4 Tools to Mature Your Reactions to the US Capital Mob

WHAT’S IN THIS POST FOR YOU:
The mob of rioters breaching the US Capitol has left most of us reeling.

Outrage? Fight back? Cheer? Go Numb? Despair?

Four tools below have helped me to re-ground–enabling me to feel saner. By sharing my own experience, may you also feel inspired … and ease your Self into the Unifying Way.

SUMMARY/ESSENCE
Regardless of your political affiliation, regardless of your hate or love of Trump, there is a “Unifying Way” to use this historic event — to activate your greater unifying capacities. May the four tools below help you access your own deeper level of mature wisdom, correct use of power and love in action.

THE BLOG POST …

1.INHALE — NOTICING THE NERVOUS SYSTEM SPASMING
My first reactions were almost obsessive in nature — constantly watching the news unravel on the television, over and over again, and refreshing my phone to expose myself to the images and news headlines.

My mind and nervous system immediately fell into the pattern of what is referred to as “the car accident analogy” — you don’t want to feel so horrified by something and you know it is toxic, yet you can’t help but continue to watch it.

With this attention to my immediate response to the events at the US Capitol, I notice that my automatic, habitual responses are rooted directly in my sympathetic nervous system — specifically, the different parts of my nervous system that are determined to fight, or flee or freeze!

Noticing this tendency is the first thing I did, without any additional judgement or internal work, and without using the three other tools which I will introduce below in this article.

This automatic response is what naturally occurs when we are confronted with events, images and experiences that are upsetting and uproot our daily routine. Regardless of our beliefs about such events, it is our nervous system’s evolutionary response to react — to protect, to fight back, to duck, to judge and to fear.

Try sitting with your automatic response to the events that have unfolded at the US Capital.

Just observe your sympathetic nervous system’s reaction.

Your ability to detach from the habitual nervous sparks running through your body — and accept your mind’s reaction — will in itself produce a shift toward a sense of freedom.

2. EXHALE — FEELING THE OUTRAGE (without blending) Paradoxically, allow yourself to feel your dominant emotion and reaction.

For me, I am most aware of outrage.

Your dominant emotion could be fear … or vulnerability … or defiance … or despair, depending on what you think is “the Truth.”

Using the framework of internal family systems, or voice dialogue, I let this outraged part of me have a voice. I let it rant and rave temporarily, allowing myself to react.

And though this is a healthy and unifying way to begin to heal, there is an important distinction — it’s okay to let this voice speak, to really hear it and understand it, but I do not let myself blend with it; I do not let it take over.

• Here are examples of ways to “objectify” this emotional part of you — so you can hear it, but not blend with it:
• – give it a name,
• – address it as “hey, you”,
• – journal it’s voice,
• – draw it.

Listening to my outrage, but not blending with it, is a beautiful experience of grounding within myself. Though difficult and uncomfortable, this process allows for each of us to develop a courage to listen to what rages inside of us, while not blending with it as our identity, as our complete truth. This is another degree of inner freedom.

3. INHALE — DOING THE INNER SHADOW WORK
So now that I have (1) noticed my nervous system going crazy and (2) allowed my own outrage to speak (but not blend with my identity), what is next?

The next step is to step back and really notice the additional parts of yourself that want to scream judgements.

For myself, these are judging the mob that stormed the Capitol, hating Trump, projecting any internal fear onto them, and guiltily indulging an imaginary delight that our country has hit bottom — and there will be a powerful backlash now, finally.

The mature inquiry now becomes this: given all that is going on inside us (nervous system retains, outrage, judgements, etc) — how do we work through this type of horrific event in a way that results in a unifying world?

We must first work on the inner parts of us that project our fear, critic, and judgments. And, oh, the underlying (often most hidden) sense of vulnerability.

In doing so, we will avoid complete polarization of our world. Though the inner work of one individual will not change the whole world, doing my part in working with my inner self will take me one step closer to unifying.

