The Power of Compassion
What do I do?
I help people feel free. We all want to be happy and be loved, but sometimes there are old wounds or patterns from our past that interfere with loving and being loved.
In order to heal our wounds and move forward into a joyful and creative life, we must learn to connect with our bodies and tolerate our feelings. We must learn to have compassion for the parts of us we’ve been afraid of, or hated, or been ashamed of. Most of all we must connect with the powerful energy of our true Self…our deep heart, the essential core that is our source of strength, compassion, balance, and wisdom.
Imagine a little child…
She has been hurt and frightened. She is running home, wanting to be held and comforted, wanting to feel safe. The door is locked, so she knocks on the door, crying.
One sort of mother gets angry and shames the child (“What’s wrong with you? Why are you making such a fuss? Stop crying! If something bad happened to you, just shake it off, get over it, and move on”). So the child swallows the fear, the pain, the shame, and the fear of rejection, and she moves on. Only she moves on by shutting down and disconnecting from her body, her emotions, and herself. Her mother is happy because her child is quiet, but the child isn’t quiet, she’s frozen.
But another mother opens the door and says, “Come on in, sweetie. Come sit on my lap and tell me all about it.” At first the child is so upset she can barely talk, but as her mother holds her, lets her cry, rubs her back, looks in her eyes, and waits quietly, the little girl gradually calms down and begins to tell her what happened. She keeps crying and talking until she has told it all and feels seen, understood, loved, and safe. There is a heart-to-heart connection. Eventually she will look up at her mother, give a big sigh, and say, “I feel better now. Can I go play?” Now the little girl can genuinely and freely move on. She is learning how to cope with her fears and sadness, how to comfort herself, and how to regain her balance.
These scenarios happen all the time. Life can be painful; bad things happen to all of us. Little children are either comforted or shamed by their parents. Adults are either comforted or shamed by their partners, friends, teachers, counselors, and pastors.
These scenarios happen internally as well as externally. We all have vulnerable parts of us that have been hurt or frightened, that feel young, fragile, rejected, and ashamed. How do we respond when these distressing feelings are knocking at the door, trying to get our attention? These feelings can be very frightening. Sometimes it feels like there’s a war going on inside of us. Sometimes it feels like we’ll die if we let those feelings and memories come up. So what do we do with them? Do we keep the door locked and shame them into silence? Do we try to numb them out with drugs, alcohol, food, gambling, or work? Or do we listen to them, honor them, and help them release the pain and fear?
We’re not taught how to do that in our culture; we’re taught to shut them up and shut them down.
My goal is to help you:
- reconnect with your body
- access your inner strength and wisdom
- tolerate your feelings
- comfort the wounded parts of yourself
- feel safe all the way down
- access and develop your creativity
- honor your own spirituality
Those who would not be appropriate for this sort of work are those who:
- are struggling with addictions
- are feeling actively suicidal or have made attempts in the past
- are actively self-harming
How do I do this?
We begin by creating a space that is as safe as possible and emphasizing that you are in control of your own process. You are invited into a relaxed state using breath, imagery, mindfulness, and sound, so you can learn how to be fully present in your body. You learn how to feel compassion for these wounded parts of yourself, release the pain and fear they are carrying, and bring harmony and peace to your inner being.