1 00:00:02,720 --> 00:00:05,360 Hello and welcome to the Cosmic Nomad. 2 00:00:05,640 --> 00:00:09,040 I'm your host, Bailey Rushlow, and this is a space for the 3 00:00:09,040 --> 00:00:12,920 curious and the heart LED where we explore the human experience 4 00:00:12,920 --> 00:00:16,400 through travel, nature, spirituality, and real life 5 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:18,800 transformation through beautiful conversations. 6 00:00:19,520 --> 00:00:24,320 As I discover my way of living what I call an inspired life, I 7 00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:27,040 share the practices, stories, and perspectives that have 8 00:00:27,040 --> 00:00:32,119 helped guide me back to myself. Hey guys, what's up? 9 00:00:32,560 --> 00:00:36,040 Welcome to today's episode. So glad that you're here to join 10 00:00:36,040 --> 00:00:42,600 me in this deep dive into what it means to be an empath in 11 00:00:42,600 --> 00:00:45,880 today's world. If you have ever felt 12 00:00:45,880 --> 00:00:50,920 overstimulated, overwhelmed, or like you are carrying emotions 13 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:53,800 that aren't yours, you're not alone. 14 00:00:54,840 --> 00:00:58,960 I've been walking the empath journey since beginning my time 15 00:00:58,960 --> 00:01:03,960 on this planet, and so many of us are waking up to the reality 16 00:01:03,960 --> 00:01:09,640 that we are empaths. We are deeply sensitive, 17 00:01:10,000 --> 00:01:14,880 intuitive beings who pick up on everything happening around us. 18 00:01:15,960 --> 00:01:21,480 And in this episode, I want to share why life feels this way 19 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:26,440 for highly sensitive people in the modern world, how we can 20 00:01:26,600 --> 00:01:29,920 work with our nervous systems instead of against them. 21 00:01:30,600 --> 00:01:34,520 And as always, I want to share practices that have helped me, 22 00:01:35,040 --> 00:01:39,600 from traveling the world with my backpack to navigating everyday 23 00:01:39,600 --> 00:01:44,400 life at home. And just, you know, reminder 24 00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:48,960 that this is not about fixing yourself or becoming less 25 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:55,600 sensitive, but learning how to thrive as you are in your body, 26 00:01:55,600 --> 00:01:59,160 in your mind, with your emotions, with your sensitivity, 27 00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:03,920 in a world that asks you often to numb out. 28 00:02:04,240 --> 00:02:07,920 And that sensitivity is not a weakness, but in fact a 29 00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:12,240 superpower. So hi and hello from Germany. 30 00:02:13,480 --> 00:02:18,280 I hope that today finds you smiling, and if not, I hope this 31 00:02:18,280 --> 00:02:20,720 episode brings a smile to your face. 32 00:02:21,960 --> 00:02:26,440 I'm sitting here in a beautiful room in my partner's family's 33 00:02:26,440 --> 00:02:30,600 home. I have roses next to me. 34 00:02:31,480 --> 00:02:35,440 The sun is starting to go down. I've got a hot cup of tea, an 35 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:39,920 orange, some chocolate, and my water is. 36 00:02:39,920 --> 00:02:42,760 So I'm fully set for today's episode. 37 00:02:43,240 --> 00:02:46,040 Just to give you a visual of what's happening behind the 38 00:02:46,040 --> 00:02:50,400 scenes here. I had a really wonderful day so 39 00:02:50,400 --> 00:02:55,480 far, waking up and packing a picnic breakfast with Philip. 40 00:02:55,480 --> 00:02:59,240 And we went up the hill overlooking the valley and laid 41 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:03,640 out a picnic blanket and had a really lovely breakfast and read 42 00:03:03,640 --> 00:03:06,400 aloud one of my favorite books to each other. 43 00:03:06,760 --> 00:03:10,960 And started to rain. So we came back home and started 44 00:03:10,960 --> 00:03:15,560 this TV show called Behind Her Eyes, which I've seen before and 45 00:03:15,560 --> 00:03:18,040 it blew my mind. It was such an interesting show. 46 00:03:18,040 --> 00:03:23,080 It's only like 6 episodes, but yeah, it has so many twists and 47 00:03:23,080 --> 00:03:25,160 turns. You just don't understand the 48 00:03:25,160 --> 00:03:28,440 show until like the last episode, things start to make 49 00:03:28,480 --> 00:03:32,080 sense. So it's it's a journey, but it's 50 00:03:32,080 --> 00:03:35,040 all about lucid dreaming and it's very interesting. 51 00:03:35,040 --> 00:03:37,520 So I'm very curious how Philip will like it. 52 00:03:38,440 --> 00:03:41,920 And then I recorded last week's podcast episode this morning. 53 00:03:42,760 --> 00:03:48,040 And then I went out for a nature walk and foraged for my favorite 54 00:03:48,160 --> 00:03:52,000 plants and herbs that are perfect for foraging right now. 55 00:03:52,800 --> 00:03:58,360 Yarrow, Hawthorne berries, elderberries, wild apples, 56 00:03:58,680 --> 00:04:01,400 nettle seeds, I had a great time. 57 00:04:01,400 --> 00:04:05,680 I came back with my pockets literally bursting with nature. 58 00:04:06,480 --> 00:04:11,720 Now I'm laying them all out to dry and starting in on episode 2 59 00:04:11,720 --> 00:04:14,240 of the day, which is happening right now. 60 00:04:14,240 --> 00:04:17,160 So thank you for joining me through my day. 61 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:21,079 It's a pleasure to be here. As always, an honour to share 62 00:04:21,079 --> 00:04:22,840 with you. Thank you for sharing the space 63 00:04:22,840 --> 00:04:26,760 with me and for listening. I don't have all the answers. 64 00:04:26,760 --> 00:04:30,000 I'm the first one to tell you that in life, I am. 65 00:04:30,080 --> 00:04:35,000 I am forever a student. And in that journey, there are 66 00:04:35,000 --> 00:04:39,200 also things that I'm so grateful to have learned to have figured 67 00:04:39,200 --> 00:04:43,040 out how to do differently for myself that have really changed 68 00:04:43,160 --> 00:04:47,840 how I interact with the world with my own sensitivity levels, 69 00:04:48,440 --> 00:04:51,280 which have always been pretty high, I would say. 70 00:04:52,440 --> 00:04:55,400 And then how I can, you know, share them with other people to 71 00:04:55,680 --> 00:05:00,080 potentially and hopefully affect you in a positive way. 72 00:05:00,880 --> 00:05:04,200 Even if there's one thing that you hear me say on this episode 73 00:05:04,200 --> 00:05:09,880 that you can take with you that will inspire you and alter 74 00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:14,520 something in your life, then I would consider this a successful 75 00:05:14,520 --> 00:05:19,440 episode. So that being said, let's dive 76 00:05:19,440 --> 00:05:24,640 into what impacts are, how we operate, why we feel the way we 77 00:05:24,640 --> 00:05:29,400 do, because sometimes, I mean literally growing up, I did not 78 00:05:29,520 --> 00:05:33,120 even know what an impact was. It just wasn't really common 79 00:05:33,120 --> 00:05:36,880 conversation for people. It's become more of a buzzword 80 00:05:37,200 --> 00:05:41,400 as time has gone on and research has developed and conversations 81 00:05:41,400 --> 00:05:45,560 around mental health and, you know, overwhelm and, and 82 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:49,240 emotional Wellness and well-being have come to the 83 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:51,560 surface more, which I'm so grateful for. 84 00:05:52,640 --> 00:05:57,320 But I remember thinking and feeling growing up, like I feel 85 00:05:57,320 --> 00:06:01,680 like I'm a species from another planet living on Earth. 86 00:06:03,040 --> 00:06:06,960 I feel like other people don't see the world the same way that 87 00:06:06,960 --> 00:06:12,360 I do. Like I feel like I'm just weird 88 00:06:13,960 --> 00:06:16,840 and I don't know if you've ever felt that way, but if you're 89 00:06:16,840 --> 00:06:20,640 listening right now, there is a high chance that you have also 90 00:06:20,680 --> 00:06:22,720 felt this way. Or maybe you know someone that 91 00:06:22,720 --> 00:06:24,400 does. Maybe maybe your child or your 92 00:06:24,400 --> 00:06:29,600 partner or your your friend or your parent feels this way about 93 00:06:29,600 --> 00:06:33,360 life and hopefully this will be able to give you a little bit 94 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:37,040 more insight maybe into how they experience the world. 