Grounding in Daily Purposeful Actions

Grounding in Daily Purposeful Actions

by Meghan Crutchley

There’s no mistaking it—even at the time of writing this a few months ahead of when you’ll read it—we’re in the middle of a massive upheaval and reordering of major world systems and our own government. There’s so much changing around us so quickly it can be destabilizing and scary…which, as we know, is the point. The thing is: in life, there will always be things outside of our control, and what’s happening right now is a reminder that we have to take responsibility for where we put our energy and how we take care of our own health and well-being. With so much up in the air, the chaos of the times is calling for us to look within and recognize the real, life sustaining power that lives in each of us, and tap into that to create our own sense of stability and agency. 

Reconnecting with our inner life force will create greater alignment with our inner and outer lives, and initiate three big shifts in our experience during this turbulent time: 

1. Ability to access our inner resources: like strength, peace, and joy, no matter what is happening outside around us. 
2. Cultivating an inner sanctuary: connecting and validating ourselves first builds self-trust and lessens the tendency to look outside of ourselves for validation 
3. Self-care is community care: addressing our deepest needs first and then being able to show up for others. 

Before we’re able to ground in our own inner knowing, and take refuge in our inner sanctuary, we need to be willing to acknowledge and face our own suffering because if we don’t, our unconscious won’t allow us to be at peace. This can be hard to do for several reasons, and research shows that our capacity to turn towards our own suffering and that of others, known as “compassionate engagement,” is impacted by our attachments style, our stress tolerance level, experiences with anxiety, depression, grief, and whether we grew up in a family where our feelings were validated. 

If you’re someone who struggles to sit with difficult emotions, you’re not alone. In fact, I’d say that’s where most humans are, especially in the West. The problem is that when you turn off the tap for feeling the hard stuff, you turn off the ability to feel the really good stuff, too! Practicing being present with ourselves and with what is coming up for us is literally the doorway between being able to feel our strong emotions and no longer being ruled by them. In the same way that medicine for a snake bite is made of the snake’s venom. But there’s more to it than that.

Once we’ve brought awareness to our internal state, we need to bring the energy of self-compassion to whatever we find there. We do all of this in meditation or other forms of stillness practice where we can open and allow what’s there to exist. We’re not trying to get rid of any emotions or push them aside. From this place of validating our own emotions, we must then move towards “compassionate action.” Compassionate action is the exploration of what might help alleviate our own suffering, or that of others. 

This is a vital part of the equation because if we stay in the anger or the fear, then those feelings get amplified and we stay stuck in a self-destructive loop, circling the drain until we reach exhaustion and shut down. We can’t access joy, peace, and rest if we are in a fear-based, survival-driven state. 

Compassionate action is about what you’re drawn to that feels good, what gives you joy, and what helps you detach from the outside and reconnect with the energy within. In my health coaching practice, I call these life-giving habits “Purposeful Daily Actions.” Studies show that when we feel our actions have personal meaning and purpose, we’re more likely to do them, to keep doing them, and to have more positive emotions and experiences. 

Here are some guidelines for coming up with your own purposeful daily actions:

• Spending time being still moves us into our parasympathetic nervous system to de-stress, repair and recover. We can also practice mindfulness meditation, slow deep breathing for three-to-five minutes, boxed breathing (inhale for four counts, hold for four counts, exhale for four counts).
• Daily movement helps us expend excess energy in the body due to stress and anxiety. As yourself what’s interesting, what feels good, what’s sustainable?
• Examining  focus and mindset encourages looking for the bright spots, what went well today, savoring positive experiences, practicing being in the present moment
• What’s just for YOU includes time to create, explore your interests, what’s your vision for your life, hobbies that get you into flow states.

Spend five minutes a day doing something that’s aligned with your unique Self and watch what unfolds. Send me an email and share what’s working! Meghan@gmail.com