This morning I wake up, wriggle around in bed for a while, thinking. I remember to meditate, and enjoy the bliss and stillness. Until I get distracted by a thought more powerful, right now. I reach for my phone, and go to check my Instagram feed.
I am joyfully overwhelmed by the response to my post last night. As I move onto Facebook, I find the same. Comment after comment, in agreement with my musings on how awkward I can feel in social situations, because of the way I feel people.
I know that, by the laws of attraction, you always attract your kind. One of my favourite phrases is “your vibe attracts your tribe“. And it does. In this instance, I saw just how true that statement is.
There is this thing that happens, when we awaken, and start to connect to that Other part of ourselves… The limitless, the ethereal, the wisdom, the infinite source of love and all things. We start to communicate soul to soul, and connect with people, and the world in a different way.
We can feel when food hasn’t been prepared with love. We can tell if there’s something wrong, even if we don’t know what it is. We just know and can sense the unseen layers of our of Universe shifting and moving around and within us. Now. And now. And now. In every moment.
This kind of awareness requires a very unique and specific kind of sensitivity. It’s a rawness. It’s truth. It’s openness.
All that sensitivity, rawness, openness and truth. It sometimes requires a little protection, when we are out and about in the world, feeling everything. So I wanted share the 5 covert practices that I use, to protect my energy, especially when I am feeling sensitive.
1 Centre yourself.
I remember New Years Eve quite a number of years ago — my boyfriend at the time and I were in Tenerife, Canary Islands, at the time — and he was getting really worked up at the cab driver for getting lost. I could feel his energy whirling around in all directions and him losing his inner equilibrium. “Stop for a moment Kyle! Pull your energy back in, and centre yourself“. It worked. Moments later he was calm and easy to communicate with again.
You centre yourself firstly by paying attention to where your energy is. Are you pushing it out of your body, or is it gently resting within you? If it’s pushing out, pull it back in, and centre it. As soon as you do this, nothing can bother, offend or harm you.
2 Practice stillness.
Last night I was at a dinner party, where the men were playing a game that I call ‘my dick is bigger than yours‘. Clearly, that’s not to be taken literally. It’s when people try to outdo each other through speaking loudly, and sharing examples of how they have done and achieved all these great things. It’s pure ego identification, and depending on my mood, I can find it quite humorous and entertaining.
It is in those situations that I practice stillness. Not wanting to give their game any energy, negative or positive, I practice a form of meditation in which I allow my mind and body to become completely still and just observe. Doing this means that no part of me is affected by the ongoing retribution, nor does any part of me feel inclined to jump in and play along.
3 Create a bubble around yourself.
I use this one particularly when I find myself feeling little uncomfortable around someone, in new environments or in big, buzzing cities, where there are many, many, many people. I simply imagine a big, translucent bubble of energy around me, that moves in and around people and objects as I make my way through life. It gently creates a sense of security, and I know I am safe, and that any negative energies from the outside world, can’t touch me.
My beautiful friend and musician Marina, does something similar. She imagines zipping up a body suit of energy, from her toes, over her head and down her back, before she steps out into the busy streets of London. I love this. I’m sure it must be safe and cozy in there.
4 Listen to what your body tells you.
Having this kind of sensitivity and awareness is actually really special, because it means that you can sense what is going on, before it physically or visually happens. Sometimes that means literally removing yourself from circumstances that don’t feel good. Listen to your body, it might be telling you that this space is not for you right now.
I have countless stories of times where thing just didn’t feel right, and I left, only to discover the next day that something strange or dangerous had happened. There have been so many near misses, that I have come to deeply appreciate this part of me, that warns me when something in my environment is off. Learning to distinguish between fear, and that intuitive knowing is easy: one is a voice (fear) and the other is a feeling (intuition / soul).
5 Learn to say no, thank you, more.
I am getting better and better at this all the time. I say no, to things that don’t light me up all the time now. But that doesn’t mean I don’t sometimes feel the pangs of guilt, or the fear of missing out. I just know, that I am happier doing things that make me truly happy, rather than things that are expected of me by others of social norms. It’s the best way to protect your energy from things that aren’t necessarily for you. And thereby making space for things that are.
Saying no, is honouring who you are and your energy. It’s like saying “I respect who I am, I understand my needs and boundaries, I have a sensitive soul and I love that about me“.
Image from Posy Willow.
Thank you Vienda!
My pleasure, beauty!