95 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:43,240 So why does life feel so overwhelming sometimes for 96 00:06:43,240 --> 00:06:48,640 empaths? Our nervous systems are wired to 97 00:06:48,640 --> 00:06:53,120 sense things. And it's a gift, it really is. 98 00:06:53,640 --> 00:06:59,520 But in today's world, there is constant input from screens and 99 00:06:59,520 --> 00:07:03,720 notifications and traffic and crowds and lights and news and 100 00:07:03,720 --> 00:07:08,840 other people's emotions and even subtle shifts in environment and 101 00:07:08,840 --> 00:07:12,960 body language and tone. And most people are so 102 00:07:12,960 --> 00:07:15,880 disconnected from themselves that they just push through it 103 00:07:16,160 --> 00:07:20,960 on autopilot. But empaths feel it all. 104 00:07:21,360 --> 00:07:28,440 And if we don't know how to regulate or release or even be 105 00:07:28,440 --> 00:07:33,560 able to explain to ourselves what we're feeling like develop 106 00:07:33,560 --> 00:07:37,120 this sense of awareness, it really builds up. 107 00:07:37,160 --> 00:07:40,840 And it's it feels like you have too many tabs open in the 108 00:07:40,840 --> 00:07:44,480 browser of your brain until you just crash. 109 00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:50,840 So what we need isn't to shut down our sensitivity, but to 110 00:07:50,840 --> 00:07:54,840 learn practices that help us actually discharge energy and 111 00:07:54,840 --> 00:07:58,600 ground us back into ourselves to create a new pattern. 112 00:08:00,040 --> 00:08:04,120 And a few years ago, I came across this term hospital, which 113 00:08:04,120 --> 00:08:06,400 stands for highly sensitive person. 114 00:08:07,120 --> 00:08:09,920 And when I read the descriptions, Oh my God, I felt 115 00:08:09,920 --> 00:08:14,120 so seen. I was like, wait, there are 116 00:08:14,120 --> 00:08:17,200 other people who experience the world the way that I do. 117 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:22,640 I'm not the only one. This term comes from Doctor 118 00:08:22,640 --> 00:08:29,200 Elaine Aaron's research in the 90s, and it describes about 15 119 00:08:29,200 --> 00:08:33,720 to 20% of the population whose nervous systems are wired to 120 00:08:33,720 --> 00:08:39,440 pick up on subtlety. So if you are an hospital, a 121 00:08:39,720 --> 00:08:44,760 highly sensitive person, you are naturally more attuned to 122 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:53,360 details, to emotional shifts, to beauty and to nuance, and often 123 00:08:53,360 --> 00:09:00,120 over stimulated by noise and crowds and input, you know? 124 00:09:00,160 --> 00:09:03,400 And it's not a disorder, it is not something to fix. 125 00:09:03,400 --> 00:09:07,000 It is literally just a trait. It is a way of being. 126 00:09:07,400 --> 00:09:11,560 And for me, learning about this felt like someone handed me a 127 00:09:11,560 --> 00:09:15,480 map to my own nervous system. I actually felt the same way 128 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:18,560 when I started to hear conversations around 129 00:09:18,560 --> 00:09:24,560 neurodivergence. I never understood before that 130 00:09:24,800 --> 00:09:30,640 neurodivergence is a full spectrum of different colors if 131 00:09:30,640 --> 00:09:35,560 you will, and people can ebb and flow in in so many different 132 00:09:35,560 --> 00:09:39,560 ways on the spectrum. For some it looks like ADHD or 133 00:09:39,560 --> 00:09:42,440 autism or learning differences or sensitivities. 134 00:09:42,440 --> 00:09:48,240 But it's different for everyone. And, and I know that for some on 135 00:09:48,240 --> 00:09:52,320 the spectrum, it feels like life is just impossible. 136 00:09:52,360 --> 00:09:55,880 And I don't want to sugarcoat that by just being like, oh, 137 00:09:55,880 --> 00:09:59,600 it's your sensitivity. And it's great because I, I 138 00:09:59,640 --> 00:10:03,000 understand from personal experience with people that I've 139 00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:06,240 known that it is not just a walk in the park. 140 00:10:06,240 --> 00:10:11,120 It can be incredibly difficult and very, very challenging, but 141 00:10:11,120 --> 00:10:16,760 I think a huge part of why is because we don't live in a world 142 00:10:17,160 --> 00:10:22,880 that accommodates divergent. When society decided that 143 00:10:22,880 --> 00:10:27,840 efficiency and conformity mattered more than connection 144 00:10:28,000 --> 00:10:33,000 and creativity, the idea of divergent, the idea of people 145 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:37,480 who operated differently in the world became something wrong. 146 00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:41,200 And I want to talk about this for a second, actually, before 147 00:10:41,200 --> 00:10:46,360 moving on because industrialism and capitalism had a huge part 148 00:10:46,360 --> 00:10:52,040 to play in this. Once society shifted into 149 00:10:52,840 --> 00:10:59,960 factories and 9:00 to 5:00 work models and schools the goal 150 00:10:59,960 --> 00:11:03,760 became efficiency and predictability and people who 151 00:11:03,760 --> 00:11:08,640 thought differently or had unique sensitivities or moved 152 00:11:08,640 --> 00:11:14,200 more slowly did not fit the machine and they were labeled as 153 00:11:14,200 --> 00:11:20,880 defective or lazy. And then you have the whole 154 00:11:20,880 --> 00:11:24,120 other branch of the tree of colonization and cultural 155 00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:28,480 erasure where you know many indigenous and ancient cultures 156 00:11:28,480 --> 00:11:33,200 actually honored non diverse traits and saw people as 157 00:11:33,200 --> 00:11:38,360 visionaries and seers, storytellers, sensory sensitive 158 00:11:38,480 --> 00:11:42,600 healers. But colonization suppressed 159 00:11:42,600 --> 00:11:46,760 those roles which basically pushed everyone into a single 160 00:11:46,760 --> 00:11:51,720 worldview where only linear, productive quote productive ways 161 00:11:51,720 --> 00:11:58,280 of thinking were valued. And then next branch you have is 162 00:11:58,280 --> 00:12:02,960 is medicine and and psychology in the 19th and 20th century 163 00:12:02,960 --> 00:12:07,040 started naming divergent as illness literally instead of 164 00:12:07,040 --> 00:12:10,720 saying, oh, you learn differently or your nervous 165 00:12:10,720 --> 00:12:13,800 system is more sensitive, they started to say you have a 166 00:12:13,800 --> 00:12:17,240 disorder. So language shifted from 167 00:12:17,240 --> 00:12:27,000 diversity to defect, and schools and workplaces reward people who 168 00:12:27,520 --> 00:12:33,760 follow directions and sit still and produce measurable results, 169 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:39,520 and anyone who can't or doesn't fit into that mold becomes a 170 00:12:40,120 --> 00:12:44,880 problem to fix. So I don't believe that 171 00:12:44,880 --> 00:12:48,640 Divergent was ever wrong or less human. 172 00:12:48,640 --> 00:12:57,080 I think it was too human, too nuanced, too free, too quote 173 00:12:57,120 --> 00:13:02,480 unreliable for systems that rely on uniformity. 174 00:13:03,080 --> 00:13:08,360 So reclaiming neurodivergence is almost like this radical act of 175 00:13:08,360 --> 00:13:11,320 remembering that humans were meant to be different. 176 00:13:11,800 --> 00:13:16,480 We were meant to see the world in different ways through 177 00:13:16,680 --> 00:13:22,560 sensing and creating and and processing in our original ways 178 00:13:22,560 --> 00:13:28,360 of living in in our ancestral and indigenous traditions. 179 00:13:29,200 --> 00:13:34,400 Our differences were celebrated as medicine for the community 180 00:13:35,240 --> 00:13:41,880 and it makes me so sad that this we've come so far as to label 181 00:13:41,880 --> 00:13:48,320 everything and everyone defective when really we have 182 00:13:48,640 --> 00:13:53,280 the most powerful sensitivities on the planet. 