slowing down Archives - Seren Holistic Lifestyles

Posts Tagged ‘slowing down’

Slowing Down or Burning Out

December 17, 2013 By Kat

There are messages & lessons to be learned every day. Paying attention & recognising these messages does take skill. Slowing down & listening within, keeping your eyes open & mind present is what is required.

Life has got very busy for me these past few weeks. It’s nearly three months since I went out on my own to start building my Reiki & intuitive healing business. I’m loving it. Every day is different & I’m enjoying the variety. However now my marketing efforts are paying off & my manifestations are becoming a reality my days are filling up fast.

It’s an amazing feeling to actually see my hard work coming alive. The most spiritual path you take is one of action. Successful people didn’t get where they are by sitting around wishing & wanting. They put in the hours & did the work to achieve results. Utilising my background in design to produce my own marketing is awesome. Finally I can use my creativity for my own projects & I am getting results.

The excitement of new client inquiries really fired up my Soul. Especially with first timers I was keen to fit them in ASAP. I love my healing work so much I want to do it at every opportunity. What happened next was a great lesson in sticking to my boundaries, staying slow & not sacrificing my self-love time.

I completely over booked myself. My yoga-teaching schedule was at full capacity & I took on an extra cover. Fitting in healings, tarot reading & Skype sessions took up every spare hour I had. My busyness didn’t affect my energy levels or my sessions. Both were still strong. I was pushing through & enjoying the ride of spending so much time connected to spirit. To ease the pressure I decided to use my day off from yoga for healing too. This day off is supposed to be a ‘day off from everything.’

Big mistake. I needed this day off in the middle of two busy weeks to regroup. Working with energy can be demanding & if you don’t take a break between you can burn out just like any other activity. At the time you don’t realise as your very zen & chilled out from it all. We live a dualistic life, both human & spiritual. There needs to be an even balance. I was so busy letting the spiritual side take over & was neglecting my human side & was risking becoming ungrounded. Just like with weight training it’s a good idea to take time off between sessions to allow the muscles relax & grow.

After ten days straight without a day off I was whacked. I can’t even really remember the afternoon I finally realised I had to stop, it’s a bit fuzzy. My message came to me it was time to slow down in a rather painful way. I got sunburnt.

Having lived in Australia for eight years I am no stranger to the danger of UV rays. My hectic week left me a bit scattered & careless one afternoon. I was attending a teacher’s workshop in an outdoor location. I packed my sunhat and toxic free sunscreen, however I didn’t use the latter. My morning started early & I really was hanging for a coffee. A fellow teacher was also at the studio & she was going to follow me up to the park, as she wasn’t sure where we were meeting. The day was overcast & breezy so I totally dismissed the need for sunscreen. I was also aware I had someone waiting for me. There was just enough time to get coffee & be on time. Busy, busy, rush, rush off I went sans screen big mistake. My saving grace was at least I wore my sun hat!

Needless to say my fair European skin got fried. The breeze of the sea kept things chilly so I didn’t even notice I was burning. Such a rookie mistake. A few hours later I was glowing. I can’t describe how annoyed I was with myself, stupid, stupid mistake.

Of course I needed to look up the metaphysical reasons for a burn. No surprise it is all linked with over committing & pushing too hard. Not knowing when to stop & difficulty saying no. Feeling burned out & tired. Point acknowledged thank you universe for pulling me up. Time to slow down.

It took another two days to honour my appointments then I stopped. Well actually I physically had nothing left so I kind of dropped. My skin was so sore & inflamed it was hard to sleep making it an extra tiring week.

Reflecting back I achieved a lot & grew a great deal in those busy two weeks. However with more stringent planning & time management I could have saved myself hitting exhaustion point. I should never give up my day off either.

Bookings are still rolling in thick & fast but now I just have to tell people they can’t get appointments in the same week. If they value my services they will wait & they are. No more giving away my ‘me’ time. That’s my time to let all my muscles relax & repair.

