My Lizard Brain Knows What's Up

Have you ever noticed a surge of blissful energy flowing through your body so prominent that you just can’t ignore it?

I’m talking about the kind of energy that makes you feel ALIVE. It makes you feel stoked on life and gives you feelings of gratitude for just living and breathing. For me that means my extremities feel tingly, I feel grounded to the earth, and present in my mind.

I’ve been contemplating when I feel this sense of alive-ness versus when I feel low and foggy. What I’ve noticed is astounding…

When I’m doing things that are aligned with my purpose, I feel this rush of energy that feels like all the Gods and Goddesses are speaking and working through me. I feel happy, hopeful, and grateful for every experience. I notice the flow of energy and allow myself to be guided by this flow that seems to come from outside of myself. But, it isn’t really coming from outside of myself, rather it is my higher self, essential self, in Martha Beck’s book, Diana, Herself, it’s the Meta-Self. When I allow myself to be guided by the flow of universal energy, it is my Meta-Self. In this state, I am guided by inspiration, I am aware that that the flow of energy is pulling me toward my intended path. This is the path that feels so good to me. This is the path that is natural and flowing freely. In fact, this is the path that feels like freedom. It feels like peace. When I allow myself to be still, quiet my mind, and practice loving kindness toward myself, this flow becomes stronger. I think of this as feeding my essential self with a healthy diet of magic and joy. It’s akin to feeding my body nourishing foods. It’s an exercise for my spirit. When I feed my soul the nourishment of love, gratitude, kindness, and joyful experience, the flow becomes like a rushing river of pure joy. This river of flowing energy is there for me in any moment.

When I’m not doing things aligned with my purpose, I feel drained, foggy, and slow. It’s as if this energetic flow is cut off and I don’t have access to it. It’s like a big tree has fallen in my river of joy and has blocked the water. It is stagnant and backed up with debris. Since participating in the Martha Beck Life Coaching Institute, I have been noticing when I am in this foggy state. I notice that my “lizard brain” (as Martha calls it), has taken over. My lizard brain has all sorts of negative things to say about my path. My lizard brain is mean and jabs at me with negative comments. For any of you who grew up in the 1970s, perhaps you

remember the character Nellie Olson from the popular TV show, Little House on the Prairie. Nellie was the mean girl in town, was spoiled rotten by her mom, and tormented Laura Ingalls (the main character in the show). I’ve come to refer to my lizard brain as “Negative Nellie”. When I notice that I start to feel low or frustrated, I know that Negative Nellie is on the loose. In fact, most often, I notice this first in my body. I often have tightness in my jaw, neck, shoulders, and upper back. Usually Negative Nellie is saying all sorts of mean things to me like, “You’re not good enough.”, “You won’t be successful”, or, “How can you make money at this?”. Negative Nellie seems to have the sole purpose of tearing me down with fear and criticism.

This is when I explore Negative Nellie’s messages and coach myself with all the tools I’ve learned. What I’ve found is that Negative Nellie’s demeaning comments and bantering hold no power over me. The messages are there to serve as an “alert system” for me to work harder at dissolving the negative thoughts and dive deeper into the opposing messages that are true, or even truer than the original jab. It’s like she’s there tormenting me and challenging me to be my best. So, in this way, I’ve come to embrace Negative Nellie for her enduring ability to motivate me to dissolve these negative thoughts and get back on my intended path toward bliss.

It’s easy to fall into the trap of false beliefs that your lizard brain tells you.

But, it’s also a choice to believe these messages. Once we think of our constant negative thoughts in a way that can serve us, things really start to transform. We can ask ourselves if the messages are true and founded. We can sit in compassion with our self and our loved ones. We can explore the deeper message behind the thought and begin to taste freedom.

I believe we are meant to live the most joyful and blissful lives possible – no matter what our reality.

I have evidence on my own journey that when I allow my essential self to guide me toward my joy, this is when my life starts to transform and manifest into a wonderful new reality. Every moment offers me this wisdom and opportunity to live in bliss.

So, today, I ask you to do one thing. Start to pay attention and notice how you feel in any given moment. When you feel yourself flowing with blissful joy, take note of what you’re doing, what physical sensations are happening within your body, and what thoughts are forming. These things are likely the path of your journey toward freedom and bliss. When you feel low, foggy, or discouraged, take note of what’s happening in your body. Take note of what’s happening with your thought pattern. Perhaps your own lizard brain is trying to get your attention. Maybe you can befriend your lizard brain. It might just be the most important action you ever take.