, when this happens, these sensitive children lose their childhood. Instead of being carefree and interacting joyously and freely with the world, they become overly self conscious and begin worrying about how people see and react to them. Often they "read" adults or peers as they anxiously watch for approval or disapproval. They are unable to enjoy the "here and now" as they constantly look ahead for a reward or a reaction.
"Sticks and Stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me."
As a child, you probably remember retorting these words when someone said something hurtful to you or called you a name. As a mother of two sensitive girls, I know how hard it is to see our children's feelings get hurt from a thoughtless or mean spirited remark. Although it can be quite a challenge to help our sensitive children not to take hurtful words personally, it's a worthwhile endeavor and one that will serve our children throughout their lives. Sensitive children are incredible-and their sensitivity is part of what makes them compassionate, empathetic, and loving. We don't want to change who they are. However, we don't want them to be overly vulnerable to insensitive or rude comments and actions.
Here are some suggestions to help sensitive children get their self-worth from inside themselves, rather than from the words and reactions of others.
Practice what you preach.
Many sensitive children have at least one sensitive parent. If you are overly sensitive to slights and thoughtless or rude comments that come your way, work on changing your reaction. You can be certain that your child is watching.
Help children understand that unhappy kids can be unkind.
Begin to teach your child that what other people say has more to do with that person than with him (or her.) Elementary school aged children can usually understand that people sometimes say mean things when they are unhappy or upset with themselves.
Remove poison arrows.
Teach your children that hurtful words are like poison arrows and that they need to remove them as soon as possible before they get under their skin. Get in the habit of saying "poison arrow" or "remove the stinger," when someone says something unkind or hurtful to you, then act as though you're actually pulling a poison arrow or stinger out of your skin. Have your child practice doing the same.
work/career
When it comes to work and careers for people with the trait of high sensitivity we recommend, whenever possible, to select a job that doesn't run counter to their trait of high sensitivity. And, if it is your partner who is highly sensitive, support them in finding an appropriate job or career that is suitable for their trait and temperament. One suggestion regarding work for highly sensitive people is to find a job where there isn't someone looking over their shoulder all the time, because HSP seem to work much better when they are given a project and then are left pretty much alone to accomplish it.
Because of their trait, highly sensitive person's nature is to be very conscientious and productive. They are by their nature very "project" oriented. However, when highly sensitive people are being closely observed or supervised they can become very uncomfortable and do not perform as well as they would if left more on their own. Some HSP may even begin to sweat, shake and become far less productive and efficient than when they're not being scrutinized.
Jim HallowesIf you are an employer and think one or more of your employees may have the trait of high sensitivity, we hope you'll learn to work with them in a way that will be most beneficial to everyone. As we've mentioned, highly sensitive people are usually very intelligent and are known for being extremely hard workers and make very loyal employees, particularly when their trait and temperament is understood and appreciated.
We realize this concept of people with a trait of highly sensitivity may meet with some skepticism and resistance. In fact, some employers may even want to dismiss it because it doesn't fit comfortably into their conventional thinking. This is unfortunate, but that seems to be the way it is right now and until the trait of high sensitivity is better known, accepted, understood and embraced by employers for all of its benefits, it may stay this way for awhile.
For actors and others in the creative fields, there are unique challenges and opportunities that face the highly sensitive person, and some of these are touched upon in the new Jim Hallowes interview about the trait of high sensitivity conducted by Douglas Eby of Talent Development Resources. Mr. Eby is famous for his many interviews with the likes of Patch Adams, M.D., Jodie Foster, William Hurt, Judith Orloff, M.D., Reese Witherspoon, James Woods, and others. You can listen to the recent 20-minute interview by clicking here: Douglas Eby interview with Jim Hallowes on the trait of high sensitivity.
Here are some suggestions that might help reduce stress on the job.
When you start to feel uncomfortable, stressed, or overwhelmed and feel you are losing control, as soon as possible move yourself into a different environment, even a short walk to the restroom can be very helpful.
When stressed or you start to feel overwhelmed, we suggest you do something...anything, because any physical activity, even just stretching your back or rolling you shoulders and taking a series of deep breaths, can give you a feeling of being more in control and help you work off negative energy.
Take care of yourself. Learn to say "No" when you don't have time to do something.
We have known highly sensitive people who have found that creating their own more comfortable "deadline" on a project can give them the psychological space and comfort zone they need to help reduce the pressure and stress and keep their bodies functioning effectively and efficiently.
