Intuition
When learning to develop our intuition one of the most common hurdles is distinguishing our voice of intuition and our voice of fear. We all have intuition, but this is a skill that is often not nurtured. What is nurtured, however, are our fears, and so often this voice speaks to us the loudest unless we are consciously aware of it.
Society is heavily driven on fear (some real, many not). There is so much fear based content in our world today that most of us carry these thoughts around without even realizing. When we start to become aware however, we can start to shift our line of thinking to a more positive and trusting place. This allows us to really tap into our intuition and to trust the messages that we receive.
There are main signs that we are working with our intuition vs. fear, and by knowing these we can work to let go of fear based thinking and trust intuition as it shows up.
When working with intuition, it feels like a “knowing” more than a logical or highly emotional response. The intuitive message is felt or heard instantly, it is fluid and non-repetitive. Intuition feels definitive, almost like the answer is black and white or doesn’t require analyzing. The intuitive message feels simple and comfortable, it may also feel “right”. The message coming through intuition feels loving and supportive, almost expansive and is centered around the present moment. These are experiences that lend themselves more towards peace.
Whereas working with fear feels highly emotional or causes a feeling of anxiety that may even trigger physical symptoms. Fear messages trigger adrenaline, which can activate our “flight or fight” response and can make us take actions in order to feel relieved. A fear message can be very repetitive, loud or demanding, it can cause over-analyzing because of its many variables and “what ifs; which can lead to confusion or feeling stuck. Often fear messages feel very harsh, restrictive or self-deprecating and are usually centered around the future or scenarios that have not yet happened.
The best indicator of when we are working with our intuition vs. fear response is that our intuitive voice does not create a physical or highly emotional response, whereas fear does. But there is one tool we can practice, that can be most beneficial… seeing and befriending our fear.
Fear protects us and stops us from getting into dangerous situations. Fear can also sometimes be a great motivator and can help us to overcome challenges and obstacles. Fear is also a sign that we are willing to take risks, change and grow. Fear is an interesting beast as it is usually centered around untruths or things that have not yet happened. This causes us to believe things that are not true or to focus on negative outcomes for a situation. This can sometimes be helpful, but it can also be detrimental if we allow our these thoughts to take control.
The best way to befriend our fear is to listen to what fear has to say and acknowledge its presence. Usually when we do this, we are able to better rationalize whether our fear has some truth to it or is mostly based on untruths. When we listen to our fear without judgement it also creates more space for our intuition to speak.
Intuition is not a “binary” skill, a ‘work/doesn’t work’ situation… it’s like any other skill you learn, it happens in gradual degrees. You harness more of your intuition the more you practice using it and trusting yourself. There is no definitive boundaries, the only thing we can do is learn to trust and love ourselves, because the more we can do that, the more we can bring peace to the voices in our mind and heart.
Keep exploring,
Pamela
