Where our attention goes, our energy flows
We’ve all heard it before and there is no doubt in this spiritual ditty’s value. What we focus on expands and this is true of fear. If we feel the fear and react emotionally to the fear we give birth to more of it, excuse the pun.
Suppression can damage our various energetic pathways and so can swimming in the fear. Equal damage can find its way to us if we allow the fear to take up residence in our heads, hearts and bodies. During pregnancy our babies begin to make sense of what’s out here by what they are feeling in there. Is your baby experiencing constant sadness, fear and doubt? Does Mum often have an increased heart rate and shallow breath? Physical tension and constriction?
Love is the antidote to Fear
When fear arises we should learn to allow it. To look fear in the eyes with compassion and acceptance and get to know it.
Hello Fear, I recognise your existence, I recognise your presence here but I choose not to engage, not to stay here with you, I choose to focus right now on love.
- Drop your awareness into your heart at this point, place a hand there too and the other hand on your belly.
- Hold the fear in your heart with affection and visualise it being cleansed by loving light.
- Breathe deeply and slowly and stay in awareness, focussing on the breath and the heart.
- Connect to your compassion and turn it on yourself and your fears.
- See the fear dispersing, melting or flying away. Replaced by loving light and spaciousness.
Remember that this simple but effective meditation process is a practice. It takes practice. It will become easier as it feels more familiar.
There are many fear-releasing techniques that can support this process. It might be necessary for any deep-set fears or trauma to use other techniques alongside this one, such as fear releasing meditations, trauma sensitive yoga, (I highly recommend Yin and Mindfulness with a qualified instructor) or there are healing treatments one can pursue like counselling, hypnosis, EFT and energy clearing.
We have a responsibility to ourselves, to our children, to our families and to our communities to deal with fear in a healthy and healing way. These skills can be learned, practiced and shared. Every time we replace fear with love we put more love into the world. What, aside from birthing and breathing could be more important than that!
Emma Present is a mother, writer, yoga and meditation teacher, childbirth educator and retreat faciltator. She runs a community yoga studio; Bay Yoga in Golden Bay, New Zealand and a yoga training and retreat business; Yoga Nature. Emma loves to support women through pregnancy, childbirth and parenthood.
