5 Habits to Direct Your Path through Intuition, not Anxiety.
Are you making daily decisions out of intuition or anxiety? While I believe we can use both to navigate a fulfilling life, anxiety often undermines the sweet, deep, dark knowing of our intuition.
And it’s a growing challenge with collective impact. Today, nearly 24% of women in the U.S. are struggling with an anxiety disorder. If you’re acquainted with the storm of symptoms (nausea, fatigue, insomnia, irritability), you know how terribly distant anxiety can make you feel from your true self. It’s painful. And it can keep us stuck.
I was stuck (for years) in a toxic relationship that made me feel miles(!) away from myself. My intuition was there, patiently humming soft words of understanding, but my anxious mind worked hard to bury an uncomfortable truth.
This was in my twenties, a time spent learning how to trust our inner voice while navigating the world, the world’s expectations, and our first serious relationships. So if you’re here too, please have self-compassion because you’re in good company.
And I want you to know that the journey home is within reach. Practicing daily habits (even just one!) to rebuild your inner connection can help you make decisions that feel deeply right, decisions that direct your highest path.
Here are my top 5 habits I use and recommend to strengthen intuition and reduce anxiety:
1) Listen to your biological impulses.
If you have to pee, pee.
If you have to eat, eat.
if you’re tired, go to sleep.
The more we ignore these impulses, the quieter they get and the more disconnected we become from our bodies (and in turn, our intuition).
2) Dissociation check
It’s completely normal to decompress and dissociate to an extent. But are you mindlessly scrolling more than usual? Are you binging on shows more often than not? If you’re checking out more than you’re checking in, just notice this.
The next step is to take a walk, stretch, or even just a few deep breaths with zero distractions and ask yourself gently: Is there an uncomfortable thought, feeling, or reality I’m trying to avoid?
A simple breathing exercise you can do is inhale for 4 counts, hold at the top for a second or two, and then exhale for 8 counts. Repeat this at least 10 times or set a timer for 1-2 minutes.
3) A Simple Question
Whenever anxiety kicks in, I ask myself, where has my mind taken me? Has it taken me back to a past experience, or has it taken me to the future of what could be? It’s usually one or the other.
Once you recognize this, try to bring yourself back to the present moment.
4) Write regularly, even just a sentence or two!
Journaling is not super popular in our digital world but it’s valuable. Simply connecting pen to paper taps into something deeper than the Notes app. And if it feels quiet and deep? You’re getting closer to intuition.
Here’s a prompt I like to use when I’m stuck in the thick of things.
Whenever you feel anxious, write down what you’re thinking (it’s your journal and there’s no judgment). Then, ask yourself these questions:
1. Is it true?
2. Is it absolutely true?
3. How does the thought make you feel? What happens and how do you act when you believe that thought? What’s the outcome of that thought?
4. How would you feel not having that thought? Who would you be without it? How would you act? What would the outcome be?
5. Turn the original thought around. If the original thought is: I’m not good enough. The opposite of that would be: I am good enough.
6. Ask yourself, is that true?
If you can find at least one example proving that you are good enough, you’ll slowly begin to release the negative thoughts triggering the anxiety.
5) Time to move!
After that great work journaling, it’s time for movement, music, and anything that makes you feel human!
Embodiment practices are popular for a reason. They take us out of our overstimulated mind and into a place where our intuition resides (not sure exactly where. Near the heart??)
Need some high-vibe inspo? Here are my personal playlists on Spotify:
The RESET - Mantras & Affirmations
Xx
Evelyn
P.S. Intuition is critical when making the best decisions for your health, your literal life! I can’t tell you how many times I left doctor appointments feeling defeated (like I betrayed myself in some mysterious way). I share more about this in my healing journey post.
I also have a program you might like: The 45-Day Hormone Reset will help you begin your hormone-balancing journey while getting reacquainted with your inner authority. AKA: Your intuition!