Catching Yourself in a Spiral

Spirals can take you to greater depths, propel you to greater understanding and can also take you to bad habits, destructive thoughts and patterns. Spirals keep you from moving forward. You may argue that you are learning and growing, so, you are moving forward. Yet, it isn’t until you apply that knowledge and take action that you move forward; otherwise, you’re in a spiral of learning. Which is good to a point.

We need spirals to grow and gain depth and knowledge, but continuing in a spiral and not getting out of it is damaging to growth. The negative, destructive spirals also hold us in a place of captivity as we repeat unwanted patterns over and over as the cycle continues. I visualize this concept as we are going along on our journey and enters a spiral. We learn a bit and get to great depths and out of the spiral we come. We continue on the journey and here’s another spiral. This one brings up fears and overwhelm and we get discouraged. After awhile we come out of the spiral and continue. Over time we may see repeats in spirals. These represent lessons we have yet to learn or embrace. We continue experiencing them until we live it.

I’ve had a spiral that would start out with a time-pressed stress regarding money. I needed a certain amount by a particular time, often self-imposed. Then, I would search for answers. I would spend the day looking for and applying to jobs, reading mind altering and law of attraction articles, etc. I would start to get so overwhelmed and frustrated as I didn’t have an immediate response and, therefore, no answer to my problem leading me to a sense of failure. Add to that my knowledge of being in this unwanted cycle and looking for a way to stop it.

I caught myself slipping into the spiral. It started with me stressing over how much money I needed in the next week or so. I felt myself wanting to get on the computer and start searching for answers. I saw teleseminars and books and blogs on how to solve the problem and have money flow freely. I was going to slip deeper and get into the overwhelm and frustration stage. But then, I shifted.

I had listened to a guided meditation that led me to connect with the part of me that was living the life I desire. The instructor directed us to ask that part to show us what needed to be released and believed in order to live that life. When I first saw that part of myself, I realized that I had all the answers and I just needed to tap into them. I had been looking to others and yet they weren’t giving me what I needed. A few minutes later, my cat was wanting to play and I felt free to play. I realized the pressure to not stop focusing on making money was no longer there. Ironically, I was feeling clear and inspired. I was able to take meaningful action without needing to push or out of desperation. The day turned out to be freeing and productive. Much time would have been wasted had I slipped into the spiral yet again.

Many of our spiral lessons involve changing our thoughts and perspectives. Throughout our lives we can develop negative and debilitating thoughts that actually prevent us from achieving what we desire. These are stored in the subconscious mind and continue to pop up in response to us trying to achieve that desire. To catch yourself in the spiral and make a change:

1. Recognize your patterns. There’s something specific that signals the start of your spiral. You’ll start becoming aware of the steps you take in this spiral. This will alert you that you are headed towards one.
2. Set your intention to change. Make a declaration to yourself that you no longer want to participate in this spiral. You are making known that this spiral does not benefit you or have a place in your life anymore.
3. Decide which step you wish to do differently this time. Knowing your patterns, you know when you’re first starting the spiral and what step typically tends to follow. For me, I woke up with the panic and knew my next step would be to seek information. This time, I decided not to seek the information. I blocked my normal pattern. Figure out what your next step is and do something different or do not take that step at all. That step feeds your spiral.
4. Acknowledge your break from the spiral. Do you notice any particular feelings, physical sensations or signs that are letting you know you broke the spiral? I felt free, release of pressure, and did not slip into my next stages of overwhelm, frustration and sense of failure. I felt empowered and excited and wanted to celebrate this achievement. Make sure you acknowledge and recognize that you successfully stopped yourself from spiraling. Positive encouragement and gratitude go a long way.
5. Embrace and remember those feelings and sensations you experienced when you broke the spiral. Be aware that the same spiral may return, especially when you are vulnerable. Believe and trust in yourself that you can continue to change what you do not wish to experience anymore. Remember that you can experience it again. You can do this and you know how to do this!

On this journey of catching yourself in a connect with a close friend if you wish to share your experience. Friends can help hold us accountable, but they also can provide support and encouragement when we doubt in our abilities and strengths. Connect with me on here. Feel free to contact me on Facebook or by email if you need encouragement to catch yourself and break the destructive spiral. I know you can do it and I want you to come to know that it is true.