It’s no secret that we are living in a very challenging time in the history of the world. At times it can feel quite hopeless. With that hopelessness can come a whole plethora of other emotions like sadness, despondency, anxiety, fear and anger.

Here are 4 Powerful Ways To Process Your Anger In Turbulent Times

Personally, I have felt most of these emotions regularly lately, and still do at many moments throughout my day to day life. I live in Sydney, Australia and I have been in lockdown for almost 10 weeks. I have felt the energy of anger moving in me many, many times throughout the ups and downs of the past year and a half since the Covid19 pandemic began. 

This isn’t an article about the pandemic though. This is an article about being human. I want to talk about anger – a human emotion often misunderstood and labelled as ‘negative’. 

Why do we do that? Why do we label some emotions as ‘good’ and others as ‘bad’? Emotions are neither. They just are.

What can be challenging is the behaviour that comes from an inability to be with our emotions. This can mean we express them in ways that are harmful to ourselves or others.

4 Powerful Ways To Process Your Anger In Turbulent Times

Many of us have not learned how to correctly process our emotions in life. This can lead to the suppression of those emotions. 

Suppression is particularly common with the emotions that we perceive as painful, or those that we feel unsafe to confront – perhaps because we fear being judged or even outcast by our peers, friends or even our family.

This can happen to both men and women. Suppression of anger for women could be due to a woman not wanting to seem “too emotional” or even “crazy”. For men, they are labelled as weak for expressing emotions – the saying “man up” comes to mind.

This conditioning is more damaging than any emotion.

And here’s the other thing. Emotions are smart – they know what’s what and they do not appreciate being ignored. Emotions (aka the wisdom of the body) are so smart they will even allow you to THINK you have pushed them away – at least for a while. 

Eventually, though, those emotions you tried to hide from that are intimately connected with the deep wisdom of your physiology, will show up in your life. 

It could be hours, months or even many years after an event.

Suppressed emotions or trauma can show up in many different ways, such as physical illness, mental illness and even as an excess of whichever emotion that was suppressed.

So now that we understand the importance of processing our emotions – how do we do it?

Well, each emotion is different – and each human being is different, too. We all process emotions in different ways. These are the ways that have helped me.

4 Powerful Ways To Process Your Anger In Turbulent Times

1- Therapy.

If you don’t first know that you have trapped emotions, or where they come from, how will you ever know to start processing them? If you are reading this article, you have some idea that you have anger and that you need to process it.

Speaking with a qualified counsellor or therapist can be powerful in helping you to uncover where your anger stems from so that you can set about learning to process it healthily.

2- Movement.

When emotions are trapped in our physical body we need to use our body to move them through us. There are many ways to do this. One way I love is perhaps a little surprising – it’s dancing! Yep, when I feel like there is some anger I need to let go of I put on some music and shake it out like nobody’s watching. It is incredibly therapeutic.

I have also found boxing to be helpful. Using my hands to punch through my anger was cathartic. And as an added benefit, it’s awesome cardio.

3 – Setting Healthy Boundaries.

Whatever your emotions are in a given moment are a message from your body. Sometimes that message is letting you know that a boundary of yours has been crossed. Boundaries are what separates you and your feelings from that of another person.

When you feel a boundary has been crossed – be that through a disrespectful comment or someone crossing a line physically with you, emotions will show up to let you know.

Learning to determine what your boundaries are and setting them with the people around you allows you to better understand yourself and your relationship to the world around you.

4 – Acceptance. 

This one is probably the toughest of all – and perhaps the most important. Your feelings matter. Read that again.

Whatever you have been told by those around you or even perhaps from the nasty inner critic, you are important and your experiences are real. Learning to accept yourself in all of your emotional glory is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself.

Feeling anger isn’t bad. Emotions are the messengers of the body. When we learn to deal with them in healthy ways, they can help us to evolve closer to the truth of who we truly are.

The post 4 Powerful Ways To Process Your Anger In Turbulent Times appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

This Is Why We Suffer (and This Is How We End Suffering)

Speaker: Peter Crone

Transcript – Peter Crone on Suffering and How To End Our Own Internal Suffering:

The way life occurs to us is that there’s always somewhere to get to, until you realize that there isn’t

…Similarly suffering is always present until we realize that there isn’t suffering. And that to me is the beauty of the human experience.

So, suffering is unavoidable by virtue of we’re here, but nonetheless, the opportunity, the possibility that it is to be human is to transcend suffering.

And it’s such a beautiful design again, because if it weren’t for the previous suffering, we don’t get to experience the latter freedom.

As an adult, I got to see myself in a picture and all black and white of me as a child and my cute little onesy, whatever it is running with my arms out, my mother is sort of very gently ushering me from behind. So you can see that she’s sort of directing me towards somebody who you can’t see because they’re off camera. They’re out of frame from the picture. But I know because of the setting, it was set at a Harbor at a dock where the boat had just, you know, come to birth and we’ve probably come off the boat and I’m running towards my dad because my dad worked on the boats. And as I looked at that photo and it’s this whole black and white, and this adorable little child, which you know, is running towards his father, who he loves his dad. And what had occurred to me is at that moment, one of the most important parts of love is the energy of missing somebody.

