Have you ever had those days where you feel nervous? Maybe you are doing something new or just have this in the pit of your belly for no reason? There is a way to channel this energy… I reflect on something I experienced that changed everything for me…

During my yoga teaching training at an ashram, I sat in front of a room full of strangers – experienced yoga students and 2 top yoga teacher trainers, all ready to take my class and give me honest feedback. I knew no one – It was the first day alone on my ashram trip as part of my yoga training.

To be honest, I was still in that place where I was getting my bearings right in this new environment, only to be told that I was down as the first to teach.

It was one of those moments where I could feel my stomach turning circles and my mind saying “You should have chosen the easy way – taking the option to do it back at home, where I knew everyone and was used to the group/teachers!“… And so, it began. I taught the class and put a smile on my face doing it. And then waited nervously as everyone got into groups and discussed what was good/bad about my class.

At that point when I was waiting, I then realized that my whole year had been like the feeling I had just then… I had carried my whole year with nerves as I went through my own inner transition. The place of being completely out of my comfort zone with every decision I made… it was a year where I was slowly releasing all my comforts (business, home etc) to embrace the bigger picture.

Finally, it was time for feedback and it went much better than I had hoped. But the usual theme was my voice (being low because of my nerves)… And this is when my teacher, Shiv Charan Singh said: USE YOUR NERVES, it’s where your power lies!

This really inspired me – It just clicked into place… For a lot of my life, I was actually looking at this feeling as being something negative when it was something that we can all really tap into to project our Self and our energy forward.

Here are some of my favorite tips to embrace your nerves and expand your energy flow…

Bring awareness to your body…

Your body and feelings will tell you everything you need to know… bring awareness to it.

Reflection questions:

Is this situation out of your comfort zone?
What kind of nervousness are you feeling? Is it really excitement-nervousness or dreading-nervousness?
Where do you feel it most?
What thoughts are coming up about your self? Are these thoughts the same pattern of thoughts during these moments?
Are you in your mind or in your body? And if you’re up in your mind, try brining your focus back into your body (especially your feet)… What does that feel/change in your self?

If you want to reflect on this, maybe try using visualization: Find a quiet spot to sit/lie comfortably, with a straight spine… Imagine the most nervous situation that you could put your self in and see what your mind/body/emotions bring to you… write it down afterwards. do this a couple of times and see if this changes.

Remember, this is just temporary…

Sometimes, we just get caught in that moment, where it feels like forever! Especially if we feeling a lot of nervousness or strong feelings… this is the time to remind your Self that this is just a moment… it will pass. This moment does not define everything… your power of choice can change it at anytime. Put it into perspective and it will feel easier.

What I like to do if I am about to do something totally out of my comfort zone, is to just focus on each baby step at a time… until the next step comes. Then, it doesn’t all feel so overwhelming!

Explore the power of your breath and navel point…

Take a moment to remember this: Your navel point is where 72000 nerve endings meet, it’s no wonder that this is the place where you will feel a lot of nervousness (and other powerful changes)! This is your Solar Plexus Chakra, which is responsible for facing fears/barriers/old patterns and where we can switch this Chakra energy to channeling Self confidence/moving forward with courage…

If you’re feeling it in this area, you can work and switch that energy with your breath. Breathe deeper into your navel, speak from your navel point… allow your focus to be on this point while you go through each challenge… How different do you feel when you channel that energy?

Visualise the color yellow…

You could also use this visualization as you go through the challenge… imagine that you are glowing a beautiful bright yellow light… all around you and through every cell in your body. This is the color of the solar plexus chakra and it feels strong!

Take a moment, close your eyes, connect with your breath in your navel point and imagine the color yellow radiating your energy outwards! It feels really good 🙂

What other people see and what you are experiencing may be very different!

There is a fine line between the outer/inner world… what we are thinking of our Self, may be very different from how we come across to others. There may be a lot going on within you as you are facing up to each challenge, but others won’t always see this.