Hand To Heart
"Knowing we can create a safe space for ourselves, no matter where we are or how we feel, is a gift that will last the rest of your life."~Susannah Conway
It started with a simple suggestion from Heidi Taylor. That I could put my hand on my heart*, breathe in an observation (usually an unhappy, panicked one of overhwhelm) like "I don't know how to deal with these emails" and then breathe out a response (usually a productive, supportive and self-loving suggestion) "sort them by sender, set a timer and take them one at a time".This practice of breathing with my hand to my heart started to create space around my responses to things. It gave me a way to acknowledge what I'm feeling and to self-soothe. Game changer.I've also started meditating - short little guided meditations from Susannah Conway's The Sacred Alone. I signed up for the class months ago, but never participated in real time. I try to do them when I wake up, between drinking some water and writing my morning pages.These practices spilled over into my free time. I chose to go without any music or podcasts during a few of my commutes and a few 2m runs. One night, I laid down on the floor in our office, in the dark, and just watched the sky. A few days I didn't check Twitter at all. I started reading a new book. I took my lunch break at the beach & stared at the waves.With my anxiety up a lot the past few weeks, it's been really amazing to have these physical practices of both self-soothing with my hand to my heart and sitting still for a few minutes while meditating. Both get me more into my body and out of my head, where the anxieties tend to grab their fuel. Making the conscious decision to limit the input/output of my days only creates more space.It seems that what I've been craving is space. Safe, open, calm space. And space + noticing seems to equal presence. Because I don't want to miss my one precious life. I want to live it.---*Heidi will tell you she found this practice via Kristin Neff.**I highly recommend this hand-to-heart practice. Go on. Give it a try xo