Meeting the enemy

As soon as you notice that you are stressed, anxious, restless, or at unease, you have basically two choices:

• First, you can apply a relaxation technique like gentle yoga, meditation, conscious breathing, or Autogenic Training.
• Second, you can look directly on what stresses you out.

The first choice does not necessarily mean that you turn away from your stressors. You can explore so-called negative emotions with mindful meditation or with an advanced practice of yoga. Generally speaking, however, relaxation techniques tend to divert your attention away from the stressors.

This is not a bad thing to do, especially if you need to switch to a more relaxed mode quickly.
For deeper self-exploration, however, you may want to know your "enemy."

Do the following exercise:

• Take a sheet of paper, sit down and ask yourself:
  What do I experience as stress right now?
  (Whom, what, which circumstances?)
  What hinders me to live creatively, freely, and joyfully at this moment?
• Listen within. Let your intuition speak. Notice what comes to mind.
  Be curious; let go off any pressure.
• Jot down some words; no complete sentences are necessary.
  Maybe an image enters the stage of your awareness. Try a little sketch, without any artistic ambition. Think of a children's drawing or of a cartoon with callouts.
• Allow the words and images to flow onto the paper until you feel that they have captured your present stress situation.
• Look at your sheet while breathing evenly and deeply and with your shoulders down and relaxed.
  Here they are, your stressors!
  Notice any changes in the way you feel about your present situation.

For your convenience, I have made a sheet available at www.developserenity.com/serenity_spring_2009.htm