Did you get a chance to try out one of Martha Beck’s strategies for shifting your nervous system out of fight/flight/freeze? For a refresher on this post – click HERE. I’ve been playing with option #4: Loving Kindness. I tried it out at a variety of times including being at the vet with my dog (for a routine check-up) and having to wait 40 minutes with a slightly anxious dog. I said to my pug Snickers, “We like the vet and the vet likes us”. It gave me more space to connect to peace & relaxation amidst it all. When we met with the vet, he was very kind. Here is photo of Snickers.
This week we are going to move into a more creative & spiritual approach to connecting to our intuition inspired by the workshop Creativity & Healing with Elizabeth Gilbert & Martha Beck that I attended in mid-October.
But first – some cool synchronicities.
Liz Gilbert Synchronicities
After attending the workshop, I felt inspired to re-read some of Elizabeth Gilbert’s work. Like many of her readers, I found her through her book Eat, Pray, Love. But it’s been a minute since I read that book. I’ve also read some of her fiction and her her non-fiction book Big Magic, but I don’t own any of her books as I am good friend of my local library.
I started by going to a local thrift store and BAM – the first book to show itself was Big Magic.
Then later that week I was walking by one of those free little libraries that people kindly put in their front yards and I had the instinct that Eat, Pray, Love was going to be in there and IT WAS!
I love it when these types of things happen and have been re-enjoying both of these books.
Earth School
Liz Gilbert (I’m so close to her now, that I call her what her friend’s call her, Liz 
🙂 brought in a spiritual approach to looking at the problems in our lives.
She follows the lens of re-incarnation and imagining the time before incarnating into this world. She imagines that there is a friendly meeting that happens in which we consciously decide what we’d like to learn during our time on earth. Other people in this meeting decide to take on the roles of different people in our lives – some of who cause us a lot of strife.
One benefit of this point of view is that it pulls us out of the victim mentality of life happening to us. We shift from a narrow to a very broad perspective. Liz invites the question, “If my assignment in coming to earth is transcendence, why might I have chosen the people and situations I’ve faced/am facing? Why did I arrange it this way?”
Sometimes this perspective can shift us into Self-Blame (we really do like to make things about us, don’t we), but see if you can shift into a lens of self-curiosity. What am I here to learn or experience?
Gilbert highlights that anyone who chooses Earth School is choosing a very challenging path in life. On Earth the range of traumatic experiences is very broad, but everyone faces hardships, no matter who you are.
If this a lens that resonates with you, reflect on a current problem and ask yourself, “What am I here to learn from this experience?“
Journaling Prompts
Both Martha Beck and Elizabeth Gilbert led their own 3 hour workshop during the weekend. It’ll come to no surprise that Liz Gilbert’s approach included writing.
If you’re averse to writing, try this technique out with voice memos to yourself.
During her workshop, she gave us two writing prompts and got everyone to write for 5 minutes from each of them. Try it out!
Dear (insert your name here). This is your fear and this is what I want to share with you.
I’m afraid of….
I’m afraid of … (continue this until 5 minutes is up)
Sign the letter – Love your fear.
Dear (insert your name here). This is your enchantment and this is what I want you to know.
I love …
I love … (continue this for 5 minutes)
Sign the letter – Love your enchantment
Liz then had us read both of these out loud to a stranger. If you don’t have a stranger near you try reading it out loud, perhaps to yourself in a mirror.
After you’ve done this process, then ask for intuitive guidance about a topic. It can be as simple as:
- “Where do you want my attention today?”
- or if it’s about what to do in a situation involving others, “Is there a job for me in this story?”
- “What is one step I could take today towards <goal>
My Examples
One of Liz Gilbert’s philosophies is to do the things she asks the audience to do. So I’m going to do the same with you. The great thing about this process is that you can choose any part of yourself as the focus. Today I wrote a letter to myself from my distracted part. And I will share it with you.
Dear Juanita,
This is your distraction and this is what I want to share with you. I am afraid of missing out. I am afraid of your anxious part and keep you away from it. I am a PRO at this job. See how I do it even while you write this letter (I had multiple times of distraction while writing this letter). You want to know if I’m tired of this job. Never. Well that’s a lie, did you believe me for a minute though 🙂 ? That’s how good I am at this job. It might be safe to feel that stuff you say? Hmm, I notice your anxious part tighten your stomach at the thought of that.. I’ll go when you’re ready, but I’m here as long as you need me.
Love your distraction
Here’s another one from my enchantment:
Dear Juanita,
This is your enchantment and this is what I want to say to you. I love that you went to the gym this morning and got up so early with Josh to bring him to school. I love your tenderness & warmth with Snickers (my dog) at the vet yesterday. I love that you played your phone game instead of doing tasks and that you enjoyed it so much. I love the fall leaves and the sunshine outside. I love your dreaming side when it comes to future travel.
Love your enchantment
Nervous System
Both of Liz Gilbert’s exercises are ways to acknowledge the anxious and other parts of yourself and then shift into a state of Safety or as Martha calls it, your Green Light Zone. We connect best to our intuition when we’re in a state of relaxation. I have found the Earth School method easier when I’m not currently in a tough emotional moment – but it helps later if emotions or thoughts are still sticking around. I’ve been experimenting with the Journaling Prompts on a (mostly) daily basis, usually in the morning. I have found that it gives space for whichever emotion or part is loudest and then ALWAYS shifting to enchantment and remembering that I am loved & cherished. After, I ask 1 – 3 questions from my intuitive knowing.
I hope you have some fun with these methods and if already do some variation of either of these – let me know which is your favourite.
p.s. Bonus Liz Gilbert Resources
- Tim Ferriss interview: How to Set Strong Boundaries, Overcome Purpose Anxiety, and Find Your Deep Inner Voice (#770)
- Substack: Letters From Love with Elizabeth Gilbert
