We've all been there. One minute you're moving through life, feeling pretty good and then all of a sudden you're in a funk. Sometimes you know how you got there and other times you haven't a clue. You just don't feel like yourself. Maybe you're super irritable, or weepy, or you just can't shake off an embarrassing moment. How do you get back to being yourself?
A common strategy is to avoid the funk in a multitude of creative ways (e.g. TV watching, phone scrolling, shopping, eating etc.). Another strategy (which is really just another form of avoidance) is to push through it, continuing to work and live life while pretending to feel fine. Whether you are avoiding or pushing through the funk, you are mainly just waiting around, hoping you'll feel better as time passes. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't - and the funk drags on, clouding all of our subsequent experiences. Ugh. Been there, done ALL OF THAT.
Recently I have learned how to identify and shift out of a funky mood pretty quickly using these two things: 1) some self study questions 2) energy kinesiology techniques. Each of these is powerful on their own. Together they are a potent duo, extremely effective at returning the nervous system to homeostasis.
OK, so here are a few of my recent moods and the techniques I use to move through them. My hope is that in sharing these, they will help give you some ideas for identifying and navigating your own moods better.
Mood description: Feeling super physically run down, exhausted or lethargic, especially when I'm not usually tired (for me, that's in the morning after a good night's sleep). No strong emotion associated with it, except feeling blank and too tired to care.
Self study questions: When did I start feeling this way? What happened in the last 24 hours? Did anything new or challenging happen recently (positive or negative)? If I can, I remember the events that may have triggered my lethargy, and I acknowledge what was challenging about it. (The acknowledgement is an important part of self love - noticing how difficult it was for me). Identifying when it happened raises my self awareness - I learn what types of events may trigger this kind of response in the future. I notice any emotions that came up, and notice how I'm feeling about it now. I also might take a moment to notice where I feel it in my body. The more you notice, the more you focus your intent on the energy you'd like to release. Once I am done processing the event as best I can, I choose a kinesiology technique to release the energy. (See note at the end of this article to learn how I choose the technique).
Energy kinesiology technique chosen: Cross-Crawl, performed for 2 minutes, or until I feel an energetic shift. (Cross-Crawl movement is made when we move opposite arm and leg together, like in walking. It integrates right and left brain hemispheres, improves concentration, enhances learning, moves lymph, improves coordination, focus and energy).
Backstory: Initially I thought the exhaustion was caused by a virus or perimenopause. But now that this has happened a few times, I have learned that after a very significant experience (it can be positive or negative) I will get this lethargic feeling within 24 hours. When I perform Cross-Crawl, the exhaustion dissipates. I have come to take this as a sign that I am having a hard time integrating the experience and I need to slow down and acknowledge what the experience means to me.
Mood description: Feeling embarrassed/ashamed,
Self study questions: When did I start feeling this way? Review recent events/thoughts to identify the trigger. Were any emotions present? If yes, name the emotion(s). I traced my feelings back to when I felt embarrassed about oversharing at a meeting. I realized the emotion was the source of my self loathing and it quickly turned into strong regret and self judgment about what I had decided to say.
Energy kinesiology technique: Perform "Tapping" while repeating "I love myself" until I feel better.
Video on how to tap: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAclBdj20ZU
Video on what tapping is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnbRcO43CD8
Backstory: Initially I avoided my embarrassment and hoped it would go away. It dissipated, but then less than an hour later I noticed I was unusually irritated with a family member. I was concerned by my strong irritation and checked in with some basic energetic markers to see what aspect of my energy was out of balance. "I love myself" was showing stress so I knew that's what needed my attention. When I realized it was "I love myself" that was out of balance, I immediately recalled the embarrassment I felt from the meeting. It was still present in me, but was just being masked as irritation. It was so interesting to observe how my irritation at someone else was directly responsible for how strongly I had chastised myself for oversharing.
Mood description: Chronically sad. Cry easily. Enjoy feeling sad, or sorry for myself. Desire to write or talk about feeling sad. Thoughts revolve around unsolvable problems.
Self study questions: Does feeling sad feel better than being happy? Do you want to watch sad movies or remember sad things? When did I start feeling this way?
Well, this one is pretty obviously depression, but I am amazed at how it can be alive in me and I don't even recognize it. In this particular recent incident, I didn't notice it until I felt strongly compelled to write down and remember the sad things that were floating in my brain. And then at that moment I realized I might be depressed. I decided to check my basic energetic markers and discovered I was emotionally reversed, which basically means that feeling sad feels better than feeling good.
Energy kinesiology technique: Perform "Emotional Stress Release" (ESR) by placing a hand on my forehead until I feel better.
Backstory: I have spent a lot of days, weeks and months of my life in this state. It feels comfortable to me, like an old friend, which is why I don't notice it. Something will trigger me into feeling hopeless and then I allow myself to feel the sadness, and I think I am processing the emotion (feeling your emotions is good, right?) but really it's just running in the background until the next time I am alone and the emotions surface again.
So how do I know which energy kinesiology technique to use? I ask my body questions and muscle response testing (energy kinesiology) tells me which is the right technique to use. If you'd like to learn about it, I will be teaching this in my next Intro to Touch for Health class, which you can learn more about here.
Comments