Break Free

The journey of breaking free from the deeply ingrained programming that imprisons...

Why do you stay in prison when the door is so wide open - Rumi

Every time I read this quote, l see the 13th-century Persian poet staring at me...standing there in his robes, his turban clad head, long white beard, hands on his hips, shaking his head...like 'what the heck are you waiting for Jessica...there's no excuse....break free!'

There is no wall, no fence, no door, no window caging me in, yet I continue to feel these large imposing walls always moving in around me. On good days, I have to squint to see them in the distance, but on bad days, they come just inches from my nose, sucking all the air from my lungs. I've had a hard time breathing recently and have put off writing this post because of that...my December 2020 post was positive and full of hope for this new year...for this emerging future, just as I strive for all my messages to be! Then 2021 rolled in and took my oxygen away. My internal self-talk has been laced with feelings of shame, disappointment, hopelessness, and fear....fear of moving backward... back to living on the rollercoaster. There's a lot of people and ambitions banking on me living in the light, living into my purpose joyfully...the most important, being ME! There's no way I can do everything I want to do if I'm back trudging through the thunderstorms!

A recent study I heard, stated that by the time you're about 35 years old, 95% of your brain becomes subconscious. This means that we are basically running on autopilot!

Ever wonder why so many of us begin the new year with these awesome health goals...exercising three times a week, adding more greens to our plates, waking up earlier for some 'me' time, etc., etc...starting off with good momentum, then slowly reverting to our past behavior patterns by the end of January? I've been there and done that too many times to count!

Well, science shows that the reason this happens is because of our ingrained programming...because of unconscious habits! Jim Fortin teaches that everything you have and don't have in life is a reflection of these unconscious habits...and whatever you are in the habit of, you invest your time in.

I know for certain, I am in the habit of being unnecessarily anxious about too many things, therefore my time gets filled with this ridiculous behavior! The saying 'Belief Drives Behavior' comes up here again. Our beliefs make up our identity....who we are...and these beliefs drive our behavior which is primarily made up of our unconscious habits - and this behavior then produces our results. So if we are in the habit of spending our free time watching Netflix, instead of exercising, no amount of 'rah~rah' motivation will get us to stick to our exercise plan for an extended period of time, because subconsciously we value sitting on the sofa more.

This is why we must learn how to reprogram our subconscious mind and develop new habits. Our habits are housed in the reptilian part of the brain, responsible for our 'fight, flight or freeze' mechanisms. This was the first part of the brain to be formed and served our ancestors well in the 'caveman' days. Its primary purpose was to keep us alive...for survival and to conserve energy in the body. While this was vital in the days of old, the only time we require this portion of our brain now is in life and death situations.

Dr. Eugene Choi (an awesome neuroscience guru...you should check him out) teaches that our brains are either functioning in an Executive State or in Survival Sate. We can never be in both states at the same time, and unfortunately, most of us operate in the Survival State for 70% of our lives! As you guessed, the Survival State is run by that reptilian portion of our brain. When we are in Survival, we are in a Reactive state. This means that we are 'automatically' reacting instead of using the prefrontal cortex of the brain, which is the portion responsible for logical thinking and therefore operating in the Executive State.

So what these studies show, is that for 70% of our lives, we are reacting by automatically engaging in a fight, flight, or freeze! We are operating from a state of fear - of not feeling safe:( Just to put this into context and wrap our minds around just how common these behaviors are, I'm going to give you a couple of examples...

FIGHT: This happens when we have the belief that we must prove ourselves constantly, we must fight for everything we want, we are highly defensive, very ego-centered and ego-driven, and always comparing ourselves to others.

FLIGHT: This happens when we procrastinate when we avoid facing difficult situations or perceived problems and when we numb our pain, fear, and limiting beliefs by indulging in alcohol, food, and self-destructive behavior.

FREEZE: This is the hiding our head in the hole activity, playing the dead armadillo when we get so overwhelmed by the curveballs of life that we make ourselves emotionless and numb, hoping that the problem will just magically go away and take no responsibility for changing the outcome.

What really gets me is that most people are not even aware they are operating in this Survival state. I just became aware when I began this growth journey a couple of years ago, and I still get months like this past one, where I allow my 'caveman' brain to dominate the day! Understanding how that awesomely complex and powerful computer in our headworks, and then becoming aware of our behavior and the direct link to our belief system is vital in making the change and moving over to living in an Executive State...to living in the light!

If I don't know what I am committed to, I don't know how I'm choosing - Jim Fortin Podcast (Ep.147)

Jim Fortin encourages us to ask the question: What am I committed to and who do I have to be to make it happen?

Guess what...the reptilian brain does not know the difference between bad habits and good ones! And the subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between what is real or vividly imagined. This means that our brain will do what we program it to do! It will work for us if we start intentionally and actively engaging it. So who do you want to become? What do you value most in life? What habits do you want to develop? What results are you committed to?

I've experienced pockets of time in the Executive State. Those moments when I feel excited about my future truths...when I actively visualize being a change maker in thousands of lives when I am fearless and clear on what my next steps will be when I am joyfully living in the present moment. Let me tell you, the freedom and abundance of oxygen that fills my lungs in those moments are indescribably boundless!

I know I must work on creating the habits of confidence in myself, of vividly imagining the future I want to create, of consistent yoga practice, of truly enjoying the moments of my life, of gratitude and abundance. I know that by practicing these things every day, the old ones will soon begin to fade and no longer be relevant, and the walls that imprison me will disappear!

The survival state imprisons us in stress, anxiety, anger, jealousy, overwhelm, and disappointment. No one deserves to live there. When we decide we are committed to positive change, we can use this newfound awareness and drive to begin developing new habits...little intentional changes every day that will bring us closer to our goal. We don't need to be prisoners of our brains...we can break free and make that old Persian thought legend proud!

xoxo,

Jess

**We got this!**