Convulsing, spitting, shaking, he nearly gives himself a heart attack. Daily. And his response to fear represents a HUGE lesson:
It’s heartbreaking, but Bella, a precious pug, was mauled by a larger dog as a pup.
Completely fine 12 years later, the real, sustained injury from this event lives in Bear (Bella’s brother).
EVERY TIME we go for a walk (they are temporary additions to my family, while a friend travels), when Bear sees a larger dog, he launches full force (leashed) in the other dog’s direction.
Without fail, 2-3 times a walk (3-4 times a day) these sweet, loving pugs turn reactive out of pure fear.
And while nothing comes of it, Bear creates such immense inner turmoil and agitation, it takes substantial time for him and those with him to calm down.
A vivid example, can you relate to Bear’s overwhelming and debilitating fear-based response? Even slightly?
Unfortunately, we can all be like Bear:
Predicting the worst, defending against it even if it doesn’t unfold, and in the meantime, giving ourselves major agita.
So how do we stop it?
How do we not let our brains (prediction machines that predict the worst) have us take a dive off the deep-end based on a previous experience, disturbing our own equanimity - our own inner ease and peace (and likely activating others)?
It starts with awareness, and a simple pause.
That pause between the stimulus (whatever activates us) and our response is THE KEY to a new response - and thus a different result, creating a WHOLE NEW REALITY. It also builds greater emotional intelligence.
Do you find you get triggered too readily? Too often? Do others on your team get activated without awareness? Habituating that pause, and embracing the power of mindfulness is critical.
I’ve had a blast bringing these tools to organizations and sharing them with our Calm & Connect community.
Part of a team or have friends or contacts that would benefit from these tools? With August being Mental Health Awareness Month, it’s never been a better time to embrace these tools.