Loss or opportunity?
Do you fear or flow?
Resist or surrender?
Freeze or play your cards?
Life isn’t supposed to stay the same.
The rivers of time alter their course often;
And the greater our ability to rise to the opportunities of change, then the richer our life experience becomes.
It is human nature to feel more comfortable in certainty.
But certainty will eventually feel boring, stuck, and lacking.
Deep down we crave growth, excitement, challenge and yes CHANGE.
Let go and trust that there is a greater force filling your sails through these cross-winds of change.
Trust and it may just be the greatest adventure!
When changes presents and it feels like a cloud of fear paralyzing your heart; take a moment to sit back, take some distance and a new perspective and find the silver lining.
This is a blog to help the sensitive souls that are also awesome athletes.
I won a race this weekend; it was totally unexpected. I even had to have to two people check the race results as I couldn’t quite believe it. This was my second time completing a half iron-man distance and I feckin’ won the race; wow. I don’t feel that I can really claim this because due to fog and weather conditions the swim was cancelled just as we were being briefed and ready to go and the resulting race was a 7 km run, 96 km bike and 7 km run loop ran twice to make the correct distance. The loops on my Garmin were on the short side, a bit disappointing because I like perfect numbers and 6.75 x 3 does not a half marathon make LOL; so in ways I am trying to compute what all this winning means.
The last time I was really good at winning something was anorexia in my youth and a drive to over-exercise that persisted into my early thirties. I made myself invisible in life and the only winning was the beating myself up in my head. Trust me the exercise was no preparation for this sort of stuff; it was just endless hours of cardio and weight training to burn every ounce of energy out of my body and a voice that wasn’t satisfied until this mission was accomplished. It probably did make me a phenomenal fat burner if I want to take something good out of it. This sort of strategy to cope with life is very common in sensitive persons; and one that can be turned around. There is so much more to life than internalizing your sensitivity; it is so very worth it to embrace a new way of doing things.
This isn’t the story of a victim, or even a victor. Nothing really matters as much as what we do right now and I just wanted to share some words of support for the sensitive souls that also have a drive to live life to the full and have a burning desire to experience it all. In other words get out there and make impossible dreams come true.
A real person doesn’t need an identity,
Real love doesn’t need measuring,
Real arguments don’t need a winner,
Real strength doesn’t need validation,
Real beauty doesn’t need covering up,
A real diet doesn’t need a name,
Real friendships don’t question who you are,
Real self belief doesn’t need noticing,
Real appreciation is a daily gratitude,
Real truth isnt sugar-coated,
Real people don’t twist things or manipulate,
Real connection doesn’t have walls,
Real people fuck-up daily on all the above and more….
Real people in their lives accept real other people:-)
Be real…. just be real…
In a world of fakes; bare your soul.
In a world of competition and one upmanship do things for YOU;
For pure and utter joy.
The empath’s paradox: how we feel everything and yet often know nothing.
It can be very hard for loved ones to understand us; and yet feeling understood is the glue to our trust in all relationships.
Unless you have been a very fortunate highly sensitive child you more than likely were raised in a family that quite simply weren’t equipped to understand or encourage your sensitivity. In a world of feeling people, people’s emotions, and world events you more than likely learned that if you were sensing everything and the world was still spinning then something was wrong with you.
Doubts, insecurities, and feeling like the weirdo that could never quite match up to the expectations of people and life became part of your being. If someone felt unhappy, angry, frustrated, or distant to you then the only logical conclusion could have been that it was you.
Unless you learnt what the soup of emotions meant as a child you more than likely internalized them all into part of your identity instead of learning what was and wasn’t ‘yours’.
Time marches on and life takes spins and turns and if you are fortunate you start to learn what this high sensitivity or being empathic means.
I wanted to reach out today and say a few words about being a very sensitive or empathic or highly ‘feeling’ person in our day to day busy lives.
I have written extensively about what does it mean to be an empath or highly sensitive person in the past and have provided insights, advice, and tools in many places on this blog; please explore the links at the bottom of this post to read more. I encourage you to take time reading my words in previous articles; It is important that we get to know ourselves, and with this release hurts, scars and pain from our past.
Why? To embrace the present. Although you may be a highly sensitive person that enjoys peace, solitude and calm this does not mean that you may not also wish to experience life to the full and achieve your dreams and desires in work, play, sport, relationships and more.
How to do this when you have a soul that is so sensitive to an excess of noise, people, chaos, light, clutter, energy, emotions and all the subtle vibrations of life that can accumulate in us to a point of absolute overwhelm is where the challenge lies.
But I don’t believe that any of us should close ourselves off to exploration and experiences for fear of “feeling too much” and becoming hyper-stimulated. Quite the contrary.
…. and i can confirm that some days you just feel like you are going to implode, have an anxiety attack, and spin off the planet all at once.
But with feeling more; comes feeling more:
More joy,
more love,
more happiness,
more human kindness;
more subtleties in the day that make this world a truly wonderful and amazing place.
