Anxiety is a result of becoming aware of our deeper level of vulnerability.
Anxiety is a consequence of being aware of our deeper level of vulnerability.
As human beings, we all are going to experience pain in our lives. That is something we cannot avoid at all. At a certain point in our life our body will hurt, so too our emotions. Feelings and pain can become even worse due to the horrible things happening in the world.
Stay with your moment-to-moment experience
Unnecessary suffering arises when we decide not to have direct experience. The more we refuse to stay in moment-to-moment experience, the more suffering arises.
Carl Jung says “All neurosis is a substitute for legitimate suffering.” We tend to unconsciously dissociate ourselves from intense experiences. We work instead on the relationship we have with pain. Neurosis is the effort of not feeling pain, risk, panic or fear. We try some distractions to get out of the real experience and disturbing feelings. Watching TV, drinking or using drugs are neuroses. Neuroses can bring immediate relief by numbing the awareness of our actual experience but they work only in the short run.
The magic of staying on the sensation level
I have found it helpful to stay on the sensation level. As a matter of fact, it’s very hard to find a problem at the sensation level of one’s experience. It’s very easy instead to find a problem at the interpretive and conceptual level. If you stick to the way you feel – “I feel tired”, “I feel angry”, “I feel pain” and so on – you can easily understand how those feelings are not harming you. They are just feelings. By staying on the sensation level, you can move around the pain.
Fighting or accepting the who that you are?
Changing the way you relate to the who that you are can be a way towards a better life. Do not fight it. Instead accept it and observe it. Learn to yield and accept the sensation level of your experience. Witness the experience itself. It won’t allow you to avoid pain but it will lessen the suffering.
A few minutes of meditation on a regular basis can help you to recognize your emotions and become aware of the differences between the who you are and the sensations you feel.
Try it! You do not even tell the others what you do. They will notice the difference in the who you will become.
If you want to learn more about the benefits of Yoga, Meditation, Breathwork, Positive Affirmations have a look at our dedicated page FRY Research and Links. Those are all segments of FRY The Method for First Responders.
Sasy, FRY Director
