Do you feel inspired? What inspires you? Is it important to be inspired? What does it feel like to be inspired?

And perhaps more importantly, does inspiration help me to conceive?

As many of you have discovered along this path, there are things you can do that create a more favorable environment for conception, and there are things you can do that make this a “journey” rather than “the most awful thing that has ever happened” to you. Then of course, there are the things we do that exacerbate our condition, sometimes unawares, but not always. Herein lies “the mystery” of conception, right? Figuring all this out.

My first thought about writing about inspiration, was that of course it’s good to be inspired. But why? Just because it feels good? How does it feel? Is it always good? Are we just talking physical? Emotional? Spiritual? Intellectual? And again, does being inspired help one to conceive? that is, to become pregnant.

As I spoke with different people about their notion of being inspired, I got all kinds of feedback. Much of the language people used to describe their experience of “being inspired”, were very positive words. One interesting thing was the difficulty people had describing the physical sensation of inspiration. The first thing that occurred to me when I think of being inspired is how it feels in my body: like my heart is on fire, or that there are fireworks going off in my chest and radiating out. A good thing, not like a heart attack. Energizing.

Others spoke of an adrenaline rush, being charged up, physically and emotionally stimulated, feeling expansive, like wanting to breathe in more deeply the source of the inspiration, to take it in fully. That makes sense. Dictionary.com defines inspiration: 1. to fill with an animating, quickening, or exalting influence; 2. to produce or arouse (a feeling, thought, etc.); 3. To fill or affect with a specified feeling, thought, etc.; 4. To influence or impel. This all sounds very fine to me, and positive. Though, the feeling, thought or idea could be negative I suppose. But that would come from within the person being inspired, rather than from the source. Exploring a negative aspect of inspiration is not the focus of this article, and it’s my article, so I’m not going there. Still another person had no words for a physical sensation. It was more of an intellectual stimulant.

In the intellectual realm, people spoke of neurons firing, creative thinking, limitless possibilities, tapping into resources not previously available, chewing ideas. All good, eh?

The emotional descriptors were: “happy for sure” (her words, not mine, I swear!), positively excited, wanting to soak up what’s emanating, and fired up. And a word that carries so much meaning: empowered. As in, I can do this too! As well as being motivated into action.

There is much overlap between what may be described as emotional or spiritual. Some will say there is no difference. This may be a topic for a future article, but not here. It doesn’t matter which category you put “empowered” into. When you feel empowered, it’s a strong sense of being able to do something. Also in the spiritual realm, being filled with a sense of life, of beauty, something that makes us feel vital. Feeling a deep connection, to all things, to something big, to the universe, to others. Emotionally stimulated.

Touched, moved, instilled with a sense of purpose. I’m not sure which realm to put these. It doesn’t matter.

I think what matters is that we try to be inspired, that we look for inspiration. Look at all the great sensations that go along with it! Finding inspiration is a bit like finding happiness. It doesn’t always just happen. We have to look for it, to set the stage for it to happen, to cultivate those things that open us up to it, that allow it into our lives. Energized, motivated, touched, expansive, excited, empowered! YES! This is how I want to feel!

Why?

So many times, what we carry around in our hearts and in our heads, ends up being manifested in our bodies. I would much rather feel inspired, with all the qualities and sensations that go with it, than feel anxious, afraid, angry or resentful. Sure, we can’t help but feel these things sometimes. It’s when we don’t allow it to move through us, that it becomes problematic. Everyone gets angry or fearful sometimes. It’s best to acknowledge it, work with it, process it however meets your need, learn from it what you can, and take those gems into the next day, and the next day, and the next… (See Acknowledge-Accept-Transform from previous blog post: The question is not “Why Me?” but rather…). We actually have a choice whether to feed the emotions that break us down, or the ones that heal. It’s an active, mindful skill that can be learned and habituated.

Back to why I wrote this. I want you to be inspired, to find inspiration. I believe you can find it here. This was written by a woman in the last Fertile Mind-Fertile Body Workshop:

“This workshop is hard to describe because it’s much more than a support group and it also strives to complement both Western and Eastern medical treatments for fertility. It’s like taking a “master class” on how to guide your mind and intentions toward a healthier relationship to the self and the world. There is active practice and also accountability for trying new ways of thinking and meditating. I have already done extensive acupuncture; with Lisa, I learned what I should have been doing, internally, the other six days of the week. I was suffering from anxiety issues coming into the program and I am now comfortable with transforming that energy into something less toxic. Each student in the course had moments of revelation from small to major, and everyone has gained skills and positive feelings about moving ahead with their life plans. If there is one thing that I could emphasize the most about this class, it was the feeling of positive empowerment that every person felt after 8 weeks. We were collectively energized by our readings and discussions.”

Thank you T!

Whether you find inspiration here, or from within, or some outside source doesn’t really matter. Being inspired comes under two of the most beneficial things you can do while trying to conceive:

1) the things you can do that create a more favorable environment for conception, and

2) things  you can do that make this a “journey” rather than “the most awful thing that has ever happened” to you.