Love K xx

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Balancing Act

March 20, 2013 By Kat

It’s Autumn Equinox in the Southern Hemisphere. Perfect time as we reach this change of season to talk about balance. The word balance appears a lot in our every day lives. Eat a balanced diet, stay balanced, balance your life, balance the books, it’s a balancing act! In our physical lives we are living in forward motion, dictated by time. There is a lot going on all at once for most of us. This can cause imbalance. Our human body is naturally unbalanced as it is divided from the spiritual or invisible part of us, our Soul, whilst we are in human existence.

Imagine an old fashioned weighing scale with a centre point and two arms on either side. What happens when you add too much weight to one side? That side shoots up, the other down & imbalance occurs. What do you do? Add weight to the counter side or take a little weight off so the scale ‘balances’ or comes back to centre. Just like the scales our lives & our bodies have to come back to centre in order to balance. When our physical and spiritual forms are together as one we are balanced. How do we achieve this balance? We need to stop moving and connect within.

The inspiration for this post was sparked by a question posed to me last week. I was asked if I’d given up my day job that requires me to work a 40-hour week on a nine to five schedule. No I replied I still work full time, as I love what I do. Why would someone ask me if I’d given up my job in the first place? Let me enlighten you. It is not my only job. I also teach Bikram yoga part time as well as undertaking regular freelance design work, my daily commute can take up to a 1.5 hours (one way), I write this blog, practice Reiki healing, oil paint, pole dance, do yoga amongst other hobbies all whilst maintaining a house and relationship. How can you do all this I hear your scream. BALANCE!

It hasn’t always been so easy for me. About ten months ago I was running myself into the ground. I had all the above jobs and activities going on in my life but there was no balance. I was stuck and desperately needed some guidance. I was recommended by a friend to contact a Soul Mentor with whom I had a personal email session. This first session lead me onto the journey I am currently travelling. With direction from my Mentor I have learned to follow my inner guide, we all have one, here’s that word again our Soul, thus creating the much needed balance in my life.

To onlookers my life might still seem crazy busy. To me it flows without effort or strain. It does not at all seem busy because I am leading from my Soul base. All my jobs and activities are aligned with my life purpose. I eliminated the parts of my life that were causing me strain and discomfort. I took control, owned my own worth and most importantly focused on what I love in life. When you live authentically life is simple and easy. Just like nature it becomes natural, the way it’s meant to be, nothing forced or burdensome.

Have you noticed when you’re running round like a headless chicken, trying to please everyone, be everything to everybody time just flies and there never seems to be enough hours in the day? You feel stressed and grumpy and pretty much not happy. It doesn’t have to be this way! If I can squeeze all the above into my life you can too.

How do I do it? I simply slow down and come back to stillness. I stop what I’m doing. Take time out to close my eyes, be still and breathe. This is how to get in touch with yourself, the real Self, inside your core. When you become still at your centre point the scales balance, both sides are equal, that is where all your answers lie and time will stand still for you. Quite the mind, focus on the point that lies in the pause between your thoughts, between your breath. This is stillness. I tell my yoga students this all the time in savasana posture but it’s a skill you can apply any time of the day.

Anyone can live authentically you just need to take action for yourself. No one but you can control your life you need to be the instigator. When you allocate time to something you really love, time opens up for you, slows down for you to give you the time to do something that will nourish you on all levels. It really does, you just need to desire it without doubt. It’s happening to me right now. I was so pumped up with inspiration to write this post, I truly desired to have the time to write. Guess what, my workload dried up, literally nothing to do, allowing me the time to write unhindered.

Allocate time to do something you love and see what happens. Just like I talked about in the post ‘Treat Yourself.’ Put in the effort and reap the benefits, you will be rewarded, it may not be obvious at first but soon it will be. All you need to do is find that stillness and balance will follow.

Love & light,

Seren xx

If you’d like to know more about Soul Mentoring or book a session please check out Elizabeth Peru’s website Deltawaves for information on her range of services. http://www.deltawaves.com.au/elizabethssessions.html

If you have any questions regarding Elizabeth’s work please email her directly on: Elizabeth@deltawaves.com.au

Or follow on Facebook for daily Soul insights: https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethSPeru?fref=ts

Clock Eaters

March 5, 2013 By Kat

How many of you have been asked “are you hungry?” and immediately looked at your watch, clock or other time revealing object? Yes, me! I used to be such ‘clock eater.’ Sounds a bit strange that term doesn’t it? Images of a clock sat on a dinner plate ready for you to chow down on. I was even told off for it by a friend when I looked at my watch when asked if I was hungry, “why did you look at your watch, that’s not your stomach”.

