If you are an energy sponge like me, then you are going to want to keep reading.  If you find yourself getting upset, depressed, or angry for no reason, then you’re probably a pretty sensitive individual.  We can pick up others’ moods and energy in an instant.  Intellectually, you need to wade through what is occurring in your body at an energy level so that you can raise your vibration and stop the energy transfer.  Go within and take a few deep breaths.  I like to focus on things that I am grateful for in my life as I do this, and it instantly brings me back to center.  Back to my spirit, which is full of light, power, and happiness.

There are also events that occur on a conscious level, but more often than not, we wrongly assess the situation and create an illusion.  This occurs when we attribute someone’s actions to their less than stellar personality.  For example, someone doesn’t open a door for us because they’re a jerk.  In truth, people are often so caught up in their own lives that they don’t see beyond where their attention flows, primarily their own thoughts and problems.  We see a person who let a door slam in our faces.  But if we look deeper, we may see a person who is hurting.  Maybe they’re having a really bad day for 100 different reasons, and none of them have anything to do with you.

If someone is short with us or downright rude, that’s probably not about us either.  Chances are there are other things happening in their lives and we just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and they see us as a punching bag even though they may not mean to.  They’re just going with the momentum and haven’t realized that they are the sole creator of their reality.

The same goes for those moments when you feel completely hurt or taken advantage of by another person.  Yes, they may have hurt you, and yes, they may have deliberately done so!  But, it’s not about you.  If someone goes out of their way to hurt you then it is very clear they have got their own issues that they need to work on.  Stay away from these people if at all possible!

Every single person is in charge of their own happiness.  Don’t give your power away to others so easily by letting them control your mood.  I know it’s easier said than done, but just let it go, don’t take it personally, and move on.  It may take you time, but I promise, if you start practicing now, in time you’ll be able to flick a switch inside yourself.  You’ll be able to sense when your mood is changing, and you’ll be able to snap out of it quickly.

Any time you feel yourself caught up in a state of anger, sadness, or anything in between, just remember that you are creating that state by choosing to stay there.  There is another choice.  You can choose to be joyful and happy.  All you have to do is change your focus.  Pay attention to why you feel the way you do, let it go, and look for the joy in your life.  When we take things personally, we often choose to be negative.  So take things in stride, and choose the high road.

I saw a clip of Goldie Hawn on Oprah recently.  Oprah said something about Goldie always being so happy.  “I choose to be” she said.  And so it is.

Today started out like most days.  Kids crying, kids putting stickers on the wall, kids writing all over said walls with pencil crayons that I cannot get off.  We yell.  Never again or you’re basically dead, child, we say.  Hubby takes the kids to school because I for once took the high road from yelling.  I walked away and quit being a parent completely.

An hour later I finally made my way to the cafe to let my hair down, soak in some organic tea, eat my gluten free brownie and go “OMmmmmmm”.   I relax – for a whole 5 seconds.  My intuition pipes up and says.  “No.”  “What do you mean, no”?  “Go running,” it says.

So I do what any good intuitive does and sit there and eat my brownie and read my book.  I ignore it.  No I say.  No!  I need to relax.  But it won’t let me.

So I pack up and go home, charge my phone to sync it with mapmyrun, stuff my little 8 week sausage baby otherwise known as “Arlo” into my new SUV of a running stroller, wad some kleenex into my pocket to nurse my killer sinus cold, and I run.  And run and run and run.  I run for a total of 7.86 km, and I feel better than I have in a long time – the entire time.

So listen to your intuition.  It wants to make you better.  Your ego wants to sit down and eat brownies and drink tea.  Hell, your ego wants you to enjoy a big fat cake so it can get to work putting it straight onto your big fat super hot ass.  No thank you ego.  I’m quitting you.

One of the biggest hurdles to my self-development and overall joy is that I never took time for myself.  While awaiting the birth of our 3rd son, it really hit me hard just how much I had lost myself.  I was convinced that I would have my time to shine when the kids were older.  I made myself less important and never took action to follow my dreams.  However, when you don’t do things that make you happy and grow your soul on a daily basis, your energy and life-force will take a heavy hit.

I found it hard just to make it through the days, and by the time the kids were in bed there was nothing left in my tank to fuel my evenings.  I was lethargic and often zoned out in front of the television for an hour just to have some “me” time.

But let me tell you this: Sitting in front of the TV for a few hours has nothing to do with recharging.  It’s going to deplete your energy tank and it’s going to make you shrink instead of grow.  And if you’re not growing, you’re dying.

