How are you feeling?
Find time to slow down and acknowledge the big feelings within
How are you feeling today? Perhaps you are going through the motions. You are setting your alarm for 6:00 AM, showering, getting dressed, checking emails, and going through your normal routine. Or perhaps you are waking up with baby puke on your pajamas, pacing the house at all hours, and haven’t a clue what day it is because you haven’t had a visitor to break up the cyclical nature of these moments. Or perhaps you are not waking up at any regular hour, are glued to the news outlets, have been sucked into a Facebook time warp, and haven’t changed out of your pajamas for weeks on end. Regardless of whichever seat you occupy, right now can you identify - how are you feeling?
As a rookie parent, I had to read a lot of books, watch a lot of videos, and attend really expensive trainings to even begin to scratch the surface of how to help children work through big emotions. Not shockingly, it all came down to me and my familial predisposition to “toughing it out”. I made a lot of mistakes, and still continue to, but I do feel like this rocky path is becoming a bit more manicured as the years (and children) multiply. One of the simplest and most liberating things I have learned is that bad feelings are okay. Bad feelings are normal and it is good and healthy to acknowledge them.
Why am I talking about feelings on a movement journal? Along with the functional movement patterns that we explore in the movementRX mindful movement sessions, we also delve into a change of pace and shift habits of how you “do you”. Since the sessions are ideally done slowly and with great attention to your internal and external environment, this often creates a great deal of space. What emerges in that space is unique to each person and each moment. I have seen some clients break into belly-shaking fits of laughter and others curl into the fetal position and sob. Often they cannot verbalize where or what has triggered these emotional releases, and that is okay. While you can attempt to find the language, in reality, there may not be words to truly encapsulate the complexity of your emotions. Now, if you find these big emotions too overwhelming I urge you to open your eyes and reorient yourself with your current environment and to remind yourself that you are safe. If you are still feeling overwhelmed, bring your focus to your breath and attempt to find a smooth and fluid breathing pattern. And if this continues beyond what you feel safe coping with on your own, I urge you to connect with a professional counselor, mental health worker, or even feel free to send me a personal message. Some people may feel safer taking this journey while under direct observation whether that is online or in person.
I return to my practice every single day, sometimes twice a day, to get a sense of how I am feeling. Rather than contracting and contorting into a tiny ball of pent up emotions when you take time to visit with yourself each day you have the opportunity to really learn to listen. And when you build up this relationship with yourself, you are able to listen to your own signals better throughout the day even in the midst of competitive sensory input.
The practice of being grateful is gaining popularity, this is not a fact but apparent when you google “grateful journal” on Amazon. Practicing gratefulness is essentially taking time to notice all the positives in your world. While I am currently emphasizing the value of listening to yourself and allowing negative feelings to be acknowledged, I am in no way encouraging you to become the grand complainer of your friend circle. And while “feeling crappy” journals aren’t as popular on Amazon, acknowledging the negative feelings that arise is healthy. But there is a fine balance of acknowledging these feelings without nurturing the soil to grow. Continue to engage in practices that boost your positive outlook and sense of self.
One thing I am continually surprised by is how long and arduous the journey towards listening to oneself can be, yet how easy it is to slip back into the familiarity of disconnect. Technology is designed to be seductive and convincing yourself to take a break to “feel” is often difficult to prioritize. When we are busily occupied and operating on autopilot it can seem unnecessary and even excessive to prioritize these cliché moments of self-care. However, when a pause is imposed upon us from external sources the silence can be frightening, without some guidance. The discomfort can be similar to that of an athlete who is dealing with an injury, a widow suffering the loss of a partner, or parents whose children have just left home. The sudden quiet leaves you alone with yourself. And quite possibly you haven’t spoken in some time. My hope is in these mindful movement sessions you discover how to truly listen to yourself without judgment. Listen to yourself with curiosity, allow feelings both good and bad to come to the surface and breathe.
