In our modern society it’s easy to get into a place where we feel in a low grade flatness and totally accept it as normal, a lot of the time it’s because others around us appear to have the same issues. We put it down to life; all the crap we have to deal with. It must be that!
So recognising the signs that we are disconnected is a challenge.
What feels like a lifetime away now, I remember being numbed out to life. I was unable to connect with myself, and in turn others, in a meaningful way. Thinking back it was like having ear plugs in whilst being smothered in a heavy blanket. It blocked me from interacting with the world and realising that I was being restricted in the first place. My world was muffled, my senses compromised and my perspective distorted.
Nearly 6 years, on my perspective on the world has changed beyond recognition. From those early days where I could catch glimpses of what was hidden inside once in a while, I now have the choice to connect more freely.
Using my own experience as a foundation here are 8 signs to be aware of that you may be out of touch with your wild self:
1. Nature is a nuisance and unwelcoming unless it’s pruned and tamed into submission
We are nature; part of the interconnectedness of this magical planet we live in. Nature is by its very essence untamed and unpredictable, so when we experience the need to tame Mother Earth, we are also trying to rein in our own feminine power. We are domesticated from a young age to believe that we are supposed to pruned and perfect or we're not loveable and we project that perfectionism on to nature.
2. You follow the rules society has passed down to you on how to behave as a woman
We can find ourselves conforming to these rules and be totally unaware of how they keep us so rigidly in line. It can become a blind race to get all the boxes ticked before a certain age and prove that we can have it all.
3. You carry out the roles expected of you by your family, friends and lovers even if it doesn’t make you feel good
We can feel such a sense of validation for playing the roles and reading from the same script we've learnt by heart, we become bound by duty and misplaced loyalty to those we've performed for. In turn losing touch with our natural, authentic selves.
4. You feel stuck as you fear change and rocking the status quo
It can feel like a risk to step out of our comfort zone, challenging the way life currently works, the familiar. Acting on dreams and passions that don't fit with the familiar 'us' can feel impossible as others rely on us to maintain the status quo.
5. You are living on autopilot not savouring life as it happens. The days are a means to an end and the future is more appealing than the present
This can feel like you miss the true enjoyment of life, which is accompanied by an unexplained emptiness. You may not be able to recall what happened in the day or even the week, leading to a sense of disconnection from reality.
6. Your body feels like it’s your enemy and connecting with yourself feels scary
When we see our body from our minds perspective, we are influenced by society and our cultural stereotypes. We aren't able to appreciate our majesty because our minds are telling us we're not perfect therefore we can't truly love the body we inhabit.
7. You often criticise and compare yourself to others unfavourably, banishing your beautiful quirks to gain a sense of approval or to fit in
We love to label and categorise in order to make sense of the world, meaning as women, we can end up masking our uniqueness in exchange for a vanilla version that appeals to everyone but not ourselves.
8. You feel that spirituality won’t work for you but also acknowledge there is something missing or lost in your life
Spirituality feels like something other people practice, maybe even make fun of. So it can be dismissed because of the stereotypes we are exposed to and the fear of being labelled. Exchanges and experiences can seem superficial without the deeper knowing that spirituality brings.
I’m fully aware this may seem like a daunting list and possibly you may not want to address some of the signs just yet. And that’s ok. Accepting where you are right now is leaning into your feminine energy, preparing you for the new path you’ll tread. Recognising these signs is an encouraging first step.
If you would like to delve deeper into what connecting to your wild self; you can download and read An introduction to the 8 Steps to awakening your Wild Self or book a one-to-one Wild Self Session with me.