A jog in a quiet lane becomes a living miracle as spring explodes,
a smile from your partner like a dart of profound love through your being,
your niece and nephew shouting your name like the best thing ever,
a new-born foal something to reduce you to happy tears,
a thank you from someone something truly profound
… and a hug all that it takes to help you get up and face another day.
Yes it sucks to feel a lot; but it’s so worth it when you learn to see the beauty of all around you…
“A human creature born abnormally, inhumanly sensitive.
To him
a touch is a blow,
a sound is a noise,
a misfortune is a tragedy,
a joy is an ecstasy,
a friend is a lover,
a lover is a god,
and failure is death.
– Pearl Buck”
I wanted to share this beautifully written article with you as it is well worth a read. Upliftconnect.com share many beautifully written pieces connecting us with cultures across the globe; I urge you to subscribe to their newsletters.
Our modern world has lost touch with many of the traditional ceremonies and rituals of our past. In Ireland we have almost closed the door on what was the old Ireland in quest of being “just like America”. Really? Do we want to lose all that is so very dear and precious about who we are and where we have travelled from? I say almost because there is a spark of hope and light as increasing numbers connect with the old ways and are coming together once more to learn and grow, share and connect.
Its time to build our tribes once more;
Time for us to reconnect in love and support.
Time for us to open our hearts and arms to one another in a sacred place of comfort, support, respect and compassion.
Time to rebuild communities…..
and put a stop to the disconnect and isolation felt by so many – disconnect that is costing lives.
What has been in recent times isn’t working so let’s make it right by building on the strengths of what was before while making it new…
It is now time to bring back who we are to the fore, restore the old ways and create more time and space in offering thanks and gratitude, connection with our fellow-men, women and children and to be mindful to support to those where we are in a position to give.
Please read the article and let me know your thoughts!
PS for those in the limerick/ Castleconnell/ Annacotty etc. area I am hoping to open my home in Annacotty starting in May to a regular meeting of like minds and to offer a support system to those interested. This is not about being high on the spiritual ladder, or anything with rules and regulations… it is about us meeting in togetherness and support; to share a cup of tea, warm hearts, kind words and provide in equal balance support and thanks. Who’s in? email me on andreacullenhealthsolutions@gmail.com
A message to my lovely empathic and highly sensitive friends.
So today I really got to discover, in its truthful way what the energy vortex effect of Sedona is. It is NOT a tour, a thing you can buy in expensive jewellry, Atlantean charged pieces of $$$ necklaces, or a stone; it is an energy felt by the most sensitive souls, in the least expected moments as the world calls for healing and help and for those able to listen, to feel this right through their core.
I am a science minded person; however the past years of my life have taught me to trust also in what I feel, and pay less heed to common opinion or what I am TOLD I am going to feel when I go somewhere. The body feels truth and the mind understands it in ways that the thinking brain often cannot assimilate. Sometimes you just have to feel things and be content in that knowing.
Coming to Sedona I have chosen to feel my way into this place rather than research it to death or believe every word I am told. The truth will come in its own way.
There is no doubt that there is a special energy here; and you can feel it when you get away from the (non-local) people. Nature speaks loudly here, the natural beauty of the location is simply breath-taking, the mountain formations talk a language of an age submerged in waters. For me stones and rocks and sacred sites have always had a powerful impact on my well-being and somehow focus me to where I am supposed to be in thoughts or no thoughts – at home in Ireland my go to places are mountains and old ancient burial cairns or circles.
However there is something more going on here also; and this I am slowly easing my way into. I am not an environmental scientist, engineer, or geologist. So this is my observance from intuition.
There is a phenomenal amount of minerals in the ground, mountains and formations here; of note iron and quartz. Both these minerals will hold electromagnetic / magnetic charges (if you doubt this google the use of minerals in technology; even look at your watch it may be driven by a quartz crystal or open your circuit board and have a look. e.g. http://www.nma.org/index.php/minerals-publications/40-common-minerals-and-their-uses); things are an unusual shape here and there is a lot of water under the ground. Even the forestry here will add its count of negative ions to the mix and I am sure that there are ley lines and geopathic stresses going on also.
It would be my guess that this sets us up for some interesting and yet subtle energy fields notably where the geometries form more significant ‘shapes’ (conducting patterns). Sacred geometries have been well-studied and permeate our cultures through time. Think pyramids, New Grange, Glastonbury abbey, labyrinths, Rosslyn chapel, and almost every significant temple or sacred place globally; they are all constructed as such for a very real and significant reason. And it is not just for looks!
We are also in a place where healers come together and reside. The real deal authentic heart centred gifted persons. I can see their challenge to ground on a daily basis amongst the tourist masses. The more you feel; the more you are going to be shook with more feeling as energetic and emotional clutter hits this town in the frenzy.
But also I am starting to understand in my own feeling experiences that there is something deeper going on. Mother Earth is a complex system of life and energy and it is all connected in a spider web more complex than any human can ever know for sure….. what is being sent and being sensed here is not by chance.
So in my truth radar I sense that the global consciousness is amplified by the vast number of aware peoples here, the earth ground consciousness and the matrix that binds us all together is more potent here due to how earth can direct and move these energies in an effort for balance…
Mother Nature is trying to heal; our planet is trying to heal…. and the seekers and knowers of truth and those ‘feeling it’ well in ways it is a case of “should you choose to accept this mission”….. because what we can all agree on is that our world is in need of changes or we are going to soon reach the point of no return.
