Gut feelings, instinct, intuition. Whatever you choose to call it, it’s that guiding light that’s in all of us helping move us forward. And learning to follow your intuition is a powerful resource we can (and should!) tap into.
But you might be asking yourself, what happens when we have trouble tuning in? Are there ways to strengthen our intuition?
The answer is a huge YES! We can absolutely do the work to strengthen this mind, body, soul connection.
Keep reading to learn some super effective, yet super simple ways to help release any blocks that might be preventing you from connecting with your inner guide. In the process you’ll not only help to strengthen your intuition, but also open doors for more creative-thinking and get to know yourself better along the way.
But before we get into that, let’s first talk a little more about why we choose not to follow our intuition in the first place.
Why Do We Ignore Our Intuition?
Detachment/Distraction
Overtime we’ve become more and more detached from ourselves. Our busy, hectic lifestyle, social media, the need for constant perfection and the increase in overall stress and anxiety in our lives has made us more detached from our bodies and minds.
The more detached we are from ourselves and the world around us, the easier it is for us to become distracted and miss the signs. Tuning out the noise and coming back to ourselves will help strengthen this relationship between the mind, body and soul.
Fear
Following your intuition means letting go of conscious, rational thought. It can be scary to feel like we’re letting go, losing control. But one thing we need to remember is that fear will always be there. It’s a safety mechanism created by our ego.
Learning to understand the distinction between fear and intuition is key.
You see our ego wants to keep us “safe.” And safe is where we are right now. We know what right now looks and feels like. It’s much safer to stay in a place we’ve been before, instead of walking blindly into something new. New is scary… new is unknown. That’s how your ego sees it. That’s why fear comes through so loudly. It’s our ego telling us “Hey, you don’t want to do that. You should stay right here. You have no idea what’s waiting for you on the other side.”
And you know what? It’s right. You don’t know what’s on the other side. But what if what’s waiting for you is something incredible? A new career, more money, a better way of life. Trust that inner voice. It’s there to guide you, protect you and help take you further.
Think of your ego as being more surface level. That’s why it’s the easiest for us to feel. But intuition goes much deeper than that. We really need to do the work in order to become more in tune with our true inner thoughts and feelings.
Negative Experiences
When it comes to making decisions, our brains rely on past experiences to help determine the outcome of those decisions we make. Negative experiences can have a way of muddying up the waters. Living in a state of fear or anxiety will make it far more difficult for the intuitive signs to come to the surface.
Confusion
Sometimes we can misunderstand or get confused by the message our inner guide is trying to send. Unfortunately it wont always be clear and it may not always make much sense at the time.
I’m sure we’d all love it if that little voice popped into our heads every now and then and oh so clearly laid out the exact next steps we should take. But sadly our inner voice doesn’t work quite like that. It delivers messages much differently than how we may want them to come. Instead it will show up in unexpected, sometimes unexplainable ways. Like a feeling, a sign, a dream.
Learn to pay attention to signs, patterns and synchronicities. This is how your inner voice communicates. Becoming aware will help you realize when that internal guide is trying to tell you something.
Intuition is a powerful tool that we are all given. But there are ways to develop it and make that little voice just a little louder so it’s easier to hear. Easier to feel.
How to Trust and Strengthen Your Intuition?
Become More In Touch with Your Physical Body
Becoming more in touch with your own body is a great way to help deepen and strengthen the connection to your inner voice.
The below is a great exercise that can help you do just that!
I like to do this before bed. But you can absolutely practice it while sitting on the couch or laying on your yoga mat.
While lying in bed (or wherever you prefer) take notice of everything you feel. Make a mental note of it. The feeling of your head on the pillow. The covers over you. Take notice if you feel any pain or stiffness in any area of your body. Do you feel cold? Warm? Just notice and take in all of the feelings and sensations.
This is a great way to deepen the connection between mind and body awareness.
Become More In Touch with Your Emotions
People who naturally have a stronger sense of intuition tend to be more in tune with their physical bodies as well as their emotions. By becoming more aware of your emotions you will begin to enhance relationships with others and yourself, improve your confidence and become more empathetic towards others.
Meditation can be a great way to create some space to help you connect better with yourself emotionally. But you don’t have to meditate if that’s not your thing.
Simply sitting in a quiet space and listening to how you’re feeling is what the exercise is really all about. Say to yourself how you’re feeling today. What emotions do you feel in this moment? Name them quietly to yourself. Practice this a few times a week to begin to really connect to yourself on an emotional level.
Use Mindfulness Moments
Limiting distractions can have profound, positive benefits to our health and well-being. An exercise that I like to do to help remind me to turn off the auto pilot and stay in the present is something I call mindfulness moments.
Find different things that you do throughout the day and use them as a trigger to turn off the auto-pilot and pull you back into the now.
Some examples of ones I like to use are:
Washing my hands: Whenever my hands are in the water, I use it as a reminder to bring myself back to this moment. I begin paying attention to what’s around me, sights, smells, how the water feels.
This is a great one to use because I’m already doing it multiple times a day throughout the whole day. Even washing dishes has now become a trigger to help bring me back to the present.
Another one is petting my dog.
Or anytime I touch fabric. This can be when I get dressed in the morning, doing laundry or drying my hands with a towel.
These are just some examples of what I use, but you can find whatever works best for you.
Using these subtle acts as reminders have helped me so much to pull myself back to the present and stay more grounded and more aware. Let these soft, simple nudges throughout the day be your reminder to do just that.
Understand When it’s Fear Based.
Following our intuition can be scary. It’s the fear of the unknown that often holds us back. If we can find a way to quiet the fear we can begin to become more aligned with who we are.
When self doubt begins to cloud your judgment take a minute and ask yourself if you’re coming from a place of fear or a place of love?
Whenever you’re unsure, take a moment and recognize how you are feeling. Begin asking yourself a few questions:
- What feels uncertain right now?
- In this current situation, what is out of my control?
- Do I feel safe or do I feel unsecure?
If you determine it’s fear, be compassionate and open yourself up to the possibility that things will work out. This will allow you to begin to calm yourself, making it easier for you to move past the fear and go deeper within yourself.
Wrapping it all Up
Trusting our intuition is a pure and powerful resource that we can all tap into. And one that we absolutely should! Learning to trust ourselves and become more in tune with ourselves will help us connect deeper to our intuition, allowing us to make decisions easier and without fear or judgement getting in the way.
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