Life as a Highly Sensitive Person

5 things I do to help soothe my nervous system

She sits quietly
on the pillow,
leaning up against the window.

She sits quietly
upon the rock,
overlooking the ocean.

She sits quietly
in the corner,
noticing the changing light.

She sits quietly
with a needle in hand,
and cotton on her lap

She sits quietly
quietly
quietly

Photo by John Bray on Unsplash

One thing I have found since coming home is that, while on one hand I am very grounded and strong, on the other I feel as though I am SHATTERED.

When we were away, we travelled to some very quiet and very remote places.

Places,
where there were hardly, if any, other people.

Places,
where nature held you and invited a deep silence to wash over you.

Places,
where sounds were soothing,
and calming,
and ever so healing.

Travelling in these exquisite landscapes
calmed my nervous system
soothed my heart
and empowered my soul.

AND ALSO

further increased my levels of sensitivity.

As some of you already know, I am an incredibly sensitive person - to words, light, sounds and environments.

My sensitivity, combined with my gentleness, is my superpower.

My sensitivity enables me to read the room, people and circumstances in a way that creates healing and empowerment, peace and connection, honesty and truth.

It enables me to navigate the wider world as I can feel within me where I need to be and leave places/people/circumstances where my energies feel “unsafe.” (Although this later point took me a long time to do for fear of “hurting other people!”)

My sensitivity enables me to connect more profoundly with nature, the spirits that live therein, and to the unseen.

And it enables me to be creative and connected in ways that I never thought possible.

Since coming home,
I realised that the physical symptoms I had accumulated before I left
had a lot to do with being highly sensitive.

I wasn’t feeling 100% before we travelled. I was constantly, deeply and profoundly tired, I felt anxious all the time and my sleep was very poor despite going to bed early.

When I was away, however, my energies were calmed and soothed by the softness of the places we visited, by the mindful connections I made with the friends we stayed with, and by a different routine (for example, going to bed earlier and waking up earlier and not using my computer that much).

My health increased exponentially.

And my energy, my aura, felt as though it could once again breathe out.

Since coming back home though, city life can’t be avoided, and that is what is overwhelming my sensitivities. So, I pause now and reflect upon my journey and ask myself…How do I use what I learnt in all those amazing places to keep myself in balance?

Here are some things that effect me - that are both in my control and out of it:

• the sound of leaf blowers - I wonder, whatever happened to the old fashion broom?

• the sound of motor bike riders or car drivers who rev and rev their motors and go absolutely nowhere!

• the buzz and vibrations of society’s white noise that drift in from the outside world

• the news - while I like to keep up to date, I know that to do so wipes me. I feel so overwhelmed and lost in a sea of helplessness when I listen or read the news. There is part of me that wants to tangibly stop the atrocities, and yet I feel small and unsure what to do

• not eating enough protein

• not drinking enough water

• being on the computer for too long

• being on the computer after a certain time at night YEP! I KNOW!!! Screens before bed are a no no! There are so many articles and studies written about this here is one article and here is another. With this in mind I am working on changing my writing habits so that I can still find the depth of stillness that I love at night while not actually having my computer on.

• not getting enough me time

• eating spicy foods! I know this sounds strange however I am now unable to eat very spicy foods. They make my energy feel heavy, tired and depleted for at least 24 hours afterwards.

Here are 5 things I do to help calm my energies when I feel that they have been compromised: (that list of 5 grew to 25!)

• sleep in when I can

• go outside and be in nature

• read out loud to my children (this is a beautiful ritual we have done together since our children were born… reading as a family soothes and calms us all)

• lay on my bed and read my own books

• have a nap - even just 20 minutes takes the pressure off and makes me feel so much better

• cook - I enjoy cooking and find when I potter in the kitchen I calm down and feel energised.

• close all the doors and windows, if it is the noise of the outside that is draining me - the leaf blowers, aeroplanes, cars and sirens etc

• or open all the windows and doors to invite the sounds of the natural world to come inside - the caw of the ravens, the song of the wind through the leaves

• do a meditation

• sew - I find sewing very relaxing and soothing

• get a healing or a massage

• rub my feet - this grounds me straight away and invites me to deeply breathe out

• put on essential oils or burn them in a vaporiser

• consciously look at things and focus on the detail, as though seeing that thing for the very first time

• smile and be aware of how it makes my face and my energy feel

• sit down and SLOWLY drink a cup of tea while gently gazing with soft eyes out the window

• potter in the garden and consciously looking at each flower/bud/leaf and talk to them

• take deep and slow breaths in and out - being conscious of how this makes my ribs move, my lungs move and my posture change.

• sit/stand straighter

• exercise/stetch

• play

• look out or up or to the left or right - change my vision focus

• slow down - to 1/4 time - in my daily activities

• go to the beach and feel the sand and surf under my toes/feet and feel the sea breeze in my face

• walk barefooted

It is through SELF CARE AND SELF AWARENESS that I can navigate the world in a more empowered way.

WHAT ABOUT YOU…

Are you a highly sensitive person? (Did you know that according to psychologist Elaine Aron 25% of the population are Highly Sensitive)

What triggers your sensitivities the most?

What in your day to day life empowers you
or drains you?

What is your superpower?
Is your superpower also your kriptonite (ie does it have its downside?)

What do YOU do when you feel your energies have been compromised?

I would love to hear from you - are you a sensitive soul too? How do you navigate your world and your sensitivities?

Until next week,

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