Deepak Chopra’s 7 Steps To Processing Emotions

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Humans are emotional beings, yet releasing emotions can be difficult for many. Suppressing emotions can have serious consequences on wellness including insomnia, hostility, and anxiety. So if we know that bottling up our emotions is detrimental but have a hard time letting them out, what do we do?

Deepak Chopra recommends this 7 step exercise:

Close your eyes and focus on your breathing. Using your memory, bring up an event that created an emotional upset. Think about the event and try to picture it as vividly as you can. Put yourself back into the scene and pay attention to which emotions come up.

  1. Witness the emotion and name the feeling: You may say, “I feel sad,” “I am angry,” or “I experience anxiety.”
  2. Locate the emotion in your body: Give your body a scan. Do you feel heaviness your chest or tightness in your gut or shoulders? This is where you are storing this specific emotion.
  3. Express the emotion: Place your hand on the area of the physical sensation and say, “It hurts here,” “It is tight here,” or “I feel pain here.” By acknowledging the feeling, you are taking the first step to release the tension. Next take out a pen and paper and express your emotion on paper. Do this in three ways: first from your experience, then from a second person’s account and then from a third person’s perspective.
  4. Take responsibility for your feeling: Realize that this is your emotion. No one made you feel angry, anxious or sad. By doing this, you no longer blame anyone for your pain and you also realize that you do not need anyone else or an alternative substance to make the pain or emotion go away.
  5. Release the emotion: This is the most essential step. Bring the scene back in front of your mind’s eye and experience the feeling in your body. Breathe deeply, and with every exhale, work on releases the emotion. Try visualizing the anger moving out of your body, or express yourself verbally with a tone that resonates with that part of the body. Continue releasing the emotion with each exhale until the sensation in your body subsides and a feeling of ease sets in. To further process, release it with a ritual. If you have, for example, written your emotions on paper, you could safely burn the paper and then release its ashes into the wind.
  6. Share your experience: Ask yourself: What have I learned from the experience? If you could speak to the person involved, what would you say to her now? You can do that in person or journal a possible dialog.
  7. Celebrate the process: Congratulate yourself on turning a challenging situation into an opportunity for growth. Turn up the music, go for a walk, take yourself on a date, and celebrate!

 

 

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5 Tips To Help You Sleep Better

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Adequate sleep is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle. Most adults need 7-8 hours of a good quality sleep on a regular schedule. Here are 5 tips to help you sleep better at night:

  • Create a relaxing bedroom environment. Make sure your bedroom is quiet and clean. Set a comfortable temperature and minimize external lighting.
  • Reduce blue light exposure in the evening. Turn off the TV, put down your devices, and switch off bright lights at least 1 hour before heading to bed.
  • Avoid long day time naps. While a short power nap may be needed on occasion, long day time naps confuse the internal clock and impair sleep quality at night.
  • Skip the alcohol. Alcohol is known to reduce nighttime melatonin production and increase symptoms of sleep apnea, snoring, and disrupted sleep patterns.
  • Sleep and wake at consistent times. Try to get into a regular sleep/wake cycle — especially on the weekends. If possible, try to wake up naturally at a similar time every day.

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Paleo + Keto + Vegan, Oh My!

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Paleo, keto, vegan, vegetarian, bone broth, whole 30, macros,  ayurveda, gluten-free… the list of food philosophies is endless. How can you possibly know which one is best?

Each of our digestive systems works differently and reacts differently to various foods. What works for someone else may not work for you. Become knowledgable and experiment. Your body will let you know which is best for you.

No matter which food philosophy you follow, one main principal holds true: eat real food. Processed foods contain artificial ingredients and additives.  Many are packed with sodium and added sugar. Skip the packaged stuff. Your body deserves fresh, whole foods.

 

 

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Oblique Strategies: Wellevance Edition

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When a dear friend and Wellevance Community Member asked me if I had heard of Oblique Strategies, my response a dismal “vaguely”. Had I heard the term before, yes. Was I knowledgable about the concept, no. He then went on to briefly explain the concept and how he adapted it for his Wellevance program. Now it is my turn to share it with you.

Oblique Strategies is a deck of cards used to break through a creative block. Each card contains a phrase or cryptic remark which can be used to break a deadlock or dilemma situation. Although the card deck was created to help artists, specifically musicians, the theory of using general phrases to get out of a rut can be applied to just about anything, especially to the 8 dimensions of wellness.

Whether you are progressing through Wellevance 101 or just learning about the Wellevance philosophy, try creating your own set of Wellevance cards! Come up with activities you enjoy and challenges you need to work on related to the 8 dimensions of wellness. Add in random acts of kindness and gratitude + mindset exercises in true Wellevance fashion. Pick one card per day and complete the task within the week. Add new cards as you come up with ideas. Get creative, be open minded, have fun with it!

 

 

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