183 00:13:53,760 --> 00:14:01,280 And I think by understanding our sensitivity and how to hold it 184 00:14:01,280 --> 00:14:08,720 with respect and honor and love and not judgement and not 185 00:14:08,720 --> 00:14:15,160 disdain, we literally are in the process of reclamation and in 186 00:14:15,160 --> 00:14:23,640 the process of the ultimate self love and self healing. 187 00:14:24,440 --> 00:14:29,160 So I share these words because this understanding has made a 188 00:14:29,160 --> 00:14:32,800 world of difference to me. And I hope that by listening to 189 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:36,600 the next, you know, half hour, something in in here will change 190 00:14:36,600 --> 00:14:39,200 your perspective, maybe about yourself or about someone that, 191 00:14:39,200 --> 00:14:43,240 you know, like I said, because I, I'm sure we all have someone 192 00:14:43,240 --> 00:14:47,720 in our lives, if not ourselves, that feel are way through the 193 00:14:47,720 --> 00:14:52,240 world in different ways. And there are some incredible 194 00:14:52,240 --> 00:14:58,560 tools and practices that we can implement that will truly make a 195 00:14:58,560 --> 00:15:01,800 difference in the way we interact with our lives. 196 00:15:02,760 --> 00:15:07,720 We might not be able to change the intensity of the world and 197 00:15:07,720 --> 00:15:11,520 of the things that we will experience, but we can change 198 00:15:11,800 --> 00:15:15,240 and direct how we interact with the world. 199 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:19,000 And that's some of what I want to go into with some practices 200 00:15:19,320 --> 00:15:23,520 to share. So these have served me so well 201 00:15:24,240 --> 00:15:30,760 from traveling the world to moving to new countries to even 202 00:15:30,760 --> 00:15:35,480 just leaving the house sometimes and you know, going about my day 203 00:15:36,120 --> 00:15:40,440 and they, they all apply. So no matter what you're doing 204 00:15:40,440 --> 00:15:43,680 or where you're going in life, I hope that all of these will 205 00:15:43,680 --> 00:15:46,040 apply to you in some form or fashion. 206 00:15:46,040 --> 00:15:50,680 So the first practice is trusting your instincts, which I 207 00:15:50,680 --> 00:15:54,640 know is easier said than done. Trust me, especially if you've 208 00:15:54,640 --> 00:15:59,280 been told that you are too sensitive or if you grew up in 209 00:15:59,280 --> 00:16:03,360 systems like high demand religion that taught you to 210 00:16:03,360 --> 00:16:07,320 override your body. So how do you know if it's your 211 00:16:07,320 --> 00:16:10,840 intuition or if it's fear? You know, that little voice in 212 00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:13,680 your head, like, what is it? Is it my OCD? 213 00:16:13,680 --> 00:16:17,560 Is it my intuition? Is it religious programming? 214 00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:19,960 Is it God? What are we doing? 215 00:16:20,400 --> 00:16:23,240 But the simplest way that I've learned to identify intuition is 216 00:16:23,240 --> 00:16:27,360 that it's calm, it's steady. It's like a quiet whisper in 217 00:16:27,360 --> 00:16:33,360 your gut that says this way. And fear is like loud and 218 00:16:33,360 --> 00:16:36,480 anxious and urgent and wants you to decide right now. 219 00:16:37,280 --> 00:16:40,920 Intuition also feels expansive, even if it's scary. 220 00:16:40,920 --> 00:16:44,240 Like it might stretch you a little bit, but it's it's 221 00:16:44,320 --> 00:16:47,400 opening something inside your soul. 222 00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:54,760 Fear feels very constrictive, like it shrinks you down and 223 00:16:54,760 --> 00:17:00,200 like closes you off a bit. So if you're not sure in the 224 00:17:00,200 --> 00:17:05,040 moment, just ause and check in with your body and you can ask. 225 00:17:05,680 --> 00:17:12,440 Do I feel a little more open or more like constricted when I 226 00:17:12,440 --> 00:17:16,200 imagine this choice? And the body always knows, even 227 00:17:16,200 --> 00:17:18,280 before the mind catches up to it. 228 00:17:18,680 --> 00:17:22,720 So there's been times when I've been sitting with, you know, a 229 00:17:22,720 --> 00:17:26,000 decision like, should I book this flight or should I go to 230 00:17:26,000 --> 00:17:28,720 this event? Or should I say yes to this 231 00:17:28,720 --> 00:17:31,560 thing or should I say no? And it always makes a huge 232 00:17:31,560 --> 00:17:35,640 difference to pause, don't rush, check in with my body. 233 00:17:35,680 --> 00:17:40,720 Like, literally, I was sitting with my friend in New York, and 234 00:17:40,800 --> 00:17:43,000 we only had a few more hours to spend together. 235 00:17:43,000 --> 00:17:45,560 And I remember her asking me. She was like, oh, I know what we 236 00:17:45,560 --> 00:17:46,800 could do with the next few hours. 237 00:17:46,800 --> 00:17:48,640 We could go here, here, here and here. 238 00:17:48,800 --> 00:17:50,800 We could do all these things, and it would be great. 239 00:17:50,800 --> 00:17:52,440 And then you'll still make your train on time. 240 00:17:52,760 --> 00:17:56,200 And I was like, yeah, yeah, we should do that thinking. 241 00:17:56,200 --> 00:17:58,080 Like, sure. Because I, I really did want to 242 00:17:58,080 --> 00:17:59,680 spend this time with her and make this memory. 243 00:18:00,280 --> 00:18:03,920 And she looked at me because she's neurodivergent and she's a 244 00:18:03,920 --> 00:18:06,880 highly sensitive person too. And she goes, Bailey, before you 245 00:18:06,920 --> 00:18:09,720 answer, just take a second and think about it. 246 00:18:10,600 --> 00:18:13,000 And I was like, no, no, no, I, I really, I want to go. 247 00:18:13,000 --> 00:18:14,240 I want to go, let's, let's do it. 248 00:18:14,240 --> 00:18:16,280 And she was no, no, take a second. 249 00:18:16,800 --> 00:18:20,000 I was like, OK. And I sat there on the bench 250 00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:24,040 with her and closed my eyes. Took a second and my I thought, 251 00:18:24,040 --> 00:18:25,840 do I want to go do this right now? 252 00:18:26,160 --> 00:18:28,840 Do I have the energy to go and do all of this? 253 00:18:28,840 --> 00:18:31,800 Because I still had a whole lot more to do in my day and I knew 254 00:18:31,800 --> 00:18:34,400 it was going to take a lot of energy in me to do all this 255 00:18:34,400 --> 00:18:37,800 stuff with her. And I felt into it and I felt 256 00:18:37,800 --> 00:18:41,400 like my body said no. And I verbalized that. 257 00:18:41,400 --> 00:18:46,240 I said, actually, I think we should make a different plan. 258 00:18:46,240 --> 00:18:49,480 Maybe just hang around here and do something a little more chill 259 00:18:50,000 --> 00:18:52,480 and she goes perfect, no worries at all. 260 00:18:52,480 --> 00:18:54,560 That was why I wanted you to check in with yourself. 261 00:18:55,240 --> 00:19:00,240 And I was like, wow, OK. My gut response was I need to 262 00:19:00,240 --> 00:19:02,520 keep my friend happy. I need to go do this thing. 263 00:19:02,520 --> 00:19:05,080 And also I want to make this memory with her. 264 00:19:05,520 --> 00:19:11,000 But my intuition, when I gave it a second to listen, I felt like, 265 00:19:11,360 --> 00:19:15,320 no, actually, I don't need to go running around town doing all 266 00:19:15,320 --> 00:19:19,040 this stuff right now. And I'm so grateful to have a 267 00:19:19,040 --> 00:19:23,200 considerate and kind and empathetic friend that could 268 00:19:23,200 --> 00:19:28,360 reflect that question back to me and ask me to check in and was 269 00:19:28,360 --> 00:19:32,200 not going to gaslight me or or have an issue with whatever my 270 00:19:32,200 --> 00:19:35,040 response would be because I was a little bit worried. 271 00:19:35,040 --> 00:19:37,760 If I say, oh, no, I don't want to do that. 272 00:19:37,760 --> 00:19:40,160 Is she going to be mad? Is she going to be upset? 