Sunshine Hugs (2 of 2)
When life isn’t going so well, what is one of those things that a mom does to make it “all better?” Hugs. If a child falls down, a mom gives hugs and kisses alongside the band aids. She offers words of encouragement, jokes or a new perspective to help the child move through the pain. I realize not all moms do this, but mine did.
After my c-section with my second child (a million years ago), I was in the hospital and having a tough day. As it happened, nothing my mom said or did that day felt like it helped.
I remember the room, and that I was in the bed closest to the door. The shower was alllll the way across the room (probably 10 steps away) and the nurse wanted me to get up and move around. Taking a shower sounded good but wasn’t going to happen, because I hurt so much.
Where my mom had previously tried to help, she was hesitant to hug me for fear of hurting me more. The nurse, however, helped by helping me out of bed and during the process she hugged me. I literally sank into her chest and felt comforted. I remember saying to my mom, “There is something to be said for big boobs.”
While that’s true, I think it might have also had something to do with the actual hug. The nurse was able to take a bad situation, give comfort and then encouragement to create the desired result of getting me moving around.
I’m still comforted from the nurse’s hug from 32 years ago. The thought brings back the feelings of “I’ve got you. Everything will be alright.” I can literally feel my whole body relax.
You can do the same by imagining a Sunshine Hug (see last week’s blog) and letting the benefits of hugging turn around a situation for you. You can use it to change your life. Try the following:
Changing Your Life
Notice. Pay attention to what you are feeling and thinking. Very often your thoughts and feelings are ways that you are beating yourself up, such as feeling undesirable, guilty, or not good enough. And here’s the catch. This too is in your imagination. For now, just notice it.
Pause. You don’t have to keep thinking and feeling this.
Declare. Say, “This doesn’t work for me.” And say it like you mean it. After all, life either works for you or it doesn’t. It’s up to you to choose.
Imagine. Picture the Sunshine Hug. Be sure to enlarge it, give it motion, and feel the comfort. (See the blog from last week.)
Focus. Stay with the image for an extended period of time.
Notice. Now what do you feel? What change is your body experiencing? What is different than when you started?
Repeat.
As you go through this cycle and fill your inner self with hug energy, the choices (actions) you make out in the world will change. You will notice that over time you’ll beat up yourself less and less. Thus you can break the hypnotic trance and do something different to create a new way of being. From there, your new life will unfold. One filled with experiences that match your new feelings as you create a life that works for you.
It begins with a Sunshine Hug. You’ve got it.