4. EXHALE — CHANNEL YOUR ENERGY
Now that you have experienced the first three tools, what have you learned about yourself?

There is one more powerful tool.

Let all your emotions, feelings, and judgments be like the spring run-off of the mountain snows — converging into a single, channeled river flowing forth powerfully to benefit all.

The question becomes: “how would you like to use all of this to further mature your capacities to unify?”

• What does love-in-action look like for you, right now?
• What is your most mature wisdom?
• What is the correct use of your power?

For example, and from my own process (yours will be different):

— I chose to obsessively follow the news, but with a conscious determination to observe my reactions, judgments, fears, and vulnerabilities.

— I make a deliberate point to get outdoors, take walks, do yoga, get my hands into manual labor.

— I waited for this blog post to emerge organically from my soul. Numerous days went by, with all kinds of ideas about what I “should” say, but nothing gelled. Then my soul guidance just plain told me what to focus on (these four tools).

— I consider struggling with this blog as my initiation into greater wisdom, right use of power, and love in action — my expanding capacities (ie, this tool #4).

— Throughout this process, I have been grateful to be living in the “bubble” many of us white, educated, prosperous folks are privileged to live in — while being painfully aware of the suffering of my brothers and sisters throughout in the world — including white, rural, uneducated males feeling left out, angry, and vulnerable.

CONCLUSION:
I invite you to think back to where we started in this journey: a set of intense, visceral reactions to the storming of the US Capitol. I now invite you to observe where you have ended — after going through the four tools.

Have you arrived at a deeper, more grounded, more mature place?

The inner work you have accomplished here is an example of an opportunity to advance your unifying skills.

It is this type of work which I hope helps you heal as an individual — and heals us as a society in a transformative way, in the face of such staggering challenges.

CONCLUDING PRACTICE/EMBODIMENT:

• What’s the one tool above (or a specific detail in this blog) that has most inspired you?

• How could you bring that into greater embodiment, practice and realization?

• Jot down your answer, set a reminder on your phone, and/or text me with your answers, so you find a way to put this love into action now.

DEDICATION OF MERIT:
Whatever merit these thoughts may have, I dedicate this merit to all Beings everywhere (including plants, animals, oceans, icebergs, etc), and hope that it may help soften the suffering of BILLIONS on our planet right now.

NOW, FOR YOUR VOICE:
I greatly encourage any feedback on this way of thought. Was it helpful? Would it be more useful to outline a step-by-step approach? Please let me know via the comments, email, or text.

PLEASE SHARE:
If you feel inspired, please send this out on your network, just so there is more light circulating on the planet right now.

P.S. My video below …
… illustrates my impassioned plea for the central feature of entering the Unifying Way — doing the friggin’ inner work.

P.S.S. More than you want to know:
How do I define the Unifying Way? The Unifying Way is defined as linking seemingly separate aspects of a person — or a society — to each other, through empathic communications and connections.

Yet these aspects are differentiated — each aspect or person is respected for their autonomy, — while, at the same time, linked.

This is the great paradox of wholeness — autonomous yet connected.

These differentiated, yet connected linkages, enable more mature functions to emerge—insight, empathy, intuition, compassion, seeing the Big Picture, tolerating differences, and living by the Golden Rule. A result of this unifying integration is wholeness, joy, well-being for all.

(This may seem abstract, but think about it! I acknowledge Dr. Dan Siegel’s work in neurobiology and “mindsight” for some of these brilliant insights).

P.S.S.S. Now, if you really want an experience …

Now, if you really want to have an experience, then read this post over again OUTLOUD — with this music playing — LOUDLY. This may, or may not, work for you, because our musical tastes are so unique. I can’t really tell you WHY I choose this piece of music to “accompany” this post, except that I woke up this morning with it in my head, as I was also “editing” the post in my head. And I guess I have to trust that. Something about this music’s power, gravitas, and the guitar soaring (triumphantly?) over the ominous background. Oh, and the way that you can inhale and exhale to these chords…