273 00:19:40,360 --> 00:19:42,520 Because that's what our our programming does. 274 00:19:42,520 --> 00:19:45,320 Because so often in life, we've been proven right on that, 275 00:19:45,320 --> 00:19:46,960 right? How many times have you stood up 276 00:19:46,960 --> 00:19:50,360 for yourself or your intuition and it's someone else's response 277 00:19:50,520 --> 00:19:53,040 has made you feel guilty for that, right? 278 00:19:53,680 --> 00:19:58,120 But then we remember that we are only responsible for our own 279 00:19:58,240 --> 00:20:01,480 choices, not for other people's reactions. 280 00:20:03,240 --> 00:20:04,800 I'm just going to say that one more time. 281 00:20:06,480 --> 00:20:10,200 What did I say? OK, we are not responsible for 282 00:20:10,200 --> 00:20:14,760 other people's reactions, only for our own choices. 283 00:20:15,000 --> 00:20:20,160 And that is really, really hard as an empath, but very 284 00:20:20,160 --> 00:20:23,520 important. And the the pinnacle of you 285 00:20:23,520 --> 00:20:27,080 building these practices and these foundations in yourself to 286 00:20:27,080 --> 00:20:32,040 support your sensitivity is to remember to follow your 287 00:20:32,040 --> 00:20:35,000 instinct. I remember the first time that I 288 00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:38,200 was on the beach with my current partner, Philip. 289 00:20:38,200 --> 00:20:41,640 We were sitting together talking, and he said something 290 00:20:41,640 --> 00:20:43,720 kind of like, we should go back to your place, you know? 291 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:46,760 And I was like, do I want him to come back to my place? 292 00:20:46,760 --> 00:20:49,200 He had never been back to my place before. 293 00:20:49,200 --> 00:20:50,520 And I kind of knew what that meant. 294 00:20:50,520 --> 00:20:53,280 You know, I was like, OK, if he comes back to my place, we're 295 00:20:53,280 --> 00:20:55,000 probably going to lead somewhere. 296 00:20:55,360 --> 00:21:00,600 Do I want that? And I paused and I looked out 297 00:21:00,600 --> 00:21:03,880 over the ocean. I just had a whole last minute 298 00:21:03,880 --> 00:21:05,640 to myself. And he looked at me and was 299 00:21:05,640 --> 00:21:09,040 like, are you OK? I was like, yeah, he's like, 300 00:21:09,480 --> 00:21:13,640 you're looking at at the sky. Like, does does the sky have the 301 00:21:13,640 --> 00:21:16,640 answer? And I was like, yes, it does. 302 00:21:17,640 --> 00:21:23,840 And I thought to myself and felt in to what I felt, do I actually 303 00:21:23,840 --> 00:21:25,640 want to bring this person back with me? 304 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:28,040 Do I not? Because either way, he's 305 00:21:28,040 --> 00:21:33,800 completely fine. And I felt that I wanted to have 306 00:21:33,800 --> 00:21:36,760 him actually back to my house. And so I said, yeah, actually, 307 00:21:37,080 --> 00:21:39,280 let's let's do that. I I would like that. 308 00:21:39,640 --> 00:21:43,080 I loved that because my choice was my own. 309 00:21:43,560 --> 00:21:46,520 And it felt right in the moment to me. 310 00:21:46,520 --> 00:21:49,040 And looking back, I'm so glad that I listened to myself 311 00:21:49,040 --> 00:21:54,120 because it laid the foundation for my intuition to be something 312 00:21:54,120 --> 00:21:57,720 that I follow no matter what in the course of our relationship. 313 00:21:58,440 --> 00:22:02,720 And there was a moment of about a month ago where Phillip and I 314 00:22:02,720 --> 00:22:07,520 were together and wild camping up in the Highlands of Scotland. 315 00:22:07,520 --> 00:22:09,240 And we were looking for a place to park. 316 00:22:09,480 --> 00:22:13,840 And we found a place that was like 80% OK. 317 00:22:13,920 --> 00:22:16,200 Like when you're wild camping, you've, you've got to find 318 00:22:16,200 --> 00:22:19,680 places to park that are legal, not just on the side of 319 00:22:19,680 --> 00:22:21,320 someone's land. You know, you've got to find 320 00:22:21,320 --> 00:22:25,600 like open land, open space, That's, that's common ground, 321 00:22:25,600 --> 00:22:27,640 whatever. And I remember we found this 322 00:22:27,640 --> 00:22:30,920 place, it was a little bit marshy, like it was open. 323 00:22:30,920 --> 00:22:33,800 We could have parked there, but it felt like if it rained, we 324 00:22:33,800 --> 00:22:36,600 could be submerged. And I remember my intuition 325 00:22:36,600 --> 00:22:39,080 said, no, I don't like this. We don't need to be here. 326 00:22:39,400 --> 00:22:42,760 But we had been looking for a spot already for like an hour. 327 00:22:42,760 --> 00:22:45,560 We were tired, we were hungry. We just needed to find somewhere 328 00:22:45,560 --> 00:22:48,560 to sleep. And I, I thought that I thought, 329 00:22:48,560 --> 00:22:51,600 I don't want to say anything. And we're going to have to pack 330 00:22:51,600 --> 00:22:52,600 up. We're going to have to find 331 00:22:52,600 --> 00:22:55,240 somewhere else. But at my intuition knew. 332 00:22:55,400 --> 00:22:57,880 And I said, I don't think this is a good space. 333 00:22:58,520 --> 00:22:59,600 And Philip was like, Are you sure? 334 00:22:59,600 --> 00:23:01,200 And I said, Yep, My intuition says no. 335 00:23:01,280 --> 00:23:03,440 And he goes, OK, I trust you. And we packed up. 336 00:23:03,840 --> 00:23:06,800 And I said, for real, like, you just trusted me like that right 337 00:23:06,800 --> 00:23:08,560 off the bat. And he said, Bailey, your 338 00:23:08,560 --> 00:23:13,760 intuition has never been wrong. And I literally teared up. 339 00:23:14,360 --> 00:23:17,760 It makes me want to cry even thinking about it because I felt 340 00:23:17,760 --> 00:23:23,760 so trusted by him, like he trusted my intuition and that 341 00:23:23,760 --> 00:23:28,920 made me trust it even more. Surrounding yourself with people 342 00:23:29,080 --> 00:23:33,360 that are connected to their intuition and also trust yours 343 00:23:33,880 --> 00:23:38,160 is a game changer and feels so good. 344 00:23:39,040 --> 00:23:44,600 So please seek that out in friends and build it in yourself 345 00:23:44,600 --> 00:23:50,520 1st and you will also magnetize it to you in other relationships 346 00:23:50,640 --> 00:23:55,080 because that is just everything. All right, let's move on to the 347 00:23:55,080 --> 00:23:59,560 next one. As impacts, we cannot always 348 00:23:59,560 --> 00:24:03,040 control the environments that we're in, whether that is a busy 349 00:24:03,040 --> 00:24:09,120 city, a loud house, workplace, Co working coffee shop, airport. 350 00:24:09,440 --> 00:24:15,280 It is just a lot, right? And and what we can do is create 351 00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:19,840 little pockets of safety that help our nervous system exhale. 352 00:24:20,600 --> 00:24:25,000 So when I'm travelling for example, or literally not even 353 00:24:25,000 --> 00:24:28,320 when I'm travelling, when I leave the house I always have a 354 00:24:28,320 --> 00:24:31,520 little tote bag with me. I always have a full water 355 00:24:31,520 --> 00:24:35,560 bottle headphones, sometimes even 2 sets of headphones 'cause 356 00:24:35,600 --> 00:24:38,400 I like the wired headphones when I'm talking on the phone to 357 00:24:38,400 --> 00:24:41,240 people. I like the over ear big 358 00:24:41,280 --> 00:24:45,080 headphones that have noise cancelling when I am in public 359 00:24:45,080 --> 00:24:50,120 transportation or grocery stores because they help my hearing 360 00:24:50,120 --> 00:24:52,360 sensitivity 'cause I I literally hear everything. 361 00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:57,440 I have very highly developed senses as most impacts 362 00:24:57,640 --> 00:25:01,800 neurodivergence and HS PS do and so. 363 00:25:01,800 --> 00:25:05,160 I really really like to have big headphones on and sometimes I'm 364 00:25:05,160 --> 00:25:09,200 not even listening to anything, I just have my ears protected. 365 00:25:09,800 --> 00:25:13,920 These are tools. They are not just items for 366 00:25:13,920 --> 00:25:17,440 convenience or for style or fashion. 