The “Anxiety” Emotion- How to Navigate Into the Unknown

Today I want to talk about anxiety. Having recently seen the new Disney movie- Inside Out II, I feel I got a re-education myself around some of what is happening when anxiety rears its head in my own life, but also a reminder about the fact that there are subtle benefits to a little bit of anxiety- which helps us to get things done!

But to be honest, “anxiety” has been in my periphery a lot lately. Guiding over 25 individuals in Breathwork Sessions each month plus leading over 30 people monthly in Group Breathwork offerings, I have the benefit of interacting with and supporting a lot of people who come to Breathwork to find some peace within themselves and this includes those who feel that “anxiety” is getting in their way to experiencing freedom.

Thankfully, many people who come to the path of Breathwork begin to find much more ease and spaciousness in their lives from their BREATH (of which I am so grateful!). But- the reason is not always how/why most people would think!

The world, as we know, is in a major shift right now which (as you can imagine) can only heighten more anxious/worrisome states- especially for those people particularly sensitive to the world in a “deep feeling” way.

Some of the common techniques to create a greater sense of calm and ease in our nervous system when we’re being overrun by anxious thoughts includes using skill sets like- creating task lists, prioritization, talking through scenarios/having a brainstorm session, getting support. These methods can give our more “worrisome thoughts” a place to get organized and help us to weigh our pros and cons.

There are also a multitude of other ways to take back our “calm” in our life- including, yes, simplified somatic (body-based) conscious breathing practices, essential oils, getting outside in nature, contributing in some way to the benefit of another, gratitude practices, meditation, journaling, etc..

But today I want to talk about the surprising results of actually learning to be WITH the unknown- ie. exploring the discomfort of the limitless reality in a controlled way.

This exploratory work of intentionally expanding into the “limitlessness” of life includes our being able to access altered states of consciousness- which includes through psychedelic work and our Breathwork Session journeys!

In our deep breathing sessions, we can begin to move are awareness away from the more “linear-minded” pre-fontal cortex area of the brain (responsible for our planning/control) and begin to enter into the more receptive “felt-sense” of our mammalian brain which gives us access to a wider reality of our “life experience”.

This process has a way of helping us learn to navigate these uncharted areas of ourselves in a healthy way- and can greatly improve our ability to “let go”.

Leonard Orr, founder of Rebirthing Breathwork, and the original pioneer of Breathwork in the U.S., (along with Stanislov Groff’s Holotropic Breathwork), and by which most Breathwork Schools today originate from (including Spiraldance Breathwork)- offered an example of this when once asked why Breathwork is so effective- “it takes us to a place where we get confused enough that we have no choice but to let go into the unknown forces- and then real healing can begin” (I see this as we finally allow ourselves to “get out of our own way”) 😊.

Now I recognize this potential “scarey threat” of connecting to the vast “unknown” may not be a big selling point for everyone regarding Breathwork (and to be clear- the model of Spiraldance Breathwork in particular is dedicated to offering a personalized approach to meet clients where they are at- including providing a more “resourced” session to ease into these states as needed).

But the idea holds true- that when we can learn to let go into the unknown, through practice- we learn to live with more ease and freedom in our daily lives- including with the unknown forces.

In essence, as we tap into these non-ordinary mystical experiences of ourselves that are wider than the mind can comprehend (including the ability to access and integrate unresolved trauma memory), we are actually helping ourselves fire new neural networks that allow us to learn to let go in moments of stress in our lives (this model is referenced in more research today as “healthy stress”).

For me, I believe the potency of facing these unknown times is, in essence, learning how to build both healthy scaffolded strategies to find calm NOW (including practicing specific conscious breathing practices for this purpose- see current Spiraldance Breathwork newsletter for free techniques) AND, equally as important, is bringing ourselves to non-ordinary states of being (just to our growing “edge”)  through the powerful work of our deeper faster than normal breathing in Spiraldance Breathwork Sessions so that we can learn to RELAX into the unknown spaces of reality with greater ease.

Below is one of my favorite passages around learning to navigate these unknown places. May we all find our way in these times WITH EASE.

Thanks for being here!!!

In light- Tania

“We shall not cease from exploration

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started

And know the place for the first time.

Through the unknown, unremembered gate

When the last of earth left to discover

Is that which was the beginning;

At the source of the longest river

The voice of the hidden waterfall

And the children in the apple-tree…”

-T.S. Elliot, Little Gidding