I think most agree that our society is currently rooted in overly sympathetic and masculine methods; to push, perform, force and fight fear. It’s one way, but it has led us into a collective imbalance: stress, burnout, and separation.
I have certainly lived with such imbalance in myself. My personal experiences happening inside my own body has made the worldly imbalance ridiculously obvious to me. Afterall, we are all just a reflection of the whole. And, we are also the ones creating the whole – each one of us is contributing to the collective whole.
My personal journey has inspired me to take ownership of how I contribute to the whole. To help myself to be as responsible, or as response-able as I possibly can. Less sympathetic reactivity and more parasympathetic harmony. Based on finding balance within, in finding back to the softer, gentler, more nurturing and caring way of relating to myself, my output in the world is also so.
I seek to understand, rather than forcing or pushing my way through. I look for the underlying causes that hold us back and seek to understand and include those parts compassionately. Because, when we are more integrated, we also perceive the world as more coherent and safe. When we feel safe, confidence returns and obstacles seemingly dissolve. On the other hand, when we are fragmented, not feeling safe, we instinctively push away parts of ourselves, instead of including them. We take flight or fight. In this state the world also feels split and threatening. The belief of a separate self and therefore othering arise both in the individual and the collective.
We need more feminine qualities in the world today that helps us nurture and care, to include more than exclude.
This is exactly what happens when our nervous system switch from sympathetic (fight & flight) to parasympathetic (rest &digest): we can include more of ourselves, we integrate. We act from integration rather than separation. To restore balance by inviting softness, listening, and caring. This is what we all long for, isn’t it? To breathe, be and belong.