Do You Ever Feel That Way?

Every person, real and fictional, feels sad, scared, or overwhelmed sometimes. I’d like you to think of a superhero or another fictional character that has ever felt sad or scared. What was going on in that situation? Write about it or draw it in the space below. What would you say to this character in the situation if you could actually talk to them in that situation? Write about it or draw your response in the space below. Have you ever known anyone else who also felt similar emotions as this character has felt? If yes, imagine that you could say something to support that person. Do you ever feel that way? If so, what do you think you could say to yourself in the same caring way that you treated your friend and the superhero you wrote about? Write about it or draw your response in the space below. Believe it or not, we can learn ways of discovering our inner sense of magical abilities through connecting with our emotions. And, just like some of the magical lessons Harry Potter and his friends learn at Hogwarts, we can also learn to find the magic within our emotional experiences. All emotions that we feel are necessary and informative. They tell us what we are feeling and what we need. Our emotions are the root of our magical potential and if we learn how to use them, we can learn how to help our hearts and souls to heal. For this part of the exercise, take a few minutes to sit still and just notice how you are feeling, almost as if tuning into your Spidey senses.

A Face In The Crowd

Just notice how and what you are feeling. Notice the sensations in your chest and stomach, since that’s where most of our emotions live. Notice if you are feeling sad, angry, frustrated, scared, worried, excited, or any other emotions. Notice where in your body you are feeling these emotions and how you are experiencing them. Just notice these sensations for a few minutes. Remind yourself that this might be that difficult moment that you experience from time to time. Is there a word or a phrase you can say to yourself as a reminder? This is one of those difficult moments. It’s happening right now. I feel scared, sad, and alone. Take a few moments to recognize that just like you, millions of people are also feeling this way right now in this very moment. Millions of people are also sad, scared, angry, anxious, worried, overwhelmed, or bored. Your experience is perfectly normal, completely understandable, and anyone in your situation would feel the same way.

Further On Up The Road

Remind yourself that just like you, your favorite hero, real or fictional, has also dealt with a lot of similar struggles. For example, I’m feeling very alone right now, like Harry Potter has felt, or I’m feeling a lot of grief and sadness right now, just like Batman has felt. Write out what you might say to yourself to remind you that you are not alone in this experience. In the same way as you would be kind toward another person who is going through the same experience, in the same way as Dumbledore would be kind to Harry, or any other students, see if you can find kindness toward yourself. Try placing your arms around yourself to give you a hug, hug a pillow, or gently press on your heart centre with both hands. All of these actions can release the oxytocin chemical into your body. This chemical can help you heal, can help you to find peace when you are struggling, like a hug from a dear friend. Notice what you need. Notice if you need a hug, or to rest, or to be reassured, and see if there is any way that you can support yourself in the very way that you need. Because you are magical. Write out something you might say to yourself in this situation next time you are feeling this way. You didn’t deserve to be treated that way.

Forgive Others

I see your pain and you are not alone. Oxytocin is a neuropeptide secreted by the hypothalamus. Chanteil reports that at one point the abuse had become so bad that she considered suicide. In rebuilding our own inner strength, recharging our own battery, we can be more emotionally present for other people. This finding does not only apply to our clients. This also applies to us, the clinicians. The ability to support ourselves by attending to our own physical and emotional needs can offer us the resilience that we need to reduce emotional burnout and to better attend to our clients, especially when we are experiencing empathic distress. Empathic distress refers to a concern for the wellbeing of others and a severe distress when seeing them suffering. Use this as the basis for a script when working with the client. For example, we might see a dear friend fall down and get hurt or we might see someone crying because they lost their dog, or perhaps because their family member passed away. Seeing other people in physical or emotional pain can be painful for us as well. Our heart hurts because that’s what it was designed to do. When we love someone, we hurt when they hurt. However, this pain can also happen when we see someone we don’t know who might be suffering. In this case, it might be our love for humanity, for animals, for living beings that is causing us to feel this way. Imagine that each time you are breathing in, you are breathing in healing magic of love. Imagine breathing in this magic through your nose or mouth, and then imagine it spreading all through your body. Offering you much needed love, kindness, and support. Imagine that each time you are breathing out, you are sending that healing magic toward the person or animal that is suffering, whether you know them or whether you have never met them.