Reduce large projects into "bite size" pieces. These new smaller units can be more comfortably handled one "bite" at a time.
relationships
Here are some thoughts when it comes to relationships. First, a suggestion: Take it slowly. We'll say it again, because we think it's that important. Take it slowly! One thing we've hear over and over again is that some Highly Sensitive People have a habit of moving their romantic relationships along a little too fast. It seems that women who are highly sensitive may be harmed by this more than highly sensitive men, but they aren't immune, either. We think it's probably because people with the trait of high sensitivity are so often very intuitive and they feel a new relationship is "right" and may tend to get intimate (sexually) too quickly. Unfortunately, often times "Mr. or Ms. Right" turns out to really be "Mr. or Ms. Wrong." And, when highly sensitive people move their relationships along too quickly and get intimate too soon, and because of hormone Oxytocin, younger women and older men often find themselves "bonded" to a not-so-nice person. We hope this has never happened to you, but if you've "been there and done that" you know what we're talking about.
We think it may be because highly sensitive people process deeply and are so feeling-based that they tend to get physically involved with the new person in their life well before they really get to know them. Just as importantly, before the new person in their life can get to know them and recognize them as being highly sensitive. It takes time to develop the knowledge to navigate successfully and create a Yin Yang Symbol harmonious relationship, a relationship respecting, understanding and accepting each others; different traits, characteristics and temperament, whatever they might be. In addition, we also recommend you consider looking for equity in a relationship, rather than equality, and look for someone who complements your personality. Let's hear it for Yin and Yang!
The Cost of Rejecting Your Sensitivity
I hear from many of you that you don’t want to “accept” being highly sensitive. It’s like if you give yourself permission to be who you really are, you’re giving in or even giving up somehow.
The problem with this is that when we disown parts of ourselves we’ve deemed unacceptable, we waste huge amounts of our precious life energy resisting or repressing them. Plus we usually end up making ourselves sick on some level — whether we’re soul sick or physically sick, trying to make ourselves be who we are not.
Why do we do this?
We repress, deny, and resist being highly sensitive because we’ve been programmed by our culture to believe that being highly sensitive is unacceptable. Particularly in American culture, the value is placed on being extroverted, logical, and unemotional. We’ve been told for years, “Oh, you’re just too sensitive.” And, “Stop being so emotional.” No wonder we fight it!
Here are some tips to help you get back on track:
1. Get a grip on your Inner Critic. So many sensitives have an internalized negative talk track that runs nonstop day and night.
Wrestle that Inner Critic into submission and put new, supportive self-talk habits in place by dismantling the common negative messages you’re telling yourself and replacing them with supportive thoughts (Want help with this? Mark your calendar for August 17th and 19th for my “Self-Acceptance and Inner Sanctuaries for Sensitive Souls” TeleSeminar series. Stay tuned for registration details).
Whenever you hear your Inner Critic pipe up, say, “Thanks for sharing, but I’m not interested,” and choose a new focus for your inner dialogue.
2. Value your reactions. Because we’ve internalized this idea that we’re not okay, sensitives tend to believe that our reactions are inappropriate or unacceptable. What if people don’t like your reaction because they don’t want to be called on their bad behavior? Gather information from your reactions rather than rejecting them, and make choices about what best supports you.
For example, if you’re feeling uncomfortable when someone asks you to pick them up from the airport, rather than ignoring it and saying yes, ask yourself, “What is this feeling telling me?” Give your response only once you have ALL the information.
3. Manage your fears, doubts, and worries. Create an “Inner Sanctuary” for yourself. Once you get your Inner Critic under control, you’ll also want to learn methods to soothe your fears, doubts, and worries so they aren’t running the show either. Remember, they are sourced from limiting beliefs designed to keep you fitting in and staying “safe,” but they aren’t serving your higher purpose, and they are NOT the wise voice of truth.
4. Focus on what is working. My coaching mentors always reminded me to focus on the 98% that IS working, not the tiny 2% that isn’t. Shift your focus to what IS flowing well for you, and enjoy it. Remember, what you focus on expands!
By Accepting Your High Sensitivity and Yourself For Who You REALLY Are, You Make Space for Your Beautiful Gifts to Show Up in the World
Rejecting your sensitivity costs you precious time and life energy that you could be investing in creating your dreams and doing what you were put here to do. It’s time to let go of trying to fit in and wasting energy on that negative spin cycle of limiting thinking. When you truly accept yourself as the highly sensitive being you are, you’ll be back in the Divine flow, and life will get so much easier.
