This One is Personal, Sis

Amber Wood • June 16, 2022

In an instant... EVERYTHING changed!

Trust Yourself And Your Intuition

 

Intuition is defined as "the immediate apprehension of an object by the mind without the intervention of any reasoning process”  - The Oxford English Dictionary

 

Isaac Asimov said, “Intuition is the art, peculiar to the human mind, of working out the correct answer from data that is, in itself, incomplete or even, perhaps, misleading.”

 

So my question is… how is your relationship with this aspect of yourself? Can you find your own way through a situation with what seems to be incomplete data? Are you able to balance the left and right sides of your nature:  instinct and logic, in order to create maximum persuasion?

 

We all have experienced gut feelings, mostly in the form of danger. Recognizing that you're in the wrong place at the wrong time before trouble shows up is an unpleasant reminder of our intuitive natures. Or maybe you’ve experienced it in a romantic situation, indicated by “butterflies”. We’ve all heard stories of a man or woman meeting their twin flame for the first time and thinking to themselves, ‘This is the person I’m meant to be with. I can feel it.’

 

The thing is, our inner wisdom / intuition is a muscle that can be strengthened. It is an aspect of emotional intelligence and through study, attention and patience, can be grown and used to further aid your persuasive skills.

 

Hunches, gut feelings and intuition are entirely acceptable to apply in business matters, as well as, life in general. Following these are signs that God is flawlessly guiding our lives as we’ve requested.


I remember being younger and wondering if my inner wisdom would ever be as strong as my Mother's.  She just knew stuff, you know?  I admired that about her among SO many things, and I wanted it for myself… I've always wanted to be like her. So I grew up, and I learned over time that our intuition is always communicating; we just have to be present enough to hear it, and what some people don't know is that the feeling of discerning what our intuition is communicating is difficult to teach. There has to be an allowing and a receptivity that creates space for this level of communication with God and higher self. I stumbled upon the ability to sharpen my inner wisdom as I began to become more consistent in my spiritual practices.


So what brought me to this desire to delve into my spiritual practices? I experienced the most difficult time of my entire existence between the years of 2016 and 2019. It all began when my Father lost his battle with lung cancer after it metastasized to his brain. What's worse? He passed away just 1 month after my now-husband had proposed to me. So there I was, "Daddy's little Girl" who had this long-awaited desire to experience my Daddy walking me down the aisle, and the realization that the dream would never become a reality. Then, it happened literally right before becoming my reality. I remember telling my husband, “I don't know if I’ll survive losing Daddy.” For the first time in my life I would never be able to say “this too, shall pass”. I knew that grief would stick with me.


Fast forward to the following year, my husband and I conceived our first baby, and experienced a devastating miscarriage 7.5 weeks later. And there I was again, "I don't know if I'm going to make it." My health began to fail, as I started experiencing numbness in my extremities and was ultimately diagnosed with neuropathy, yet none of the specialists could determine the cause. I went on to experience the loss of my 13-year career through a restructuring (layoff).  Then, my Grandmother, my last-surviving Grandparent died and my Uncle, with whom my husband and I had developed a closeness, passed away suddenly just 6 months after Grandma. And while all of that was happening, my husband and I lost 3 more pregnancies to miscarriage, so a total of 4 in 4 years.  Whew... it was ROUGH!


Now, more spiritual than religious as I lean into and explore this remembrance of the practices of my ancestors, but I grew up religious and attended church regularly, and during that difficult time I held onto it with everything in me. However, I always had this feeling that I was waiting for God to save me. I'll get into what I've termed this "save me" syndrome at a later date, but it was life for me at the time. I felt helpless, I felt hopeless, I felt alone because despite all of the amazing people in my life, still supporting me such as my husband, mom, brother, sister-friends, cousins, co-workers, etc., none of them were experiencing what I was going through. I also somehow knew there was more that I could do to heal myself and not wait to be saved (prayer without works, right?), but I just needed guidance from a more tangible source. Regardless of what was real or true, I knew that no matter what, I couldn't stay where I was - that was for SURE! I needed transformation - mind, body, and spirit, and then, I was introduced to a Queen who guided me to reclaim my power and recognize the ability that I had within to transform my life.


And in an instant — everything changed!


I began to pray differently, I began to meditate daily - not just occasionally, I connected to and sought guidance from my ancestors, I grounded and centered myself in the Earth / in nature, I nourished myself through plant-based foods, and I sought out reiki because the trauma from my experiences was trapped in my body and I knew I needed to release it in order to heal. As I began to vibrate at a higher frequency, it allowed me to become more sensitive to my inner wisdom - which opened the pathway to healing. This also assured me that I was Divinely guided and supported.