Don’t get me wrong I am absolutely LOVING my experience here; however I hadn’t expected the energies to pound my centre quite so dramatically as it was finally explained to me that the unstable emotions, tears, and desire to get on a plane to South Africa into loving hugs hit me hard today. I have been feeling so emotional, lost, confused, anxious and bombarded by the energies of the USA and the endless tourists in this town; wherever the healing energy of Sedona was she was either hiding or ripping me apart in some deep emotions. I was stuck somewhere between is this mine or is this everywhere else.
And it felt so odd because I was up at 630 am this morning in a total flow of creativity and inspiration for my work before another wallop of intense feelings hit me. What a contrast and more than a little confusing!
I felt people ‘coming at me’ with anger bombs, judgements, and just in the masses of tourists and not even a place to park; and despite my learnt ability to accept things and people as they are I was reacting for longer than normal, feeling shaken more than normal, and getting triggered to the point of being over-reactive with the one person that I love and trust most; my boy. Then on top of that comes the shame and embarrassment of not being stronger, more tolerant, and less of an emotional idiot.
It took crying on a bathroom floor full of water (yep done by muppet me) soothed by Veena and Ciardha today (experienced souls in the ways of Sedona) to be shown how the vortex effect of Sedona’s sacred sites amplifies all the energies and messages of the universe. You believe it when you feel it and I can only say how grateful I am for the support and words of encouragement.
I knew there was a reason I hadn’t wanted to venture far from Thunder mountain and it would seem that she is quite the special place as told me by Ciadhra so now I understand the intuitions that I have had to spend time either running her roads or trekking up into her mountain trails. And now I have been guided to a few new places of solitude for time outs and prayer (in my own way).
The point of my writing isn’t whoopee here we go all about me;
It isn’t about us coming together to bitch about what we are feeling,
Or doing that empath victim thing.
The point is that we are feeling.
Something.
Some message from the world….
And what are we going to do about it?
Here are my words for you today; IF you are somewhere and feeling it DON’T give up, remind yourself of your strength and dig within for the meaning and actions that come from these emotions…. there is nothing that is too daft or weird as an answer or an action…. just do it in your own heart-centred way and you cannot go wrong. Think farther than yourself; how does how you feel relate to the bigger picture? For me I was feeling our worlds pain….
Each one of our actions marries that of each other and amplifies in its effects…. something more, synergism, magic and cosmic mystery…. bottom line let’s make this world a better place; she needs us right now and feeling sorry for ourselves, hating the world, fighting against people and complaining ain’t gonna make this world a better place; worse in fact and especially worse in your reality if that is all you see.
Open your eyes; your all-seeing eyes:
Love,
Andrea
PS. there is always a place that we can go, a thing we can do, or someone we can talk to, to help bring us back into our safe heart space and the truth of the situation. If you can drop everything then go and be there.
The one thing that always gives me important emotional grounding and spiritual connection is my running. Yesterday I was blessed to see a road-runner peg it across the road right in front of me; apparently a rare sighting. In the past days I have also seen a red cardinal, a brewer’s blackbird, I had a bird of prey circle right over my head; and a cohort of quail crossing the road. When I notice these gifts from the universe I know in my heart that I am in some way present and paying heed despite how at times I do may get overwhelmed in the drama.
Quail
Brewers Blackbird
Roadrunnner
The true legend
Red cardinal
bird of prey
Footnote:
A day after writing this I listened to this video blog from Lee Harris and it is one worth listening to.
A quick check in from Sedona with some words that hopefully hit the hearts where it is needed most.
Oh and i saw my first live roadrunner bird today!!
PS the feature image is of an Indian paintbrush flower. A beautiful flower whose energy I am planning on adding into a healing energy essence before I leave. She is all about letting down walls, the ones that we used to protect ourselves with and now feeling safe to express the inner joy-filled child.
Here is a lovely article on upliftconnect about why women need a tribe that is well worth a read; for both women and men.
Friendships in our lives are tremendously important and are defined by a balance of giving and receiving; nurturing and being nurtured.
It is vital for us to examine this balance in our lives as to give too much (have too much taken) will lead to fatigue and/ or feelings of resentment and to take too much may result in a loss of friendships!
Before you decide to make changes in your friendship life however always explore what can be better balanced from your own side. I see so many clients in the clinic that are drained by negative friendships and having experienced this too myself I do recommend taking a good hard look at the balance of your life and when this isn’t nurturing or supporting you, or allowing you to be yourself and grow, then it is time to take leaps of faith to invite new friendships in…
sometimes we grow in our lives and move on… this is ok too.
Wishing you loving friendships and connections in your life and I also wanted to invite in any women close to Limerick and Tipperary area if they are interested in forming a regular meeting and support group to email me on andreacullenhealthsolutions@gmail.com; I see that there is a great need for more support systems for one another in this crazy busy and often isolated world.
Journeys in Healing 