Finding Fuel Within Ourselves by Raelin Bell
What gives me energy? Each morning, I wake up still slightly tired from the night before. Full-time mom, full-time college student, and part-time employee, it can be exhausting, overwhelming, and even stressful managing it all sometimes. Some mornings, coffee isn’t enough to get me up and going. So I’ve decided to dig deeper to find out what really fuels me.
I’ve found that the most important things in my life are what give me that spark of energy to get through the day, no matter how I might be feeling inside.
The thing that fuels me the most is my daughter. I love being a mom. If I’m feeling tired, sick, or sad, it all gets put to the side so that she can always be taken care of. She motivates me more than anything in this world. She gives me the energy to keep the house clean, do my homework, and show up to my job each day. Whatever I do she is always pushing me to be the best I can possibly be in the back of my mind. I am so blessed to have her as my biggest supporter and motivation. She isn’t the only thing that fuels me, although she is the most important influence.
There are times I need to sit down and give myself a serious pep talk to get started with the day; on these days I am simply lacking some form of energy. The five layers of energy include physical, etheric, emotional, mental, and spiritual forms of energy.
I have looked within myself to find which aspects of my life drive me and connect with each of these forms of energy. Physically, my body feels fueled and energized when I’m eating properly and drinking plenty of water throughout the day. I am twenty-three weeks pregnant with my second daughter and on the days I am not properly fueling my body with proper nutrition, it really takes a toll on how I feel. Some days it is harder to become physically motivated than others and that’s okay! We all deserve a break.
Etheric energy is known to be the first layer in the human energy field. It is what keeps track of our overall health and wellness. When I’m not taking care of myself properly, I find myself feeling depressed, anxious, moody, tired, and all of the things no one enjoys feeling. To protect my etheric energy, I have found that I enjoy taking a moment to relax, a warm shower, or reading a good book to help reset my mind.
Emotional energy is one that I must work on the most. Protecting my emotional energy by keeping my emotions intact is key. Emotional energy is exactly what it sounds like, it is the energy source within our emotions. Emotions can come in waves, happy, sad, excited, scared, angry, whatever emotion we are feeling, we must try our best to live with it for the periods we are experiencing it. I have found that breathing exercises work wonders for me when it comes to healthily feeling my big emotions. Taking a moment to think, breathe, and reflect before I speak, especially when feeling angry has changed my life for the better. Words can really hurt someone so take a moment to reflect before letting your emotional energy get the best of you in tough situations.
When I think of mental energy, I think of any task that might involve deeper thinking. School work, decision-making, or driving for example. Mental energy affects decision-making, plans, and the way we evaluate things. Mental energy is also what motivates you. I asked myself, what motivates me? For me, I am very determined to finish college for example. The motivation behind this is my daughter. I want to become a teacher; I have a little under two years left before I graduate. Not only am I passionate about educating, I love being around kids and a teacher's schedule will allow me to be on the same schedule as my girls which is another big motivational factor for me. Mental energy is what drives you, keeping it strong and active is extremely important. What motivates you?
Spiritual forms of energy can consist of your mind, consciousness, body, or soul. There are many ways to be in touch with your spiritual energy. To be in touch with my spiritual energy, I enjoy going into nature. Sitting outside in the morning and just breathing in the fresh air makes me feel refreshed and ready to start the day. Taking a walk, hike, or going on a picnic are a few other things I enjoy doing that make me feel like I am in touch with my mind, body, and soul. Other ways to be in touch with your spiritual energy are through meditation, music, acceptance, or whatever you want it to be for you when you look inside yourself and think about what spiritual energy means to you.
We all use energy in our everyday life, all five layers. Each layer is unique, but all are connected in some way. The way we feel is all connected into one. I have enjoyed looking into the five forms of energy and figuring out what fuels me in each category. Although my daughter is the main fuel to my fire, I have found that it goes even deeper than that. Each of us are unique in our own ways and what works for me might not work for everyone else, but I hope that everyone finds the time to look inside themselves and figure out what fuels them to keep going every day.
Additional tools for when you may be in crisis:
U.S. Crisis Text Line: 741-741
Ohio Mobile Response and Stabilization Services: 1-888-418-MRSS (6777)