Day 1- Releasing
Today we are going to let it all go.
Have you ever tried to relax, sit down, chill out, even distract yourself and the feelings of stress are invading you. It’s hard to concentrate on what you need to do, conversations and being present and grounded in your body when you have racing thoughts, worries and that heavy gnawing pressure of tension in your chest and stomach.
These are all signs from your body and your mind that you have some releasing to do. Without letting go of these destructive and negative patterns, there is simply no space to allow the good in. To go with the flow and invite in the next opportunity.
I like to think of it as needing to leave the skin barrier of the body. These thoughts and feelings need to get from ‘in here’ to ‘out there’. That energy needs to mobilise in an outward direction.
Examples of releases are;
Crying
Laughing
Physical exertion (running, stomping, dancing, shaking)
Journaling
It reminds me of that scene in The Holiday- a classic Christmas Rom Com with Cameron Diaz. She tries so desperately to cry, to get “just that one tear!” so she can have a release. Meanwhile she is stressed out of her mind and suffering from some serious reflux, yep she bottled it! Personally I love a good cry, but if that escapes you like Cameron try shaking it out.
I would recommend if there’s a lot of stress and change going on to release at least daily. By shaking, journaling or moving with intention. Try some of the other bonus tips below also.
Today’s Activity:
SHAKING IT OUT
SOLO VERSION
If you’re doing this solo, find a space either in nature or at home where you wont be interrupted and you have some space to move about.
If you like, put on some music. Something with a good beat- think about what you need. Do you need to get out anger, frustration, resentment? Pick an angry song, a real banger. Pick a fun, happy song if you just want to get those feel good hormones going.
Stand up with your feet hip width apart. Start by bouncing on your toes, letting your arms be floppy and allowing them to move with your body. Up the tempo until you’re bouncing around, jumping, stomping- whatever feels right in your body, there is no wrong way. You can imagine all the thoughts, stressors or barriers you’ve been up against. Punch them away! Even just shaking in the same spot will reset your nervous system. Move around for the whole song if it’s feeling good for your body. Don’t overthink it. This is what your body needs to release, it’s not to over analyze in the mind.
All animals after a stress or conflict shake. It is a brilliant release and reset for the nervous system.
After you are done shaking, take a moment to sit quietly and breathe, hand on your heart and your chest. Reconnect with the intention that you set for this reset. Feel it in your body. Know that you’ve let all the other stuff go and this is the reality you’re creating.
Here are some playlists to try on Spotify. The first is energetic for releasing, the second is to calm and recenter afterwards-
WITH YOUR KIDS
Kids love this! Its so fun to do with a parent, to be silly, let go. Put on a fun song and really shake about and get into it. If your kids are young you can even pretend to be lions and ROARRR away all the bad things, slash them away with your ‘paws’. Have a shaking song followed by a calm song so after all that moving about you can sit or lay together, have a cuddle and some deep breaths to all calm down. Connect with your intention, even share it with your kids and see if they can set one too. It’s pretty amazing the things kids come up with!
5 MINUTE DAILY MEDITATION:
I invite you to do this meditation everyday over the next 10 days. It will support you to begin your days with calm, clarity and bringing to life your intention. Enjoy!
Bonus Tips…
Other ways to release…
Scream into a pillow
Journal about what is going on for you. You may like to burn it ( in a safe place). Very therapeutic!
Imagine everyday when you are in the shower that the water is cleansing you of any and all negativity. Washing away all that doesn’t serve your highest good.
Exercise- a good run or any exercise that gets you present in your body and working up a sweat will shift some of that stagnant energy.
Bonus- Emotional Freedom Technique
Also known as EFT or Tapping, this is an incredible tool for shifting stagnant and repetitive thought patterns, emotions and behaviours.
Today’s video guides you through this process.
Steps:
1.Choose the main issue you want to focus on. This could be a recurring thought you’ve noticed that you’d like to shift, an emotion or a behavioural pattern. Eg/ Feeling anxious.
*TIP- stick to focusing on yourself, not others. For example it’s not useful to say, “Even though my partner is annoying, I still love and approve of myself”. Instead try, “Even though I am feeling frustrated by my partner, I still love and approve of myself”.
2. Rate this issue out of 10. 10 being very charged or distressing to you right now, 0 being not bothering you at all.
3. Create your seed phrase with the following structure;
“Even though I _____(issue)____, I still love and approve of myself”
eg/ “Even though I am feeling anxious, I still love and approve of myself”
4. Tap on the Karate Chop Point, halfway along the pinky side of the palm, as you repeat the entire seed phrase, 3x. Repeat this on both sides.
5. Identify the core word/s of the seed phrase, in this example it would be just the words, “feeling anxious”.
6. Tap on each of the 9 body points whilst repeating the shortened version. The points are;
Top of the head
Middle of the eyebrows/ inner eyes
Outer eyes
Under eyes/ cheek bones
Between nose and upper lip
Under bottom lip
Inner collarbones
Under arms, in line with bra strap or nipple line
Inner wrist, 3 fingers in from the wrist crease
7. Repeat this run through, tapping the 9 body points 2-3 times. The length of tapping on each of the 9 points is just long enough for you to say your shortened seed phrase.
8. Check in again with the intensity of the original issue, rate from 0-10.
9. If still quite high, slightly alter the seed phrase and repeat the whole process with this altered seed phrase. Eg/ “Even though I am still feeling anxious, I still love and approve of myself.” Then you would use “still feeling anxious” for the 9 body points.
10. Rate the intensity from 0-10 again.