We often think that love is I’m with someone I’m sharing a dinner with them, I’m going to bed with them, or it could be a family member who I’m living with or I’m sharing time with constantly. But that denies the flip side of the same coin, which is one of the most beautiful aspects of love is what feels like the absence of the experience of love. And we can call that missing somebody… and why it was so profound for me is to see that little child run towards his dad with the excitement of the fact that for a minute, for minutes, maybe a day, maybe a week, it could be longer…. We experience the separation from that, which we love.

And if it weren’t for the experience of separation, we would not appreciate the joy of love.

And so why I use that example as it relates to suffering and freedom is because separation is hurtful, it’s painful, and that is suffering. And in this case, suffering is where we become separate from the knowledge, from the true wisdom of our true essence, whilst freedom is the remembrance and the awakening to the essence of who I am at my core, which is freedom.

So the two are inextricably connected and simultaneously necessary in order to experience one or the other.

If it weren’t for the experience of missing, I don’t get to go to the depths of the joy of love and equally, if it weren’t for the pain and the seeming inconvenience of human suffering, then I wouldn’t get to experience the elation and the joy of liberation that is true freedom.

When you really understand that dynamic…. it’s so beautiful to see the duality of everything. And I would actually take it a little deeper, which is to say the freedom really is the container. Like the love is the container that holds both.

We have the joy and we have the misery, we have the happiness and we have the sadness. And this is where if we can be big enough, expanded enough as human beings that we make space for all of it… it would be as nonsensical.

You know, for people who think they just want to be positive and happy, that is like asinine. It would be like me saying, no, no, no. All I want to do is inhale. Cause that’s so good. You get oxygen. If you’re like, what the hell? Like if it weren’t for the fact that I get to exit and let go of, you know, in this case, obviously physiologically biologically the toxins of carbon dioxide and stuff that no longer serves me because it’s already served its purpose in my body. Then I wouldn’t get the joy of having that cyclical process of inhale exhale that keeps me alive.

So similarly, the actual nature of duality, both parts are flip sides of the same coin that are an inherent experience of being human. And the degree to which we can embrace both is the degree to which we are truly free to allow all aspects of what it means to be human.

So suffering is really one aspect, but it is an aspect where there is ultimately a form of ignorance. And I don’t mean that as a judgment. I mean, it truly, in the fact that we don’t know something.

We suffer because we don’t know how extraordinary we are. We suffer because we don’t know that we actually are loved. We don’t, we suffer because we don’t feel safe. And it is in that ignorance than not knowing the absence of knowledge that we suffer.

And the process of awakening is realizing, Oh, these are lies. And as I transcend lie, I expand into my bigger nature, which then is the experience of liberation, which is contained in the safety that we are held and beneficiaries of life, because we are fundamentally loved.

The way I look at it is that this dimension that we are in as human beings to me is a revelatory dimension. What does that mean? Life will reveal where you yourself, as a being do not experience freedom.

Life will present you with people and circumstances to reveal where you’re not free.

So why is that a completely different perspective or different way of looking at the experience of life? Because most people are playing the human game. What is the human game they’re trying to accumulate, right? Accumulation of status, accumulation of possessions, accumulation of finance. And they’re trying to play the game of I’m becoming a better human by virtue of what I have usually… now that’s not wrong, but it’s also, to me, it’s a powerless game to play.

Whereas the awakening process of who I am as a being who is limitless, who is in its infancy and its true inherent nature, nothing but love peace, power, freedom.

That is to me, the game, that’s really at foot for human beings. That is the opportunity that it is to be a human is to awaken to the true essence of who I am rather than being defined by the persona that has been conditioned over time. That is now founded in the essence of survival. That is two entirely different approaches to the human experience. One is linear and one is vertical, right? So linear is okay, hopefully over time I’m going to improve. I got a promotion, I got a corner office. I got a bigger home. I’ve got a nicer car. I’ve got a little bit more money. That is, you know, there’s again, no judgment, but it is a futile dead end method of trying to find internal value by using external and exogenous means to bring some sense of worth.. versus discovering. Wow. My inherent nature is freedom.

My inherent nature is love. My inherent nature is peace and life is constantly giving me the opportunity to awaken to those qualities by virtue of presenting to me ironically, where I don’t experience that.

So that’s why, again, I said, life will present you with people and circumstances to reveal where you’re not free.

We often look as those circumstances as frustrating as things we don’t want, but that’s precisely why they’re being given to us because we’ve yet to see how powerful and extraordinary we are that we have yet to integrate those experiences and see that I can truly be with whatever is occurring and maintain my inner sense of peace and freedom and love.

