TIPS for Meeting Your Personal Needs
Depending on your upbringing - meeting your personal needs can either come easily or be challenging. And often times it can be uncomfortable and unknown. This is dependant on what you've been shown and been subjected to in your early influential years by the care-givers closest to you.
So... What is a need?
As humans we require fulfilling aspects of this life to feel aligned, grounded and ultimately OKAY. And looking at this from a holistic view-point helps give us a deeper understanding of where our needs show up in our reality.
Our physical body needs nourishment, water, sunlight, air, physical movement, strength and intimacy. Our emotional body needs space, validation and understanding to sensory process the sensations we experience. Our mental mind needs stimulation, conversation, exercise, understanding and reflection to continue to grow and remain aligned. Spiritually - It is valuable to explore and find fulfillment within your purpose. AND we are highly connected beings and have a deep need for acceptance and belonging - the need to feel seen, heard, held, understood and unconditionally loved - just for existing.
It's valuable to consider your relationship with meeting your personal needs - take a moment and grab your journal and consider the following exploration...
Read the question prompts for the day you're journalling - Set your timer for 10 minutes - Put your pen to the page and begin writing what comes up for you - Work to let go of judgement and step into remaining curious about your experience - This exploration provides great value in shifting your experience with meeting your personal needs - Be honest and compassionate with yourself, it can be heavy realizing you have been neglecting yourself because it's what you're used to.
DAY ONE > what is my definition of a personal need? what is my experience with meeting my personal needs? Has my experience with meeting my needs remained the same throughout my life?
DAY TWO > am I able to connect my experience with meeting my personal needs in the present with my experience in my past? Does this experience match anything I felt growing up? Was this way of being modelled by any of my primary care-givers during my young influential years? Am I able to outline the foundational beliefs I have around meeting my personal needs and do I know where these beliefs come from?
DAY THREE > am I able to easily identify my personal need calling for attention and focus? Am I able to determine these needs in the moment of activation (in real time)? Do I step into meeting my needs when I am aware there is one calling to be fulfilled or do I ignore my intuition and neglect what my being is longing for? When I am unable to meet my personal needs within myself, am I able to reach for support and ask other for help in meeting my needs?
DAY FOUR > are there any patterns I can connect? Are there any common needs not being met, impacting multiple areas of my life? What areas in my life am I neglecting my needs?
DAY FIVE > what would it feel like being open and approaching meeting my personal needs with love, respect and compassion? What would this look like? feel like? how would I operate in this space of always meeting a need that presents itself?
DAY SIX > what mindset shifts can I lean into to begin meeting my own needs? what shifts do I need to make within myself to openly step in and navigate meeting my personal needs at all times? Is there outside support I require to make this happen? Do I need to ask someone in my circle to hold me accountable to meeting my personal needs?
DAY SEVEN > from my exploration this week - what are my main take-aways? what will I bring forward with me into everyday for the rest of my life? What shifts have I already been able to make this week? what shift will I be focusing on next week?
TIP
The way you step into meeting your personal needs is a habitual pattern, until you become consciously aware. Once you are aware of what's going on for you - this gives you the space and opportunity to let go of what's no longer working for you and open up to what is. Letting go of neglecting yourself and stepping into meeting your personal needs in every moment - in the way that feels good for you.