Thanks to social media memes, I've got a hot topic to share this week: Personal Power. And thanks to Astrology, it dawned on me WHY this has been such an issue among friends and clients lately: Thursday is the 8/8 Lionsgate Portal. The pinnacle of Sol and Sirius energies reaching out to us. Ooof!
I see many individuals struggle with owning their power, claiming the vibrancy of who they are. Especially empaths. While we all have our different ideas of how to go about radiating from our Solar Plexus chakra, we often lose sight of self-control when dealing with a volatile person or situation. Self-control fluxuates both ways - too much and too little.
Here are a few things to keep in mind the next time you feel yourself shrinking...or over-reacting.
1. Have you practiced The Pause?
Stop! Stop talking. Take a deep breath. Phew! Now...slow down and reconsider your words, your response to the situation. If you're already aware of your relationship with your Third Chakra and ego, simply injecting The Pause into any situation usually improves things. If you're just stepping into your journey of self-discovery, congratulations! Sitting and working on your Personal Power is a fabulous way to establish energetic self-care.
Regardless of where you are in your personal energy awareness, The Pause gives your logical mind and emotional center time to re-sync with each other. Slowing down your words, your thoughts, your reactions gives you the time and space necessary to re-assess what is energetically happening in the current situation.
Do you need to respond differently?
...in a different tone of voice?
...with different word choices?
...or at all?
2. Are you projecting?
If you're worrying about what others are saying about you, is that really your problem? They're not the authority on you, and you're not the authority on them.
Are you projecting your fears and insecurities onto the other person, resulting in overreacting on your part? You just gave away your power, my friend. Now you look like the hyper one, not the calm person confident in their power.
Over-reacting to a situation gives away your power by investing your energy into an exchange where you end up depleted. This can set you up for a nasty cycle of handing away your power, being reactionary instead of deliberate in the choices you make.
3. Is the emotion you feeling your own?
Inversely, are you suddenly plagued by insecurities when you interact with a certain person? Insecurities that never happen anywhere else with anyone else? Perhaps your empath spidey-senses have gotten the best of you. Skittishness picked up from someone else's energy strips away your personal authority over your personal power.
Under-reacting to a situation - often by internally second guessing yourself - is just as much of a power zap as over-reacting. Now your expending energy in a hurtful fashion against yourself. You're trying to process emotions and energy that is not your own. Stop! Take a breath. Tune in to whose energy you're emotionally experiencing. Is it yours? Is it the other person's? It's not yours...why are you letting it invade your personal space? Reclaim your personal power by disconnecting from the outside energy through words, thoughts, or physically leaving.
4. Have you read The Four Agreements lately?
Seriously, y'all...it's a life-changing book, and one that offers deeper insights the further along your path you've travelled. Particularly when things start to go astray in personal interactions. Especially when we forget to let our Third Chakra shine in a healthy way. Profoundly when we've started doubting our self-worth.
This beautiful short book is a deceptively easy read. I assure you, it will be one of the most insightful books you'll ever pick up. Addressing the wholeness of who you are, it offers a way of speaking your truth while being gentle with yourself and the world around you.
If you don't have one or a friend that won't loan you theirs, you can grab a copy off my reading list. It's a must-have.
Practice Standing In Your Power
Ugh...sounds like homework, right? Well, it is! This homework, though, is totally worth the effort invested. After running through the 4 tips above, here are a few more ways to reconnect with your Panipura chakra, harnessing your inner lioness. The point of this homework is for you to BECOME AWARE of your personal energy. Try everything in this post, paying attention to your power.
Chakra work: give that third chakra some TLC! You can do a regular chakra meditation with a focus on your Solar Plexus. Want a professional to help? Reach out to someone who specializes in Chakra Healings or Chakra Reiki for a tune-up. Many energy healers and witches offer this service; I can help at the Miracles of Joy Psychic Fair this Sunday. Ask around, or feel free to reach out to me for an appointment or referral.
Work with power totems, animals, or deities: Metaphysical friends, check in with your spirit team! Call on Seknmet, Kali, Father Wolf, or whomever you turn to when self-doubt rears its ugly head. Watch and listen for messages from your guides. Again, journal about your struggle with owning all that you are - your personal power. Embrace it. Nurture it. Claim it.
Find a yoga class: Yoga teachers integrate chakra work through the asanas - poses - they sequence in their classes. Ask your teacher if they're planning a core or solar plexus class (heads up Soul Feet Studios yogis for tomorrow's classes!) or if they could give you a few poses to try at home. I'm happy to share a few asanas that help you level-up your power center. Reach out to me here, or join me in a class.
Practice mindfulness - Pay attention to how your personal power feels to you. See what enhances it, see what diminishes it. Journal about your experiences. Adjust accordingly.
Check on your ego: have you spoken with her lately? Sit your ego down and have a chat...ask her to step back or step up depending on the power issue you're having. Remember, you're a team. Sometimes you can be at odds with your ego; sometimes both your ego and power center can be under-active; sometimes they both can be over-active.
Energetic self-care: going beyond the mani/pedi routine, what have you done lately to bolster your energy or soothe your soul? I'm talking epsom salt baths, a grounding meal, sitting in nature, creating art...something that helps you reconnect to your energy field so you can do a literal gut-check to see what's going on with your personal power center. This is vital for all humans, not just empaths or those with metaphysical gifts. A personal power imbalance, however, can be more pronounced with empaths, intuitives, and energy healers.
Power Surges or Blackouts
Even those with a solid mindfulness practice revolving around staying in their personal power have good days and bad ones. That's okay! But on those not-so-great days where you're handing away your power - forgetting your lioness energy...stop. Take a breath. Be mindful. Run through these things listed above. Breathe some more. You will find your strength again to stand in your power.
Going the opposite direction - are you roaring around squashing everything and everyone in your path? Slow down! Take a breath. Are you standing in your power...or are you being abusive? Be mindful. Be kind. Be gentle...especially with yourself.
See a pattern emerging? Everything can be a mindfulness meditation if you so choose. So, start one if you haven't already established a mindfulness practice. Journal! Get to know your Solar Plexus and your ego. Find that blissful dance between the two.
Looking Further Inwards
This post is just a starting point for you to explore your Personal Power. It is not a definitive guide to the subject...which is YOU, after all! Try these tips here. Read, read, read. Learn more about the Lionsgate and feline energy. Journal. Connect with your guides. Connect with your friends. Find a healer if you need one.
But most importantly: remember who you are.
There's a whole layer of the interplay between your Solar Plexus and Throat Chakra which directly impacts standing in your power: speaking your truth. We'll dive into that more next week.
In the meantime, do you have a go-to strategy for when you catch yourself handing over your power to someone else? Share in the comments!