We arrive as beings, but shrouded in constraint, we arrive as souls, but constrained by fear and the game of this particular dimension of planet earth and being human is Oh, awesome. We are set here so that we can reveal where we are confined, constrained and have some sense of separation and limitation. And so life is the process of sloughing by virtue of these trials and tribulations. And these sort of confronting circumstances really is a form of resistance, which just like polishing a diamond is allowing us to recognize where we still feel constrained or we arrived with our bucket of fears. And as I say, you know, the “ winner of the game” is who can get rid of their fears the the fastest, not that there is any urgency, but we could say, and I would assert the true liberation and true freedom, which is my main product is when we have confronted all of the fears that we arrived with to recognize that in fact, there is nothing to fear itself whatsoever. And that was always just a narrative that was part of our persona or our ego. That was just simply the cocoon in which we found we needed to live in order to stay safe. When in fact it’s quite the antithesis of that, which is true. Security is when I no longer need the illusion of external security.

If the experience I have with another person is of some form of disharmony, of judgment of hostility. Then that really is a reflection of what’s going on inside of me.

So as I say, as we express, so we experience, right. So if I’m expressing anger towards whoever or whatever the circumstance may be, then I am experiencing anger, right? So this, this water travels through say a garden hose. If the garden hose was sent in today, I had a feeling internally, it would feel the passage of the water when it was cold or hot, or how fast it’s moving. So likewise as we express our emotional state, we’re under the impression that it’s by virtue of what’s going on outside of us, but whether it is or not in terms of our interpretation when nonetheless experiencing all of that.

So then why wouldn’t I, if I know that correlation, if I’m, if I’m actually aware of that formula, then why wouldn’t I, wherever possible, bring an experience of love and joy to whoever it might be, because then I’m equally the beneficiary of it. And this is why exercises like gratitude journals or going and being a volunteer and being of service to a community feels good. Why does it feel good? Because what I’m actually doing is I’m bringing the experience of my true self is what I would have saw and I’m sharing to another, I’m giving to another. And therefore I am equally the beneficiary of my own active contribution.

You know, Einstein said, you either, you look at the universe in one of two ways, everything is a miracle or nothing’s a miracle, right? And so really when you get, we are beneficiaries of life, even though again, I’ve been through a ton of what felt like unnecessarily hardship that at the time, my little persona was like, I don’t want this. This sucks, but really in hindsight is often the case we’ve recognized. Wow. If it weren’t for those events, if it weren’t for those hardships, then I wouldn’t have discovered that expansiveness of what I’ve just stepped into and why I use the expression that smooth seas never made a good sailor, right? So we need adversity itself is the catalyst for growth. It is. Life is the greatest teacher by virtue of the fact that it gives us challenges so that it can, as I said earlier, slough off anything that is confining us, anything that is holding us back a constraint that is in some way, limiting ourself expression, we need some resistance to get rid of that.

And that is at times a very difficult pill to swallow, but it is nonetheless the catalyst to discover that really we are held eternally.

It’s like the metaphor of the image of these trapeze artists, right? The experience for anybody who goes up on a trapeze from the perspective of the ego is fear. If there’s no net, right? You, you would feel such trepidation of letting go of the trapeze bar to transition maybe to your partner and be caught in the absence of knowing there was some safety net and that’s the ego’s experiences. It goes through life. It feels that at any turn its existence is in potential danger. Everything can come across as a potential threat, and that’s an exhausting place to live from.

Conversely, if we can tap into this deeper essence of understanding the nature of life and particularly the nature of who we are, then at every turn, there is always a safety net. It might not feel like it, but we can drop, we can fall. We can miss the grip of the partners. We transitioned from trapeze bar to trapeze bar and it’s okay. And that we could say our errors and mistakes are failures and it’s okay.

The post Peter Crone: This Is Why We Suffer (and This Is How We End Suffering) appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

Apathy is generally described as a lack of interest or enthusiasm.

When you are apathetic you tend to lose interest in being around others or doing things you enjoy.

Important: Long-term apathy can be a sign of mental illness. If you have felt apathetic for an extended period or are having harmful thoughts, please seek professional help.

If however, your apathy is more general and you are looking to understand and overcome your lack of motivation, then read on.

There are many things that can cause us to lose our motivation and become apathetic in life. If you are in a job that is killing your soul or a relationship that makes you unhappy, over time you can lose the will to show up in life with energy and enthusiasm.

So how do we overcome apathy?

Turning Apathy Into Inspired Action – 3 Ways To Motivate Yourself Now

1. Admit the issue

Acceptance is always the first step in making a change in anything in life. In order to shift out of your current circumstance first, you must accept and understand it. Stop running from the truth and embrace that you are not where you want to be.

2. Commit to yourself

Understand what is causing your apathy is and take responsibility for it. Deal with your personal issues. Make a commitment to yourself that you deserve more out of life than you are currently allowing due to your apathy.

3. Make a plan

Once you are committed to change it’s time to make a plan. What do you need to do to find your motivation again? Do you need to quit your job or leave your relationship? Perhaps you need to adjust your diet. Are you eating enough of the right foods? Try to decrease stimulants like caffeine and sugar. Learn to meditate, start to exercise. All of these simple changes will put you back in the driver’s seat of your life and make a great difference in your feeling of apathy.

