Journey to Inner Space:

Losing My Mind to Come to My Senses

by Sihnuu Hetep

I had to lose my mind to come to my senses. For a lot of my young adulthood I was wrapped up in the notion that having deeply expressive emotions was indicative of a lack of control I had over myself. Living in this truth was like being on an endless roller coaster that I stood in line for and did not want to be on in the first place. Every time I held back what I felt, I experienced a plummet. I created peaks in my mind where I’d finally save my self the trouble of staying quiet. Why did I care so much about what everyone else thought? How was I to break free of the imprisonment of my own mind’s fear? Going back to themes of the Root Chakra (see post below), I realized that I had a deep longing for connection, for a tribe where I belonged. So much so that I held my tongue, I hid, I shied away, I minimized my emotions. They were “no big deal.”

The Sacral Chakra, located at the reproductive organs, is governed by the water element and serves as our seat of creation, pleasure, sensuality, and the shadow work that leads us to our most authentic and expressive self. It is here that we feel. Throughout my early 20’s I explored various ways to activate this energy center. I took belly dancing, I practiced tantra with my partner, I birthed two babies back to back ( This was extra activated), I tapped into my creativity with a blog I shared with other sisters. All of these things were extremely healing in ways, yet still there was imbalance. While all of the aforementioned served to nurture my Sacral center there was still an unhealthy containment. The waters of my Sacral Chakra were stagnant. There was no flow. The waves of intense emotion that I felt inside were crashing and so was I. I had to allow the waters to purify any thoughts that led me to believe that my feelings, no matter the gravity, were invalid. I had to feel them. I had to honor my full and authentic self. I had to experience the full spectrum of emotion and not judge myself. In doing this, I also learn to honor my own ability to experience joy and pleasure in life .

Our emotions have the ability to serve as a bridge between the external and internal world. Pleasurable emotions call us to move toward and unpleasant emotions call us to step away. When we make room for pleasure we tell our spiritual selves that there are things in this world that spark a light inside of us, and that’s okay, in fact, it’s healthy. It is our birthright to experience fulfillment, and through personal fulfillment we can formulate personal values, standards for which we allow others to enter our space, and personal validation.

With that said, I invite and encourage you to get all up in ya feels, listen to the messages that your emotions are telling you, and nurture the most important intimate relationship you will ever know in life, the one with self.

Yours in wellness and truth,

Sihnuu Hetep

Follow Sihnuu Hetep on IG and Facebook to stay tuned for more Root Chakra insight.

Join our next IG Live Conversation with Sole on Sensuality and the Feminine Divine 9/23 @ 4pm EST.