Thrive and Awaken® Tip

Contractions such as fear, anger, and anxiety are natural and healthy in situations that threaten your safety. Notice the last time you had a contraction/reaction to an everyday stressor that was not life-threatening. A contraction is only healthy if you are learning from it, so you can release it rather than repeat it. If you get lost in the contraction, it is likely to keep repeating because that is what you are practicing. What you practice you strengthen. For example, if you keep repeating anxiety you’ll get more anxiety. Let’s look at how we learn from the contractions, so you can shift into thriving and awakening.

The first step is awareness. Become aware of the emotions and thoughts connected with the contraction. You can’t change what you can’t see. The second step is to have compassion and acceptance for the contraction. See it as your body trying to protect and take care of you. The third step is actively choosing to release the emotions and thoughts. Recognize they are no longer helpful in keeping you safe. The fourth step is practicing a thriving and awakening quality that replaces the contraction. For example, you may calm your body and remind yourself it is OK to goof up, that is how learning happens. The fifth step is to repeat this process as often as needed, giving your brain time to rewire itself. These steps are essential for moving out of Survival Mode and into Thriving and Awakening.

The Step 4 Course: Clearing Reactivity, includes an extensive discussion on clearing contractions/reactivities. You can also observe volunteers demonstrating a variety of methods that support and deepen each step in the clearing process.

You deserve to live with greater peace and happiness!