“In the process of letting go you will lose many things from the past, but you will find yourself.”
– Deepak Chopra
We have entered a new season. The leaves are changing and will soon begin to fall, the weather is cooler and the days are shorter. Now is a great time to consider what you might be holding onto that no longer serves you. Begin to let go of the limiting beliefs and stories that you tell yourself that hold you back from letting your light shine in all it’s brilliance. We are all meant to be radiant and joyful.
Letting go is hard to do, but holding onto emotions from past events prevents you from stepping into your light. To practice releasing stored emotions, try these five steps, which are part of Deepak Chopra’s Steps to Emotional Freedom.
Notice where you feel the emotion in your body– Sit quietly and close your eyes. Recall an emotional experience that is causing you pain and take note of where this memory has lodged itself in your body. You might feel tightness around your heart or in your throat, discomfort in your stomach, a headache, or other sensation. Take several deep breaths and notice if the sensation begins to dissipate.
Take a different perspective – Write down what you remember from the past experience. Include details about how you felt, what the other person did and how you reacted. Now switch your perspective and write down what happened from the other person’s point of view. Write down what they may have been feeling and why they may have acted as they did. This will be difficult, but can be helpful in the process of letting go.
Share your experience– Select a good friend or family member who was not involved in the experience, and who has your best interests at heart. Share with them what you have written from the previous step.
Perform a ritual to release the experience – Once you have shared what you have written, literally let go of your written stories by burning the pages, or tearing the pages to pieces and throwing them away or burying them. Choose something that resonates with you as a means to release the story.
Celebrate the release– After you perform the ritual to release the experience, take a moment to appreciate liberation from the emotion. Acknowledge the work that you have done to let go of the story and release it to the universe. If there are emotions that you were not able to release, give yourself a break and do later releases around the same hurt.