367 00:25:19,280 --> 00:25:23,360 In my bag I always have snacks. I always have something fresh, 368 00:25:23,360 --> 00:25:28,640 maybe a few oranges and apple, a little bit of chocolate, a 369 00:25:28,920 --> 00:25:32,440 healthy kind of granola bar, something that's gonna feel 370 00:25:32,440 --> 00:25:38,760 grounding but also nourishing. I also love to have maybe a, a 371 00:25:38,760 --> 00:25:41,880 journal or a little book. I also love to crochet. 372 00:25:41,880 --> 00:25:45,200 So very often, most of the time actually, you will find a 373 00:25:45,200 --> 00:25:51,040 crochet hook and a ball of yarn in my bag because I hate being 374 00:25:51,040 --> 00:25:56,400 places like, you know, being on a on a bus or a train or sitting 375 00:25:56,480 --> 00:25:59,000 somewhere, not being able to do something with my hands. 376 00:25:59,360 --> 00:26:01,440 It's just something that's always been important to me. 377 00:26:01,440 --> 00:26:05,080 Even when I was a kid, I would have markers and and a 378 00:26:05,120 --> 00:26:08,960 sketchbook or something with me. And it's not about just having 379 00:26:08,960 --> 00:26:13,400 the quote right tools, but it's about having your tools. 380 00:26:13,400 --> 00:26:16,520 So what are the things that make you feel at home inside 381 00:26:16,520 --> 00:26:20,160 yourself? And then you go create a mini 382 00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:21,960 sanctuary. And this could be as simple as 383 00:26:21,960 --> 00:26:25,040 sitting in the park, put your back against the tree, putting 384 00:26:25,040 --> 00:26:28,720 on your noise cancelling headphones, listening to a song 385 00:26:28,720 --> 00:26:32,160 that reminds you who you are. I have a playlist actually on 386 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:35,440 Spotify that I will link down below that I built just for this 387 00:26:35,440 --> 00:26:39,080 where I just turn on that playlist and I feel so connected 388 00:26:39,640 --> 00:26:42,560 and and grounded. And it's low simulation. 389 00:26:42,760 --> 00:26:46,560 It's quiet when you're at home. A mini sanctuary might look like 390 00:26:48,040 --> 00:26:50,680 the the corner of your room that feels sacred. 391 00:26:51,480 --> 00:26:54,720 Or lighting a candle on your desk, or taking a hot shower in 392 00:26:54,720 --> 00:26:59,440 the dark, cooking a warm meal that feels grounding to your 393 00:26:59,440 --> 00:27:02,880 nervous system. These are just little anchors 394 00:27:03,160 --> 00:27:07,920 that remind your body I'm safe. I don't have to take in 395 00:27:07,920 --> 00:27:14,960 everything around me. I have a center, you know, and 396 00:27:15,400 --> 00:27:19,880 cannabis has actually been a huge grounding tool for me in my 397 00:27:19,880 --> 00:27:21,440 life. And it's not for everyone. 398 00:27:21,440 --> 00:27:25,320 I'm not recommending it to everyone, but for me and for 399 00:27:25,320 --> 00:27:29,400 some people, the with the right strain, the right intention, the 400 00:27:29,400 --> 00:27:33,960 right set and setting, cannabis can be incredibly helpful for 401 00:27:34,080 --> 00:27:39,880 calming the sensory overwhelm and overload that we get from 402 00:27:39,880 --> 00:27:42,880 our environment. By calming the areas of the 403 00:27:42,880 --> 00:27:47,840 brain that are typically overthinking and allows me to 404 00:27:47,840 --> 00:27:51,800 focus on the tasks at hand, whether that is creating music 405 00:27:51,800 --> 00:27:56,120 or creating art or going grocery shopping or sitting in the park. 406 00:27:56,400 --> 00:28:00,960 That brings me grounded back down into my body and I'm really 407 00:28:00,960 --> 00:28:04,160 grateful for that tool. I realize it's not accessible to 408 00:28:04,160 --> 00:28:07,360 everyone and it's it's not something, again, that I would 409 00:28:07,360 --> 00:28:10,080 recommend to all, all people because everyone responds 410 00:28:10,080 --> 00:28:12,720 differently. But if you have a relationship 411 00:28:12,720 --> 00:28:16,880 with cannabis in the same way that I do, you know what I mean? 412 00:28:16,880 --> 00:28:19,000 And I don't even have to explain it to you, 'cause you just get 413 00:28:19,000 --> 00:28:22,040 it, you know? But yeah, that's, that's been a 414 00:28:22,320 --> 00:28:26,800 really powerful tool where when people say, oh, getting high, 415 00:28:27,160 --> 00:28:32,240 literally getting high feels like you are elevated just 416 00:28:32,240 --> 00:28:37,360 enough above the sensory overwhelm to where you can go 417 00:28:37,360 --> 00:28:40,640 about your tasks, go about whatever you need to do. 418 00:28:40,640 --> 00:28:44,440 Or maybe that even means dropping into deep rest in your 419 00:28:44,440 --> 00:28:49,080 body, dropping into deep thoughtfulness, or tapping into 420 00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:52,000 a place in your heart that needs to be excavated a little bit. 421 00:28:52,000 --> 00:28:55,880 Maybe with a journaling practice or dance or movement in your 422 00:28:55,880 --> 00:28:59,280 kitchen, or cooking yourself a really great meal. 423 00:28:59,280 --> 00:29:02,200 Sometimes I've been so overwhelmed I literally don't 424 00:29:02,200 --> 00:29:05,720 even know how to support myself. I'm like, I know I need to eat 425 00:29:05,720 --> 00:29:08,600 but I don't know what to eat. I know I need to shower. 426 00:29:08,600 --> 00:29:12,360 I'm but I'm, I'm doom scrolling in my on my couch. 427 00:29:12,760 --> 00:29:15,800 I know I need to to, you know, take care of things and create 428 00:29:15,800 --> 00:29:18,040 stuff and I've got deadlines and shit to do and I'm like 429 00:29:18,040 --> 00:29:22,400 literally I can't, I feel like I can't even function and I will 430 00:29:22,400 --> 00:29:25,000 just have one little hit of weed. 431 00:29:25,960 --> 00:29:30,800 And I just take some deep breaths and I feel like myself. 432 00:29:31,320 --> 00:29:33,800 I feel like, oh, I know exactly what to do. 433 00:29:33,800 --> 00:29:36,760 I open the fridge. I'm making a whole nourishing 434 00:29:36,760 --> 00:29:40,320 meal for myself. I'm taking a shower while my 435 00:29:40,320 --> 00:29:44,720 food is cooking, I'm feeding my cat, I'm working on my emails 436 00:29:44,720 --> 00:29:48,840 after dinner. Everything feels relaxed and 437 00:29:48,840 --> 00:29:51,440 regulated. And of course, this really 438 00:29:51,440 --> 00:29:54,920 depends on the strain. I prefer a little bit of a 439 00:29:54,920 --> 00:29:59,720 sativa hybrid. So indica is really balancing to 440 00:29:59,720 --> 00:30:04,800 the lower chakras of the body and sativa is for the higher 441 00:30:04,800 --> 00:30:08,360 chakras and the the mind and the thoughts and the brain and the 442 00:30:08,360 --> 00:30:12,840 heart and the voice. So having a balance of both in 443 00:30:12,840 --> 00:30:15,600 your strain is really important to me personally. 444 00:30:16,200 --> 00:30:19,200 If it's in night time and and I'm trying to rest and wind 445 00:30:19,200 --> 00:30:23,880 down, definitely indica Sativa will activate my mind too much. 446 00:30:23,880 --> 00:30:28,360 But learning those little ways in which we can interact with 447 00:30:28,360 --> 00:30:32,160 plants, not only cannabis, there are so many plants that are 448 00:30:32,160 --> 00:30:37,360 incredible for supporting nervous system regulation and 449 00:30:37,480 --> 00:30:40,720 working with an herbalist that can support you and that is 450 00:30:41,240 --> 00:30:44,680 highly recommended. I have several if you are 451 00:30:44,680 --> 00:30:47,800 interested, please reach out to me and I will recommend them to 452 00:30:47,800 --> 00:30:50,080 you. They are close, trusted and 453 00:30:50,080 --> 00:30:53,080 incredible friends that are very well versed in also 454 00:30:53,080 --> 00:30:56,640 neurodivergence and working with empaths and highly sensitive 455 00:30:56,640 --> 00:30:59,080 people. So please do not hesitate to 456 00:30:59,080 --> 00:31:02,600 reach out to me. Send me an e-mail that's that's 457 00:31:02,600 --> 00:31:06,840 linked down below. Speaking of medicine, there is 458 00:31:06,840 --> 00:31:11,200 no medicine like earth medicine. When everything feels too loud, 459 00:31:11,680 --> 00:31:15,680 too overwhelming, too busy, literally the fastest way back 460 00:31:15,680 --> 00:31:19,800 into balance is to step outside and touch the ground. 