I’ve had a strange compulsion since Trump won the White House – I’m drawn to dystopian films and series. And, at the same time, I find myself reflecting deeply on what can be done when faced with overwhelming societal challenges.
Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh was asked, “Aren’t you worried about the state of the world?” “I allowed my self to breathe,” he answered. “And then I said, ‘What is most important is not to allow your anxiety about what happens in the world to fill your heart.'”
I often get letters from folks sharing their experiences and asking questions. This correspondence can offer spectacular insights and musings that answer questions that many others have on their mind. So I’m sharing this one with you today…
Fawning happens when you respond to a threat by trying to “please” the person triggering fear in you.
“Dear Becca – I like the idea of trying out your cannabis elevation ceremony (especially when it’s free;) but I have this fraught relationship with cannabis and am a little leery about doing it…”
I often get letters from folks sharing their experiences and asking questions. This correspondence can offer spectacular insights and musings that answer questions that many others have on their mind. So I’m sharing this one with you today…
Oh! Thank you for the exuberant responses to my invitation for coming together for an online Cannabis Elevation Ceremony – my gift to our community.
Just a quick note as I’m writing from Thailand (Chiang Mai specifically, in the north of the country). It was a long trip – between 4 flights and hefty layovers – 27 hours worth. I’m here physically but tired and discombobulated having landed late yesterday and flopping at a simple and clean little hotel near the airport. I tried everything to sleep (including breathing, counting backwards from 100 and even the podcast “Sleep with me.”
“I am so stressed, I am stressed all the time!” Miguel lamented.
“Can you tell me more about what that means?” I ask. “Would you say you’re anxious or fearful about something?”
“I don’t know,” he says shaking his head, “I’m just really stressed!”
Miguel is typical in that he uses the word “stress” as a place holder for what he’s feeling – because he doesn’t have the language to apply to what he’s actually feeling.
Back in the day, anxiety was the wallpaper and furnishings of my mind. I (somehow) soldiered through, but living in anxiety was a way of life for me. I’d panic in social situations, I’d worry about upcoming events (that paranoid feeling of suspicion and mistrust of people or their actions without evidence or justification), and I’d ruminate – focusing on repetitive thoughts of catastrophe.