As we shift into a new season of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, nature offers us opportunities to tune in as we navigate the transition. Even if we aren’t paying conscious attention, our bodies feel the shifting of light, air, and earth. The days are steadily growing longer, the air is full of new smells as the earth softens, and little shoots of green and red are poking up between dried leaves. You might feel new energy within you, especially on a bright sunny day.
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Spring sports, new activities, and community events also cause us to shift our patterns. Kids can now play outside more easily, and we can walk and look up at the sky instead of watching out for black ice. Transition times bring a mix of many feelings; tuning into your inner wisdom and nature can bring greater peace and equanimity.
5 Ways to Slow Down and Tune In
Which transformative “tuning in” practice best suits you?
- Pause and Ask Questions
When we pause and get curious, we slow things down and orient our minds and bodies to the present moment. Even just pausing to breathe in and out slowly for a few breaths can help bring about a sense of calm presence. Try it right now.
When we add curiosity, we literally move our brain function from the amygdala – home of the fight, flight, freeze, fawn, or frenzy response – to the pre-frontal cortex – home of thinking and reasoning. This shift helps us move from reactivity to responsiveness.
Asking yourself questions calms that more primitive, emotional self, and activates your wise mind – your human intelligence. Curiosity opens up new possibilities for feeling better.
Questions lead to new insights and ideas, which also serve to make life more interesting and meaningful.
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When you ask your children questions, and share your own questions out loud, you are teaching your children a powerful way to engage their minds and imagination. This ability to ask questions is something unique and core to being a fully alive human being. Check out this podcast on 10% Happier with Arthur Brooks for inspiration on this topic.
- Notice Your Balancing Act
Taking stock of what is happening in your life helps develop self-compassion, which has the power to reduce anxiety and depression. As you consider what is happening step by step, you are practicing mindfulness – literally bringing to mind what is going on for you.
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Even though it might be hard to acknowledge all the different things you are doing – taking care of children, managing appointments, working, caring for family or friends, participating in various communities – noticing can help you realize, “Of course I’m feeling stressed. This is a lot!” This activates a sense of kindness and care towards yourself.
Christopher Germer, in his book The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion: Freeing Yourself from Destructive Thoughts and Emotions offers simple ways to be kinder to yourself.
Studies show that self-compassion works much more effectively than self-criticism to create positive change and resilience.
Check out this infographic to understand why self compassion is so much better for us.
Modeling self-compassion helps our children to practice self-compassion and grow their own resilience. They will be more able to handle challenges when they see how we do it in healthy ways.
- Ponder what practices help you look, listen, and feel.
When we slow down and pay attention to our senses, we increase our enjoyment of daily life and calm our nervous systems. Do you have any daily practices which help you to slow down, pay attention, and be present?
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Perhaps when you drink a morning coffee or tea, you might notice the pleasure of that experience. Or maybe you take a walk outside during a break to refresh yourself and enjoy the fresh air. Sitting in the driveway when you first get home and listening to a song or just turning the car off and taking a few minutes to breathe is powerful.
You can take stock of how you’re feeling and consider how you want to be when you go inside to your family.
Modeling paying attention to and appreciating the world around you helps your children internalize this practice, too.
My oldest daughter recently told me that one of her colleagues commented on how she pays attention to little moments of beauty in the world. Now this coworker is also starting to notice the world around her more, and feeling happier because of it.
You are causing a positive ripple of awareness and joy when you notice and point out things you see, hear, and feel to your kids. Ask them what they notice, too.
- Ask yourself, “What do I want to focus on?”
What we focus on grows.
This is true of living systems as well as social media algorithms. Our brains are wired to filter for what is most important through the Reticular Activating System.
This means that when we focus on something, our brains start to identify opportunities, information or dangers related to that thing in order to help us survive.
This can make it seem like there is even more of whatever that thing is.
Neuroplasticity creates pathways in the brain based on where our attention is going, which then makes those behaviors more automatic and easier.
With our children, these concepts are especially important to consider. Our attention works like fertilizer.
If we pay attention to the qualities we want to see more of, we will see our children growing in the direction we’d like to see them grow.
However, if we focus on the qualities that are annoying us or that we are worried about, we will notice that those qualities grow, creating a vicious cycle.
So, focus on what you want to see more of in both yourself and your family.
- Consider: What is inspiring me?
Sometimes we can get so caught up in daily life that we stop thinking about what is interesting and exciting to us. We can feel a bit bored and depressed. Take time to notice what your mind is pondering.
What piques your curiosity or speeds up your heart rate? Following this energy will lead you towards growth and excitement. This can help you create new habits, explore new hobbies, and dream of new possibilities.
When your kids see you pursuing your own interests, that inspires them to pursue their own. I’ve been doing my own daily “watercolor” challenge since January 1st and I’ve seen my kids and my husband doing some more artistic work on their own, too. They are very supportive of me doing something I love each day and I’m supportive of them doing things they love, too. Tap into what you loved when you were a child and do what feels fun, playful and a bit challenging to keep it interesting.
Check out this blog on how to have more fun for more ideas. 😀
I’d love to hear what you try and how you feel as a result!
- Closing thoughts
Choose one of these ideas or create your own way to tune into yourself as we enter this new season. Give yourself permission to do what you love. Be curious and watch the effects – with yourself and your children. I’d love to hear what you notice.
- Pause and Ask Questions
- Notice Your Balancing Act
- Ponder what practices help you look, listen, and feel.
- Ask yourself, “What do I want to focus on?”
- Consider: What is inspiring me?
Feel free to schedule a Complimentary Clarity Call with me if you need a boost or companion in testing out any of these steps! I look forward to hearing from you.
Enjoy the arrival of the new season!
Amy
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How to Align with Spring Energy
Spring is a chance to reset habits, nurture connection, and create fresh energy in your family.
