Survive or Thrive - do you know which state you are in?

One perspective about the animal kingdom, including homo sapiens, is that we are either in 'survive' mode or 'thrive' mode.  Both are fundamental and we are designed to see-saw back and forth easily between the two.  However, we can (and often do) get in this get stuck in survive mode for various reasons and this has a negative impact on our health and wellbeing.

In the current situation, I’d offer that many of us are in 'survive' mode reading how stressed, scared or angry some people are on their social media posts.  It seems there is much individual and collective grieving, fear, stress, anger and confusion.  In the uncertainty of the current and future moments, these feelings are perfectly normal.  This ongoing rollercoaster of emotions is our body's way of telling us that we don't feel 'safe' so we go into survival mode.  Many of our familiar security blankets have been unexpectedly taken away - job security, food security, physical touch, social gatherings, religious meetings - and that can feel like it is all too much.  Our human response to events or situations that feel overwhelming and outside of our control is to ‘survive’ rather than to ‘thrive’.  When we find ourselves in this tense, contracted state I’d offer it’s an idea to practice self care, self compassion and a gentle, gentle approach.   

Self-regulation is meant to be learned in childhood (although sometimes we are still learning it in our adult years).  It is the ability to recognise your feeling(s) in any given moment, maybe name it or locate it in your body and being ok with it or knowing how to be with it until it passes, which it will.  Emotions are ‘energy in motion’, so they’re passing through, guests at our table, a gift from deep within to help us grow and learn to be the best version of ourselves. 

People often come to see me with feelings of anxiety, overwhelm, anger, fear or a general sense of not being at ease.  We work together on how our body responds to its internal signals (racing heart, breathlessness, butterflies in tummy) and external environment.  We explore why it’s common for us to get stuck in one of these states which can negatively impact our lives and relationships with our loved ones.  We play with  different tools, tips, tricks and life hacks that they can use to calm their brain (mind chatter, constant worrying disaster scenario planning etc) and their body’s responses (physiology).  TRE (tension and stress release exercises) is just one of the many tools I offer to people in individual sessions to move from ‘survive’ to ‘thrive’.   

I’ve opened up extra individual sessions (for stress and tension release (including TRE) nutritional advice on weekdays and Saturday mornings.  Get in touch if you’d like some support to move from ‘survive’ to ‘thrive’’.

Weekly group TRE sessions for experienced shakers and monthly gong meditations are running as normal - albeit online.  

Register your interest for a beginners TRE group session.