Cure Your Emotional Constipation With Meditation
Emotional constipation might sound like a clever term we sometimes use to describe the times when our spirits are low, but the sad reality is that it’s a serious situation to be in that is sorely misunderstood.
Often confused with bouts of fatigue and depression, emotional constipation describes the state in which we are so overwhelmed by what’s going on around us that we shut down to the point where we can’t feel anything- or choose not to, in fear of the repercussions.
As you’d imagine, this can be a hindrance, and can lead to behaviors like crawling into bed, staying there and missing out on life; or letting go of relationships, jobs and opportunities that mean a lot to us. It has the capacity to ruin our lives simply from preventing us from enjoying it.
But it’s Not Depression
Although the symptoms of the two are quite similar, the main difference is that depression is a chemical disorder of the brain while emotional constipation is a blockage in our spiritual well-being.
The former means that your body is not producing happy, healthy hormones, and so you quite literally cannot feel positive emotions. With the latter, you can feel happy, and many other emotions too, but you don’t- either as a failsafe or due to a reflex or habit of shutting down when your soul overloads.
Think of the name. When we are physically constipated, we can’t pass our bowel movements because they are blocked. We still have those movements- but no way of getting rid of them.
Compare it to emotional constipation and you’ll better understand that your capacity to love, to smile, to laugh- even to feel anger or sadness- is still there, you just can’t express them properly because your spirit is full and being weighed down by larger, underlying problems.
How Meditation Fits In
Your emotional constipation most likely stems from fear. Even the slightest amount of doubt can send our system into shock and replace our zest with crippling anxiety that slowly but surely starts to consume us. While it doesn’t have to be an extreme phobia or stress to the point that we panic, our confidence plays a big role in our happiness. Insecurities are one of the many symptoms of fear, and one of the most common causes of emotional constipation.
Meditation will reconnect you to your spirit. It will heal and purify your energies at the source. Here’s how:
You’ll Relax More- Stress- a major pollutant of the soul- will be flushed out of your system, literally. Meditation restores and regenerates the healthy hormones we miss when we are stressed by eliminating the harmful ones. By removing stress from the picture, your energy can once again flow properly and you can reclaim many positives you thought you had lost like your motivation, inspiration, patience, humor and time.
Your Confidence Will Be Restored- In reconnecting your body and soul, meditation disintegrates our sense of self-importance. This may sound like a contradiction, but confidence and arrogance are two different things. Our insecurities and self-loathing stem from arrogance. If we weren’t self-aware, we would never be disappointed by our perceived failures. By removing arrogance, meditation will show you who you really are- and guaranteed you will see yourself as a beautiful soul who no longer deserves the flack you give yourself. You can then replace your insecurities with confidence instead. Through confidence you will once again allow yourself to feel.
You’ll See Things Clearly- Meditation gives us insight into our place in the world and allows us to glance at our situations from a bird’s eye view. With this new perspective will come the realization that we are bigger than our problems. We will earn clarity on how to improve our circumstances, and we’ll learn what changes need to be made to get our smiles back. Meditation doesn’t just change our mood, it changes our behavior too. With solutions such as this, our problems will dissipate allowing us to move on with our lives.
You’ll Heal- Often, emotional constipation is a symptom of past traumas we can’t let go of. It goes in line with the saying “once bitten, twice shy”. When we allow ourselves to feel, we make ourselves vulnerable to pain. An example of why this can cause constipation is a broken heart. Once we are hurt by someone, we find it hard to trust and love again. We carry insecurities with us into new relationships because we live in fear of history repeating itself. But meditation rehabilitates at the source, not the surface, and you will be able to reconcile whatever is troubling you and then start anew.
Meditations to Get Your Groove Back
Cleaning out your emotional pipes does not have to be a big fuss. Try these simple meditations and methods and with enough practice, your smile will return to you.
Concentration for Recovery
Concentration meditation is powerful, because in practicing it you will train yourself to focus on one thing and one thing only. This can be whatever you see fit. Maybe you’d like to focus on something positive but you can also use concentration methods to confront whatever may be troubling you.
This is both very relaxing and very satisfying. It’s easy too.
- Find a quiet, comfortable place to sit. Relax your muscles, steady your breath.
- When you are calm enough, bring to mind the object of your attention. This can be a mantra (see below), a sound, a thought, image or even an object.
- Your thoughts will wander, but try your best to focus for as long as possible. In focusing, try to understand what you are paying attention to or focusing on.
- It’s recommended to practice this for at least twenty minutes, but stay focused for as long as is comfortable. When you are ready to end off, return your thoughts to your breath once again and bring yourself out of the trance.
Mantra Meditation
Combining mantras with concentration meditation will yield powerful results. Perhaps try the Shiva Mantra:
Om Namah Shivaya
The Shiva Mantra is known as the “great redeeming mantra.” Chanting it is said to purify our souls, and destroy all that is negative within us.
The Shiva Mantra translated into English means I honor the divinity within myself.
This mantra is sure to unclog all your spiritual pipes.
Mindfulness and Gratitude
It cannot be said often enough: Gratitude is good for the soul. Research shows that gratitude has positive effects on our brains and that it changes our behavior to make us happier, kinder and more optimistic. Practicing gratitude alongside mindfulness will certainly give your spirit a boost.
With mindfulness we learn to fully experience through attention, focus and observation.
- Find someone you can complement and do something nice for. For the sake of this example, let’s say you have bought a chocolate for your neighbor.
- Hand over the gift, and focus on how their behavior changes. Pay attention to everything. Does their voice change pitch? Do they blush? Do they smile with their whole mouth, or give a hearty laugh? In focusing on how happy the recipient is, your mood will get a lift.
- Most importantly, focus on when they say thank you. How does it make you feel? Pretty good, right?
- Now find someone you can thank, and pay this good vibe forward. When you thank the next person, again, use mindfulness to observe how it makes both you and them feel. It’s a wonderful experience, and you will want to practice this regularly for the greatest benefits of meditation.
Opening Your Chakras
It has already been established that emotional constipation is a block in your spirit. You might wonder how that’s possible if the spirit is not a tangible thing. Introducing the chakras. In spiritual science the chakras are defined as points in your body where your energy flow is most concentrated. When we are stressed, down, exhausted or not living well, this energy flow is polluted by negativity. The chakras should function as a unit, but even if one has been contaminated, your spirit will not be able to perform at its best.
Opening, or activating your chakras (using a certain method of concentration meditation) will make you feel much lighter.
The chakras are
- Root chakra (base of the spine)
- Sacral chakra (just below the navel)
- Solar Plexus chakra (the stomach/ core)
- Heart chakra (the chest)
- Throat chakra (base of the throat)
- Third Eye chakra (the forehead, between the eyes)
- Crown chakra (top of the head)
To activate them, follow these steps:
If you are activating all of your chakras at once, start with the root and work your way up.
- Sit with your back straight. Breathe with your diaphragm, through your nose. Breathe Rhythmically.
- Focus on chakra you would like to activate by imagining that you are breathing through it. As you do so, picture a ball of energy forming at the chakra. Allow this energy to grow stronger and brighter.
- Note how this makes you feel. It’s different for everyone, but you may just feel a connection to the planet or the universe. Many people report feeling this way.
- Concentrate on this chakra for as long as is comfortable (though it’s recommended to focus on each for ten minutes).
When you are ready to move on, release the energy. Take a few seconds (you can count down from 5) to take a breath or two and relax.
Activating the chakras is sure to get your life back on track by ending your emotional constipation. Even better, it will relax and rejuvenate you, as well as relieving stress and promoting healing.
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