Living life on the Edge! Man, this was an unconscious mantra I lived by for many years – I think I used to believe it was the only to move forward in my life. And like many people, I grew up in an environment that role modelled this. Now I’m not talking crazy, thrilling sports once a week, I mean living on the edge my emotional resources, my time, my energy, money, commitments, things I would tolerate in relationships…until ultimately there would be a blow-up or a meltdown.
Now here’s the thing. I believe we all want to grow and expand, I believe that’s in our nature and it’s BEAUTIFUL! But what I’ve (finally!) come to realise over the years, is when we regularly push ourselves right to that hard edge of what we’re capable of – again and again – it creates a huge amount of unnecessary tension, worry and emotional disturbance. And it’s difficult to grow and expand in healthy ways when we’re feeling stressed and overwhelmed.
Some of us experience that overwhelm as a low and loose ourselves for a while, some of us actually experience it as a high, which can be addictive and destructive. And always, ALWAYS the people around us who we love the most will pick up the tab.
We are precious cargo! Our bodies, hearts and minds are these AMAZING and unique self-healing eco systems that take us through this life in the best way they can. When we’re constantly pushing ourselves right to that hard edge, there’s a price to pay and sometimes we don’t realise it until it’s much too late.
But there’s another way, there’s a much softer edge – the place where we can step out of our comfort zone to explore what’s possible WITHOUT putting everything on the line (who knew!?). The place where we’re ‘comfortably- uncomfortable’ and we give ourselves full permission to back off or recharge when we need to. A place where we learn to say NO or NOT YET just as often as we say YES, to ourselves and others. A place where we know just because I can give more, do more, achieve more, doesn’t mean I should.
Apparently this is all part of growing up! I think I’m finally stepping into adult-hood J It’s a beautiful place and I encourage you to join me if this touches your heart in any way. Or join me in class this week as we explore the edge of flexibility, strength, stamina and balance together – it’s going to be fun, I promise!
Love Deborah