I'm not talking about just going through the motions. I'm talking about the steady, fortification and honing of the relationship with God, with thyself, to others and our desires, that only blooms through connection. When we just know, we act accordingly... like Mama did. That means praying and meditating on our heart's desires and taking heed to the promptings about which actions to take. Taking aligned action to achieve what we know rightfully belongs to us as if we already have it. Then, allowing God / Spirit to do the rest. When I began to see my desires manifest repeatedly by taking these steps, I realized it was no secret at all. And what I love most about it, is I can access this energy at any time by consistently taking the aforementioned actions... rinse and repeat!


Be careful, Sis, not to assume this is only about getting what you want. God isn't a genie in a bottle to be called on to grant wishes, and I still believe everyone has a destiny and a calling upon their life. Not everything works out the way we plan, but there's a beauty that comes from the fortification of relationships and usually, you find that the journey itself was more gratifying than you ever thought possible because you maintained a focus on the relationships and not the end goal. I told you Sis… this one's personal.


Think back to times when you had these feelings and didn’t heed the warning, or on the positive side of things… had a desire, but didn't heed the promptings. What unpleasantness could you have avoided if you had heeded the warning(s)? What positive desires do you believe you could have manifested if you took aligned action? By checking in, centering, and gaining clarity, our life is enhanced immeasurably in all aspects.


My personal experience, my skill sets, my education, my inner wisdom... THIS is what qualifies me to guide other women to reclaim their own personal power and heal themselves. THIS is what I have been called to do. THIS is what I love to do.
If you are struggling to heal your trauma, move beyond your grief, or connect with your inner wisdom, I urge you to join us for Wounds to Wisdom. It’s my 9-week collective healing journey that is designed to guide you in Aligning with Your Inner Wisdom to Heal from the Emotional Trauma of Pregnancy Loss.


Until next time... be well, Beloved.

