Do you mistake your patterns for “you”?
Inner Invitations by Lucy Tierney is a universal wisdom guidebook for nurturing inner balance, healing and freedom. An adventure awaits, as you dare to go within and discover the unique-to-you invitations for growth that arise from your deepest Self.
Noticing emotional energy patterns for greater balance and freedom.
Lucy Tierney | Author Inner Invitations
What if your patterns are not just “who you are”?
In Chapter Three of my book Inner Invitations we explore how some emotional energy movements are not one-off events, but are part of a longer term pattern.
Our internal landscape has been shaped by our experiences, both positive and painful.
Our emotional and behavioural patterns are habituated patterns of response that we are often not even conscious of.
This is how people can come to be known as “a worrywart”, “a cheerful soul”, “a mean character”, “a good sport”, a “wet blanket” and the like.
Such tendencies can become ingrained to the degree that they could be described as deep grooves that operate unconsciously.
Ingrained grooves have great power.
Just like a riverbed, or a well-worn track, grooves exists because of the repetitive, rhythmic nature of emotional energy flowing in the same direction over time.
Grooves can become so deep and familiar that they become part of our identity. A pattern that runs unconsciously feels like “home”.
Feels like “me”.
When we are habituated to a certain emotional response pattern, we often assume that “this is just who I am”.
We are no longer running the pattern. The pattern is running us.
Try It Now
I invite you to pause and shift your attention inwards. Bring to mind a tendency or pattern you notice within your life, or that other people notice in you. Ask yourself: “Is this just who I am?” or “Am I living out of a deep groove that could be re-examined?”
Change is possible
Emotional and behavioural grooves mark the path of least resistance in neural networks. It takes little to no energy to “go with it” and lots of conscious energy to chart a new course.
However the good news is, we can chart a new course. We can modify, balance or release negative auto-pilot patterns once we are aware of them.
This will usually take time and effort, but it is hopeful, rewarding and growthful inner work.
Grooves are survival strategies
Why can change be hard work?
Many negative emotional energy patterns are forged in trauma. Such inner patterns are generally survival strategies that made sense at a time of crisis, but now interfere with balanced functioning and freedom.
The intrinsic human growth capacity that can assist us here is our ability to invoke our Inner Reviewing Self. This inner witness can observe our internal tendencies, patterns and grooves from a broader perspective.
This process is like putting a wide-angle lens on a camera in order to take in more of the picture. Or taking a ride in a hot-air balloon!
When we notice a pattern or groove, we have an opportunity to look at the life experience out of which it came, and to bring the pattern into the here and now with the resources we now possess.
This opens the door to change.
We can change what we become aware of.
This is why exercising our ability to notice emotional energy patterns is such a powerful gift for our growth.
“And you’re one of these worriers”
In my own life, choosing to notice auto-pilot patterns and to be willing to change them has brought much more inner openness and freedom my way.
One time, when I was a joining a new group, an interviewer said to me, “And you’re one of these worriers!” This generated an emotional energy shock movement for me.
My Inner Reviewing Self sprang into action immediately. Noting that I was not conscious that I was a worrier was a first indication that this emotional energy pattern of worrying was at auto-pilot level.
Interiorly, I knew that the comment rang true and I needed to do something about it.
Henceforth, when I noticed my muscles were tense (almost always after the event), I recognised that I was worried within and did this interior process:
What are you tense about it?
Can you do anything about it?
For a Yes! reality – do it! For a No! reality – let it go!
I would then either straighten my back for the Yes! direction, or, in imagination, float away the tension for the No! direction.
By regularly following through on this process, the strength of the auto-pilot pattern of carrying worry by not noticing tense muscles was gradually reduced.
What pattern is drawing your attention as you read this?
At the end of Chapter Three of Inner Invitations, I outline an evening practice for noticing emotional energy movements and patterns.
If you’d like to explore this further, you may like to buy the book.
I’d love to hear how you get on with your adventure of balancing long-term grooves! Please feel free to email me.
Inner Invitations is available as an PDF E-book or on Kindle and Paperback via Amazon.
AUD$25
Inner Invitations: a universal wisdom
e-book for nurturing inner balance, healing and freedom.
This e-book from Lucy Tierney offers potent and practical wisdom for growth. You’ll explore insights and practices to help you find your authentic path for personal development and spiritual unfolding. Learn to exercise your innate human capacities to balance your conscious and unconscious domains in the service of freedom and healing. An adventure awaits, as you dare to go within and discover the unique-to-you invitations for growth that arise from your deepest Self.