What makes the difference between surviving and thriving during this time? The answer…Your faith in yourself. Not faith of religion or the universe or anything outside of yourself. It is your level of consciousness and your mastery of your consciousness. We are being called to step up to a higher level of consciousness and mastery right now.
I know it is easy to get caught up in fear, trust me. I own a small business with employees and our business is down 60% right now. I work on my faith in myself because power is always inside of us and not outside of us. During this time of COVID-19, social distancing, and isolation, we are being challenged every day and the biggest challenge is being faced with ourselves.
We have more time with ourselves now and less distractions. We can’t go out and run a bunch of errands to get away from ourselves and whatever uncomfortable feelings we feel from being still with ourselves. We are faced with the illusion we created of telling ourselves lies that we were too busy to take the time to make ourselves a priority. This is victim mentality and we are not victims. We make choices. We are being called and challenged to consider our commitment to ourselves. It is the battle cry of our internal warrior rolling out the red carpet for our higher self to step up.
Fears, Avoidance and Feelings, OH MY!
Look, it’s human nature to lean away from uncomfortable feelings. In order to grow we have to consciously choose to lean into them and that is where the rubber meets the road in growth. I have procrastinated writing this article until the last minute (and I have had PLENTY of time these days!) because my shadow voices of, “not good enough” were circling so I found many distractions and victim excuses to help me not feel them. My garage is so clean right now you could eat off the floor. The difference for me is I knew, as I was cleaning the garage, that I was avoiding. That is consciousness. I was actively working on cornering my own shadow at the same time I was avoiding.
Typically, before you were stuck at home you could avoid easily and even unconsciously keep busy…not so much now. This is your golden opportunity to corner your own shadows or get help doing it. A good therapist can help you do this. It is not easy to corner your own shadow, but if you sit still long enough you will feel it and hear it. You will also feel and hear your intuition. That voice that tells you to do things for yourself, the voice you are scared to listen to, and that you distract yourself from listening to. Yes, that one.
Right now fear may be a great distraction from going deeper in yourself. A lot of us have times of fear listening to the news right now. If you keep feeling scared and feeding the fear and do not ground yourself you are actually using being scared as a distraction away from a deeper connection with yourself. Crazy right? We can use ANYTHING as a distraction from being more deeply connected to ourselves.
What do you use to distract yourself away from being with yourself? Fears, worries, business, arguing with a loved one, watching Netflix, drinking, and chores…the list goes on and on.
Intuition vs. Shadow Voices
We all have shadow voices. They are the ones that are critical of us. They can be unconscious and subtle as all get out, as well as conscious. The more you slow down the more you can hear and feel them. That is one reason why it is hard to slow down, be still and be with yourself during this time because you WILL feel them. It is the reason we want things to “go back to normal” so quickly. It’s so we don’t have to face these parts of ourselves we have done such a good job of (not really) trying to out run. This time you have right now is a gift to you to finally face and clear these old, outdated beliefs about yourself. It is time to upgrade your consciousness and beliefs and the only way to do that is to actually sit with them, get to know them, invite them in for a chat and a coffee and stop distracting yourself.
We also have our intuitive voice. It can tell you to do things you are uncomfortable with or just plain scared to do like: leave the job, leave the relationship, do the thing you’ve been procrastinating doing. If you do not listen to your intuition you create a feeling of resistance and stuckness in your system, which then creates anxiety and depression. Now is the perfect time to really get clear on what your intuition is saying and get clear on what is stopping you from following it.
Commitment to Self
What is your commitment level to yourself? Are you willing to lean in and sit with yourself to upgrade your consciousness right now with this time you have? Are you willing to make your needs important and set your boundaries during this time? Your higher self is calling you.
If you are struggling during this time and want to move from surviving to thriving, we are here and you can talk to a therapist from the comfort of your own home. We offer video and phone sessions. If you have trouble finding privacy, many of our clients find sitting in their cars a perfect alternative. We also offer walk and talk therapy! Move your body and improve your mind and emotions all at the same time!
Dr. Dori Gatter, PsyD, LPC is a Psychotherapist, Relationship Expert and owner of West Hartford Holistic Counseling Center Group Psychotherapy Practice for over 20 years. West Hartford Holistic Counseling Center is a group of Psychotherapists trained to work with all issues including: Anxiety, Depression, Parenting, Teens, Families, Eating Disorders, Trauma, Career Counseling, Addiction, Relationships, LGBTQ, Infertility, Mindfulness, Men’s Issues, Life Transitions, Grief and Loss and more. 17 South Highland Street, West Hartford, CT.
860-258-4171.
www.Westhartfordholisticcounseling.com