461 00:31:19,800 --> 00:31:23,960 Take off your shoes, feel your bare feet in the grass, the 462 00:31:23,960 --> 00:31:27,280 soil, the sand. Lean your back against a tree, 463 00:31:27,280 --> 00:31:31,840 let it hold you. Breathe in the the rhythm of a 464 00:31:31,840 --> 00:31:36,720 stream and just listen. And, and these moments sound 465 00:31:36,720 --> 00:31:38,920 poetic, but they're also psychological. 466 00:31:38,920 --> 00:31:42,880 Like science literally shows us the grounding actually restores 467 00:31:42,880 --> 00:31:47,120 your body's electrical charge, which reduces inflammation, 468 00:31:47,120 --> 00:31:50,800 which is the root of all disease, which also calms the 469 00:31:50,800 --> 00:31:53,880 nervous system. Like the earth is literally 470 00:31:53,880 --> 00:31:58,360 built to reset us, which is why we call her mother, our mother 471 00:31:58,360 --> 00:32:01,800 planet, our mother earth, right? She is our original home. 472 00:32:02,160 --> 00:32:05,040 We come from her. When we die, we go back to her. 473 00:32:05,400 --> 00:32:12,360 So when we are grounding and and being a part of her, it is like 474 00:32:13,080 --> 00:32:16,880 coming home. And when I travel, I make it a 475 00:32:16,880 --> 00:32:21,360 ritual to find pockets of green space, whether that is pine 476 00:32:21,360 --> 00:32:24,960 forests or lakes or waterfalls or even just a patch of grass in 477 00:32:24,960 --> 00:32:29,080 a City Park. When I'm home and in my house, I 478 00:32:29,080 --> 00:32:33,440 have a lot of plants that are part of my grounding practice, 479 00:32:33,440 --> 00:32:37,000 like tending to them, watering them, even brushing my hands 480 00:32:37,000 --> 00:32:40,840 through their leaves connects you back to that same frequency. 481 00:32:40,920 --> 00:32:43,760 That's why before recording this episode, I literally went 482 00:32:43,760 --> 00:32:46,640 outside for a foraging break because I knew just being 483 00:32:46,640 --> 00:32:49,120 outside, breathing the fresh air, connecting to plants, 484 00:32:49,440 --> 00:32:53,720 foraging for their medicine, thanking them with by talking to 485 00:32:53,720 --> 00:32:58,320 them or singing to them, It's really, it's really poetic, but 486 00:32:58,320 --> 00:33:02,640 it's also really powerful because nature doesn't ask us to 487 00:33:02,640 --> 00:33:04,960 be anything other than what we are. 488 00:33:06,000 --> 00:33:11,280 It doesn't overwhelm it. It like harmonizes us, you know, 489 00:33:11,280 --> 00:33:18,280 And when we return to her, our internal systems remember their 490 00:33:18,280 --> 00:33:21,320 original rhythm and state of being. 491 00:33:22,880 --> 00:33:27,080 There are so many earth stories that I could tell, but I'm going 492 00:33:27,080 --> 00:33:32,560 to move on to the next one, which is boundaries. 493 00:33:33,800 --> 00:33:37,240 I know that for in paths this word can feel really heavy 494 00:33:38,280 --> 00:33:42,400 because we sometimes believe that if we set a boundary, it is 495 00:33:42,400 --> 00:33:45,520 to push people away or to build a wall. 496 00:33:46,520 --> 00:33:52,240 But boundaries are not walls, they are filters, and when we 497 00:33:52,240 --> 00:33:57,320 reframe them in this way, we remember that they let love and 498 00:33:57,320 --> 00:34:02,400 nourishment in, and they keep out what drains us. 499 00:34:03,320 --> 00:34:06,720 So on an energetic level, this can be done as simply as 500 00:34:06,720 --> 00:34:13,320 visualizing yourself surrounded in a bubble of light, or like a 501 00:34:13,320 --> 00:34:16,320 cloak of protection, like an invisible Harry Potter cloak, 502 00:34:16,400 --> 00:34:19,600 right? Setting the intention before you 503 00:34:19,600 --> 00:34:23,360 leave the house. I only absorb what is for my 504 00:34:23,360 --> 00:34:26,440 highest good or in my highest timeline. 505 00:34:26,440 --> 00:34:30,840 I only absorbed light that is here to benefit me. 506 00:34:31,320 --> 00:34:33,199 Most days before I leave the house. 507 00:34:33,639 --> 00:34:38,320 I actually visualize like this kind of bubble around me, like a 508 00:34:38,320 --> 00:34:41,440 golden bubble. Maybe it has like mirror glass 509 00:34:41,440 --> 00:34:43,520 on it. Like anything coming at me is 510 00:34:43,520 --> 00:34:47,840 just reflected back out boundaries. 511 00:34:47,840 --> 00:34:50,280 Also they don't have to be harsh. 512 00:34:50,400 --> 00:34:53,760 You know they can be kind and also clear. 513 00:34:53,960 --> 00:34:59,160 And it's about honesty, not rejection. 514 00:34:59,400 --> 00:35:03,080 When you practice phrases like the ones I'm about to tell you, 515 00:35:03,840 --> 00:35:05,880 you realize that most people will respect them. 516 00:35:06,200 --> 00:35:11,840 And the ones who don't make you realize that your compass, your 517 00:35:11,840 --> 00:35:14,760 internal intuition was telling you that this boundary was 518 00:35:14,760 --> 00:35:20,320 needed even more. So here are some soft and 519 00:35:20,520 --> 00:35:26,760 loving, but don't burn the bridge boundaries that preserve 520 00:35:26,760 --> 00:35:31,360 your energy. It might look like I really 521 00:35:31,360 --> 00:35:34,800 appreciate the invite, but I actually need some rest tonight. 522 00:35:35,480 --> 00:35:38,320 That is a complete sentence. You do not have to explain 523 00:35:38,320 --> 00:35:40,080 further. That is your boundary. 524 00:35:42,240 --> 00:35:46,080 Another one might be I want to give you my full attention, but 525 00:35:46,080 --> 00:35:48,560 I don't have the energy right now. 526 00:35:48,880 --> 00:35:53,920 Can we talk about this later? Completely fine if the other 527 00:35:53,920 --> 00:35:57,080 person comes back with you know, well, I thought that you wanted 528 00:35:57,080 --> 00:35:58,480 to. No, no, no. 529 00:35:59,200 --> 00:36:02,200 I want to give you my full attention, but I don't have the 530 00:36:02,200 --> 00:36:05,000 energy right now. You can just literally reiterate 531 00:36:05,000 --> 00:36:09,560 it and walk away or send it again through a text. 532 00:36:11,520 --> 00:36:14,040 You could say something like, I'm going to step outside for a 533 00:36:14,040 --> 00:36:18,800 few minutes and recharge. You could say something like, 534 00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:23,680 man, that you know, that doesn't feel very aligned for me right 535 00:36:23,680 --> 00:36:26,240 now, actually. So I think I'm going to say no, 536 00:36:26,520 --> 00:36:30,040 but I appreciate the invitation. Simple. 537 00:36:31,320 --> 00:36:36,640 I would love to join you in that, but only for a couple of 538 00:36:36,640 --> 00:36:38,280 hours. I think that's my limit. 539 00:36:38,880 --> 00:36:42,920 I have said that one so many times because sometimes I do 540 00:36:42,920 --> 00:36:45,840 want to say yes to things, but I worry that if I say yes to one 541 00:36:45,840 --> 00:36:48,560 thing, it's going to lead to a whole day of things. 542 00:36:48,800 --> 00:36:51,240 And I I know that I don't have the energy for that. 543 00:36:51,480 --> 00:36:56,680 I know that I don't have the capacity and I think it's really 544 00:36:56,680 --> 00:37:00,240 important that we're we feel safe to voice these things. 545 00:37:00,840 --> 00:37:03,960 Another favorite of mine is, you know, thank you for 546 00:37:03,960 --> 00:37:06,800 understanding that I needed some alone time. 547 00:37:07,120 --> 00:37:11,600 It helps me come back and be more present and more aware and 548 00:37:11,600 --> 00:37:15,600 a better friend. And someone who is really on 549 00:37:15,600 --> 00:37:19,080 your on your team and on your side and understands you is 550 00:37:19,080 --> 00:37:21,800 going to totally be OK with that. 551 00:37:22,240 --> 00:37:26,280 They're not going to have an issue with the fact that you 552 00:37:26,280 --> 00:37:29,760 need some time or that you are voicing A boundary. 