Understanding Your Energy
Everything is made of energy per Albert Einstein’s famous equation: E = MC2 .
There is a Universe out there that is invisible, but it doesn’t make it any less real. Just because you can’t see oxygen or most of the air we breathe doesn’t make it less valuable. You can’t see gravity, but it’s still operating. You can’t see your thoughts or emotions, but they dictate the quality of your life.
Similarly, you probably can’t see energy around you (some healers can), or feel it moving through you, but it’s there. And it has a huge impact on your life, perhaps unbeknownst to you.
Different Types of Energy
To understand you, you need to remember that you are composed of 4 states or realms of being—physical, emotional, mental, spiritual. You are holistic. When looking at your energy, you want to consider and respect all 4 realms.
At the end of the day, energy is energy, and it all goes into your one energy bucket. It’s all integrated. Each type of energy affects the other types of energy. By dividing energy into these 4 realms, it helps your mind make sense of it, and you manage your energy better simply because you take different actions for each realm.
Physical Energy
You only have so much physical energy. Getting a good night’s rest will make all
the difference in the world in determining your level of physical energy as your day begins. What you eat and drink also greatly impacts your physical energy. How much you move your body and stretch is another contributor. Physical energy is greatly impacted by emotional energy.
Emotional Energy
Emotional energy is the energy generated by your feelings. Your feelings are driven by your subconscious mind, which is where your thoughts and beliefs are housed as well. You have a thought or believe something to be true, and it either generates a positive or negative feeling.
Most people want to escape their vulnerable, “negative” feelings. So they turn to addictive substances and behaviors as a means to calm them. For example, being overweight is a manifestation of “wanting to deaden the senses or feelings.” I remember reading this in a Louise Hay book, You Can Heal Your Life, a long time ago, because I’ve struggled with being 20 pounds overweight.
Mental Energy
This is the energy generated by your thoughts. Ever heard of decision fatigue? This can happen when you’ve been inundated with a bunch of new mental material to digest and comprehend. It’s like your brain hurts. When you sleep, you rest your brain. Your subconscious is always thinking and working, even when you’re not consciously aware of it.
You know what your subconscious thoughts and beliefs are based on how you feel. If you’re feeling happy, you’ve got some positive beliefs operating. If you’re feeling sad or frustrated, it’s an indication of some negative beliefs.
Spiritual Energy
This is the energy generated by your spirit or soul, that which goes on and is neither created or destroyed when your physical body dies. My bias is that this is your true essence, who you really are, when you strip away all of the stories of your unique life.
Signs of Energy Depletion and Burnout
This may sound obvious but when you’re burnt out, you’ll experience feelings of overwhelm, like “I can’t do one more thing.” Your stress bucket (the opposite of the energy bucket) will be full.
It feels like walking around with an exposed wound on your arm. The slightest brush against the wound causes you to recoil in pain because you “have a short fuse.” Every little thing gets on your nerves.
Techniques for Recharging Your Energy
Physical Practices
As mentioned above, you need to tend to your physical body by eating cleanly most of the time, drinking good quality water most of the time, limiting alcohol, tobacco and drugs, getting good rest, and moving your body with an activity you enjoy.
The above is no small task though I lumped it into a small paragraph. You may find yourself resistant to taking care of your body, like many are. If so, start with acknowledging you have a physical body, and become open to the idea of taking care of your vessel while having this human experience.
TIP: You can help calm the body through your breath. While keeping the mouth closed, tongue touching the roof of the mouth, take a deep breath in, to the count of 4, hold your breath for 7 seconds, and exhale through the nose for 8 seconds. Repeat 3 times.
This is a good practice to get in touch with your body and stop dissociating from it. Then ask yourself, “Body, what do you need from me?” Maybe it’s a glass of water.
Emotional Practices
One of my favorite emotional practices is Emotional Freedom Techniques (a/k/a tapping). You can quickly calm your nervous system with this energy technique based on the ancient practice of acupuncture. EFT is like acupuncture without the needles. You tap on several energy meridians around the body, while tuning into what you’re feeling.
EFT is simple, easy to learn, and very effective. I typically journal for 5 minutes before I tap for 5 minutes.
TIP: Learn EFT today and begin using it 5 minutes daily to tap on what you’re feeling. It will allow you to release pent up emotion that creates disease in the body if not expressed.
Mental Practices
A good mental practice will help you to question your beliefs and proactively choose ones that serve you to live a positive life to the best of your ability.
Note that I’m not talking about spiritually bypassing, where you’re falsely positive because you don’t want to feel those uncomfortable feelings. I’m talking about truly being aware of yourself and accepting ALL parts of you, warts and all.
I meditate daily, write in a gratitude journal, and practice Positive Intelligence as created by Shirzad Chamine.
TIP: Start with a small practice. What if you meditated 5 minutes or even less? Getting started is the hardest part. Or write down 5 things you’re grateful for in a pretty journal?
Spiritual Practices
What makes you feel closer to the Creator/Universe/God? Do you have a relationship with Source? Perhaps you’ve defined God according to your childhood upbringing. Some people have “small god syndrome,” where they believe God isn’t big enough to handle their suffering, or wouldn’t care enough about their inconsequential, daily struggle.
If your Creator is an angry father figure, is it time to change that definition and reconnect? My bias is that God is Love and never rejects us, no matter what appears in our human story.
TIP: What if you began a daily ritual of prayer to a Creator whom you define in a more favorable light? Your definition of a Creator might be Nature or the Universe. Make it work for you. Gazing upon Nature in all its beauty can really awaken within you the energy of God.
Conclusion
You are made of energy, and that energy is neither created or destroyed when you die. You have only so much energy at the beginning of the day. It is composed of physical, emotional, mental and spiritual energy that gets depleted as your mind interprets reality, whether something is good or bad.
In this blog, we looked at what each type of energy is and how to replenish it. There are many ways to increase your energy in each realm of physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.
Before you approach burnout where you feel like you “can’t do one more thing,” consider replenishing your energy as a holistic being. Honor your body’s need for healthy fuel and movement.
Tap into and acknowledge your emotions/feelings with EFT and journaling. Realize you have a very powerful mind that can and will work for you if you direct the beliefs that are feeding your feelings.
Lastly, remember who you are. You come from an unknown Source which is forever and always your true essence. Redefine this critical aspect of your existence if your relationship is currently disconnected.
Much Love,
Angie Monko,
Life Coach for Intuitive Women Leaders