What To Do When Your Mind Says YES But Your Intuition Says NO
A few months ago I went to check out a preschool for my son. It is a highly sought after Spanish-immersion preschool. We were advised to get on the waiting list before he was even born, which we did. So I was curious to go investigate firsthand when they held an open house.
When I entered, my heart sank. It was dingy and cluttered. There were fluorescent lights. The colors felt off. Ugh.
My mind said, “Well, it’s supposed to be such a great school, it can’t be as bad as all that.” So I stuck around for a bit to hear what the teachers had to say.
They talked about how there were “only” 16 kids in a classroom with two teachers. They lauded their “great” food that the kids loved, but never mentioned any vegetables in describing what they served.
My mind said, “They say it’s great food.”
My heart said, “That doesn’t sound so good to me.”
Then I went to look at the classroom and heard a parent saying to a teacher “Wow, this is such a great space!”
My mind said, “Everyone else is acting like this is great, it must be great.”
But my heart said, “It IS? REALLY? Are you SERIOUS? Ugh. I’m supposed to bring my precious, beautiful, radiant son HERE?”
The clincher came next. The teacher was talking about how they staged the kid’s arrivals at the beginning of the school year so that they would be able to adjust better. “Some kids,” she said, “have a harder time. But it’s usually the parents who aren’t ready to let go yet,” as she looked pointedly at me clutching my son to my chest.
Time to go!
I felt so thrown off when I got home, and had to do a little quick self-coaching to get back on track. “Just because everyone else likes it, doesn’t mean it’s good for me or our son,” I told myself. “If it doesn’t feel right, it doesn’t matter if we’re 5th on the waiting list, or if it’s the most affordable school of it’s kind. He’s NOT going there.”
My mind really threw my intuition off. It wanted to second-guess my reactions and talk me out of them. It wanted me to conform, buy in, and go along. My mind wanted to listen to all the should’s and supposed to’s. It wanted me not to make waves, but to fit in. And I’m TRAINED not to buy in to this kind of stuff.
What astonished me was the power and subtlety of the messages from the other people and staff. Clearly, there was a Right Way and a Wrong Way. My mind wanted to conform with the Right Way and to avoid the Wrong Way. Yikes! It was a powerful reminder to me to ALWAYS check in with my inner self about my own sense of rightness, regardless of what other people have to say or what they think. As empathic sensitives, we have to stay aware and conscious to keep from being swept up into other people’s perspectives.
So the bottom line, when your mind says yes, and your intuition says no, your intuition wins. No contest.
What stories do you have to share about your mind saying yes and your intuition saying no?
Are You Making Excuses Instead of Pursuing Your Dream?
I‘ve been hearing an awful lot of “excuses” lately.
* “It’s always been this way for me, so I can’t do it any differently.”
* “I don’t know how.”
* “I’m not qualified to do that” or it’s slightly better version, “I’m not qualified to do that yet.”
* “I can’t do it where I live.”
* “I don’t have enough time.”
* “I have to support my family, so I can’t take the risk of starting a new business.”
* “No one will want what I have to offer.”
In the deliciously parallel way the world operates, I can relate, because as I’m exploring new directions for my own life and work, some VERY interesting excuses are coming up. I know it’s just my fearful ego-mind and my gremlins saying, “No, no! Run away! Change is not safe! What are you thinking?!”
The problem is that we allow these excuses to stop us dead in our tracks from pursuing our dreams. Sure, these naysayer messages will come up. But it’s our choice to decide whether we listen or not.
Remember, these excuses are like a code — if we pay attention, they point us to what’s really going on. We are afraid, and usually that we “aren’t good enough.” We’ve been trained to think that way by our less-than-supportive cultural model that programs for conformity.
Here are five tips to help you get your thinking-cap on straight
1. The first step is awareness. Notice what you’re saying to yourself and other people about why you can’t do something. Is it REALLY true? Or is it just an excuse in disguise?
2. Appreciate your true brilliance. Learn to see how valuable, special, and important you really are. You have a unique take or approach to what it is you do, and there’s no one else like you.
3. Get a new story. It’s time to let go of all your limiting thinking and get a new story to tell. Aren’t you tired of listening to yourself saying the same things over and over again?
Start telling a new story about how you are inspired to create the life you want, and even if you don’t know how yet, you’re determined to find the way to get there.