553 00:37:29,960 --> 00:37:33,960 And sometimes it's easy for us to feel like, but if I do that, 554 00:37:33,960 --> 00:37:42,040 I'm letting them down. No, no, there are times of 555 00:37:42,040 --> 00:37:44,320 course, where this is disappointing, especially if it 556 00:37:44,320 --> 00:37:47,600 is at the last minute and you were really let down by someone 557 00:37:47,600 --> 00:37:50,280 and there's a time and a place for voicing that. 558 00:37:50,280 --> 00:37:55,280 This has let me down, but more times than not, it's actually, 559 00:37:56,240 --> 00:38:00,480 it's actually for our good, it's actually for our benefit that 560 00:38:00,680 --> 00:38:03,680 things don't work out because how, how often has that happened 561 00:38:03,680 --> 00:38:05,200 to you? Come on, be be for real. 562 00:38:05,440 --> 00:38:09,280 Where someone has cancelled a plan or something and you've 563 00:38:09,280 --> 00:38:15,000 gone okay, actually, this gives me the chance to just be home 564 00:38:15,000 --> 00:38:17,520 and do my thing. Or a whole new timeline opened 565 00:38:17,520 --> 00:38:19,880 up and I actually invited a different friend to do this 566 00:38:19,880 --> 00:38:21,840 thing with me and it turned out amazing, right? 567 00:38:21,840 --> 00:38:24,880 It's like that has happened me to me more times than not. 568 00:38:25,080 --> 00:38:28,000 So leave room for the universe to surprise you. 569 00:38:28,000 --> 00:38:30,720 All right? We are getting close to the end 570 00:38:30,720 --> 00:38:33,120 here. I hope that you are taking 571 00:38:33,120 --> 00:38:37,640 mental notes because we're really not gatekeeping anything 572 00:38:37,640 --> 00:38:43,120 here. So as impacts, you know, we pick 573 00:38:43,120 --> 00:38:46,920 up so much throughout the day energetically, other people's 574 00:38:46,920 --> 00:38:51,360 moods, subtle shifts in the environment, astrological 575 00:38:51,360 --> 00:38:54,920 energy, even our collective energy of what the world is 576 00:38:54,920 --> 00:38:58,360 going through. And if we do not give ourselves 577 00:38:58,360 --> 00:39:04,400 space to let it move through, it piles up and it starts to feel 578 00:39:04,400 --> 00:39:09,520 like our own thing. And this is where solitude comes 579 00:39:09,520 --> 00:39:14,360 in. Not isolation necessarily, not 580 00:39:14,360 --> 00:39:19,000 disappearing forever, but intentional moments to be with 581 00:39:19,000 --> 00:39:23,240 yourself. For me it looks like stretching 582 00:39:23,440 --> 00:39:29,920 on the floor or making tea, slowly, mindfully foraging for 583 00:39:29,920 --> 00:39:33,320 herbs, journaling in the morning. 584 00:39:33,320 --> 00:39:38,280 My thoughts, my feelings. Sometimes it it's like playing, 585 00:39:38,280 --> 00:39:42,120 you know, music in my living room and moving my body slowly 586 00:39:42,120 --> 00:39:44,920 until something feels like releases. 587 00:39:46,080 --> 00:39:48,920 And the key to this is expression. 588 00:39:49,440 --> 00:39:55,120 Energy wants to move. Energy in motion is emotion, 589 00:39:55,120 --> 00:39:57,280 right? Equals MC squared was that was 590 00:39:57,400 --> 00:40:01,040 what this whole was about. Energy wants to move. 591 00:40:01,280 --> 00:40:04,280 So how do we let our emotions flow? 592 00:40:05,480 --> 00:40:08,920 They they maybe needs to come out on a page of paper or 593 00:40:08,920 --> 00:40:12,400 through tears, through dance, through breath, through swimming 594 00:40:12,400 --> 00:40:15,160 in the ocean, through screaming into a pillow. 595 00:40:15,200 --> 00:40:19,440 It doesn't matter how, but it needs to leave the body because 596 00:40:19,440 --> 00:40:24,320 when it stays inside, it literally becomes inflammation 597 00:40:24,520 --> 00:40:26,400 within us. It becomes heavy. 598 00:40:26,600 --> 00:40:31,600 It becomes matter that is physically damaging to our 599 00:40:31,600 --> 00:40:35,600 bodies. When we hold on to things, it 600 00:40:35,600 --> 00:40:39,320 creates A stagnant environment for our nervous system. 601 00:40:40,880 --> 00:40:47,160 Have you ever seen like a pond that just doesn't have any flow 602 00:40:47,200 --> 00:40:53,400 and it becomes like mucky and gross and thick and stagnant and 603 00:40:53,400 --> 00:40:56,600 muddy? There's the same feeling in our 604 00:40:56,600 --> 00:40:59,720 body with our nervous system, with our lymphatic system. 605 00:41:00,280 --> 00:41:04,880 Our literal physical body suffers when things don't get to 606 00:41:04,880 --> 00:41:10,080 move or flow. And not only movement but also 607 00:41:10,520 --> 00:41:13,360 solitude, being in our own energy. 608 00:41:13,480 --> 00:41:15,680 I spend like the majority of my time alone. 609 00:41:15,680 --> 00:41:18,360 I love being with people, I love being with my partner, but also 610 00:41:19,080 --> 00:41:21,840 I love being in my own energy. I love being in my own space 611 00:41:21,840 --> 00:41:24,680 because it's my nervous systems way of saying thank you. 612 00:41:24,840 --> 00:41:28,360 I can breathe again. I have reset myself. 613 00:41:28,360 --> 00:41:32,840 You feel so good after having some time alone, taking a hot 614 00:41:32,840 --> 00:41:37,680 shower, making a nourishing meal, coming out of the forest 615 00:41:37,680 --> 00:41:41,760 or the wherever it is that makes you feel reset, going on a long 616 00:41:41,760 --> 00:41:43,200 drive, I don't know, whatever it is. 617 00:41:44,040 --> 00:41:46,480 And then you enter some, you know, other people's energy 618 00:41:46,480 --> 00:41:48,960 again and you feel like, OK, I'm all right. 619 00:41:49,120 --> 00:41:54,760 Because it is so easy to slip into loops of overstimulation, 620 00:41:54,760 --> 00:41:56,720 over thinking, absorbing too much. 621 00:41:56,720 --> 00:41:59,960 And then we spiral in it. And the nervous system loves 622 00:42:00,080 --> 00:42:02,680 patterns, even when they're bad for us. 623 00:42:02,680 --> 00:42:06,840 But the good thing is you can always break them. 624 00:42:07,040 --> 00:42:13,400 I have a whole episode about interrupting the pattern and you 625 00:42:13,400 --> 00:42:17,440 can listen to that. After this pattern interrupt is 626 00:42:17,560 --> 00:42:21,760 anything that jolts you out of autopilot and reminds your body 627 00:42:22,040 --> 00:42:25,600 we are not stuck, we are free to choose. 628 00:42:26,120 --> 00:42:30,360 Sometimes it is a small thing, like taking a different route 629 00:42:30,360 --> 00:42:36,120 home, moving to a different spot in the room or in your house. 630 00:42:36,120 --> 00:42:40,240 Like changing the music instantly switches the vibe. 631 00:42:41,040 --> 00:42:43,720 Going outside, getting fresh air, putting cold water on your 632 00:42:43,720 --> 00:42:45,440 face. Those are small things right? 633 00:42:45,440 --> 00:42:50,040 Maybe something more playful or fun could be saying yes to 634 00:42:50,040 --> 00:42:54,000 something you don't normally say yes to, or no to something you'd 635 00:42:54,000 --> 00:42:56,920 usually say yes to. Or changing up your morning 636 00:42:56,920 --> 00:43:00,880 routine completely one day. Or going to a place, a city, a 637 00:43:00,880 --> 00:43:04,120 coffee shop, somewhere you don't normally find yourself in. 638 00:43:04,520 --> 00:43:08,400 It's these little shifts that tell your nervous system we 639 00:43:08,400 --> 00:43:10,880 don't have to stay in the same groove. 640 00:43:11,560 --> 00:43:16,200 It is outside the sandbox. It is like breaking the code of 641 00:43:16,200 --> 00:43:19,400 the matrix. It is making one small pattern 642 00:43:19,400 --> 00:43:22,280 shift that drops you into a new timeline. 643 00:43:22,880 --> 00:43:27,440 Often times the fastest interrupt is the simplest one, 644 00:43:27,480 --> 00:43:34,640 like stand up, stretch, laugh, sing something, do something 645 00:43:34,640 --> 00:43:38,840 that breaks the spell. This is really important to 646 00:43:38,840 --> 00:43:41,760 remember when we get stuck doom scrolling on our phone. 647 00:43:41,760 --> 00:43:46,080 You do not have to be stuck. You do not have to continue 648 00:43:46,080 --> 00:43:49,440 scrolling and spiraling and feeling shit about yourself and 649 00:43:49,440 --> 00:43:53,080 your life because every time we do this, we are just following 650 00:43:53,080 --> 00:43:57,680 the same neural pathway that we have been creating time and time 651 00:43:57,680 --> 00:44:00,200 again. Hour and hour again, reel after 652 00:44:00,200 --> 00:44:02,520 reel, training your nervous system. 653 00:44:02,520 --> 00:44:04,960 That this is what we do when we're overwhelmed. 