The Whiplash Effect
I’ve been exploring an ongoing energetic pattern in my life lately and as I’ve been sharing it with some people in my life, I have found that they can relate to this pattern in some capacity.
It’s one of those patterns that has been so deeply engrained in me that I couldn’t see it fully.
But when it finally revealed itself, I couldn’t unsee it.
So what is this energetic pattern?
Well, in therapy I’ve been calling it the Tornado but for this I am calling it the Whiplash.
The pattern goes a little something like this:
1.) The Fixation
This is the initial phase of become energetically focused / fixated on something: a job, a relationship (friendship or romantic), a hobby, a program / field of study, a goal
The “thing” may not even be the thing that is the most aligned (although in the moment, it occurs that it is) but it is the thing that has captured us for better or worse
2.) “I’m Going In (and no one can stop me)
The next phase is were we put *all* energy towards this point of focus / fixation
This can look like trying to
“make it work”
“figure it out”
“Fix it”
“Not fail”
“Be the best”
“Master it”
Sometimes this can be joyful energy and sometimes it can be struggle energy
3.) The Losing of energetic boundaries
When we are focused on said thing and fall into this pattern, we are usually giving it all of our attention and even if we are not physically engaging with it, there is still an ongoing energy cord (like an umbilical cord) attached that is feeding it
I also call this phase the “Tornado” because it’s when we try to bring everything around us into our fixation / energy vortex (and you know what happens when a tornado finally stops…….(hint: everything falls to the ground))
4.) The (Uneven) Energy Balance
From the jump, we may be giving a high level of energy at an unsustainable rate without checking how we are feeling or checking the balance with whatever we are in relationship with.
5.) The “Wake Up Call”
At some point a breaking point is reached and whatever you want to call it - Higher Self, the Universe, Ancestors, Spirit, God - interferes and creates a literal Wake Up call (in traditional tarot, it might be seen as a Tower moment).
Sometimes it’s created internally and sometimes external events cause it but historically for me personally, it has almost always been jarring
I will have almost an out of body experience where I leave my body, see myself and my life from the outside and then come crashing back down to Earth and back into my body
6.) The Whiplash
During the Wake Up Call what usually happens is that the Soul has downloaded the information of what happened, what is happening now and what needs to happen moving forward to course correct but the body has not caught up. The dissonance between the two can create intense confusion and anxiety
Because of the (usually unconscious) unsustainable energy output, a pendulum swing occurs in an attempt to balance out the imbalance where then all of the energy that was going out needs to be re-directed back to the Self
During this phase it can feel like whiplash to you and if there’s other people involved, to them as well since there was a precedent (and possibly a dependency) of the amount of your energy being given (probably a near constant flow) that is now suddenly being taken away
7.) The Course Correct
During this phase, as the dust begins to settle and your Energy is returned to you and the information starts to assimilate as to WTF just happened, insights start to pop up.
There might be a lot of emotions during this phase to process: regret, shame, guilt, anger, exhaustion, ambivalence
Maybe you start to see where things went off course and perhaps what part you played in all of it
This can be a very healing stage if we allow it to be because we can give an opportunity to reflect how this came to be and how to manage it moving forward
I have found that it’s not always just *one* thing that has created this energetic pattern. Here are a few things that have helped me understand where this pattern came from and how to work with it:
1.) Human Design
If you don’t know your Human Design, I highly recommend you look into it as it will give you a big indication about how you run your energy. You can find out your Design here.
I am a 6/2 Projector which means that I am literally designed to give my energy in intense bursts and my ongoing life work will be how to best work with that (and use it as the gift that it is).
2.) Reflect
We can ask ourselves some maybe uncomfortable questions like:
“what is the pay off I am receiving by perpetuating this pattern?”
Or
“What am I protecting myself from with this pattern?”
I found when I answered this that the answers aren’t always so pretty. Some of my roots are a fear that I am “behind” and must put forth intense energy to “keep up” as well as being afraid to fail.
3.) Energetic Boundaries
Do you have them (lol)? I discussed in my last newsletter how you can begin to tune into them but if you know you are someone who likes to jump into things full force, energetic boundaries are not a “nice to have.” They are a must have, especially if you identify as Highly Sensitive.
These will help you make sure you are attuned to when you are feeling drained and when something in yourself or in the dynamic needs to shift.
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