Stress causes an increase production of cortisol which is our primary stress hormone. When produced in excess Cortisol has detrimental effects to your health and waist line. Stress also contributes greatly to Heart attacks, Strokes, High Blood Pressure and a myriad of other diseases. As a society we are “entrenched” in external and internal stressors, and despite our desire to decrease and/or erradicate it from our lives, we don’t thouroughly examine the cause of it.
The following words were recently shared with me: “Once the mind is healed, the body will follow.” As I reflect on this phrase, I begin to realize it’s purity.
How often do we sabotage ourselves with negative thoughts and unhealthy emotions? In the past, I’ve distanced myself from situations and people that I felt were “toxic” or had “negative energy” and “caused” me stress. However, I’m learning and accepting that people are put in our paths for a reason. We attract people to us, and those with whom we share the closest relationships are actually a reflection of our own internal issues. Those people and circumstances we encounter which evoke the most powerful emotional responses, are mirroring to us what is unhealed within ourselves.
We feel that our pain, stress, anger or sadness are caused by circumstances or someone else’s actions. In reality, the meaning we attach to theses circumstances or actions is what plays the greatest role in affecting our personal suffering. When someone hurts or angers us, we immediately attach our own meaning to what they have done, thereby creating a “story,” our own version of what that action meant.
These thoughts are what cause us pain and guilt which then becomes an obstacle to our goals and ultimately, our purest happiness. Feelings are evoked in response to the thoughts we attach to what has been done, but those thoughts are often not true. When you can take a step back and honestly assess why you feel so strongly about what someone else has done, you can awaken to all that is unhealed within you. You can use a potentially hurtful moment as an opportunity to better understand, and eventually heal yourself.
I challenge you to stop the next time you are upset and allow yourself to observe the why. Maybe you’ll be driving in traffic and the person ahead cuts you off. What kind of story do you immediately begin creating about the situation, that isn’t really True? You might be thinking how inconsiderate they are, or how unsafe, or how they weren’t paying attention. In a moment like this, you waste so much energy getting upset, stressed, and creating a “story.”
When you take time to examine the source of this “stress/anger” you will realize it stems from guilt about a time when you were inconsiderate, unsafe, or not paying attention to others or yourself. Unconsciously you realize this already and it is your own embarrassment which causes you to want to lash out, even though they’re displaying behaviors you can identify with.
These situations and people are our mirrors; they show us our WORK. By recognizing this work we are lead to inquire about layers of ourselves hidden within. Peeling back each layer reveals to us our mental and emotional obstacles. Once we identify them we can investigate the root of their cause, be it our insecurities, our ego, or our own gulit. Through this process we gain a true understanding of the witness that lies within, which results in improved relationships with ourselves and others.
So often in my own life, I’ve caught myself “creating a story,” or blaming others for “making me” feel a certain way. I am learning to observe my own thoughts and choose better reactions. I’m learning a new way to think about life, a new ways of dealing with emergent situations, that doesn’t lead me to stress out or get upset. Ultimately, this spares me from wasting energy on unhealthy, counterproductive thoughts and feelings thereby decreasing stress.
When we take the necessary steps to better understand ourselves and heal internal wounds, we create a path of healing for our minds and in turn our bodies.
“Pain is inevitable, suffering is OPTIONAL” – Buddha
Investigating our internal dialogue in response to external stimuli has been a focus of my yoga classes lately. I encourage you to start choosing how YOU will react, and improve your state.
Please feel free to post questions or insights. I’d love to hear from you!
Books that have contributed greatly to my understanding of stress and how to help “heal” yourself from the inside out…