Sometimes the greatest resource we have is the ability to tap into our own intuition so that we may nourish ourselves. As I travel along this journey I keep discovering that the less I look outward and the more I go inward, the more content I feel and the more confident I am to take my next right step. Our world is so noisy, but there is deep inner wisdom in the quiet spaces of your heart and soul.
Below, I’ve cultivated some of my most reliable methods to cut through the chatter and find my way back to my heart.
When it is time to go inward, when you want to tap into your inner knowing, mantras, affirmations, and meditations can be helpful.
Mantras/Affirmations:
My life is happening exactly on schedule.
In this moment, my thoughts, words, and actions are in alignment with my highest healing good.
I deserve to feel joy.
I am enough exactly as I am right now.
I allow my healing and my unwinding to take time.
Meditation – Personally, my meditation practice has been a curvy road, never a straight path to what I thought it needed to be. I had an image in my mind of what ‘meditation’ should look like, and when what I was doing didn’t match the image, I felt I was failing.
But the truth is, there is no failing. – if you are quieting your mind, turning inward, hearing the soft voice that guides you, if you are stepping away from the noise of the world, even for a second – that can be your form of meditation. Do what works for you. In different seasons of my life I’ve been called to a variety of meditations. Sometimes a morning routine based in nature, other times a specific mantra, or while breastfeeding my babies, morning meditation looked like me feeding a baby with my whole attention on baby’s energy and mine connecting. When you are mothering your children meditation often needs to be concise and direct (directly to your own heart, that is). So don’t worry about the rules, don’t get caught up in what your meditation practice used to look like or what you wish it would look like, but just step into whatever is working at that moment.
After years of experimenting with different grounding techniques, here are my go-tos for a quick check in, reset, and reboot for my soul.
Morning Grounding:
Sit or lie down comfortably (either alone or with baby). Breathe, inhaling through your nose, exhaling out your mouth. Breathe into your heart space. Feel the space around your heart expand with every breath. Feel your seat beneath you and imagine roots growing from your body into the earth – know mama earth is there to support you throughout your day. Feel your spine stretch long, crown of the head tipped toward the sky. Imagine light entering your crown chakra, filling your body with spaciousness and love. Now envision the energy of the earth below and the energy of the sky above meeting at your heart space – the energies coming together in this place. Stay in your heart space until it feels expansive, overflowing with radiance and love.
Breathe.
Then, silently, ask from within yourself – how can I be of service today? What message is here for me today?
Don’t think. Just feel. Perhaps an image comes to mind. A word. A phrase. Maybe you hear a voice from your heart. Maybe it sounds like an audible whisper in your ear.
Listen to it. Feel the words and invite them into your heart, into your being, into your day as it unfolds.
Take a moment to release the expectations you may have for this day, give thanks for the opportunity to be here, today, for the chance to spread love in your part of the world. Bring hands to your heart, bow gently to your hands, to your heart, and offer your love to this universe.
Abbreviated version – quick prayer:
In whatever way feels appropriate to you, with arms outstretched to the world, or hands in prayer position, or perhaps kneeling toward the earth, anything – offer up this prayer:
May my thoughts, words, and actions be in alignment with my highest healing good for myself, for my family, and for my community.
And then, breathing in and out, trust that it will be so, and let it go.
MidDay Reset Ritual.
Make a cup of tea, or a glass of water, anything that grounds you into you. If you can, find a place to stand outside with your feet bare.
Pause. Breathe. Ask your soul to reconnect with your body. Breathe all the way into your feet. Give thanks to this earth for holding us and recharging us each and every day. Again, release any thoughts of what your day *should* look like. Remind yourself your day is unfolding just as it needs to. You do not need to do anything to prove your worth. You are worthy of love. You are worthy of joy. You are worthy of the space you take up here on Earth. You are more than your body, you are more than your mind – you are a divine being. Breathe. Breathe deeply into your heart, and ask your heart to guide you.
When you feel ready, return to your regularly scheduled day. (Or change up your schedule! Whatever is working for you.)
Abbreviated Version – a restorative yoga pose:
Lie on your back near a couch or a chair – so that you can bring your legs up to the seat of the chair. On your back, bum near the base of the couch, allow your knees to bend and rest your legs onto the seat. Rest hands on your heart, belly, or one on each. Close your eyes and breathe. Stay in this pose for as long as possible!
End of Day Closing Ceremony for your heart:
You’ve made it to the end of the day, most likely exhausted. While lying in bed, before falling asleep, place one hand on your heart, one on your belly. Imagine a warm glow or light come from your hands into these spaces. Connect with your entire body, from toes up to your belly, into your heart, and around your head. Bring your spirit back into your body. Let go of anything that didn’t get done today, anything that didn’t go as planned. Trust that it all happened with the exact timing it should have. Your life is happening right on time. Trust. Feel that trust in your gut. Allow it to expand throughout your body. Invite rest to your body. Invite your mind to quiet down. Repeat to yourself as you fall asleep: I am whole. I am loved. I am enough. I am whole. I am loved. I am enough.
Inspiration:
When it all feels like too much, when you lose sight of your joy, when you just can’t do one more thing, when your body feels like your arms and legs are spaghetti noodles, when you want to cry not from awe but from resentment – STOP.
This is vitally important. STOP.
You are worth your inner spark, your joy, your inner radiance. Everything else can wait.
If you can, ask for help, have a friend watch your child, put on a show and let your child zone out – do something that will allow you to break from routine and from the story playing in your head. If possible, take yourself out on a little date. Go for a walk. Go to the local bookstore and browse. Take your favorite book of poetry outside. Go to Target and buy something cute just because you want to. Invite a friend over to chat. Take 10 deep breaths outside.
Anything that lights you up. Have a list of things on hand that you can go to when you need it. Overwhelm and fatigue lead to frustration and burnout, and eventually, to anxiety and depression. It isn’t something to treat lightly – it is a big deal, and you deserve to feel strong, whole, and healthy. Please know this. And please STOP and STEP out of your routine when your heart is crying in pain.
For some more of my writing, check out:
For the Tired Moms Who Could Use a Good Cry
What do I tell my innocent children about our hurting world?