Slow Down, Tune In
With my feet planted on the soil of Be Love Farm, my body instantly relaxed, letting out a long exhale. As I gently emerged into the cool freshwater pool, any lingering worries floated away. I was in a farm oasis and far away from the noise and traffic of the city.
The beginning of summer was energizing and uplifting – seeing friends, socializing, camping, and adventuring. As my energy picked up, the outside world continued to spin at an even faster rate. Months leading up to the weekend yoga retreat, I suffered from tension headaches and had begun to feel depleted as the added stress and worries accumulated in my neck and shoulders.
The weekend away was 48 hours of soul renewal and ultimate self-care through replenishing and restorative yoga and sound baths, massage, home-cooked farm-fresh meals, community, rest, unstructured time to reflect and be held in community and nature. I could feel the inspiration and creativity stirring in my chest once again. I felt good, and I left grounded, centered, and nourished.
It has been four weeks since I returned home. My headaches are few and far between, and the slow pace momentum lingers.
Returning to my daily routine, I'm reminded that the noise and frequency of our external world are high coupled with the day-to-day internal noise of thoughts, responsibilities, social obligations, to-do's, shoulds, worries, etc. When our bodies and nervous systems are on constant alert and pulsating at this frequency, our bodies, minds, hearts, and relationships begin to suffer. It piles up and, if left unnoticed, manifests as burnout, depletion, overwhelm, confusion, irritation.
We live in a fast-paced world, a culture that values instant relief, notification, and response. One must make a conscious effort to slow down, breathe, and pause.
Each morning, before I check my phone, email, or begin working, I take a few moments for myself. My practices vary upon what I need:
Drinking warm lemon water on my balcony.
Meditation.
Taking a few conscious breaths.
Writing.
Intention setting.
Spending time each morning on what is meaningful will help you make more time throughout your day and allow for more space in your daily momentum.
We all have an internal compass, a unique knowing – a deep sense of trust that we know best what is right for us. The more we move from one thing to the next, live in the chaos of our noisy minds, and look outward to other opinions to tell us what to do, the more disconnected we become from our body and gut instinct.
As author Melody Beattie says, "Sometimes we get clues or hints from others. Sometimes we get direction outside of ourselves. But it must resonate with our hearts. It must resonate with what we know to be true."
Learning to trust and respond to your inner wisdom takes practice and space. It takes a genuine intention of slowing down and tuning in.
One cannot hear or understand the voice of our heart when the external and internal vibrations are beating to the rhythm of the fast-paced world.
When we turn down the noise of the mind and soften the nervous system, we tune into our bodies and heart, and we learn to embody and embrace what we know to be true. With practice, we begin to listen and trust the voice inside. Our world then begins to expand, and our infinite potential reveals itself.