4. Find your courage. When I saw my teacher Sonia Choquette recently, she shared a story about the courageous heart of a mother lion, leading her cubs to an oasis, looking neither left nor right at all the safari paparazzi around her, but focusing straight-ahead on her goal.
Let your courageous heart guide you, let nothing deter you. Use your courage to focus only on where you want to go.
5. Wonder instead of making excuses. Any time you find yourself tempted to use an excuse, wonder instead. “Ask your intuition to run wild and free” (as astrologist Rob Brezney said recently) to help you discover your path. Say, “I WONDER how I can learn what I need to know,” and “I WONDER how I can create my dream successfully.”
Give up making excuses, and give yourself the chance to pursue your dreams.
Find a new way, find out how, get training, open your eyes to the possibilities, start small, but start now, plan, research, learn, transition, and find your true audience. (Want help claiming your dream? Join me for 30-minute “Dream Illumination” session. Click here to claim yours right now. Only 10 available.)
Pursue your dream. Remember: the world needs you, and all your brilliance, right now.
No More Excuses — Your Life is Calling
Some recent notes I’ve posted online about Authentic Work have stirred up comments that have me concerned. I’m seeing how many sensitives desperately WANT to find their Authentic Work, but are not even willing to give themselves a chance to figure out what it is. (Are you doing this to yourself, too?)
Even worse, often those who know the work they want to do write it off as not being feasible, not available, too hard, impractical, or not lucrative enough.
Layered on top of this, not only are many of us not taking our sensitivity into account when making career choices, we aren’t even creating work that incorporates our sensitivity. We justify this by saying things like, “Well, there’s no place for emotions in the workplace,” and “It’s not okay to be open about spirituality here,” and “I can’t make any money that way.”
From my perspective, this is all crazy talk.
I know, I know, the economy, right?
Sorry, I’m not buying it. I’ve been coaching long enough to know that you were making these SAME excuses (along with a few others) back when the economy was doing quite well, thank you very much.
These excuses are code for what’s really going on: Fear.
Fear has you worrying that you aren’t good enough.
…that you aren’t capable enough.
…that others will judge you, and maybe even find you or your work lacking.
Here’s the good news: It’s none of your business. Stop trying to do the Universe’s job. Your job is to discover the specific form of the divine light within you and LIVE it in the world by doing your Authentic Work with the powerful gifts you’ve been given. (Want help to find your true work? Click here to join me on Monday, June 1 for my free informational preview TeleSeminar. )
It’s not to work in a crummy cubicle with crabby people and fluorescent lights, dreaming of other worlds.
Remember, you were given these GIFTS for a reason. Do you really, honestly believe that the Universe is so screwed up that it gives you gifts and a calling that you can’t support yourself with? Uh-uh. I don’t think so.
Here’s the truth: When you are living your Soul’s Essential Purpose, you’ll be doing your Authentic Work, using your gifts (including your high sensitivity), you’ll feel good, AND you’ll making good money.
If you’re NOT living your purpose and using your gifts, you won’t be making money, your soul will be sick, or your sensitivity will be strained to the maximum.
I know you’re worried about the economy. But as a leader of light in this dawning new era, don’t you at least owe it to yourself to get clear about who you are and what you were put here to do? The fact that times appear troubled is all the MORE reason for us to individually get ourselves in alignment so we can do our true work bringing the planet back into balance.
Honestly, I see this as an urgent care crisis. We don’t have time to wait around for you to finally figure out how powerful and amazing you are — the world needs you Right Now. Let’s get going.
Six Keys to Protecting Yourself From the World’s Intensity
When I wrote to you earlier this week, I shared with you the “Top Four Concerns” revealed through my recent online survey. I’m excited to share some tips and insights on these topics over the next two weeks, starting today.
One of the subjects you all mentioned repeatedly in the survey was the issue of protection. So many sensitives struggle with wanting to feel emotionally, energetically, and spiritually protected. And rightly so! This less-than-sensitive world is not well-suited for our finely-tuned nervous systems.
Not knowing how protect ourselves can leave us feeling exhausted, overstimulated, and disoriented.
As empathic sensitive souls, our energetic boundaries are wide-open, which is great when we want to merge with, connect to, and support others, but not so great when we’re just trying to get our shopping done.
We also tend to have mushy interpersonal boundaries — we get over-involved in other people’s lives by rescuing and fixing them. Again, we’re great supporters and helpers, but the cost is too high when it affects our own well-being.