Although it’s hard to hear, the reality is no one is coming to save you from yourself. If you want to make a change and step back into your greatness you have to do decide and commit to it every day.

That said, it doesn’t need to be hard! All you have to do is take one step at a time and keep focusing on the person you want to be.

Have you ever had a time in your life when you felt unmotivated? How did you change it? Share your ideas in the comments below!

The post Turn Apathy Into Inspired Action! – 3 Ways To Get Moving NOW appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

4 Daily Mental Health Habits That Impact Physical Health 

There are several activities that you can take part in to improve your mental health. However, did you know that doing many of these things also has a considerable impact on your physical health? That’s because the two go hand in hand, since poor mental health can have adverse effects on your physical body.

Examples of those effects are increased risk for cancer, heart disease, and respiratory disease. Conversely, the below mental health habits can have a tremendously positive effect on your physical health. 

1. Laugh

Seek out something funny. Try a hilarious book, an entertaining sitcom, or a comedic movie. Laughter provides so many benefits, both mentally and physically. For example, it diminishes the sensation of all types of pain; in a way, it serves as an aspirin of sorts. It also naturally boosts your mood, and it improves your immune system, helping your body stave off potential disease.

Laughter also serves to lighten your burdens. Stress increases your blood pressure, which is hard on your heart. When you feel less stress, your heart doesn’t have to work as hard. Laughing also serves to relax your entire body; this is great as physical tension can leave your muscles far more susceptible to various injuries.

Laughing can even serve as a workout regimen. You may not be ready to run a marathon, but the simple act of laughing for 10-15 minutes a day will burn approximately 40 calories. If you do this regularly, you’d lose roughly 3-4 pounds a year from laughing alone. 

2. Reduce Social Media Use

The effects of social media are damaging to mental health. Frequent use leads to lower self-esteem, disconnect from others, and shorter attention spans. However, there are also a number of ways in which increased social media use can decrease the state of your physical health.

One of these is decreased sleep quantity and quality. Many users are on their phones right up to the moment when they fall asleep. This results in the brain still actively processing information, which delays the onset of sleep and prevents as deep a sleep as would otherwise be possible. Also, the light from your phone screen suppresses the release of melatonin, which contributes to not feeling as sleepy as you should.

Social media use also contributes to having a sedentary lifestyle, which increases risks of heart disease and related illnesses. Not to mention increased instances of “text neck.” “Text neck” is the neck pain associated with looking down at your phone too long. 

3. Increase Time Outdoors

Being outdoors has been shown to decrease levels of anxiety and depression and improve self-esteem and mood. The presence of water in the outdoor setting has been shown to enhance those benefits. However, the benefits are not just mentally focused.

Spending time outdoors has been shown to lower blood pressure, which results in fewer heart attacks. A related benefit is the lowering of participants’ pulse rates. Time outdoors also tends to decrease inflammation rates, which results in decreased instances of disorders like inflammatory bowel disease. Additionally, anti-cancer proteins are believed to be stimulated when people spend increasing amounts of time in natural settings.

One other benefit to consider is improved sight. It’s believed that this activity reduces the risk of nearsightedness, at least in children. Plus, any time spent away from screens is a positive for eye health as screen time has been shown to contribute to eye dryness, blurry vision and eyestrain. 

4. Meditate

Meditation has been shown to have a tremendous effect on mental health as it improves relaxation levels and reduces how much stress a person is experiencing. However, the benefits don’t stop there.

One physical benefit of meditation is that it helps battle and overcome a variety of addictions. Practicing individuals are able to redirect their focus towards the act of meditation and away from the addictions they were struggling with. Meditation has been shown to help people control addiction-related cravings for things like food, alcohol, drugs and gambling.

Engaging in meditation has also been shown to decrease blood pressure levels, strengthening the individual’s heart in the process. Even focusing on a one-word mantra has been determined to reduce blood pressure by roughly five points.

Meditation can also reduce your perception of pain. Those who regularly meditate experience greater activity in the parts of the brain related to pain control. 

The post 4 Daily Mental Health Habits That Impact Physical Health  appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

Depression sucks. There is no easier way to say it.

Not only does it prevent you from living your life the way you want, it also makes relationships incredibly difficult to maintain.

Dealing with depression in relationships offers a unique set of challenges that not everybody will be open to talking about. After all, feeling empty, unmotivated, anxious, or pessimistic are hardly ideal circumstances for those looking to build relationships & life their best lives.

Don’t despair. Love is out there. The journey to get there will be more challenging, but it is possible.

For those suffering from mental health issues, here are 7 truths about depression and how to find the light at the end of the tunnel.

7 Ugly Truths about Depression and Mental Illnesses

1. You Feel Alone, Even When You’re Not

One of the most frustrating parts of dealing with depression in relationship is how alone you feel, even when someone else is in the room with you.

You know your spouse loves you, but you still can’t shake the feeling that you’re unworthy of love and affection or that nobody understands you. This can cause you to develop a pessimistic view of the people around you.

