Getting In the NOW

There is something undoubtedly magical about this time of year.   The northern hemisphere of the earth begins an amazing transformation.  You can feel nature begin to hunker down and prepare for the oncoming chilly air and frosty ground.  Like an expectant mother in the last trimester of pregnancy, she draws herself in and curls around the precious seed buried beneath it’s nurturing vessel, protecting it from exposure that might potentially hinder it’s imminent future emergence when the soil becomes warm again.  Daylight hours diminish and the days begin to feel like they are speeding by.   What a miracle it is to stop and take a moment to notice the change in climate, the metamorphosis of the season and simply feel the time of year.

Another phenomenon happens as the earth’s position changes with regard to the sun.  As autumn tumbles into winter and the holiday season approaches, it is easy to start spinning into a tizzy of planning and preparing for various feasts and festivities. Do this too much, and one can soon feel like one’s head is about to explode. Halloween is barely over and we are getting e-blasts about getting a jump-start on holiday shopping. Yeesh. It is common this time of year for many people to start feeling pressured to begin frantically laying the groundwork for the obligatory celebrating that is soon to come. While a lot of planning ahead can help some people feel more organized and in control, it can be overwhelming for others and actually have an adverse effect.

If you are among those already feeling stressed while nervously making grocery lists and menus for Thanksgiving, or feverishly writing out gift shopping itineraries, you may be propelling yourself into a vacuum of worry that could have negative effects on everything from your physical health to your emotional well being.

Other potential pitfalls towards anxiety are abundant in different forms during the holidays. A person can unknowingly order up a tension cocktail for themselves during an activity as simple as taking holiday decorations or photographs from years gone by out of storage and preparing to display them for the season. This for instance, can effect different people in different ways. For some people it generates happy, warm, fuzzy feelings while others may become melancholy, agitated or disconnected, reflecting on images and remembrances of the past, missing the days of yore when children were small or parents were around. For still others, mementos of the past might be a reminder that they currently find themselves in a place they did not expect to be. That could be a good thing, or not so much, depending on the individual person and their situation.

If you find yourself feeling overtaxed and sliding into a pit of seasonal nervousness, perhaps it is time to take a breath and try a technique used by Life Coaches to help their clients center themselves and let go of stresses that may be distracting them or scattering their energy.

This important step towards staying clear, calm and focused takes place in Life Coaching at the very beginning of the session. The coach always makes sure to bring the client “into the now” before delving into the issue at hand. They do this by asking if them to look inward and consider if there is anything other than what they are about to focus on, that is on their mind or bothering them. The Life Coach will ask the client if he or she has their own technique or particular method that they normally use to bring themselves into the present moment, and reminds them of that process. The client then takes a moment to clear their mind, take a few deep, cleansing breaths, take stock of their current surroundings and present state of being, and be totally, mentally and spiritually ‘In the Now’. This is an important part of Life Coaching because a clear, calm mind is essential for really dealing with whatever the focus of the session might be.

In Life Coaching, images and impressions of events that happened in the distant or recent past, or a confused myriad of disassembled projections for the future could be issues the client thinks they are seeing the coach to address when in reality, they may not be. There could be a couple different things going on; frenzied planning or jumbled, foggy, cobwebby ideas could simply be a hindrance to dealing with the real problem, or they may be something at the root of the issue, revealing themselves in a subtle, sublime manner. In other words, the planning mania might be a compulsion issue to control every detail of the season, or the anxious weepiness over a dusty holiday photograph from 20 years ago could be an issue from your past that you never fully let go of. These may be complex issues that are best dealt with together with the assistance of a professional.

As far as dealing with daily stress as the holidays approach, it is amazing how anxiety can melt away when we place ourselves totally in the moment. It’s a great way to relish the present, without fretting over presents. Whether it is a reverie from the past or a panicked push to get ready for the immediate future, tension can hinder a person from enjoying the positive things currently in their life. If you find yourself just needing to take a minute to get back into the moment, try closing your eyes, taking a few deep breaths, relaxing your shoulders, clearing your mind of distracting thoughts, becoming mindful of your current state of being, and getting yourself into the NOW.

-Merry L.

Click here for information on the Life Coaching at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.