Through my studies and training, what I’ve found that works best is using protection skills that are a combination of setting powerful energetic boundaries, using natural remedies and energy medicines, and creating strong, clear interpersonal boundaries.
But interestingly, true protection is attainable only when it is built on a foundation of self-knowledge.
Here are a six key tips on how you can use these ideas:
1. Know WHO you are. This sounds simple, but as a sensitive soul who is tuned into and affected by other people, you can easily get disconnected from who you really are. Knowing yourself deeply, at an essential, spiritual level will help you stay true to yourself at all times.
2. Know WHAT you are here to do. It’s also imperative to know your soul’s essential purpose — what you are here to do in this lifetime — so you aren’t easily thrown off your own path. You must also be living and doing your purpose work. Important note: If you’re truly living your purpose, you’ll be using the gifts of your sensitivity to do so.
3. Know HOW you are. Tune into yourself regularly — write morning pages, meditate, check-in by asking, “How am I right now?” so you can stay connected to yourself and recognize if you start picking up someone else’s feelings.
4. Set powerful energetic boundaries: Visualize yourself in a layered bubbles of differently colored light. Set the intention that each layer filters away and rejects what isn’t yours and doesn’t belong in your energy field, like negativity and low vibration energy.
5. Use energy medicine like flower essences to help define, strengthen, and clarify your sense of self and your boundaries. Also try using the elements in your physical spaces, like putting plants in your physical spaces for grounding, and bowls of water or small fountains to keep the emotion energy moving through (so you don’t end up processing it for other people).
6. Set strong, firm, interpersonal boundaries. For example, learn to be highly committed to saying “Yes” to what works for you and “No” to what doesn’t. Refuse to engage in anything that lowers your energy or “vibration.” Learn to say “No” gracefully. Remember that “No” is a complete sentence.
(If you need help with these, registration details are coming early next week for my free “Embrace Your Essential Self” informational preview seminar on June 1 at 5 p.m. Pacific.)
Look for the next installment of this tips series early next week, when I’ll be sharing about living the intuitive, divinely-guided life that is your birthright.
In the meantime, please post your thoughts, comments, and questions about protection on the blog, okay? I love hearing from you.
Acknowledge your energetic nature
By now I'm sure you have heard the phrase "Everything is energy."
It's all well and good to understand that everything is energy.
It's quite another thing to accept that you are energy!
We are conditioned to focus almost exclusively on our physical
nature. And there is no question that there is a physical component
to our existence.
But there is also an energetic component. And until you begin to
accept your energetic nature, it will be difficult to tap into the
attraction potential that exists at the energy level.
The first step is to acknowledge your energetic nature. One way to
do this is to think or speak the words, "I am an energetic being."
(Feel free to use your own words).
Don't be put off by the simplicity of this action. If you want to
activate your energetic awareness and begin consciously attracting
your desires from a vibrational perspective you absolutely must
acknowledge that you are an energetic being.
And one of the most powerful ways to do that is to simply state
that truth over and over. When you do that, you will begin to
unravel the powerful conditioning that focuses the vast
majority of your conscious awareness upon your physical nature.
So for the next few days, speak those words to yourself at least
once a day - preferably more often! - and notice any changes in
your awareness.
Accept your energetic nature
later you began acknowledging your energetic nature. In this
tip you're going to take that acknowledgment to the next level:
Acceptance.
Think of it this way: Acknowledging your energetic nature occurs at
the level of thought. Accepting your energetic nature takes place
at the level of emotion.
When you accept your energetic nature you have an emotional
connection to it. You begin to notice the emotions that are
connected to the concept of being an energetic being.
The interesting thing is that it doesn't matter what the emotion
is. Anxiety is just as good as joy. Either way, you are beginning
to accept your energetic nature.
So here's your assignment:
For the next few days, spend at least 5-minutes each day linking
emotional content to the words or thought "I am an energetic
being." Notice what emotions come up when you think or speak that
phrase.
Again, the emotion itself doesn't matter. What does matter is that
you are linking your emotional awareness to the belief.
Embodying your Energetic Natureþ
Embodying this information literally means that you "get it" in
your body. You awaken the cells of your physical body to the energy
that is pulsing within them. And you awaken your ability to connect
with and direct that massive potential energy.
But the first step, before you go trying to light up San
Francisco, is to connect with the energy in your body. And the next
few tips will help you do just that.