Combat this harmful thinking by forming one simple habit. At the end of each day, write down one or more things you are grateful for. Did someone smile at you on your way to work? Your friend did or said something thoughtful? Your spouse was there to hug you when you came home or listen to you talk about your day?

Keeping an appreciation journal can be a wonderful reminder of how many people there are in your life who care about you.

2. Anything Can Trigger You

When you suffer with mental health issues, certain actions, phrases, or feelings can trigger painful memories or anxiety attacks. This is a stressful and hurtful process that can take days to come down from.

It could be a song on the radio, a certain look on your partner’s face, or seemingly nothing at all. Whatever the case, knowing what your triggers are can be helpful in avoiding unnecessary stress and sadness.

3. It’s Difficult to Be in a Relationship

Not only does this cause the person suffering from mental health disorders to feel guilty, but it can also be incredibly frustrating for the other spouse in the relationship.

Sex is an important way for couples to connect on an emotional and physical level. Not only is it a fun way to reduce stress, but studies show that the more enjoyable sex a couple has, the more likely they are to verbalize their love for one another. Further studies show that sexual satisfaction was the largest predictor in heightened emotional intimacy in couples.

The most common antidepressants, called selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs), can have a negative impact on your sex drive and lower libido significantly. This can make sex sound unappealing for those suffering from depression.

Those dealing with mental health problems should not give up on the prospect of love. When you find the person who you are meant to be with, they will be able to handle your emotional journey and will love you for all that you are, not in spite of it.

4. There is a Stigma Around Depression

The National Institute of Mental Health reports that more than 10-million Americans suffer from some form of mental health issue. Even with all of these reported cases of depression, the negative stigma for those with mental health issues still exist.

Some may say, “You’re not depressed, you’re just sad. You’ll get over it.” Others may even say “You’re just using your depression as a way to get out of working.”

Do not listen to such negative talk. Focus only on the opinions of those that matter – your spouse and close friend and family. They are the ones who know you, love you, and see firsthand what you are really going through.

5. Everyday Tasks Seem Impossible

Depression can make you feel zapped of all your energy. Even something as simple as taking a phone call or bringing your coffee cup back into the kitchen can make you feel absolutely exhausted.

The bright side is that there are plenty of steps you can take to reclaim your life. Taking small, baby steps each day can help you reach your next goal. Start slow. Get up, brush your teeth. Then, if you’re able, go downstairs and make breakfast.

Focus on small goals and don’t overwhelm yourself. Instead, acknowledge daily achievements and be proud of yourself for taking small steps toward returning to regular daily routines.

6. Depression = Selfish?

It’s hard not to think about yourself when you feel like there is a constant, heavy weight on your shoulders. Work hard not to let this darkness swallow you whole. Such behavior can make it difficult to maintain friendships and a romantic relationship.

In times when you are feeling especially drawn into yourself, verbally remind your spouse how much you love and appreciate their support and care for you. Ask open-ended questions about them to draw them out and remind them that you care about what is going on in their lives, as well.

Volunteering can also be a great way to boost your mood, according to Harley Therapy Counseling. Volunteering can create a change in thought patterns that can turn negative outlooks into positive ones.

7. Getting Help Can Be Difficult

When dealing with mental health issues or depression, it can be difficult to come out and say it. But, getting help is essential for you to live your best life possible.

Therapy can be healing to your body and soul. It can also do wonders for restoring your romantic relationship and other social connections. A therapist can also help you understand tools you can use to help combat the side-effects of depression.

Conclusion: Dealing with depression is hard, no matter which side of the coin you’re on. But, that should never stop anyone dealing with mental health issues from chasing after the love of their life.

Don’t give up on love and keep fighting to live your best life , one day at a time.

Keep going. Make today count.

The post 7 Ugly Truths about Depression and Mental Illnesses appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

There are many people that will come and go over the course of your life but the one person who will always be there is YOU. Knowing how to trust your own capacity to make decisions and do what’s best for you will propel you into success and stop you from limiting your life out of the fear of getting things “wrong”.

Learning to trust yourself is not an easy process, but with a few simple tools and techniques, you can build your self-trust muscles and become the confident badass you always wanted to be.

So how do we do it? How can we learn to trust ourselves more?

4 Simple Tips To Help You Learn To Trust Yourself, For Life

1. Enquire within

In order to learn self-trust, the first step is to consider the reason or reasons why you don’t trust yourself. Perhaps you made bad decisions in the past that have left you feeling insecure about your ability to make good choices. Maybe someone told you that you weren’t trustworthy and you now believe it to be true. Whatever your reasons are, it’s important to become aware of them, so you can bring awareness to the story you are holding onto, because of these events. The truth is you are capable of trusting yourself, you have just gotten used to telling yourself you can’t.

