A couple of years ago, I went on a solo trip to the Cayman Islands. It was my first international trip post-pandemic, and I was looking forward to swimming, snorkeling, and walking the beach. As the trip approached, I found myself fretting over minor things, like where the shuttle to the hotel was and what if I couldn’t find the key that the AirBnB owner had left me. This is unusual for me in general, particularly around traveling. I tend to be more of a make-lemonade kinda gal.
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This continued as the trip went on. Upon arriving, I discovered that driving on the island is British style on the left, and I had rented a car to get around. I white-knuckled it to my cottage and didn’t drive for the rest of the day.
This month, I shared some information on the energy of collective consciousness with a few clients. If you’re not familiar with the term, collective consciousness is considered the general shared beliefs, morals, and rituals of society. It has its own energetic flow and can influence our energy field.
Currently, we’re in an environment with significant divisive and chaotic energy. The power dynamics in society are shifting. This affects all of us in one way or another and creates a great deal of uncertainty.
I am feeling it most acutely in my career/business realm, while friends and clients are feeling it more in their relationships, health, or financial arenas. Each of us is unique, and so many different things shape our experience. How we are influenced by the energy surrounding us differs, but there are some universal themes.
Taking a few moments to check in and scan for the source of your feelings can help you choose how to respond. The collective consciousness can amplify an emotion or skew it in a different direction.
One of the themes I’m seeing is an increase in baseline fear. In particular, coming from a place of fear when it comes to making decisions. Fear has its place. It can help keep us safe, and it can also inhibit our growth.
When fear is in the driver’s seat, decisions are made from a very narrow viewpoint. We become hypervigilant about making the right choice, often to the point of taking no action. Uncertainty and fear in the collective consciousness turn up the volume of them in our personal energy field.
The higher the level of fear, the more disconnected we become from our own wisdom. It’s an amygdala hijack, the primitive brain taking over and bypassing your rational brain. This mind-body connection is strong and intensifies when collective consciousness bathes you in the energy of lower vibrations like fear. By consciously acknowledging the fear and removing it from the driver’s seat, you reclaim your authority.
It’s easier said than done, true. Here are some tips for recognizing when fear is in the driver’s seat and how to put her in the back seat.
If you’re –
- Obsessing over the ‘right’ or ‘perfect’ decision
- Trying to convince yourself something is okay when you know deep down it really isn’t
- Primarily focused on what others will think.
- Feeling off-kilter, disconnected and just not yourself
Simple shifts –
- Shift your perception; instead of getting it right, try looking at it as getting the next piece of the puzzle. This diffuses the pressure and embraces the knowledge that it’s not the only or last decision you will ever make.
- Use the mindfulness practice of non-judgment. Take an observer stance and detach from your judgment and your perception of others’ judgment.
- Write a letter to your fear. Odd as it sounds, it’s really liberating
- Grounding can help. See this article for more info
I took a walk on the beach the next morning as I pondered this new fear and anxiety that was bubbling up(there is some research that shows it’s common with menopause, but more on that another day). I found a small shell with a hole in the top. I decided to make it into a simple necklace to remind myself daily to put fear in the backseat and move forward with curiosity. It helped, and by the end of the week, I was back to my lemons-to-lemonade self. (I still wear the shell years later)
I’m a big proponent of regular energetic hygiene. Small, simple things done regularly make a big difference. Here is a free chakra cleansing meditation that can help.
What do you do to move forward when you’re in fear?