Clients ask me all the time, "How can I trust my gut?".
I get it. If you've been living in fear-based thoughts for a while, it takes practice to learn how to tune in to your intuition. If you're struggling to figure out what you REALLY want, it starts with understanding the difference in the way you experience fear and intuition (or trusting your gut).
I love the way psychiatrist and intuitive healer, Judith Orloff explains how to tell fear from intuition...
SIGNS OF A RELIABLE INTUITION:
- Conveys information neutrally, unemotionally
- Feels right in your gut
- Has a compassionate, affirming tone
- Gives crisp, clear impressions that are “seen” first, then felt
- Conveys a detached sensation, like you’re in a theater watching a movie
SIGNS OF IRRATIONAL FEAR:
- Is highly emotionally charged
- Has cruel, demeaning, or delusional content
- Conveys no gut-centered confirmation or on-target feeling
- Reflects past psychological wounds
- Diminishes centeredness and perspective
So basically - your intuition is not an emotionally charged experience and feels kind. It's neutral and "seen" and the feeling comes AFTER (for me it's typically confidence or joy).
Intuition is like a lightening bolt. You've probably heard people say they got a "hit" to do X, Y, or Z thing. It's like a sudden clear idea - you can see it or even hear it.
But fear - oh man...different story! Fear on the other hand is emotional, has a negative tone and is connected to the past. You FEEL it first and then those feelings start to consume you.
That's that the swirling sensation...the gut drop...the tightening of the chest...the "But what if..." stories. You know what I'm talking about.
So, here's my invitation to you. If you're looking to make decision and you're stuck in the swirl wondering if your thoughts and desires are intuition or fear, start with this simple step: BREATHE.
Then...BREATHE AGAIN.
If you feel a release, then you are most likely contracted and if you're contracted - you're in fear. And once you recognize you're in fear, you can ask yourself, "If I wasn't scared, what would I do?" You'll know the answer.
How about you? What are your practices for distinguishing fear from intuition? Comment below!
