Yesterday I went to Sara for a Reiki adjustment or check up and massage. She was surprised that all of my chakras were open! This is the first time in the 2 years I have been going to her that it has been so. When I first came, my crown was open and lower extremities, but the middle region, the gut, heart, etc.. all closed.
We talked beforehand and I told her I was meditating, taking long walks, and trying to write on a more regular basis. My prayer life is moving back to the resources I used more than thirty years ago. Thirty years ago I didn't meditate really, but that has developed since my time in Arkansas about 20 or so years ago. I jokingly said "there's nothing like the wrong person being elected president to nudge me to really get serious about taking care of myself- I am a survivor-! I smiled when I said it, but it is true. After the election and the unthinkable happened, I didn't sleep for days, anxiety consumed me.
I realized after about a week with no sleep, that this was not tenable or sustainable, and I started to meditate, and pray and ask for help. As a result, the Universe provided many different resources that I am now employing. I have a stack of books to read about our cultural divide, how to love your enemies, and from all different perspectives, books of hope. My friend Beth sent a link to me for a blog that Maria Shriver puts out every week on Sunday called "Above the Noise" that focuses on topics of hope, optimism, and how to help or what to do in this particular time we find ourselves in. I've listened to people talk about how they start their day, how they ground themselves, what they focus on, it has been so helpful.
What I have been directed by Spirit to do is to first take care of and love myself. To learn how to manage stress and anxiety. Learning how to disengage from my well meaning, but overly anxious mind and understand that I am not my mind. I'm sleeping better and taking care of myself better.
Here are some of the things I am doing:
1. Getting enough sleep or at least giving my body the opportunity to sleep.
2. Exercising, Meditation and Prayer every day.
3. Using my old resources to set positive intentions for the day.
4. I am trying to write or do something creative everyday. I did this through instinct, but now I find that a someone named Martha Beck has written a book which is on it's way to me right now, that says anxiety cannot exist side by side with creativity the book is called Beyond Anxiety: Curiosity, Creativity, and Finding Your Life's purpose.
5. I took all social media off of my phone. I can still look at Facebook on computer, but I can be more intentional about it
As a result, I can sometimes find myself recognizing some of my thinking as anxiety producing and I can step back from it.
For example, this morning I woke up and remembered who would be president this time next week. My brain often becomes anxious right as I am about to fall asleep or in the first few moments after consciousness, the time when my defenses are down. So, I got up, made coffee, and started reading and praying, my new daily start that I have now. I listened to a podcast. I listened to what God had to say to me through all of these resources. Later I took a two and a half mile walk and paid attention to the crisp air, the fresh smell, and the rising sun against Pike's Peak. When I returned, Steve and I sat in silent meditation for 20 minutes. It changed the trajectory of my day from anxious to calm, from fear to love, and from hatred to joy.
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