Hangups take a lot of energy.
What is a hangup in this context?
A hangup is the same as an identification which means identifying with the viewpoint of a thought or story so we perceive the world through that lens. We “become” that viewpoint and live our life as if we are that viewpoint. We perceive and act as if we are it.
It’s the same as taking a thought as true, real, and substantial.
It’s the same as velcro. Thoughts and sensations that seem “stuck” together so the sensations give the thoughts a sense of substance and reality and the thoughts give meaning to the sensations.
A hangup comes from trauma when trauma is broadly defined. A hangup is something the mind seeks refuge and safety in, and it does so out of care or love, and out of unexamined and unloved fear. And that comes from and is trauma.
Why do hangups take energy?
Hangup takes mental energy since the mind tends to be drawn to looping thoughts relating to the topic of the hangup.
They take emotional energy due to the underlying fear which is either dormant, chronically low grade, or triggered.
And hangups take physical energy since they require muscle contractions to exist. The only way we can have a hangup (or identity, belief, trauma) is for sensations to lend substance to the related thoughts, and the only way the mind can have easy access to these sensations is through muscle contraction. If the hangup is chronic, the related muscle contraction will be chronic. If it is triggered more sporadically, the obvious muscle contractions will be more sporadic as well, although there will tend to be a low-grade chronic muscle contraction.
What happens when a hangup is released?
When a hangup is released, there is often a sense of lightness, relief, and more available energy. For instance, we may have an impulse to start or engage with a project that’s meaningful to us but we didn’t have the energy or motivation to spend much time on before.
In some cases, the release of a hangup may feel a bit confusing or even a let-down, but even here the longer term result is a sense of lightness (from reduced muscle contractions) and access to more energy.
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Initial notes..….
- hangups take a lot of energy
- “bind” mental and physical energy
- mentally – drawn to looping thoughts/emotions + typically creates problems in life (friction)
- physically – identification = muscle contraction
- so when released, often feel lighter, more optimistic, more energy available, more engaged, more ready to do what we want to do in life
Initial drafts…..
What is a hangup in this context? A hangup is the same as an identification, identifying with the viewpoint of a thought or story so we perceive the world through that lense. Or taking a thought as true, real, and substantial. Or velcro where thoughts and sensations that seem “stuck” together so the sensations give the thoughts a sense of substance and reality and the thoughts give meaning to the sensations. All of these can take the form of trauma, and any hangup is trauma when trauma is broadly defined. A hangup is something the mind seeks refuge and safety in.
…….
Hangups take a lot of energy.
What is a hangup in this context? A hangup is the same as an identification which means identifying with the viewpoint of a thought or story so we perceive the world through that lense. We “become” that viewpoint and live our Or taking a thought as true, real, and substantial. Or velcro where thoughts and sensations that seem “stuck” together so the sensations give the thoughts a sense of substance and reality and the thoughts give meaning to the sensations.
A hangup comes from trauma when trauma is broadly defined. A hangup is something the mind seeks refuge and safety in, and it does so out of care or love, and out of unexamined and unloved fear.
Why do hangups take energy? Hangup takes mental energy since the mind tends to be drawn to looping thoughts relating to the topic of the hangup. They take emotional energy due to the underlying fear which is either dormant, chronically low grade, or triggered. And hangups take physical energy since they require muscle contractions to exist. The only way we can have a hangup (or identity, belief, trauma) is for sensations to lend substance to the related thoughts, and the only way the mind can have easy access to these sensations is through muscle contraction. If the hangup is chronic, the related muscle contraction will be chronic. If it is triggered more sporadically, the obvious muscle contractions will be more sporadic as well, although there will tend to be a low-grade chronic muscle contraction.
When a hangup is released, there is often a sense of lightness, relief, and more available energy. For instance, we may have an impulse to start or engage with a project that’s meaningful to us but we didn’t have the energy or motivation to spend much time on before.