Releasing fear through present-moment awareness
Our brains are wired to a negative bias, and fear is extremely addictive. It’s a pretty normal biological behavior to want to find and fixate on the most negative outcome and then repeat the same stimulus over and over, seeking that chemical response to fear. When fear doesn’t exist in the present moment, it’s all too easy to seek it out — if not in looping negative self-talk or imagined scenarios, then seeking it online, on social media, on TV, or in conversations or arguments with the people in your life (or with strangers). But the thing about any addictive behavior is that it diminishes the subtleties of life. It keeps you separate from the bliss in the present moment. It can lead to other behaviors or choices that aren’t supporting your highest good. In this contraction, you may not see the expansion and gifts that are possible.
When the mind takes over, when it takes control, we lose our connection with the center of self. We disconnect our experience from the infinite intelligence of the heart. And we miss the wisdom from our intuition and sacred guidance system.
Our evolution as a species diminishes the need to stay in a perpetual fear state as a protection mechanism from predators or other immediate threats to survival. Our evolution in *consciousness* lets us become more aware of the inner workings of the mind (and in my belief, the connection to the true self). Often when people first begin to meditate, feelings of fear or anxiety can arise, because the mind is programmed to exist in that state. It can take time to be okay with the present moment — which is the only moment we are unable to control. The past already happened (and we know the mind loves to relive that and try to manage it), and fixation on the future is just a way of attempting to manage the outcome (i.e. control). Being in the present, as a practice, completely rewires the brain to accept moment-to-moment awareness without fear. It’s possible to transform and reprogram your entire biological system just through this practice of acceptance and through consciousness of what is *actually* happening. The result? Bliss.
The average person looks at their phone more than 150 times per day. That’s proof right there of how much the mind relies on external feedback. I’m not saying it’s necessarily bad to evolve and adapt to technology (although I do have my preferences), but we can take that awareness of the need for biochemical stimuli and bring it to the seat of consciousness. What is ACTUALLY happening in this moment? What are the gifts in this moment? What am I feeling? What am I desiring? What will make me happy? What stories are looping in my mind? Are they true?
Because there’s a lot to love about this life. ❤️