[Ep. 251] This 2 Minute Practice Can Alleviate Anxiety - & It's Free!
Apr 3, 2025
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Discover the transformative practice of pendulation to alleviate anxiety. Learn how to differentiate between your current feelings and future fears, helping you release unprocessed energy. Luis guides you through an engaging method that encourages emotional awareness and connection to your body. This simple, two-minute practice can empower you to embrace life more fully and feel anchored amidst anxiety.
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Quick takeaways
Pendulation helps individuals recognize and differentiate between their anxiety and other feelings, cultivating emotional awareness and balance.
Experiencing both anxiety and calm simultaneously enhances emotional regulation, promoting resilience in navigating life's challenges.
Deep dives
Understanding Anxiety and Its Roots
Anxiety is characterized as the anticipation of negative events that have yet to occur, distinguishing it from immediate danger. The term emphasizes that this build-up of anxiety is largely a reaction to potential threats rather than actual occurrences. For instance, imagining a stressful event, like traveling to a retreat, can provoke feelings of overwhelm even though the situation is not currently happening. This trapped energy contributes to ongoing anxiety since the individual cannot respond in the moment to relieve the built-up pressure.
The Practice of Pendulation
Pendulation is a technique derived from somatic experiencing, designed to help individuals shift between the sensations of stress and calm within their bodies. Practicing this method allows the body to naturally modulate between feelings of anxiety, such as tension in the chest, and sensations of peace or comfort, such as softness in the belly. By actively focusing on both these polarities, individuals can recognize and localize their anxiety instead of identifying themselves solely with that feeling. This natural awareness helps to cultivate a sense of balance and distinctiveness between current experiences and future fears.
Gaining Insight Through Awareness
The approach emphasizes that experiencing both anxiety and calm simultaneously is crucial for enhancing self-awareness and emotional regulation. Through a simple exercise of oscillating between the feelings of anxiety and peace, individuals can learn to witness their emotions without becoming consumed by them. This practice not only reduces the sense of overwhelming anxiety but also allows for the acknowledgment of other emotions and experiences present in the moment. Ultimately, understanding that fear does not equate to danger enables individuals to navigate life’s challenges with a greater sense of capacity and resilience.
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Transformative Pendulation Practice for Anxiety Relief
Don't wait until you are feeling anxious to practice this one! Jump right in where you are and practice pendulating. Luis teaches us how to feel where we are now, and where we feel anxiety in our bodies.
We are not our anxiety, a part of us feels anxious. What does the rest of us feel? Using this tool Luis is able access the parts of himself that are not anxious and that have capacity, so that he can walk into life more embodied.