2. Cultivate connection

Interestingly, for a lot of people, the fear they hold around trusting themselves is actually because they have very little connection to their inner voice. Consider this: It’d be pretty hard to trust a friend or family member if you barely ever spoke to them right? You wouldn’t trust someone you hardly talk to, help you to make big decisions in your life, would you? The same applies to your self. If you never tune in with your own inner being how can you possibly trust it? In order to re-gain your own trust, you need to create a strong inner dialogue that you can call upon at any time.

3. Practice self-love

In order to learn to activate your own inner wisdom, you need to cultivate a strong connection to your inner world. This is a great step of self-awareness and toward self-mastery. Make a conscious effort to practice listening to your inner world. Start simply, like keeping promises that you make to yourself. Another great practice for connecting to yourself is to simply place your hand on your heart and say “I love you, I am listening.” This practice is like starting a conversation with your own heart.

4. Let go

In the process of learning to trust yourself, it is incredibly important to also recognise the people around you. Let go of people who doubt you. Choose to spend time with people who remind you how powerful you are and encourage you to be brave with your choices. In life, we win or we learn. We only fail if we stop trying.

Learning to trust your instincts and intuition can feel scary at first, but the more you do it, the easier it gets. You will make mistakes, of course, that is the nature of learning. But over time you will get better and better at learning to trust yourself. Self-trust means knowing that you can handle anything that life throws at you because you are capable, powerful and strong!

The post 4 Simple Tips To Help You Learn To Trust Yourself, For Life! appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

Do you have trouble sleeping? Is it because you find yourself anxious as you go to bed and spend more time thinking than actually sleeping? Sleep relaxation techniques can help.

If you have trouble sleeping, you are not alone. Stress and worry have a strong connection between insomnia and anxiety. If you’re stressed it’s probably affecting your ability to fall asleep.

Anxiety is one of the most common reasons people have trouble going to sleep. Trying to go sleep anxious makes it easy to feel fear and a general feeling of being overwhelmed with the responsibilities of life.

This anxiety makes you wake up feeling groggy, tired, and frustrated. It can also lead to irritability, lack of energy, and you might find it difficult to concentrate.

It can be a vicious cycle to break. But, with these four proven sleep relaxation techniques, you can learn how to fall asleep faster and rid yourself of anxiety related stress.

1. Progressive Relaxation | Sleep Relaxation Techniques

Progressive relaxation can help you sleep better and also help you learn more about your body in the process. With this sleep relaxation technique, you work one area or set of muscle groups at a time. First, you tense them, then you relax them.

This tensing and relaxing of them will show you where you hold the majority of your tension and help you remove it before bed. This exercise tends to start at the feet and work your way up as you drift off to sleep.

Some of the benefits also include:

• Improve mood disorders including PTSD, depression, and anxiety
• Minimize daytime fatigue
• Reduce bodily pain

Try it before you got to bed, only spending 5-7 minutes on your entire body.

2. Guided Imagery | Sleep Relaxation Techniques

Guided imagery is a visualization technique that lets you engage all the senses of your imagination. This tool can help you connect the subconscious and conscious mind together to guide your mind toward the outcomes that you want. In this example, your goal is reduced stress and better quality of sleep.

Spend a few minutes before bed imagining a calm, peaceful, and soothing environment. There are a ton of great mindfulness apps that can also guide you through the experience before bed as well.

3. Breathing Techniques | Sleep Relaxation Techniques

A simple breathing practice before bed can help you reduce stress and fall asleep much faster. If you are feeling anxious or stressed, try different types of breathing techniques to rid your mind and body of negative emotions.

The 4-7-8 technique is a very useful one that you can try right now.

• Inhale for four seconds
• Hold the inhale for a total of seven seconds
• Exhale your breath for eight seconds (very slowly)
• Do this exercise 3-4x when you feel stressed or anxious

4. Nighttime Meditation | Sleep Relaxation Techniques

There are man similarities between meditation and sleep so it makes sense to use meditation as a sleep relaxation technique. Meditation can help you relax, reduce stress, worry, and anxiety as well. Try a Guided Meditation from our friend Jess at Rising Higher if you want to have someone walk you through the process.

Hopefully, these four proven sleep relaxation techniques will help you fall asleep faster and get the rest your mind and body deserve. If you’re struggling with falling asleep don’t accept it, take action with these tips to figure out something that works for you. The more quality rest each night, the better your mind and body will perform the following day.

The post 4 Sleep Relaxation Techniques to Help You Sleep Better Than Ever appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

As tiny babies, we come into this world full of power. While we don’t have physical power or intellectual power yet, we are born with the innate ability of being comfortable fully expressing ourselves.

We don’t worry that our crying will annoy our parents or worry that our thighs are too big. Unfortunately, as we gain physical and intellectual power, this ultimate capacity for loving ourselves and believing in ourselves can get stripped away.

Society tells us that we need to be a certain way to fit in. Our families often perpetuate these stories out of a desire to keep us safe. Negative events happen and we rack up the wounds of living in a physical body on Earth. Some of us experience more trauma than others, but we all hold the scars of living in an imperfect world.

Over time, we tend to give away bits of our power. Sometimes, we unconsciously decided that having our power in a situation wasn’t safe. Other times, our power may have been forcibly taken away by others. We may have even chosen to give our power away because it felt easier to allow someone else to control our lives.

