Sad to Joyful in 5 Simple Steps
This morning I woke up feeling so sad. I didn’t have a particular reason, I just felt sad.
It felt challenging to dive into my day with receptivity and clarity. We all have these moments, some more often then others. I have a simple practice I’d like to share with you, that helps me both acknowledge my sadness (or any emotion) while not getting bogged down by it. I can then resume my day from a place of buoyancy and openheartedness.
5 Simple Steps to Emotional Freedom
1) LET GO OF THE STORY!
The first step is a very important one. It does not matter why you are sad – ever!!! You must let go of the story you have attached to your sadness if you are actually going to fully feel your sadness. This is a confusing one as it is modeled in our culture to blame others for how we are feeling. The main way we do this is we focus on the story of why we are sad. When we do this, we willingly embrace the victim role. Thus creating a never ending loop until you make a different choice. That choice is to drop the story and simply notice what you are feeling. It is important to acknowledge what you are feeling because when you don’t the feelings become repressed. You don’t want to pretend you aren’t sad by telling yourself you are fine. This is also another common practice that flattens our experience of life. Ideally we want to be able to feel a wide array of emotions fully. Most people have 5-10 emotions that are their home base. They are stuck in these experiences and don’t get to experience the fullness of the many other states of being.
2) FEEL your sadness.
Now that you have dropped the story, let yourself feel the sadness. Cry, wail, yell, and sob. Really get into it. BREATHE into the places in your body that feel constricted. Take nice, deep inhales and exhales. Deep, steady breathing is a very powerful way to allow yourself to feel. If you are having difficulty accessing your sadness, ACT it out! This may sound strange, but your brain doesn’t know the difference between “real” sadness and “fake” sadness. Oftentimes when I do this, it leads me to accessing more authentic tears. Expressing your emotions is a muscle that needs to be exercised and strengthened. You do not need to spend much time in this stage of expressing. Go until you feel complete. This may be 2 minutes and it may be 30 minutes. Listen to your body and let her guide you.
3) GET UP & DANCE! Again you may feel resistance to doing this, but do it anyways!
PUT A SMILE ON YOUR FACE.
Jumping up and down and smiling literally changes the chemistry in your body to support a more inspired state. It doesn’t matter if you feel like it or not, JUST DO IT!!! It is one of the simplest, sure fire ways to change your emotional state.
Dance for at least one song. Keep going if it feels good.
Throughout the day if you are beginning to droop, get up, jump up and down, and dance again.
4) CELEBRATE! Now that you are starting to feel more alive – cheer, shout a big yes for the beauty of life.
5) APPRECIATE! The final action that really locks in a joyful state is appreciation. It is literally impossible to be sad (or angry) and be in appreciation at the same time.
I like to have 3 memories in my life that are easy to draw upon and embody regardless of how I am feeling. I can then choose moment to moment if I want to use these memories or use something that spontaneously arises. Now close your eyes and take yourself back to that moment as palpably as you can. Feel like you are there again. Breathe steady, full breaths while experiencing the love, joy, and gratitude from your memories. Use your breath to fill your body with this vibration of appreciation.
All of these steps can easily be done in 10 short minutes. It will absolutely transform you. This process honors your feelings by acknowledging them, and it allows you to CHOOSE a higher state to interact with the world from. Sometimes I need to do some or all of these steps multiple times in a day. There is no right or wrong answer here. The main intention is that YOU CHOOSE what is happening inside of you rather than feeling a victim to your circumstances.
This practice will change your life!
All you have to do it choose it.
Dare to Desire!
Kristen