Page 12 - Desert Oracle December 2019

those who are in this secure and content space may have healthier lifestyles. Secure
and Content individuals may be more active, more aware of their health, may
socialize more, and may take the time to follow-up with doctors or therapists to help
maintain a healthy outlook and perspective on life. Overall, they tend to have more
energy to face life's obstacles with conviction and with a more positive outlook.

So, how do we return to a baseline of feeling Secure and Content? Especially if we
have been in the space of fight or flight, or frozen and numb for a while?

One can start by incorporating little exercises that help to draw them out little by little.
A simple exercise that one anyone can do anywhere is called Orient. To orient is to
adjust or tailor (something) to specified circumstances or needs. To realign or
reposition. In this simple exercise, all one needs to do is draw their attention to
something else other than the state of feeling anxious or depressed; whatever you
may be feeling at the moment. For example; Pick something to focus on; it can be an
object, an image, something you see out your window, something you are holding
onto at the moment like your steering wheel or pen. Think about how that something
looks or feels. Does it make a sound? What shape is it? How does it feel? What color
do you see? Is there anything new you have noticed? Take a few minutes to orient
yourself and connect with your focal point. Notice how different you feel? How much
calmer you became by merely focusing on some random object. An object that has
nothing to do with your well-being, yet it tapped you into a calmer side of you, the
more secure and content aspect of you.

Another cost-free exercise that can help center oneself is to Build Gratitude. This
simple exercise may also help draw your attention elsewhere and help one feel more
content and grateful little by little, and with practice, the sweeter life will feel. All you
do is think of 10 things you feel gratitude towards and allow that feeling to grow within
you. For example, begin by thinking of one thing that you're grateful for and focus on
how that gratitude makes you feel. Feel it in your heart; sometimes, it's helpful to
place your hand over your heart and feel that connection. Next, think of the second
thing you're grateful for and feel your heart expand and grow with that feeling. Then,
think of the third thing you are thankful for and again feel your heart expand and grow
with the warmth of love and appreciation you feel. As you continue to add to your list
of gratitude, allow your heart to expand and grow with each appreciation until you
eventually feel the warmth of that love and gratitude throughout your body. Sit with
that feeling for a moment. Breathe it in and allow yourself to feel the comfort and
security of these heartwarming blessings in your life. For a moment, feel, and be
content.

These simple exercises can be performed as many times a day as needed. A "mico-
vacation" that pulls you out of fight or flight /a frozen or numb state of being. Cost-free
exercises such as these can make reaching a goal to live a more secure and content
life seem more obtainable. And the more one practices these exercises, the more the
body and mind begin to recognizes it, and the stronger it becomes within you, and the
easier it will be to get to that secure and content state of being. You may even find
yourself craving these "micro vacations" and may want to carve out larger spaces of
time out of your day to feel this sense of calm and relaxation more often.