Watching the runaway train

I think we have all been there. Your mind starts to go down a certain path. Even as you start going down this path, another part of your mind notices and tries to pull you back. You know this is going to stir up your feelings. Before you can stop it, though, you are fully entangled in worries and anxieties, unhelpful assumptions and thoughts crowding your mind. Your heart is racing, your hands are trembling, your head feels a little light. And you mind is a runaway train caught on a circular track.

Not again.

You know, because you have been here before, that the train will eventually slow down. It will run out of steam  and stutter to a halt. Whatever attempt you make at pressing on the brakes will be challenging and likely ineffective. You are just along for the ride.

But what if you could ground yourself? You don’t have to be on the runaway train. What if you are standing on the side of the track, watching the train as it circles around. Because the truth is, if there is a part of you that knows that this is happening, there is a part of you that is separate from the train. 

Allow yourself to be centered in the part of you outside of the train. Feel the ground beneath your feet; notice as you press your feet down, that the earth pushes back up to support you. Notice as you breathe in and out, that your ribs expand  and deflate like a balloon. See how you are safe, standing apart from the runaway train of anxiety and can watch as it slows down in it race around the track and eventually comes back to a stop.

We have all been here and will be here again. But remembering that there is a part of us that stands apart and observes what is happening can help us stay in charge.