Ditch the Addiction to Your Old Habits
Are you addicted to one of these?
| • worrying | • sweets |
| • social media | • perfectionism |
| • shopping | • smoking |
| • cell phone | • being right |
| • heart break | • potato chips |
| • alcohol | • procrastination |
| • criticizing | • not being good enough |
Most of us don’t know we’re addicted to everyday toxins. We simply think of them as our daily routine. Have you heard yourself say these words in the last six months? “It’s just the way I am.” “That’s just me.” “It’s fine.” “It’s not a big deal.” “I’ve been this way my whole life.” “I’m fine, don’t worry about it.”
Some habits are manageable but others seem like they have a death grip on us. They continually pull us in a direction that we can’t seem to resist. What’s at play here is the subconscious mind—which is in control of our actions, instead of the conscious mind—which is in control of decision making. The subconscious is that little voice or feeling that speaks to us when we attempt a new venture or try out a different way of thinking. Our subconscious mind has one job: to protect us from what it sees as harmful. It speaks to us constantly throughout the day; it’s like an old friend, so let’s give it a name!
We’ll call our subconscious mind Flare because it sends up red flares to our conscious mind when it perceives impending danger. Unfortunately, in most cases, the subconscious mind is operating with old data from our childhood! Experiences that frightened us or were traumatic are stored in our minds like files in a file cabinet, just waiting for Flare to pull them out as evidence that this harmful event will happen again.
Now let’s call our conscious mind Conny, for short. Here’s what the internal dialogue might sound like between Flare and Conny, after you finish watching a TV segment on how salsa dancing is proven to reduce stress and a great way to meet new people.
Conny: “Wow, I didn’t realize how beneficial salsa dancing is for stress reduction. I could get my ya-ya’s out on the dance floor and maybe meet some new people!”
Flare: “Are you nuts?”
Conny: “Well, it sounds like fun. I could do it. I could salsa dance.”
Flare: “Don’t do it. It’s not safe. What if you trip and fall? What if everyone laughs at you? What if there’s a really cute guy there and you step on his foot? You can kiss that romance goodbye before it even gets off the ground! Don’t do it.”
Conny: “What if none of those things happen? I’d really like to try.”
Flare: “Remember the time you signed up for dance classes in 3rd grade? You couldn’t get any of the steps right and felt so embarrassed because all the kids laughed at you. Even the teacher laughed!”
Conny: “Oh no, you’re right. I remember that like it was yesterday and I remember how ashamed I felt when they all laughed at me. My Mom wanted me to keep going but I was too scared, so I hid in the restroom and told her I went to class. I didn’t want to disappoint her too!”
Flare: “See? I’m just showing you the past, so you don’t make that same mistake and have to relive the painful memories. Face it. You’re just not good enough!”
Conny: “Yeah, you’re right. I better not do it.”
We all have a Flare and a Conny of our own. Flare won’t waste any time presenting Conny with file after file of past experiences to protect her from harm. After all, that’s Flare’s job! Sigh…and that’s how it goes day after day, year after year. But it doesn’t have to play out that way any longer.
Are you ready to enjoy your present life and not be sabotaged by the past? What if you could clear out those old files? What if all of the old evidence that you’re not good enough or you might fail was gone? That’s right, gone.
Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) Tapping is a tool that clears out the old contents of those files, one scenario at a time. It works by lightly tapping on your energy meridians as we say out loud what it is we’re working on. EFT Tapping is easy to learn and is a proven technique to reduce stress, eliminate fears and clear a myriad of other issues from A to Z.
EFT Tapping is a very powerful experience and the results are long-lasting. Isn’t it time you quieted your Flare in order to achieve the life you desire?
Karen St.Clair, AAMET Certified EFT Practitioner is a highly skilled professional with a true gift for facilitating her clients’ healing outcomes. She specializes in thorough energy clearing using EFT Tapping and is the founder of Reiki Tap Renewal, a modality that combines the energy psychology of EFT and the healing energy of Reiki. For more information, visit: www.karenstclaireft.com or call 207-878-8315.
ELM™ | Maine