For now though, spend the next few days, paying attention to the
physical sensations in your body.
If you have an itch, take a moment before you scratch it and
seek the underlying energetic component of that itch.
If your leg falls asleep, instead of just shaking it and jumping
around as it "wakes up" pay attention to the energy that is moving
through that area.
If your ears start ringing, check out the energy.
When you get goose bumps or the hair stands up on your arm, see if
you can sense the energy flowing into that area.
Now at first you may not notice anything different. You may not
feel the energy that is causing the physical sensation.
But, honestly, that's not important. What is important is that you
are seeking the energy. Because once you start looking for that
energy, it is only a matter of time before you find it!
Have fun with this. And your next tip will help you begin to really
focus on that underlying energy.
Say hello to your Spleen
In the last Energetics of Attraction Tip you began embodying your
energetic nature. In that tip, you used a trigger - an itch, your
foot falling asleep, etc. - to trigger you into that awareness.
With this tip you're going to make the awareness of your
inner/energetic world active and intentional.
Starting today, right now, take just 5-minutes a day to stop and
focus your attention on your internal organs. I know, it sounds a
bit weird, but then, it is a bit weird!
Each day, take time to turn your attention inwards. Pay attention
to what's happening inside your body.
What sort of activity is happening in your digestive system?
Can you feel your heart beating without putting your hand on it?
What is your spleen up to? ;)
Now, here's the important thing... Don't get caught in the trap of
trying to label, define or judge the information you receive. For
now, just shift your attention inwards and get familiar with the
language of your inner world.
And if you feel silly trying to focus on what your spleen is
doing, just remember the wise words of Dr. Seuss up there and
approach this exercise as an experiment in nonsense designed
to wake up more brain cells!
You've got to Move It Move It
In the last Energetics of Attraction Tip you continued the process
of embodying your energetic nature by checking in with your spleen.
How is your spleen doing, by the way?
Really, though, you were turning your attention inwards, awakening
your awareness of what is happening inside your body.
In this tip I'm going to encourage you to move your body. Movement
and physical activity help to reconnect you with your body. When
your body is sedentary - as in sitting at a desk all day - the
energy moving through your body slows down.
What happens when you move? Your heart starts pumping faster. Your
lungs expand more fully. Water moves out through your skin. Stuff
moves.
And when stuff moves, that means energy is moving too. Because...
Everything is energy!
So for the next few days pay attention to how you move or don't
move your body. Get outside at least once a day for a brisk walk.
Put some music on a "Put a little boogie in it!" (Your body!)
And as you're moving your body, tune into the energy that's moving
along with you, in you and through you!
And as always, have fun!
Start an Energy Exercise Practiceþ
So you've started moving your body. Now it's time to bring energy
awareness into the movement.
If you want to connect with your energy systems, you can't beat
energy exercise. I consider any practice that consciously merges
physical movement with energy awareness to be Energy Exercise.
Here are some practices that fall into the Energy Exercise category:
Yoga
Tai Chi
QiGong
Aikido
Other Martial Arts
Now with all of these - and especially with some martial arts
schools - you must be selective. Many schools/teachers have become
so focused on the physical aspects of the movements that they have
lost touch with the equally - some would say more! - important
energetic component.
You want to find a teacher or school that focuses on Both!
So your mission - should you choose to accept it - is to go out and
investigate some of the energy exercise practice options in your
area.
Do a drop in Yoga class. Go watch an Akido workout. Find out if
there are any QiGong or Tai Chi classes nearby.
And when you find an energy exercise practice that resonates with
you, commit to participating on a regular basis.
Hug a Treeþ
we will focus on grounding and staying rooted in the
physical world. I've observed that many people who work with energy
- consciously or not - have a tendency towards airiness. If you
want to manifest your desires in the world, you absolutely must
remain fully grounded into the physical world.
And when you do catch yourself getting ungrounded or if you're
feeling a bit "spaced out" or airy, one of the best ways to
reconnect to your physical nature is to get outside.
And if you really want to reconnect to the Earth, give a tree a hug!
I'm serious.
Trees are incredibly wonderful mentors in the art of grounding. And
when you connect with a tree physically you pick up on their
ability to ground.
Now if you're embarrassed to actually hug a tree, you can pretend
that you're just leaning up against it or using the tree as a
support for stretching. As long as you're touching it you can
benefit from what I call "Grounding Transference."
It works! Go ahead, give it a try!
