Changeable Podcast

This episode shares a guided meditation I created for the Resting in Restlessness course.  The guidance will help you feel into sensations and sound. I recommend using this guidance as a starting off point, then exploring silently on your own.The post EP354: Guided Meditation: Feeling What Is appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

Marie experiences extreme reactions to certain noises, sometimes referred to as misofonia. This makes life very hard in many ways, especially at work and in close relationships. If this is neurologically-based sensitivity, can Marie’s experience of it change? Absolutely. Everything is made worse by our resistance and suppression. I’ll share how Marie can be in these experiences in “slow motion” as they arise. ***If: You feel addicted to your phoneYou find yourself wanting background noise because silence is uncomfortable You experience anxiety  or compulsive behaviors such as excessive snacking, picking, drinking, shopping, scrollingYou rarely feel present. You’re often seeking – looking ahead, dreaming about or waiting for something other than what is, spiritual seeking, planning…My newest 6-week course, Resting in Restlessness, is perfect for you.Through a combination of teachings, experiments that we’ll do together and between classes, and group calls, you’ll be supported as you lean into this feeling we call restlessness. What if, in exploring the thoughts and sensations that make up restlessness, you find that you can actually rest in these feelings rather than compulsively distract from them? I am so excited to support you as we watch our comfort with What Is grow. Go to dramyjohnson.com/restlessness to see the full details. The post EP353: I experience extreme reactions to certain noises (misofonia). Is there anything I can do about this? Responding to listener’s question.  appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

In this conversation with Piers Thurston, Piers shares how everything is a mirror.  As he explains, this is particularly seen in other people and in our wants and desires. What we see as others is an opportunity to look at how the idea of me is showing up. Same with what we want – looking more closely at the “cleanness” of those wants reveals so much.We also talk a lot in this conversation about feeling, as that looks to me to be the primary “way” we dip into the beneath-abstraction, subtle essence of life where these patterns can be revealed. Piers shares his views on this which are so helpful to hear. You can see more about Piers and find his podcast, Quality of Mind, at https://piersthurston.com/***If: You feel addicted to your phoneYou find yourself wanting background noise because silence is uncomfortable You experience anxiety  or compulsive behaviors such as excessive snacking, picking, drinking, shopping, scrollingYou rarely feel present. You’re often seeking – looking ahead, dreaming about or waiting for something other than what is, spiritual seeking, planning…My newest 6-week course, Resting in Restlessness, is perfect for you.Through a combination of teachings, experiments that we’ll do together and between classes, and group calls, you’ll be supported as you lean into this feeling we call restlessness. What if, in exploring the thoughts and sensations that make up restlessness, you find that you can actually rest in these feelings rather than compulsively distract from them? I am so excited to support you as we watch our comfort with What Is grow. Go to dramyjohnson.com/restlessness to see the full details. The post EP352: All of life is a mirror with Piers Thurston appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

What is this feeling we call restlessness?  It feels like something is off. There’s an agitation or irritation interpreted as something that can’t be felt; something needs to be different. . That’s part of it, and most of us live with that feeling much of the time. But then there is the movement away from that feeling. Jumping up to be productive, eating, buying, scrolling, researching, fixing…The initial feeling + the resistance of it – seen in the attempts to solve it or distract from it– are indistinguishable. Before long, we simply see ourselves running. Running from what? We can’t remember. Restlessness is behind so much suffering. In this episode we’ll look at what it really is, I’ll share my experience with it over many years, and you’ll see how how feeling the raw sensations of it is all there is to do. If you’d like to explore restlessness in a very deep and supported way, please check out the upcoming course Resting in Restlessness: The solution to end compulsive scrolling, eating, buying, anxiety and constant seeking: https://dramyjohnson.com/restlessness/***If: You feel addicted to your phoneYou find yourself wanting background noise because silence is uncomfortable You experience anxiety  or compulsive behaviors such as excessive snacking, picking, drinking, shopping, scrollingYou rarely feel present. You’re often seeking – looking ahead, dreaming about or waiting for something other than what is, spiritual seeking, planning…My newest 6-week course, Resting in Restlessness, is perfect for you.Through a combination of teachings, experiments that we’ll do together and between classes, and group calls, you’ll be supported as you lean into this feeling we call restlessness. What if, in exploring the thoughts and sensations that make up restlessness, you find that you can actually rest in these feelings rather than compulsively distract from them? I am so excited to support you as we watch our comfort with What Is grow. Go to dramyjohnson.com/restlessness to see the full details. The post EP351: Resting in Restlessness appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

Dive into the fascinating exploration of how thoughts arise involuntarily and aren't actually yours. Discover the freedom that comes from realizing you can't control or stop these thoughts. Embrace the present moment instead of getting lost in the noise of anxiety or compulsive behaviors. Learn to recognize the nature of thought to reduce suffering and liberate yourself from the weight of perceived problems. It's an enlightening journey to accepting what truly matters in life.

Discover the power of sharing personal stories and how they help us feel validated. The discussion shifts focus from recounting events to understanding deeper feelings. A compelling metaphor illustrates the importance of addressing immediate emotions over abstract concepts, guiding us to ask ourselves where it truly hurts. Additionally, a new course promises to explore the restless feelings behind compulsive behaviors and anxiety, encouraging a journey toward self-discovery.

This week’s episode speaks to a listener’s questions about self-compassion and surrender. Jay says they have a block to self-compassion. They want to know how one can access this self-love without talking yourself into it. There are so many threads in this question that lead to an exploration of feeling, expectations, blocks, what surrender is, the role of thought in all of this, and more. I know you’ll hear a lot in Jay’s excellent questions! The post EP348: I can’t surrender or feel self-compassion. Responding to a listener’s questions. appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

There’s a progression that seems to happen.You might say it’s from gross to subtle.  Where attention shifts from being absorbed in abstractions, thoughts, representations, and relationships…to attention moving to much more subtle energies like sensations, sensory input, and maybe something like intuition or perception.Identity is viewed in these different ways. From gross thought and beliefs being questioned, to more subtle physical and emotional reactions felt. As we sense at this more subtle level, the unraveling process seems to pick up some steam. Identity is seen through rapidly. Thoughts barely arise before they dissolve or fall away. Something like this is how the fabric of thought-based reality comes apart in the best possible way. The post EP347: Unraveling ego at the feeling level appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

This week’s episode is a portion of a Community call with guest speaker Shenan Charania. This was one of my all-time favorite guest speaker calls and several in our community said the same.Shenan and I talk about silence, presence, regret, thought, and much more. Shenan shares his past as a gang member and his experiences in “extreme presence”, or what I often talk about as feeling your way through life. You will feel this conversation as you listen. Enjoy! The post EP346: Extremely This with Shenan Charania appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

In my recent silent retreat we explored the fact that nothing was happening.  All retreatants had to do was show up when the gong chimed and be quiet. Literally nothing else. Their entire day from 10am to 10pm was scheduled for them. Meals were prepared and served. Life for 6 days was unbelievably simple. And so when it didn’t feel simple – and it didn’t, always – we knew there was one thing going on: imagination. The movement of consciousness we call thought, creating realities that weren’t in the room with us. All of life is this way. This isn’t only true on silent retreat. All of life is unthinkably simple, yet made dramatic and personal through willfulness and positionality. The post EP345: Willfulness and positionality dissolve into silence appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.