Later, many of us wake up and realize that we don’t feel as fulfilled and happy as we’d like. Maybe we find ourselves in relationships, jobs or living situations that aren’t what we actually wanted.

Fortunately, we can reclaim our power. In doing so we are able to shift not only the outer situations in our lives but how we feel about ourselves and who we know ourselves to be.

While getting your power back is an ongoing process, there are some simple steps you can take on a daily basis that will help you reclaim more and more of your power.

Alchemist Michelle Martin Dobbins Explains How To Get Your Power Back

Step 1: Decide to Claim Your Power Back

Before you can effectively get your power back, you have to realize that you no longer possess all of your power and make the decision to gain it back. This is an energetic process and one you will likely have to repeat daily. One of the ways I decided to be my most powerful self was by creating a statement of being. My current statement of being is:

I am a radiant, beautiful, magical author, alchemist and teacher who expands the joy, love, magic and delight in my life and the lives of those I touch.

You can create yours in 5 simple steps:

Start with the words “I am,” then list who you have decided to be in the world. Then, add the word “who” and fill in what you are going to do in the world. Think big. You are already impacting the world every single day. You might as well decide how you want to do it.

Once you get it written in a way that makes you smile, memorize it and also, write it down in places you will later see it.

Follow your decisions and be who you have decided to be. No one can stop you.

Don’t share it with anyone unless you are 100% sure they will be supportive.

Step 2: Daily Visualization or Meditation

Personal power is a metaphysical, beyond the physical, concept and in order to get your power back some of the work will be internal. Take a few minutes each morning to call back your power by visualizing it returning. You could also meditate on how you feel now that you have your power back. This will help you to cement the decision into your body and remind you to take action daily to get your power back.

Step 3: Release Old Stories and Heal Wounds

There are many ways to release old patterns of giving away your power. Traditional therapy, Emotional Freedom Technique or tapping, the Sedona Method, and Byron Katie’s The Work are all different ways of releasing old stories and gaining back your power. Do some research and try out different releasing techniques.

Journaling can also be helpful. Take some time to write and answer questions such as “If I had my full power, I would…” or “What would I be doing if I fully owned my power?’”

We can’t change the past but we can do the work to heal and release it.

Step 4: Practice Self-Care

Part of getting your power back is taking care of yourself. When we wait for others to meet our needs in the world, we give away big chunks of our power. That’s not to say that we can’t accept help from others, but when it comes to loving ourselves and knowing that we are a worthy person, we have to go first.

I even created a daily love list for myself of twenty self-care items and make sure I check off at least 10 a day. It can be something like mindfully putting lotion on after my shower or more outside my comfort zone like asking someone for help.

You are worth the time to take loving actions and think loving thoughts about yourself. This isn’t selfish. It’s necessary to care for yourselfves before you will be capable of caring for others. We can’t wait for anyone else to give us permission. Give it to yourself.

Step 4: Establish Boundaries

As we gain our power back, we start to notice the ways in which we have allowed our power to leak away from us. We say yes when we want to say no. We allow people to treat us in ways that don’t value us as a person. Our relationships with others can bring great fulfillment if we establish boundaries that protect our power.

One of the boundaries I’ve created is to set specific times that I answer emails, look at social media, or respond to client messages. By creating boundaries. I can make sure I do my most important tasks such as my spiritual practice and my creative work first. If I start with helping other people, I never seem to make time for my most powerful work in the world.

Step 5: Repeat Daily to Get Your Power Back

Getting our power back is a process that we have to make part of our daily life. It gets easier as we let go of the past and create habits of self-care and clean boundaries. There will always be aspects of society that would gladly take your power if you don’t keep up these practices as part of your life.

When you get your power back, not only will it help you create a joyful and fulfilling life, but you help heal the world. The more people who stand in their power, the more space we create for others to do the same.

May we reclaim our power and use it to create healing and beauty in the world.

The post Alchemist Michelle Martin Dobbins Explains How To Get Your Power Back appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

Anxiety can be debilitating. Whether your experience with it is minor or in the extreme. Everyone experiences anxiety in some form or another.

Anxiety at its worst is a crushing encumbrance to shoulder on the road to happiness. Even if from the outside it looks like you have nothing to ‘worry about’ your mind has another story to tell. If you’ve ever sat wide eyed at 3AM struggling to breathe and contemplating the capitulation of your existence, while the rest of the world is sleeping, you know anxiety well.

How to Overcome Anxiety – Worrier to Warrior

The good news is that anxiety is manageable, there are a number of approaches you can take. One that works for someone else may not work for you. You must be brave enough to explore your options, so you can improve your own quality of life. Whether it be seeing a psychologist or life coach, altering your mindset/thought process, meditation, behavioural therapy or even taking medication.

