There’s often a good reason we turn away from what feels off—and here’s what we can do instead…

I recently had an experience where something felt electrifyingly go-go-good AND … stomach-sloshingly off at the same time. Has that ever happened to you?

Have you ever felt that surging whirlwind of excitement mixed in with a sinking, woozy, feeling of this doesn’t feel right? Well, that’s where I recently found myself. As I noticed those strong currents of feelings (and the sensations that came with them!), I became curious.

I was surprised to notice that despite all these red flags, I wanted to keep going and push past them. So, I began to wonder, Might there be a part of me that doesn’t want me to see these red flags? Might it be worried about what could happen to me if I take notice of them?

And the answer was a resounding yes. A part of me was worried. Very worried. It didn’t want this unexpected opportunity to come to an abrupt end, a crushing halt. It really wanted me to feel connected and connected to.

As I continued sitting with it … letting it know I really got what it was wanting for me, I could feel quite a shift within. There was an easeful settling and lots of tears, which brought about even more ease and even some relief. I was then able to:

• Communicate from a place of honoring myself and those red flags

• Be with the pain and confusion that came afterwards without getting swept up in it or dragged down by it

• Savor the feel of doing what felt right even though it felt so freakin’ hard

Instead of sharing more of my story, I’d like to offer a guided exercise for you in case you find yourself wanting to push past red flags. Spoiler alert: There’s often a good reason why something wants you to ignore those red flags or push them away. So, this process isn’t about judging, shaming or criticizing this part. It’s about understanding its reasons for doing what it’s doing.

As you spend time with it … really listening to it and getting why it’s probably worried … you may begin to experience more steadiness and clarity. From there, any next steps you choose to take or not take will likely come from a place of more settled ease, instead of spazzy reactivity or graspy urgency.

I’m thinking of creating a course that explores this more deeply, so if you find this exercise helpful and want more, I’d love to hear from you!

Watch the guided somatic exercise

Feel free to email me if this guided exercise brings up anything up for you—questions, reflections, or simply something you’d like to share.

Here’s to living fully in these hard times,

Lauren

P.S. Am I ending up in your spam filter or promotions folder? If so, here are a couple ways to ensure I end up in your inbox:

• Add my email address (lauren@livingfully.org) to your contacts.

• If I ended up in your Promotions tab, then drag this email from your promotions folder to the primary folder. A small message will pop up asking: “Do this for future messages from [sender]?” Click Yes.

• If I ended up in your spam folder, click “Not spam”at the top of the message.

And even with all of that, I may still end up in your spam folder. I usually send a newsletter twice a month, so if it feels like it’s been a while, you might find me there.