Inner Peace Tool ~ Taming the Inner Critic

(The following is a portion of an article that appeared in The Healing Point Newsletter. I just received this article from my Laughter Yoga Teacher. It was profound and I had to blog it!)

Most of us are familiar with the Inner Critic. You know, that pesky individual living inside our heads telling us we're stupid, worthless and/or ugly. Yes, that's the one. Very few of us having an Inner Cheerleader telling us that we're super, fabulous and magnificent, so the Inner Critic usually gets a significant amount of air time.

The Inner Critic has a considerable impact on our bodies as well. It deceives us by disguising itself as anxiety, depression or stress. This is how it occurs: When we grow emotionally, it's normal for us to experience an expansion. In exceeding our previous state of being, we become more of ourselves. Thanks to growth, we feel more competent, knowledgeable, powerful and at peace. Then after this, a contraction usually takes place. We need time to integrate our new experiences and to rest after the strides we've just made. This is a natural cycle.

Enter the Inner Critic. It witnesses this cycle and seeks a perfect opportunity to wreck havoc on our growth. Catching us in the contraction when we're usually a little vulnerable, it feeds on minor setbacks and taunts us about our expansion: "Who do you think you are getting that promotion? You're sure to fail!" "Who do you think you are taking some times off? You're not being productive!" "Who do you think you are starting your own business? You won't make it financially!"

And, if there are any little set backs occurring, the Critic latches onto those as well. "See, you can't make it on your own – not enough money is coming in!" "See, you're not going to get that book published. The agent just rejected your query letter!" ...And on and on it goes.

When this happens, our growth can become severally sabotaged if we listen to what the Critic tells us. Not only that, our bodies become at risk for collapse. This is because every time we believe what the Critic says, our energy becomes constricted. Instead of letting our energy flow with delight at our growth, we block our energy in fear or defeat. We suck in our breath, our muscles become tight and the migraines start. We label this as stress but in reality, it's the inner Critic telling us we're worthless, our lives are a mess and we're not allowed to be happy.

We must learn to tame the Inner Critic or we'll experience chronic stress. We do this by being gentle with ourselves, by encouraging ourselves and by accepting ourselves for simply being.

Feel deep within yourself that you are okay regardless of what's going on, how you feel or what your mind is telling you. When we feel this way deep within ourselves, our bodies relax, energy flows and ironically, things really do turn out okay. We have to teach the Inner Critic this because it hasn't learned it yet.

By: Lise Porter, Licensed Therapist ~ www.liseporter.com