A guided meditation that teaches you to sit with difficult feelings and ask what you most need to heal. The practice has you identify a disturbing feeling, hold it with awareness, and repeatedly ask what you need: communication, kindness, respect, independence. If your need goes unmet, you practice acceptance.
Moving from Feelings to Needs I strongly encourage you to to gather the introspective guides as you listen to this meditation entitled From Challenging Feelings to Essential Qualities Needs, which is available on awarenessthatheals.org the guides and practice will support you in this journey to heal. Ask yourself what feeling is disturbing you the most these days? Take the time to find it and let yourself feel it. And as you do this, and as you reach this, congratulate yourself for staying inside yourself with awareness, honesty, courage and humility to admit your challenges and let it stoke your curiosity. This is not an easy thing to do, which is why the guide will be so helpful to use. As you let yourself feel your challenges, do your best to access your intention to heal, to move in a direction that is beneficial. Ask the question again and again, what is it that I most need to heal? Gonna repeat that? What is it that I most need to heal? And especially apply it to the circumstance you're in. If you are sad, what is it you need to make you happy? If you're frightened, what is it that you need to help you move toward courage or safety? If you're hurt, how can you best be soothed when you can't find a healing direction? Look at the guide for help. These could be needs like communication, kindness, mutual consideration, respect, softness, receptivity, or maybe something like independence. Identify what it is that would most alleviate your suffering. Expect this to be difficult, especially at the beginning, which again is why it's helpful to look at these guides. Don't be surprised if you don't know clearly as this set of specific connections is rarely asked long enough to bring clarity and a true benefit when it does happen. It is a mind blowing realization to see that all of our specific feelings that we suffer from have a healing link with our needs. It seems like an act of magic, but if we get the knack of paying close attention, we will see that no matter what we're feeling, there are corresponding needs that link to create healing. For example, what is your greatest need in your love relationship or any relationship that is lacking? Keep looking and if you discover it, recognize that you're only halfway there along with your awareness of your suffering. And you still need to develop your intention to heal. To have access to this healing link is a master key to fostering intimacy. Let yourself visualize asking for what you need with a warm heart or at least with neutrality and recognize that this isn't an easy thing to do. Do because most of us are upset when we don't receive what we need the most. Let yourself try at least three times to ask for what you need with your heart being as open as possible. Can you visualize yourself doing this or does it sound crazy? Again, don't be surprised if this is very hard for you. It takes a good deal of practice to be able to stand behind yourself even when you understand. Appreciate that you now have access to see that there is a link and that you have a chance to seek this whenever you remember to be aware of what challenges you and that you need to find your intention to heal, to want to make it better. Ask for what you need and express it with caring. Recognize that sometimes, even when you express yourself perfectly, it still may not work out. You then will need to learn how to practice acceptance and maturity of finding peace inside yourself or perhaps changing elements of your relationship. The key realization that will bring you great peace is that no matter what you feel, there is a path to put yourself on to discover and go for what you need. Once you really get the link, your life will never be the same. This connection will take time and perseverance. There will be many times when the link can't be found or is fleeting. This absolutely should be expected and seen as part of the process and not a failure in any way. The guides and practice will support you in this journey to heal. Sa.