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Pregnancy loss is a profound and deeply emotional experience that can leave a lasting impact on a woman's mind, body, and spirit. The journey of conceiving, nurturing life within, and then losing that precious connection can evoke intense emotional trauma - that’s not always identified as trauma. These experiences have the power to manifest within the body, creating energetic blockages and disrupting the natural flow of life force energy. Here, we will explore the profound impact of emotional trauma on the body after pregnancy loss and delve into transformative ways to release and heal these wounds. I experienced my first miscarriage on Thanksgiving Day 2017. It was the most devastating experience of my life. My husband and I had traveled from Atlanta to Maryland to spend time with his family for the holiday. I was 7 weeks pregnant, this was going to be our first child, and thrilled was an understatement. We made a pit stop along the way when I noticed blood after using the bathroom. It made me nervous, but I made a choice not to worry about it. Miscarriage just wasn’t. on my. radar. We made it to his Aunt’s home, where we were staying, but the bleeding didn’t let up. It continued for the next couple of days and then the cramping began, as I came to the realization that our dream of becoming parents was quickly coming to an end before it even started. And here I was… meeting much of his family for the first time and putting on a happy face to hold this sacred experience close to my heart. I think not being able to retreat and nurture myself during that time made the miscarriage that much more intense. I wanted to be anywhere else, doing anything else except navigating that experience. As the festivities came to a close, I was able to find moments of quietness to process and grieve and come to terms with what happened, but the silence was so loud. Worst of all was witnessing my husband break down. One moment shattered his heart into a million pieces and it destroyed me. When we left Maryland, we left our dreams of becoming parents. We left our hopes for the life and experiences we wanted to share with our baby. We left our identities. Returning home felt lonely. It felt painful and empty. It was isolating. Still grieving the loss of my Father who lost his battle with brain cancer the year prior, our baby’s arrival was the joy we needed; not this ? I just didn’t know what to do. I stood firm in my Christian walk at that time, but was so angry. I couldn’t believe God would allow us to experience this level of suffering. Silly when I think back on it because the Bible is filled with stories of suffering, but sometimes being thrust into your own causes you to forget it’s part of the human experience. However, I knew I needed to stay connected to Source, so I prayed for everyone else. I would ask friends and family how I could pray for them because I couldn’t pray for myself. Then, hello Shame! Because who else had gone through this? I thought, no one else in my immediate family or friend circle so I did the best I could. I got up and went to work the following week, showed up on virtual calls, met with my internal team and clients as if nothing happened because it was entirely too personal to share and I couldn’t imagine being alone with my thoughts for too long. The nights were the toughest. That’s when I allowed myself to feel the raw edges of every emotion. From not being able to sleep to waking up crying and being so lovingly embraced by my husband in those tender moments. Having witnessed the grace with which my Mother grieved the loss of my Father - her partner of 37 years, I knew that allowing myself to feel the emotions was necessary for my healing process and I’ve always wanted to be like my Mama. So there we were… Brokenhearted. Confused. Lost. Angry. Grieving. Yet still hopeful and so so grateful that we had one another. I had a support system of beautifully grounded women who so lovingly pulled me from the depths of my despair with every prayer, scripture, encouraging word, phone call, and text. The lessons are among the things I hold closest to my heart now. I learned the true meaning of sisterhood. I learned who my prayer warriors were. I learned that not only was I stronger than I thought, but that I could be strong and soft at the same time; just like Mama. I learned that my Daddy was closest to me during that time from the spiritual realm. I learned that my husband and I are foundationally equipped to endure anything. I learned that I am so deeply loved by so many people. I learned more about God’s gentle nature and comforting presence. I learned that purpose is so often shrouded in the most devastatingly challenging experiences. I learned that I have been sent to guide and support other Angel Mamas in navigating their experiences with pregnancy loss while also normalizing the conversation around it. So how do we transcend our grief? The first step towards healing is acknowledging the depth of pain caused by your pregnancy loss. It’s so necessary to allow yourself to grieve and honor the emotional impact it has had on your being. Understand that your emotions are valid and natural responses to an extraordinary loss. I knew my emotions were valid and I allowed myself to feel all of them… the painful ones, the embarrassing ones, the shameful ones, the hopeful ones, the shallow ones, the envious ones. Every emotion. I recognize there will be times when allowing your physical response to an emotion felt may not be the most appropriate, but there will also be times when it’s perfectly appropriate and those are the times you must allow yourself freedom of expression. If you don’t and instead choose to suppress your emotions, they’ll bubble to the surface and burst through when you least expect and most likely, an inopportune time. So give yourself permission to feel the feels through the journey. You must practice self-compassion by embracing your journey and giving yourself permission to heal at your own pace. Allow yourself the time and space needed to process your emotions, releasing any guilt or shame that may arise, without judgment of self. You also may feel the need to establish boundaries with those around you who may not fully understand or support your journey or your healing process. I wasn’t able to embrace the journey in those early days because I struggled to accept that this was my reality, but had I known this was part of the process I think it might have been easier to accept. It’s also easy to slip into regrets and guilt, so allow yourself the time necessary to move through your process with all the compassion you need to extend yourself. Understand that healing is unique and individual, and it’s also okay to seek support when needed. Create a sacred space for yourself where you can engage in healing practices. This one was huge for me! I had a place, but I didn’t realize it would become THE place. The place where I came to cry, talk to my Daddy, journal, sit in silence, read, perform healing rituals, meditate, move my body and pray. It could be a peaceful corner in your home, a serene natural setting, or even an altar dedicated to honoring your lost baby. Fill this space with objects that hold meaning for you, such as candles, crystals, or photographs and allow it to be a sanctuary for self-reflection and healing. Make it personal to you and your experience. Rituals can provide a powerful means of releasing emotional trauma. Consider creating a ritual that resonates with you, such as writing a heartfelt letter to your lost baby, creating art or poetry, or performing a symbolic gesture, like releasing a flower into a body of water or a biodegradable lantern into the ether. Healing rituals grounded me in my own sacred power so much more than I ever knew possible. They allowed me to honor the spirit of my baby and I was able to release the pain of their absence - which helped me shift to gratitude for their presence and the fact that they chose us to be their parents, even if for just a moment. These acts of intention and surrender can help release stagnant emotions and invite healing energy to flow. What ritual(s) resonate with you most? Engaging in mind-body practices can facilitate the integration of healing on multiple levels. Explore practices such as meditation, breathwork, gentle yoga, dancing or deep stretching to bring harmony and balance to your mind, body, and spirit. 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Reach out to trusted friends, family, or support groups who can offer empathy, understanding, and a safe space for sharing your experiences. Seeking guidance from a Pregnancy Loss Practitioner such as myself, a Professional Counselor or Therapist can also be immensely helpful in facilitating the healing process and providing additional tools for emotional release. Explore and nurture your spirituality as a means of finding solace and guidance. This could involve connecting deeper with God/Source, engaging in prayer and meditation, exploring alternative spiritual practices, or seeking wisdom in nature. My experience was challenging as I was rooted in my relationship with God, but I struggled to connect when the experience of my loss was so raw and acute, but connecting to others who were willing to engage in prayer with me as well as me choosing to pray for others allowed me to maintain my connection. 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