Tuning in & Slowing down

What are five sounds you hear every single morning? Alarm clock beeping, toilet flushing, water running, coffee brewing, and television. First, think of how you could change those sounds, and secondly, why you would want to. Emotional and mental numbness has become an accepted way of life. What is the reason for this phenomenon? They get used to the noise and tune it out. The danger in this automatic response, though, is that while we’re numbing our ears and other senses to often unpleasant sights and sounds, we are accidentally numbing other parts of our minds and hearts. So, as an experiment, set your alarm to radio instead of the loud buzz that customarily pulls you from the glue of slumber. Boil water on the stove for tea instead of making coffee. Walk for a half mile in your neighborhood instead of watching the morning news, and listen to the wind, birds chirping and the steady babble of your own thoughts. Break the sticky patterns of routine and watch transformative change unfold in your life and see yourself doing things you never thought possible.

A key numb-er is repetitive behavior. So take a different route home from work. Discover a new radio station. Drive with all the windows down instead of the air conditioner. Step outside your own normal repetitive behavior to become someone bigger, braver, and more adept at dealing with change. Sound can be used to un-numb yourself from the prison of repetitive activity, or else it can serve as the reward for such brazen patterns of change. Once you unglue yourself from the static of routine, you’ll hear the drone of the refrigerator’s motor, the rumble of distant thunder, and the music of wind blowing through the maple leaves in the backyard.

Centuries ago, people had time to sit and listen to the wind. They had the luxury of letting things naturally unfold without prodding, forcing and manipulating. They had enough space in the course of a day to allow for dawdling, lingering, and downtime. Since then, we have learned to adapt to a panoply of stressors and a condition of constant anxiety––rush hour traffic, relationship baggage, job security, credit card debt. The rhythm of life is in essential conflict with itself. In a global movement of healing––the planet, the universe, ourselves––we struggle with the discord between freedom and competence. Personal efficiency or the two-birds-with-one-stone mentality has become a modern science. It is no longer possible to do one thing at a time and offer that one activity the virtues of quality, care and focus. And the danger in this obsessive multi-tasking mentality is spiritual fragmentation.

There are many relaxation tools available to help you tune in and slow down. Some of my favorites are those that integrate music with the sounds of nature. The website www.otterbaygifts.com offers cassette tapes that integrate underwater sounds with soothing instrumentals. Musician, Paul Winter, has spent his career making earth-conscious recordings that blend folk, classical and jazz with a wolf’s howl, or the underwater musings of the humpback whale.

True relaxation happens on many levels. And, like any other type of change, it takes time and practice, but the rewards are immeasurable!

HALE DWOSKIN is the CEO and Director of Training of Sedona Training Associates. He teaches courses based on the emotional releasing techniques originated by his mentor, Lester Levenson. He has taught The Sedona Method to individuals and at corporations throughout the U.S. and United Kingdom. He is the co-author of Happiness is Free: And It’s Easier than You Think (a five-book series).