The odds are that you’re not watching shows based spiritual enlightenment or a documentary on how to make yourself independently happy.  Chances are pretty high that you’re watching The Walking Dead, Duck Dynasty, or caught in the soul sucking habit of endlessly flipping through 100s of channels and then complaining that “nothing is on”.

If I happen to watch TV these days it’s because there is a specific show that brings a lot of joy to me.  Which means that I watch a LOT less TV than I ever have in my entire life.  There is nothing wrong with watching a little TV, provided it makes you happy and feeds your soul, but if you’re watching endless hours of television each and every night, ask yourself this: What am I avoiding?  What am I numbing in myself?  What am I missing in my life?  What do I really desire, and how do I want to feel?

These days I choose to end my days very differently.  I read, blog, research, and plan.  I practice gratitude, ask for guidance, and do whatever I can to show myself love.  I talk with my husband more.  When you connect with your family instead of the television, relationships will flourish and love will grow.

When I regard my past, I realize that I don’t want to keep falling into the same loop of behaviours over and over again.  I want to bust through the house I have built around myself and venture into the unknown.  The only way to do this is by learning and growing.  Be in the present moment and look for joy in those moments.  Look people in the eye and talk.  Ask questions.  Make connections.  Send and receive love.

So turn off the TV and grow.  Go outside. Play hockey. Do whatever it is that feeds your soul and you can fill your energy tank with love and joy.  Shift your focus. At the end of the day my tank is full because I spend my time wisely, and I feel whole and complete.  I wish the same for each and every person on this planet.  Do what you love, always.  Grow yourself, and you will have the love and energy you need to live your best life.

XO.

When I am not grounded I feel incredibly anxious.  And when my partner is not grounded I am anxious times a thousand.  I can feel it.  To say there is tension in the air is an understatement.  When my partner isn’t grounded it’s like there is a spider web filling every ounce of space in the room, and I cannot avoid getting stuck in it.  It makes me physically ill when it’s there, and there is no escaping it.  Or is there?

This is when I send an emergency text to my energy healer and have her send clearing and grounding energy immediately.  When she is able to do so there is an immediate shift in the way I feel.  Suddenly there is no more emotional charge hijacking my soul.  I am no longer lost in the non-physical dimension of downward spiraled thought and I am present again.  Being grounded can actually turn a horrible experience into a very uplifting one.

How is this possible?  When we are grounded, energy is allowed to flow through our root chakra instead of getting stuck and building up.  Thoughts and feelings can flow through us rather than being over-processed by our minds.  Grounding allows us to be fully present in our physical body and allows us to enjoy what is happening in the current moment, irrespective of seemingly omnipresent problems.

How can you ground yourself?  Of course, not everyone has an energy healer on speed dial.  I often ground myself instead of calling wolf.  I only contact my energy healer if I’m having a do or die kind of moment, like when my partner’s ungrounded energy feels like it is literally going to kill me where I sit or stand.  I know I am very lucky to have this kind of help in my life.  Perhaps one day I will learn how to ground my partner, but for the time being I am able to ground myself.

3 Ways to Ground Yourself

1) Walk Barefoot Outside.  This isn’t possible at the moment, being -10 C in Canada, but if it were even remotely feasible I would be out there rolling around in the earth right now.  Being in direct contact with the earth allows your body to assume the same electrical charge as the ground, stripping away the damaging electrical charges that unhinge us.  Alternatively you could probably go hug a tree!

2) Visualization.  Sit or stand with your feet touching the ground.  Imagine roots growing from the soles of your feet and see them diving deep into the earth where they wrap around the earth’s core.  Picture the earth sharing her energy with you and becoming one with the ground.  Tree pose in yoga is one of my favourite poses for this reason.  If you can visualize yourself as a tree and become one with the earth, it is amazing how strong your balance becomes.  It is for this reason that this pose is one of the very first poses performed in a yoga class!

3) Exercise and Proper Nourishment.  I find this the easiest way to stay grounded, simply because these habits promote grounding without necessarily having to think about it.  Clean eating and exercise are not difficult tasks once you make them a priority.  Daily exercise is important for the mind and body, but it’s not enough.  I would say that it’s even more important that you properly nourish yourself.  This means drinking filtered water and eating as clean as possible: fruits, vegetables, organic meats.  It also means limiting the bad stuff such as dairy and processed foods.  Eat as close to the earth as you possibly can.  This means preparing food from scratch rather than ordering pizza, though I have been known to order the odd pizza – I’m human after all.