“You know how to push through, now it’s time to feel through.”
I’ve been seeing a new counsellor for the past few weeks, and in my last session she suggested it might be time to start feeling my way through instead of putting my head down and trying to power through like I usually do. The simplicity of the phrase “feel through” has been helping me slow down and stay in the moment more.
We live in the information age, where logic is worshipped above all else. My counsellor has this visual of a line drawn with her finger across her throat and then her hand raised to the top of her head. She does this when I’m processing a thought verbally but I’m staying completely in my head instead of moving down into the heart space where my feelings are stored.
She repeatedly says, “Stay quiet for a moment and notice what is happening in your body.” This is so new for me that I find it uncomfortable, but simply breathing and feeling gets me much closer to the breakthrough I’m looking for. Getting out of my head is critical for this process to work. Now, when I’m talking to her or to others, I’m likely to stop mid-sentence, draw a line across my throat and indicate my head, and then start again from a soul place rather than a brain place.
This feel through stuff is powerful. It’s the engine of our lives. The pain and grief I’m wanting to work with doesn’t dwell in my head. It’s in my body. Ditto for the memories I’m trying to access in order to understand where some of my faulty coping mechanisms originated from. I have to go below the line of my neck to find those, and I know I’m close when I start shaking or crying before speaking about them.
We’ve all been through quite a year in 2020. In these quiet days before Christmas I like to spend time with my journal, reflecting on what happened while looking ahead to a year with fresh possibilities. There’s a lot of sadness to feel before moving on to more pleasant emotions like hope or joy. The only way out is ever through.
I wish you peace and rest this December, along with space to feel through instead of simply pushing through. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.