A lot of times, when people think of trauma or healing, they think it’s all about the painful things that happened in the past. But it’s also about all the ways we are restricting or holding back our life force energy in the present moment as a result. And often, we’re not even aware that we’re doing this.
You could see life force as a warm stream of water running through our bodies, giving us energy, pleasure, joy, creativity, emotions, and movement. From this place, we are curious and authentically present with ourselves and others. But because of our past conditioning, we learn to dim and block that stream. This is how blocked life force energy shows up. And it’s not just a metaphor, it lives in our bodies, and shapes the way we experience the world.
What Happens When Life Force Energy Gets Blocked
The moment we lose connection to our own stream of energy, we start to look outside for instructions. Because how are we supposed to know what to do when there is no impulse or desire to be felt? We become dependent on presented ways of living, loving, and moving through the world. This is also the place where we start criticizing and judging others who don’t fit into that picture. But deep down, there is an emptiness, a feeling of being lost, a yearning that tells us there must be more to life.
How Do You Activate Your Life Force Energy?
I believe there are three pointers: Healing backwards, nurturing presence, and creating forwards.
Healing backwards
In order to understand why you started blocking your aliveness as a child, it can help to look into your past. In what kind of environment did I grow up? What did I believe about life, love, and myself? What kind of stories about the world did I hear? What was considered right, and what was wrong? Did I learn to trust my own intuition? How is my relationship with my inner child now? What emotions can I feel and which ones do I struggle with?
Nurturing presence
There are many ways to cultivate more presence in the moment.
But your most valuable tool is your attention.
And instead of giving your attention to outside sources, you can start to tune in and get curious.
Am I following the impulses I have right now? Where do I feel tight, blocked, or numb?
Am I being truthful to myself in this conversation? How does being truthful feel in my body? How does it feel when I’m setting a boundary, or when I ask for what I want?
Am I waiting for someone else to tell me what to do? What do I wish this person would say? What kind of people or behavior am I criticizing the most and what does this say about me? Am I allowing myself to be a bit wild, chaotic, or unpredictable?
Creating forwards
An important step toward more life force is the ability to notice all the cues life is giving you. What inspires you? What is something that turns you on? What are you just a little bit curious about?
If there were no limitations, what would your life look like? What kind of people would you spend time with?
And in your body: how does joy feel to you? How does being in flow feel? Being authentic, being real?
How big do you dare to dream? How connected or beautiful could your world become?
Unblocking Life Force Energy Starts With One Movement
It takes an incredible amount of courage to allow more aliveness to move through you,
especially when you don’t see anyone around you doing it, and you risk being judged or rejected. But the reward of moving more authentically through the world is indescribable. And the steps don’t have to be big. Sometimes wearing a colorful t-shirt to work or saying “no” to someone can already be huge.
The Woman Who Danced
Two weeks ago, I went to a concert where the musicians were playing upbeat music and were full of energy. In the beginning, everyone was seated and listening to the music very seriously. Until one woman decided to stand up and dance. The way she moved and enjoyed herself was so inspiring that other people started getting up too. And suddenly, there were people dancing together.
At the end of the concert, I walked up to the woman and asked her what made her move from her seat. And she said:
“I’ve been told to sit quietly on a chair my whole life, and now my back hurts.
I’ve realized that I’ve always wanted to dance, so now I do.”
I couldn’t think of a better example of how one courageous step can lead to more aliveness. And unfortunately, many of us only take that step when the pain of the known becomes too big. But it doesn’t have to be like that.
You Were Never Meant to Be Numb
Life wants to flow through us, and every day we are invited to receive that invitation.
It doesn’t always have to be about joy or dancing, because life offers far more colors than that. It could be a deep cry from your belly so you finally feel relieved and soft again, or asking for a hug from a precious friend.
It is to live with the prayer that we are all worthy of receiving the stream of life,
and that we all have the ability to turn it into our own authentic gold.
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