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It’s easy to get caught up in our brain, become a slave to our checklists and lose ourselves. We think we’re not enough and we need to do more. 🙄
As Cara Bradley writes in her Mindful post, The Power of Pause:
“We are over-stimulated with outer noise. But when we pause and get quiet, we can connect with our inner wisdom, quieting not just the outer noise of everything that comes at us but also the inner noise of our mind.”
In the past, my to-do list consumed me. No matter how much I did, it was never enough.
With three small children at home, I burned the candle at both ends – trying to be a good mom, good wife, good employee, a good everything. My mind raced from one thing to the next. No matter how much I accomplished, it wasn’t working.
I wanted my life to change but I didn’t know how.
Then, I stumbled across an all-day silent meditation retreat. I didn’t know if I could do it cuz I talk ALL the time. 🤣
Well, I did it and was blown away.
We focused on whatever we were doing as a meditation. At times, we concentrated on our breath – other times on our footsteps as a walking meditation. Even our meal was a gratitude meditation, thanking the sun, the bugs that landed on the plants, people who grew the food, truckers who trucked the food, and people who cooked the food.
We didn’t speak any words. What happened over the course of the day was nothing short of magical.
At the beginning of the day my mind ran wild. I kept thinking I should be doing more. It was frickin hard and felt impossible. But I just kept returning to what was before me, refusing to feed the whim of my untamed, crazy-making mind.
As the day wore on, my mind slowed down, unplugged, and stopped trying to run the show. I lost my impulse to rush to the next thing or thought. It was delicious.
From this place of connection, I saw the insanity of my old pattern — running myself ragged, caught up in endless mind chatter, and trying to please everybody else. 🙄
That pleasing others thing is so painful. I was desperate for intimate, loving relationships. But all this quietness was showing me something huge: I had to have an intimate relationship with myself if I ever wanted to be truly intimate with others. It took quieting my mind and world to see that.
By pausing, you return to your center.
It’s there that you come from an authentic expression of love.
As Eckert Tolle explains in this video “The Power of Pause”,
“The moment you pay attention to that moment of silence, there is a stillness in you. Because through thought, you cannot pay attention to silence because thought is noise.”
What’s a Pause?
A pause is an interrupt. It’s taking time to just stop and to be with the moment before you.
Why Bother to Pause?
Here are three benefits that I find especially powerful:
- Connecting with your inner wisdom and insight.
- Unplugging and recharging your brain, and resetting your nervous system..
- Feeling connected, nurtured, and supported.
So Let’s Pause.
In the quiet, you face the monkey mind – the shit stories of you’re not enough and the painful, intolerant thoughts that your life should look different then it is. The voice says, “There’s a dish in the sink, so you’re obviously worthless.” The abusive monkey mind needs an interrupt.
A sacred pause.
In the quiet, you drop all “shoulds” and become an observer of what is.
In the quiet, you give time and space to feelings that are meant to be felt.
In the quiet, you get clarity on what’s coming up for you to heal.
In the quiet, you drop into the abundant simplicity of love super-sized.
As you pause, your capacity for appreciating yourself and your life expands. Presence lets you see goodness and release the noise of your lying asshole brain that’s telling you you’re not enough, the sky is falling, and you need to fix it.
At times we’re not present or aware of our body. When that happens, we’re just a brain and we lose ourselves.
Stop right now and bring awareness to what’s going on. 🛑
- Take stock of what you’re feeling. NOW.
- If there is fear or anxiety, offer yourself love instead. NOW.
- Use this pause to practice “Resting in God” or “Resting in Love.” 🥰.
Pausing and resting can interrupt the frenetic movements or feelings. Also, pausing to connect with yourself is essential since intimacy with yourself is required before you can truly have intimacy with another.
Are you a woman who wants to stop over-thinking and start living more through your heart?
Join me and a supportive community of heart-centered women in my monthly program Journey to Your Center as we explore topics including pausing as a superpower, prosperity, control, relationships, anger … all that glamorous stuff that life throws your way. 😎
Take time to pause each month with me. And take a path that puts YOU, YOUR flow, and YOUR well-being at the center.
