How to Surrender: 3 Ways to Activate your Inner Knowing
About 12 years ago, I was a party girl living in Los Angeles and I found myself at a crossroads.
At some point I realized that I was tired.
For a while, the LA lifestyle was a thrill. I had cool friends, went to parties, met musicians, danced under bright lights and made some really wild memories. But I wasn’t healthy, and my life story just was not progressing in a way that made me feel good. I wasn’t proud of myself. And more than anything, I felt deeply disconnected from who I was as a person.
I was aging out of the party scene and it dawned on me: I did NOT want to be a 50-year-old woman booking DJ’s and doing recreational drugs on the weekends! I was meant for more than this. Much more.
The problem is, I had no education and very little money. I mean sure, I could keep booking bands, get a service industry job or work in production…but none of those felt like my life’s purpose.
I wasn’t religious, and frankly I was not even spiritual at the time. But I found myself in deep need of guidance.
I began working at a Yoga studio and attending yoga classes. It felt good and I was feeling more connected to my body. But even during my early days of yoga I was depressed beyond belief, full of anxiety, broke and using drugs. I felt alone.
Yoga was helpful. I was meeting kind, positive people. And it got me thinking about how disconnected I felt from others. In yoga there is a special pose called “Shavasana”, also known as corpse pose. You lay there and allow your body and mind to completely relax. My yoga instructor emphasized the importance of this pose.
It was about a lot more than just deep breathing or relaxing your muscles.
My instructor said something that set my entire future in motion during yoga one day: “During shavasana, you get to be reborn.”
Those were like magic words to me. I laid there, sprawled out, and I felt my soul give in.
Rebirth. Redemption. The absence of fear, sadness or constraint.
I completely surrendered control.
I imagined myself as worthy, healthy, radiant, capable. I envisioned that everything I had done wrong, all my mistakes and rough times, were being wiped clean. I imagined that under those hard years and dark moments of desperation there was a light, glowing all along.
I felt myself rising higher, higher and higher. Feeling the warmth of that light shining on me. And I asked the question…”will you guide me?”
I felt myself tuning in, ready to listen. Ready to accept whatever challenge or journey was given to me.
And the voice that answered said, “You have to teach.” I felt it deep in my being that it was time for me to be of service: to show up, to help others become healthier and happier, and to have an impact…all while healing myself the way I deserved.
That’s when I felt my practical mind speak up.
See, I might have been in the middle of a spiritual awakening but none of us are perfect…and I had questions for this voice.
What could I teach?! I had no education!
Who am I to teach anyone, anything? I had royally messed up my life.
How could I help others when I was so unhealthy myself?
All of these doubts were dragging me down, and farther away from the light I now KNEW lived inside me. I felt myself getting farther from that voice and I couldn’t let that happen. I was not going to let fear, doubt or insecurity win! Not this time.
That is when my Intuition became my guide.
I decided that I had nothing to lose. “Show me the signs,” I asked. “Guide me. I trust you.”
Signs began showing up at every corner.
At first I began thinking about becoming a yoga teacher or an acupuncturist. I wanted to teach others to get close to that light too, and to feel like the best versions of themselves. These paths seemed plausible but not totally aligned.
About a week after my shavasana moment, I walked out of my yoga class and a man walked up to me. His name was Matt Anderson and he said, “I heard you like essential oils?”
I laughed.
“Oh, that’s my mom!”
My mom came to the yoga studio sometimes and she was crazy about essential oils. Everyone knew her as the oil lady.
“I have an essential oil mom. She loves them.”
Matt said that he too had an oil mom. And he started talking to me about doTERRA. He pulled out a bottle of Whisper essential oil blend and I smelled it. I was deeply moved by that first inhale.
I kept smelling it and I was so in love! The aroma bypassed any reason or practicality. I needed it. Every cell in my body needed it.
Matt started telling me about doTERRA: “It’s a new company that wants to bridge the gap between alternative medicine and western medicine. doTERRA is looking for educators. They are looking for people who want to teach other people about essential oils."
It was like a hand-delivered message from the universe.
I was meant to teach about using oils, and I knew it right then and there.
I had to jump. I had to say yes. And I said yes with SUCH blind faith! I knew that it was the right path, and that I was going to be able to make an income and that everything was absolutely going to work out.
I bought my starter kit with the only money in my bank account and devoured information on how to teach people how to use them. I wanted to become amazing at teaching, and I wanted to change lives.
So, you might be wondering why I’m telling you all of this…
You don’t have to go to Yoga class to activate your intuition. You don’t have to spend the last $100 you have to your name. But Activating your Intuition is about accessing your own inner knowing, and surrendering to the gifts, messages and abundance it has for you.
No matter who you are, what you have been through or what you’re doing right now, you too have the opportunity to be reborn too. It is never too late for you to become who you were meant to be.
I have a few tips for you to surrender and tune in. These are
3 Ways to Activate your Intuition:
Practice Mindfulness Daily
Mindfulness could be yoga, meditation or walking in nature. It can be any activity that allows you to become fully present and aware of yourself. The truth is, we are so disconnected. We are either working, helping other people (I’m looking at you, moms!) on our phones or going from place to place without thought. We are not taught to tune in, and often our lifestyles contribute to a sense of deep longing for more.
This is especially true for you if you have ever been through significant periods of trauma and being present might not feel safe. If you find yourself frequently projecting your thoughts into your past or romanticizing your future, it is time to work on becoming mindful and present.
If we spend all of our time worrying, being anxious, overthinking our past or idealizing our future, we are never fully in the moment that we are in. We are not connected. And we are blocked from fully experiencing our life’s possibilities.
Practice mindfulness daily in the form of a nature walk, meditation, or yoga and put down your phone. Notice your breath. Look at your surroundings with a completely open heart. Take in the light, the sounds, the smells. Become part of the moment you are in.
Journal
Journaling is an incredibly helpful tool for activating your intuition. Journaling can help us connect with our deepest desires and intentions!
The most important thing about journaling is to pour out your soul onto a page with no editing or thought. Just let it flow. Journal for yourself, not for anyone else.
Journal about your own rebirth.
What if you had a completely clean slate?
What does it feel like to be completely free?
What does that warm glow inside you feel like?
What makes you feel closer to the light?
What makes you feel father away?
Who are you, really? Deep inside?
What is your purpose?
Anoint your 3rd eye with Frankincense
When I began using oils, I fell in love with them as if they were my new best friends. My first was Whisper blend, and I highly recommend it if you need a warm, comforting and maternal hug.
One of my favorite essential oils is Frankincense. It became very important for me when I began to work on my own mindfulness and my own connection to my inner voice, that warm glow inside me, and the energy I surrender myself to every day. I use it constantly because spiritually, Frankincense is an oil of divine connection and surrender.
Swipe the top of the bottle with your thumb and gently anoint your 3rd eye (above the bridge of your nose, between your eyes) with Frankincense. I like to do this before I journal, meditate, practice yoga, and ask for guidance in any way.
Frankincense makes me feel connected. It is a powerful oil and a little goes a long way. I also use it to help me with anxious feelings and stress!