My good friend, Intuition, has been nagging me to introduce her. She's the little voice inside my head that steers me in the right direction, makes good choices and alerts me when I step off course. She gives me clarity, relief and enthusiasm. And lights the way to my dreams. I've known her all my life, but not until recently have I made her a priority.
She'll often butt heads with my other friend, Intellect, who has a rather limited perspective of the world, basing ideas on external norms of what's considered acceptable. Intellect has been a solid companion over the years, holding my hand through many uncomfortable situations. But he can get caught up in meaningless trivia and endless drama at times. Over-analyzing this and that. I'm learning that Intuition sees a much bigger picture. She independently stems from a whole different source of awareness that conscious reasoning cannot explain.
Intuition comes very close to clairvoyance; it appears to be the extrasensory perception of reality.
- Alexis Carrel
Think about your own friend, Intuition. I'm sure you've experienced a time when you would have been better off trusting her over Intellect's rational analysis, right? But every day, we find ourselves under so much cultural pressure to ignore her insights because she can't be logically explained. Intellect will always tell us that knowing without reason is impossible. And as a result, most of us choose to follow our heads instead of our hearts. We'll tell ourselves...
- "I'd love to do that, but...."
- "What would my grandmother think?"
- "I'm sure somebody thought of that already."
- "Scientists say it's not true, so who am I to think otherwise?"
The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.
- Albert Einstein
Intuition speaks to us in a variety of ways: inspiration, epiphanies, hunches, impulses, flashes of insight and inner knowings. They seem to appear at unpredictable times, like when we're in the shower, riding a bike or painting our nails. But that's because we don't know any better.
Psychotherapist and author, Ernest Rossi Ph.D, explains that our bodies have a natural reoccurring sequence of activity and rest that happen throughout the day, called ultradian rhythms. Part of this time is designed for high performance and concentration. The rest of this time is for rest and recovery, when the four main regulatory systems that link body and mind become aligned. Dr. Rossi calls it the Ultradian Healing Response. During this space and silence, we are more open to information from our unconscious minds. And our friend Intuition can finally be heard.
How do we know when these moments are happening? Everyone has a different rhythm, but they usually occur every 90 minutes or so. The following signals will tell us when to listen up:
- When you begin to lose concentration / mental fuzziness or fatigue
- You find yourself staring out the window / spacing out
- Watery eyes / incessant yawning
How can we take advantage of this time? Essentially, any form of meditation will do the trick. Except it will be 10x more effective because you'll be perfectly synchronized with nature's rhythms to achieve the greatest results.
- Take a break from whatever you're doing to relax. Lie down if you can and take deep breaths. Or go for a walk, play an instrument, take a bath or turn on some tunes. Get out of your own way. If your mind refuses to shut off, tell it to come back in 10-20 minutes.
- If you have a burning question you'd like Intuition to answer, ask it now.
- Observe any thoughts, visuals or emotions that arise. Try not to control these impressions. Simply notice and let them float by.
I feel an Ultradian Healing Response coming on right now! So if you'll excuse me, my new best friend has a secret she'd like to share.
At times you have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you'll discover will be wonderful.
What you'll discover is yourself.
- Alan Alda
