The ‘Fight or Flight’ Response

Energetically the mind can be divided into the lower mind and the higher mind. The lower mind is our earthly, physical mind that processes everyday cognition and mental abilities. The higher mind houses our intuition and is related to our spiritual energies, connection and higher wisdom.

During the early developmental stages of humanity the reptilian mind was formed. It is strongly connected to our physical survival and the survival of our species. This part of the brain governs our ‘fight or flight’ response and catapults us into survival mode when activated.

The primary emotion that invokes the ‘fight or flight’ reaction is fear and the physiological response is to ‘fight’ or ‘run.’ In prehistoric times, the response was activated to flee from any potentially life threatening situations. Today, the response is still activated but may also include emotionally running (such as social withdrawal, substance abuse, or playing video games.) In either case, once activated the body will be flooded with energy and adrenalin to support the bodymind in moving away from any perceived danger or discomfort.

The higher mind on the other hand houses our calmer, gentler energies and is connected to our intuitive processes & universal wisdom. The primary emotions linked to this energetic level are that of peace, joy, happiness and love. Quiet, meditative states are just one way you can open up and access this inner tranquility & the wisdom held within.

Like anything, the more we activate and listen to our intuition, the stronger it becomes. This process is called self-realization or the Awakening (enlightenment) process. And as we strengthen our relationship with our intuition, other portions of the brain begin to strengthen as well. New neurological pathways are actually created to increase and open up our consciousness to these higher levels of awareness.

When we are in balance we can access great power by taking information in through our lower mind and then ‘feeling’ it against our intuition. All information is meant to be streamed through our consciousness via the lower mind and then relayed back to our intuitive processes to yield complete knowledge. When we can do this, the fear-activated ‘fight or flight’ response will remain inactive.

Unfortunately many people on the planet live in a heightened state of survival every day. When this is occurring we are restricted in our access to universal wisdom and guidance through the higher mind. The lower mind and ‘ego self’ may then get trapped in fear which blocks the flow to universal support, increased insights and awareness. The end result is a vicious recycling of fear keeping the ‘fight or flight’ response in active mode.

The key to maintaining balance is to watch what you are doing with your thoughts. Any time your mind creates fear you’ve just disconnected from great resources and activated the ‘fight or flight’ response. But if you can catch yourself as soon as you feel the fear, you can reverse the process. It’s as simple as redirecting the mind until you find thoughts that make you feel better and bring you more peace. As a result you will be able to disengage from the ‘flight or fight’ response and move towards greater expansion and balance once again.

So make it your mission every day to become more conscious by caring about what you think. Because every thought you have holds the potential to yield great power or great fear. The choice is up to you!


Warmest Regards,
Angela

Health on TV

I find it interesting how we have so many television shows that focus on illness. Just to name a few, there is ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ ‘ER,’ ‘Mental,' etc. It’s almost like we as a society glorify illness. And not too surprisingly, in spite of huge medical advances & amazing technology, the percentage of illness is rising not falling here in the West. Just thoughts to ponder…

Strong Willed Children!

Willpower and fears co-exist and our kidneys are responsible for keeping these two opposing energies in balance. The kidneys are housed in the low back and provide us with vital life force energy. Part of the kidney meridian runs from the kidneys up through the core of the body and ends in the inner ear. A division also runs from the kidneys down the leg, wraps around the knee and ends in the foot.

A classic example of the relationship between willpower and fears can be seen in a small child. A child who is learning how to assert their own power may lock their knees in defiance when being asked to do something opposing to their own desires. In this scenario, the child is learning to assert their willpower in the only way they know how. And since the kidney meridian wraps around the knees, it is no coincidence that the knees are the joints involved during willpower versus fear expression. Fascinating!

The Power of Emotions!

When an emotional charge is connected to a particular event, we are more likely to absorb the energy of the experience into our system. Our chakras & energy systems act as memory banks that “…code your experiences in their energies, just as memories are chemically coded in your neurons. An imprint of every emotionally significant event you have experienced is believed to be recorded in your chakra energies.” (David Feinstein, PhD.) Once imprinted, these energies stay with us until they are freed from our bodymind.

For example, when we experience a fearful event an energetic reaction ripples throughout the body system. Fears are considered cold producing emotions that lower our energy frequencies. Since the energies lower, they can cause imbalances in the lower chakras and their associated structures. In this particular example, the bladder and kidneys may be affected. From an eastern healing perspective, the kidneys are considered our internal heating system and are analogous to a furnace. Physically we may sense this energy imbalance as cold feet and a drop in body temperature. To compensate, the kidneys may increase frequency of urination to rid the body of the lower energies (fear).

Joy Creates Harmony!

Did you know that with every beat of your heart energy pulsations ripple throughout your body like radio waves? With each heart beat information is pumped to every cell in your body about the level of harmony or disharmony you are currently experiencing.

Our natural state is harmony. Joy creates harmony and harmony neutralizes all excess. Thus the heart is very powerful in maintaining health and balance by regulating excess within our bodymind. So by simply allowing yourself to find Joy within everything you see, feel and experience you hold the power to shift any disharmony back to your natural state of harmony.

Shining the Light of Goodness!

We’ve all heard the saying that some people can bring out the worst or the best in us, depending on who they are. As well, what might initially be character traits that attract us to an individual can soon turn into what annoys us most about them!

This happens because in the beginning it is easy to shine the light of goodness on someone when we have no disappointments or judgments. But over time, through broken expectations & numerous disappointments we start to shine the light of judgment upon them instead. The end result is that we loose the feeling of being uplifted when we think about that individual.

Shining the light of goodness for others is easily demonstrated with children. For some reason, it is more natural to hold children in the light of innocence. This is why, as parents, children can seem to do no wrong and they are able to hold their children in the highest of esteem. In some cases, a parent continues to hold this light for their children in spite of them maturing into an adult.

But why can’t we hold this same space for others? Why is it so incredibly hard to shine that same light on everyone in our lives?

The Power of Mistakes

When I was a young child I learned about the power of making mistakes first hand. In my elementary school, grade 2 was a pivotal year for assessing reading skills. Any child that did not pass the set requirements would be held back another year. Unfortunately my home environment was not conducive to learning or reading. As a result I did not succeed in passing my assessment test which resulted in me failing grade 2.

I remember that day like it was yesterday; my father came into my room to tell me that I had failed which meant I would not be able to move forward with the rest of my classmates. I started to cry. I felt like I had let my father down and that I was the biggest failure of all. I felt so alone and somehow deficient.

I hated that feeling and I wanted to change it any way that I could. I desperately wanted to make my father proud by proving to him that I could be smart. So that summer I spent my days teaching myself how to read more proficiently; I opened up a library account and signed out as many books as I could. I read and read until I could read no more. The more I read the more I loved it and before I knew it I started to feel ‘smart’ again.

When I returned to grade 2 my teachers were astounded at how well I could read. They contacted my parents and offered to move me forward into grade 3 with the rest of my classmates. But my parents declined and said it would be too confusing for me and to just keep me where I was at.

I am so grateful that they did because from that day on I became an honor roll student in everything I studied. I went on to excel not only in grade school but also in my post secondary studies. I learned to become a practical learner and as such I needed to be okay with making mistakes. There was no room for perfectionism because the very act of making mistakes was where I found my success.

So you see by failing grade 2 I learned how to turn my failure into success by my making mistakes. I hope you can see that any time you feel like a failure that success is just around the corner. For success and failure go hand-in-hand and by making mistakes we are given the power to create success!