Last Saturday night my husband and I got one of those dreaded calls in the middle of the night that left us reeling. Our sweet, beautiful 16yr old had been arrested …
Our initial reaction was one of shock and disbelief. “huh? what?!!” It had a surreal quality of being in a nightmare you can’t wake up from. We stumbled through the rest of the night and most of Sunday experiencing wave after wave of emotional overwhelm… shock, shame, relief, despair, gratitude, anger, grief.
As I rode the emotional roller coaster, I tapped fiercely on the acupuncture points of my head and upper body, desperate for some relief … “All this fear… All this fear in my body”.
While we made our way to the police station where he was being held. While we waited to get the details of what happened. While sitting in the dark place of not knowing how this will affect his life (and ours)… I tapped. I used the tool of EFT (emotional freedom technique) to shift from a state of fear and anxiety to a state of calm and to ground myself.
To find some peace in the midst of the storm.
It helped me to feel better and to cope with what was happening. It prevented my mind from going too far down the path of doom and gloom and I noticed something miraculous happening as well: every time I completed a round of tapping and shifted my emotional state, something opened up.
The first time, the policeman we had been waiting to arrive and give us information about what happened, walked through the door.
The second time, he brought out the papers to facilitate our sons release.
The third time, my son suddenly shifted from being defensive and argumentative to being calmer and more humble.
Not only did the tapping help me to process the physiological shock and fear response in my body and helped me stay present and make decisions quickly; not only did it shift me out of shock and confusion and into clarity and decisive action… It moved the process along more quickly. It set the stage for magic and miracles.
That is what is possible when you shift your vibrational state. That is the power of having tools and processes to shift into that high vibrational state of being I call the Million Dollar Zone. A state of ease and flow.
I saw where having this tool in my back pocket served me. I was clearly more grounded and present than my husband so the policeman automatically dealt with me. It happened unconsciously, but it was all about the difference in my husbands energy and mine in that moment.
How do you respond to stressful situations or crises in your life?
In times of crisis, I have learned to ask “what’s right about this that I might not be seeing?” And “how is this meant to serve me?”
This is not by chance. It is the result of years of inner work. I seek the wise counsel and support of my guardian angels and spirit guides. I find the place of peace within that has been cultivated through my mediation practice and times of quiet introspection (spending time connecting with the Divine within me). Honing skills like courage, resilience and faith. (Yes, they are skills).
I have learned (and now teach others) tools and techniques to manage my mindset and my energy. I have a supportive community I tap into for help when I need it – human and otherwise. I work on my personal development consistently.
This is why. It is for times like these I prepare so I can respond to life’s inevitable challenges from a place of courage, compassion, strength, grace, peace and love.
During stressful events our brain reverts to the habitual patterns, so if you haven’t gathered the tools and honed the skills, they are not there to default to when you need them the most.
THIS IS HOW A CRISIS SERVES US: By showing us what our current default patterns are and where we need to strengthen, heal, evolve, or change them.
This opportunity that my sons arrest created, forced me to release some old conditioning and emotional baggage, remember what my priorities are, recommit to the things that matter most, see how much I’ve grown and where I still can grow some more
…and have an opportunity to practice this:
“When something painful occurs, it’s an opportunity for all of us to come together and pour so much love into the situation ” ~ Allison Massari
Have a great week!