It’s such a part of our society to eat at regular times. Growing up our evening meal was always served at 5pm. (I still believe it is now) Sunday lunch was every Sunday without fail at 1pm, no excuses you had to be there. My partners’ factory has set smoko and lunch times. Schools are the same. Breaks and lunch at the same time every day. Very regimented. I do understand school’s have a schedule to keep, would be mayhem if 300+ children took their lunch at different times of the day.

We are so conditioned to eat ‘on time’ & ‘by the clock.’ It’s instilled into us, it’s a part of life but does it have to be? There are many other factors that cause us to eat but I’m just going to focus on the concept of ‘eating by the clock’ in this post.

I was part of that clock eating gang. I used to look at my watch first when food thoughts appeared because if it was too early to eat lunch I’d panic I’d be hungry too soon again before dinner and need a snack. Where would I be, would I be able to access a snack later on? Fear. It all came down to fear with me. Scared I’d be left hungry and then be over come with that horrid feeling of sickness that can happen if you’re over hungry. Always eating to stay ahead of the game or the hunger. The hunger game!

Many diets tell us to eat lots of small meals and snacks during the day to keep our energy levels up. This makes sense, some people need to follow this plan, but if you’re not actually hungry do you actually need this constant supply of food? Eating ‘just in case.’

Gradually over the years and even more so now that I am more in tune with my body, I’ve stopped clock eating. I let my body tell me if I need nourishment by stopping & listen to it. When you are properly hungry, your stomach feels empty, it’s churning, you start to fatigue. Then it’s obvious you need to eat!!! It’s those times in between or when you look at the clock & it’s ‘lunch time’ so you might as well go eat. That’s when you need to tune in.

When I start to think about food, usually when triggered by external factors, I ask myself – am I hungry? Do I just need more water? Thirst can easily be mistaken for hunger. Am I just thinking about food because what time it is? It takes practice to listen to your body. Especially as your head, the ego will often jump in as it does and tell you something different. Fear is manifested by the head/ego. Your soul, your heart, inside, that will tell you the truth & what you really need. It won’t lie to you.

How do you listen to yourself? Simple, stop what you’re doing. Move away from any distractions, look away from your computer screen, go outside, focus on the wall, anything. Breathe deeply and ask the question. “Am I hungry?” The answer may take a while to come. You may get this answer in a different ways. Your ‘inner voice’ may whisper ‘yes’. A visual picture may appear in your minds eye – a piece of fruit, a glass of water, go for a walk. You may get a sensory message through your nose. If you’re not meant to eat this smell may be off putting, or you may smell something delicious. Lastly you may physically manifest the answer, the obvious grumble in your stomach or simply nothing. If you get nothing at all that may be your answer – no you are not hungry.

I now eat when I am physically hungry or signalled by my inner self. Yes this means eating outside of the ‘normal times.’ For example I start my day with a vegetable juice & green supplement about 6am. I then hungry for breakfast at 10am, lunch maybe around 3pm. Lunch is my main meal, I eat the most food at lunch time as I need the energy to get me through the rest of the day. Often if I’m working a late shift then I don’t feel hungry enough to eat at 10pm (not good to sleep on a full stomach) when I return home, so I don’t. If I am signaled to eat I do, usually something light.

Then I start again the next day. I let go of the fear thinking ‘I didn’t eat a ‘proper’ meal last night so I need to make up for it this morning with a full breakfast.’ I forget what happened the day before, this is a new day, and what do I need right now today is the only thought I think of. Staying present and living in the moment. I feel healthier, leaner and cleaner. I never stress about calories, cravings or hunger pangs for this way of eating suits me as it comes from within ME.

Everyone is different. Some of you may read this & think I’m totally wacked. Not a problem! It is your life, your body, listen to it, it is right there to guide you when you are ready.

Bon appetite!

Love & light

Seren xx