654 00:44:05,080 --> 00:44:08,800 Stop. You are not trapped, you are 655 00:44:08,800 --> 00:44:11,120 alive. You have choices. 656 00:44:11,880 --> 00:44:16,040 Maybe there's something, some action or something that you can 657 00:44:16,040 --> 00:44:22,400 do that won't jolt you out of the scrolling, that will jolt 658 00:44:22,400 --> 00:44:25,120 you out of the the doom thinking. 659 00:44:26,880 --> 00:44:29,760 Maybe it's thinking of something that you love, like your cat. 660 00:44:30,760 --> 00:44:35,720 And please do not shower yourself with guilt and shame 661 00:44:36,040 --> 00:44:39,960 for doing that either. It's OK that you did. 662 00:44:40,120 --> 00:44:43,040 It's OK that you do. It's OK that it's a pattern. 663 00:44:43,040 --> 00:44:47,680 It's OK that it's a habit. But it can be changed, and 664 00:44:47,680 --> 00:44:49,560 that's the exciting part. There's literally, you don't 665 00:44:49,560 --> 00:44:51,600 have to shame yourself for it. It's completely fine. 666 00:44:51,960 --> 00:44:54,760 You're human, you're allowed to do what you want and you're 667 00:44:54,760 --> 00:44:55,960 allowed to make different choices. 668 00:44:56,360 --> 00:45:02,920 So why not? The last thing, Final thing, and 669 00:45:02,920 --> 00:45:07,960 I know that these words sound cliche, like little slogans that 670 00:45:07,960 --> 00:45:12,400 make you feel good, but I said this in the last one. 671 00:45:12,880 --> 00:45:14,520 I said this in the last episode too. 672 00:45:14,520 --> 00:45:19,800 Gratitude is a wormhole. When you pause and you feel 673 00:45:20,600 --> 00:45:25,880 grateful, like truly grateful for your breath, for the light 674 00:45:25,880 --> 00:45:30,960 coming through the window, for the roses on the table, for the 675 00:45:30,960 --> 00:45:36,920 steam rising out of your tea, for the clothes on your body, 676 00:45:37,960 --> 00:45:42,880 your body shifts. Your chemistry actually changes, 677 00:45:43,240 --> 00:45:50,120 your nervous system flips from survival into safety, and joy is 678 00:45:50,120 --> 00:45:54,160 literally how we recharge. It doesn't have to be some big 679 00:45:54,160 --> 00:45:56,960 flashy thing like it could literally just be laughing with 680 00:45:57,360 --> 00:46:00,040 a friend or sitting in the sun for a few minutes. 681 00:46:01,480 --> 00:46:07,400 Ingratitude and joy do not erase the heaviness of the world, but 682 00:46:07,400 --> 00:46:11,760 they give you a break from carrying all of it. 683 00:46:12,680 --> 00:46:18,240 And they remind you that beauty exists, that you are alive, but 684 00:46:18,240 --> 00:46:21,520 your sensitivity is a gift because it lets you feel that 685 00:46:21,520 --> 00:46:25,080 beauty more deeply than most people. 686 00:46:25,960 --> 00:46:30,560 You might feel sadness deeper than most, but you can also feel 687 00:46:30,560 --> 00:46:35,480 joy deeper. And when we let that gratitude 688 00:46:35,480 --> 00:46:43,360 and joy fuel us, our empathy stops being draining and it 689 00:46:43,360 --> 00:46:48,120 starts feeling expansive and it becomes the superpower that it 690 00:46:48,120 --> 00:46:53,520 was always meant to be. So let's just take a deep breath 691 00:46:53,520 --> 00:46:56,240 here because I realized we just covered a lot of things. 692 00:46:56,240 --> 00:46:59,560 So deep breath with me in and out slowly. 693 00:46:59,640 --> 00:47:19,760 OK, here we go. You're not broken for being 694 00:47:19,760 --> 00:47:22,880 sensitive. You're not broken for being 695 00:47:22,880 --> 00:47:26,000 neurodivergent. You're not broken for being an 696 00:47:26,000 --> 00:47:31,000 empath. The world needs your kindness 697 00:47:31,000 --> 00:47:35,360 more than ever. It needs your sensitivity and 698 00:47:35,360 --> 00:47:39,600 your ability to feel and process emotions and alchemize the pain 699 00:47:39,600 --> 00:47:44,400 in this world too. It's very important and we're 700 00:47:44,400 --> 00:47:49,360 very grateful for you. And don't forget to take care of 701 00:47:49,360 --> 00:47:53,080 yourself. You are your longest 702 00:47:53,080 --> 00:47:57,720 relationship. These tools that I've mentioned 703 00:47:57,720 --> 00:48:03,720 here I hope will help you carry that awareness into the future 704 00:48:03,720 --> 00:48:08,200 of you, into the future of understanding your sensitivity 705 00:48:08,200 --> 00:48:13,600 deeper in the future of understanding empathy as the 706 00:48:13,600 --> 00:48:18,320 superpower. Because the world is lacking in 707 00:48:18,320 --> 00:48:21,640 it. And when more people realize it, 708 00:48:22,600 --> 00:48:29,560 realize their empathetic traits and qualities and the beauty of 709 00:48:29,560 --> 00:48:35,200 the kaleidoscope of the neurodivergent ways, we will 710 00:48:35,200 --> 00:48:40,760 stop being so harmful to each other. 711 00:48:41,520 --> 00:48:46,600 We will start creating new neural pathways in our 712 00:48:46,600 --> 00:48:50,080 collective way of being, in our collective consciousness, in our 713 00:48:50,080 --> 00:48:54,840 collective thought process, and start making different choices. 714 00:48:54,840 --> 00:48:59,320 Because every time you do, there is like a ripple effect out from 715 00:48:59,320 --> 00:49:04,520 you that impacts whoever is in your field, family, pets, 716 00:49:04,600 --> 00:49:12,000 friends, strangers. Every time you are just being 717 00:49:12,000 --> 00:49:16,440 yourself fully and taking care of your sensitivity and of your 718 00:49:16,440 --> 00:49:19,120 needs. It's noticed. 719 00:49:19,880 --> 00:49:23,040 People notice. You know when you you're at a 720 00:49:23,040 --> 00:49:25,920 park and you see that that person sitting with their back 721 00:49:25,920 --> 00:49:30,080 to a tree and they're drawing or journaling, or you see someone 722 00:49:30,080 --> 00:49:35,520 just enjoying the stillness of the quiet of the beach or the 723 00:49:35,520 --> 00:49:39,920 park, it impacts you. You notice them. 724 00:49:40,000 --> 00:49:43,920 You notice someone off their phone, you notice someone just 725 00:49:43,920 --> 00:49:47,080 reading a book. You notice someone just laughing 726 00:49:47,080 --> 00:49:50,160 and smiling with their friends. The joy makes you smile. 727 00:49:50,160 --> 00:49:55,720 Their joy impacts you. Your joy impacts others in the 728 00:49:55,720 --> 00:50:01,080 same capacity. Don't underestimate your joy, 729 00:50:01,480 --> 00:50:06,640 your gratitude, your sensitivity, the ability to 730 00:50:06,640 --> 00:50:10,200 change the world in this powerful way. 731 00:50:12,480 --> 00:50:15,360 So thank you for listening, Thank you for joining me. 732 00:50:16,400 --> 00:50:19,880 If you're interested in learning more about my life behind the 733 00:50:19,880 --> 00:50:24,200 scenes stuff, I'm actually releasing monthly guided 734 00:50:24,200 --> 00:50:28,320 meditations for the price of a cup of coffee 'cause I wanted to 735 00:50:28,320 --> 00:50:32,920 be accessible and affordable to everyone on my Patreon. 736 00:50:32,920 --> 00:50:36,440 You can find the link down below in the show notes. 737 00:50:37,640 --> 00:50:42,000 There are monthly gratitude lists, audio notes and messages. 738 00:50:42,000 --> 00:50:45,800 There are voice notes from me. There's a whole world there that 739 00:50:45,800 --> 00:50:49,120 I would love for you to come and explore and experience. 740 00:50:49,480 --> 00:50:52,440 And if you've been learning anything from this podcast, you 741 00:50:52,440 --> 00:50:55,240 know, this is all free. This is just my way of getting 742 00:50:55,240 --> 00:50:59,760 back to the world from all the people and and places that I've 743 00:50:59,760 --> 00:51:02,520 learned from. But yeah, if you want to be a 744 00:51:02,520 --> 00:51:07,320 part of it in in supporting my art and my work, I would really 745 00:51:07,320 --> 00:51:09,480 appreciate it. And I would welcome you with 746 00:51:09,600 --> 00:51:11,960 open arms and to the Patreon family. 747 00:51:12,120 --> 00:51:15,040 So thank you for listening. Thank you for being here. 748 00:51:15,480 --> 00:51:18,880 Please take care of your sensitive soul today and thank 749 00:51:18,880 --> 00:51:23,320 you for listening. And as always, open hearts, open 750 00:51:23,320 --> 00:51:25,320 mind. Stay curious.