I was about to send out a newsletter about the crazy rushing crush of chaos that hits at the end of the school year, and the opportunity to soak up the memories and the meaning in it all rather than being lost in stress.
And then the school shooting in Texas happened before I could push send.
The families who lost children are plunged into a new kind of chaos…the deepest grief, the darkest despair. Collectively, we are all feeling the anger, the helplessness, and the heartbreak. It is an existential and consuming pain that leaves us all reeling, spinning, dropping, and barely breathing.
We feel this pain with our whole selves. Our minds race, our hearts break, our bodies collapse and our spirits mourn. It’s important to tend to the pain in an equally holistic way.
What would it look like for you to tend to your mind today? Try a guided visualization or meditation (I recorded a guided visualization on my Instagram page if you need a good resource: @dr.lindsayjernigan). Take a nap if you are sleep deprived so your brain can regenerate and reset. Take a break from the news long enough to let your brain reset to natural rhythms free of trauma input.
What would it look like for you to tend to your heart today? Let your grief flow while you write in your journal. Have a deep cry as you walk through the woods. Spend time with the people you love so you can soothe the pain with healing connection.
What would it look like for you to tend to your body today? Give yourself some movement to release stress and generate mood-enhancing hormones. Take a warm bath to promote relaxation. Hug and cuddle the people in your life so your body can feel safe and connected.
What would it look like for you to tend to your spirit today? Spend time in prayer or any other form of communion with forces and energies beyond yourself. Connect with nature – sit on the grass or by any natural water, lean against a tree, walk in the woods, notice the flowers and the clouds and the feeling of the breeze on your skin. Spend time in your personal places of worship and engage in your own form of spiritual practice, whatever that may be.
The pain is deep, and the pain is important. Let it lead you to connection to yourself, your sources of resilience, and the people you love. Let it tap into your energy as a change maker. We need change, and if we disintegrate, we cannot create it. So tend to yourself not with the goal of moving past the pain, but with the goal of being resilient enough to feel it and be propelled by it towards whatever your own next steps may be.
Yours in holistic healing,
Lindsay
Lindsay B. Jernigan, Ph.D.
Licensed Psychologist – Doctorate
Eastern View Integrative Medicine
185 Tilley Dr. #14
South Burlington, VT 05403
802-229-8270
drlindsayjernigan.com
instagram.com/dr.lindsayjernigan