Featured Image: Photo by Andrew Neel from Pexels

Sometimes, especially under stay-at-home orders, it’s easy to lose track of time. Do you ever find yourself operating on an auto-pilot? One day you notice the date perhaps, and you realize another month is nearly gone. You may pause for a moment and wonder what you’ve done with the time or wonder where it goes. This may be a coping mechanism, and it may not be all bad. But sometimes, do you ever wonder if there’s something more?

Mary Hyatt is focusing on the theme of purpose on her Living Fully Alive podcast this month. In the first of four episodes, she highlighted signs that you’re living your purpose and warning signs that you are out of alignment with your purpose. I’ve listened to this episode twice now. There is a lot to absorb.

The four warning signs that you are out of alignment with your purpose:

You have low energy
You dread it
You avoid it
You are dealing with a lot of physical pain or sickness

More often than not, I feel like I have all the warning signs. Headaches. Burnout. A strong case of “I don’t wanna.” Putting things off. When I sit down and work at something I feel is my calling, I find that I am in alignment. It’s so great to have feelings of ease, flow, and meaningfulness. It makes me have so many questions. Why do I have such reluctance to do the things that are going to make me feel good? How do you tune in to the warning signs to know what the warning is about? During this changed life we have led during the pandemic, our bodies and minds have adapted. There are new stresses that illicit their own symptoms. There is talk of brain fog, coranasomnia, and increased strain as we cope with the changing landscape. How do we know if it’s the changed routines or a lack of alignment causing us to have these symptoms?

Each of us is different. As with learning styles, we all process things differently. Some prefer audible, others visual, and others tactical. Put on your healer hat. Would a healer wear a hat? I see a healer in a cloak for some reason.

Sidenote: I also see healers with a basket of natural elements that would help. This reminds me to tell you to tap into your senses when you’re doing this. Nurture yourself (this is a different hat, but closely linked to healing in my mind) by indulging your senses. Enjoy some tea. Light a candle. Nibble on some comfort food. Listen to your favorite tunes. Get cozy. Tap into as many of your senses as you can.

What can you do to tune in to the warning signs and know what’s causing these feelings?

One of these may resonate with you better than others. Perhaps you want to do all three. Definitely try them to see what feels best for you.

Talk it out

If you need to process this verbally, it may be time to sit down with your partner, sibling, or friend and have a good long chat. Talk about the warning signs you’ve seen. Speculate on what you think might be causing them. When you’re talking, pay attention to the responses in your body. Do you feel anxious or relieved? You’ll know when you’re honing in on the answer. Maybe you’ll need to talk to a few different people. Talk to yourself. However you chose, give yourself the gift of gab and let yourself have these conversations so you can work it out.

Write it out

Journaling can be a common way to work it out. But there are other tools you can use too. Writing a letter to someone can be just as effective. You can even write a letter to yourself. What would you tell yourself if you were writing to your past self? Or, what would the future tell you now? Maybe you can just write it out in your journal, and it will come out naturally. Some of you might need to prompt yourself. Go back to the warning signs, and turn those into questions or prompts to help you dig into the heart of the matter. If you’re dreading something, maybe you need to dig into that. What is it you’re dreading? Is it really that, or is this deeper than that? How is the dread manifesting itself? What’s one step you could take to decrease trepidation? Or to address some part of the reluctance? What would you like to feel instead? What does it take to start pointing yourself in that direction instead? Ask yourself questions to uncover the layers. See if you can come to terms with it. Don’t forget to check into your alignments too. Maybe you just need to stop and remind yourself what is important and feel where the misalignment is coming from.

Visualize

For the tactical approach, maybe the best thing is to enter a meditative state to visualize the answers. This may be counterintuitive. I’m not an expert, but I’ve heard that this a technique used with much success. Athletes that visualize their sport improve faster and do better than those that only train in the physical realm. Imagine that you were a cyclist. You’ve felt what it feels like to ride. Imagine your heart pumping, legs burning, lungs aching, and the heavy breathing. Visualize the sensations. Feel them. Memorize the course. See every left turn, sweeping right bend, pothole, dip, or dreaded hill. Go over the track again and again until you know every inch. You can do the same thing with your alignment, or lack thereof. Look internally and visually at the blocks between you and your higher purpose. What’s in the way? What’s causing you to avoid things? Picture the person you could be when you’re in perfect alignment and talk to them. Learn from them. What can they show you about where you are now and how to get to them?

The rock

You want to be the rock for your family and loved ones. But when you’re on autopilot and miss the warning signs that you’re out of alignment, you take a risk with that role. Stop to check-in and see how you’re really doing. Look for these warning signs, and when you see them, don’t ignore them. Do you need to do a wellness check to find where you might be out of balance? Possibly, you need to have a detox of some kind. Twenty-four hours can be enough of a reset to keep or get you back on track. Give yourself time to try one of the methods listed above, or something else you know will work for you. While we continue to adapt to life during a pandemic, I am not saying it is wrong to cope. I want you to know that it is okay to do more if you feel up to it. It may take a little tough self-love to recognize what’s going on and to snap yourself out of it. Give yourself a healthy structure to work with. You can do it.

Four Warning Signs that it might be time for a Self-Check