Colin Bien suffered from a panic disorder caused by malaria prophylaxes for over 2 years. This cause Colin to have frequent overwhelming panic attacks. So began his life mission of understanding the underlying anxiety that caused his attacks. He knew if he failed to understand the way his mind was operating his life would always be a struggle. Listen as Colin explains how he broke the loop of anxiety.

Worrier to Warrior – How to Overcome Anxiety

Anxiety is like being chased by a bear. If you RUN…it’ll keep chasing you. If you STOP and acknowledge it, it’ll eventually lose interest and go away.

The way to fix such anxiety, depression or other mental illnesses is to understand the relationship of the mind , body and soul. You are not what you think. Simple as that. All mental illnesses have their root in the mind. There is of course a complicated chemical balance in the brain that can have a huge influence on your state. But they are generally not the cause, just the side effects of self induced stress states that manifest a fight or flight response within the body. Of course everyone is different, it is up to you to get to know yourself and evolve your mind from self-defeating to self-development.

How to overcome anxiety. STOP what you are doing. You need to figure out who you are. What is your purpose? Why haven’t you given up? What are you fighting for? Find out why your fire stills burns, even if your life is just a pile of smouldering coal. Once you find the reason, FEED YOUR FIRE. Remind yourself every day why you are here. If you want to be great you need to work on yourself EVERY. DAY. feed your mind with positivity & knowledge. Your life is on the line. Become a warrior. You can defeat this! Be fearless!

The post How to Overcome Anxiety – Transform From Worrier To Warrior appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.

Some days just seem impossible, those are the days we need some quotes on hope to remind us life isn’t over yet, so don’t roll over meekly just yet, this world needs you!

Light your spark and FIRE UP. Don’t you dare give up!

You are amazing, the mere fact you’re alive is A MIRACLE!

So march on, even the worst days are only 24 hours.

Carry hope with you like a torch and let it light up your darkest paths.

Never Give Up – Quotes On Hope To Strengthen Your Resolve

“There is always a way.” | Quotes On Hope

It does not matter how hard things get. The ONLY WAY to lose, is to give up. NEVER give up. You CAN slow down, you CAN STOP. But you can’t give up!

Take a breather if you need one, heck we all need one of those from time to time. Recharge your batteries whichever way you see fit. Tomorrow is another day and you never know what the tide will bring in.

“There are some things you can only learn in a storm.”| Quotes On Hope

If life was easy, it would sure be boring.

“Not all storms come to disrupt your life, some come to clear your path.” – Don’t be too worried if you get blown off course, have faith that the universe is guiding you in the right direction.

Sometimes setbacks force us to travel down a path we never would of considered and we end up much better off, but we must have faith to walk on through the storm to enjoy the sun when it comes out.

“I don’t think of all the misery, but of the beauty that still remains.” – Anne Frank | Quotes On Hope

If you’ve ever travelled to a third world country, one thing that really resonates is how happy everyone is.

Sadly it seems the less we have the more we appreciate it. A millionaire that lost all of his wealth and had to work a ‘normal’ job would typically be much more upset than someone who has always been in the same position. But why?

The more we get, the more we adjust to that standard and naturally want more. It is healthy to grow and to want to achieve more. But take gratitude with you on your journey. There’s a reason a large majority of successful people preach the practice of gratitude. It not only keeps you grounded, but if things go wrong you will remember how lucky you already are.

“Keep your eyes on the sun and you will not see the shadows.” | Quotes On Hope

Don’t look back, your not going that way! Don’t dwell on the past, no-one ever became successful there.

Use all your energy on moving forward, if you put 100% into your next mission you KNOW you can make it work.

 “Hope never abandons you, you abandon it.” – George Weinberg

Hope is free but so is self doubt, you speak to yourself more than anyone else.. so be kind to your own mind.

The thoughts you constantly tell yourself will predict your future.

“I find hope in the darkest of days, and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe.” Dalai Lama

It’s true that some days are better than others, some you will feel on top of the mountain, and others like you fell all the way down and woke up at the bottom.

Learn to recognize when you’re feeling down, and find hope knowing that the storm WILL PASS. And when you’re up, recognize that too and help others! a few kinds words can change someones world.

Hope in the hard times, give back in the good times.

“Where there is no vision, there is no hope.” – George Washington Carver | Quotes On Hope

If you don’t know where you’re going how do you intend to get there? Set goals! craft a clear vision for yourself and your life.

Believe in your vision so much, it has NO CHOICE but to manifest itself.

“Infuse your life with action. Don’t wait for it to happen. Make it happen. Make your own future, your own hope, your own love. And whatever your beliefs, honor your creator, not by passively waiting for grace to come down from upon high, but by doing what you can to make grace happen… yourself, right now, right down here on Earth.” – Bradley Whitford

Make it happen! Don’t sit idly and feel sorry for yourself. Yes some situations and circumstances we have no control over. But that does not have to define you! Be the change you want to see in the world.. Never give up hope, bring grace, guile and gratitude with you. You can change the world!

The post Feel Like Giving Up? Find The Strength To Carry On With These Quotes On Hope appeared first on Fearless Soul - Inspirational Music & Life Changing Thoughts.