8 Overlooked Burdens You Can Release Today

Food comes into your body, then it’s broken down and released.

Emotions build, they compound, and eventually, they demand release.

When I’m teaching Barre, I ask class participants to stay in isometric holds until their muscles shake, but in time, they come out of the position. The contraction is released.

Holistically and humanly speaking, we need release. Usually, we know what we need/want release from: stress, demands, work, worry, evil, health concerns, triple digit temperatures, etc. But have you ever considered there are releases available to that you’ve overlooked?

Our fast-paced lives make it easy to live in cycles that cheat us of release, perpetuating patterns that prevent mental, emotional, and physical agility. So today, a list. Here are 8 overlooked burdens you can release ASAP.

Tension.

Let’s start with the body. Where do you hold tension? Are your shoulders tight? Is your jaw clenched? How about your hands – are they open? Is your chest constricted from shallow breathing or short exhales? Do you sit for work? If so, I promise you have tension in your hips. Do you stand a lot? Your back, legs, and feet are probably tense. Do a body scan. Take notice of muscle tension and then release it by stretching, opening, or relaxing.

Responsibility (that isn’t yours).

Responsibility is a wonderful thing to have – in the proper context. You are responsible for your own life and the commitments and callings God has given you. What overcommitments have you made to your own detriment? What are the should’s and could’s depleting you and keeping you from your own responsibilities? As the Message Bible puts it, what is the ‘one needful thing’ the Lord is asking you to do today/this week/this month? Prioritize the needful things by protecting the needed time.

Distractions.

Most of our distractions are actually attractions. We’re pulled away because we want to be pulled away. Distractions keep us from discomfort and challenge – which is usually ok with us. Sad, because the more we stay disciplined in uncomfortable, difficult practices, the more benefit to our physical, mental, relational, and spiritual health.

Decisions.

All the tiny decisions you make in a day waste energy and cause fatigue. What rhythms can you create so you have less decisions to make? (i.e., I spend time with God first thing in the morning, even on the days I have to be at work at 5am.) What routines might be helpful when it comes to things you do daily or weekly? (Personally, I need to get back into weekly meal planning because making a decision about dinner every evening isn’t working for me.) Are there decisions you can delay or make ahead of time? (I plan the coming week on Saturday, which means a lot of my decisions are made in bulk.)

Guilt.

Remorse is virtuous. It indicates a process of realizing a mistake or offense, seeking restitution or forgiveness, and then finding the lesson learned through the experience. This process promotes spiritual growth. Guilt, on the other hand, has no resolve. It is an intrusive loop of , ‘I wish I had/hadn’t, if only I could go back, I will never forgive myself’. It wreaks havoc on the mind and soul, without offering hope. Guilt must go into the hands of God. Ask Him what’s next.

Expectations and ideals.

Around the age of 40, I realized I’d expected I’d be done cleaning my own house in mid-life. It’s a nice thought, but guess what. I don’t have money for a cleaning service. I had two options: lower my expectations, or be miserable.I hold myself to all kinds of measures I don’t need to, so I have friends and loved ones who challenge my unreasonable standards regarding writing, parenting, image, doing, etc. I hold other people to unrealistic ideals, too. More often than not, I seek the Lord first when it comes to challenging those ideals.

A former version of yourself.

I used to be… Fill in the blank. I get it – who you are now feels unfamiliar. It’s supposed to be that way. Age doesn’t allow us to go backward, so stop looking behind you and get busy doing what’s necessary for the person ahead of you. Who are you becoming? That’s the question to focus on.

Information.

“Knowledge is power”, or so the saying goes. But to what end? Lifelong learning is admirable, no question, but a constant need to know more can actually be quite oppressive. In an age when information is at our fingertips, there are more of us living frozen than living free. We can’t start the new thing until we know more. We can’t do, try, create, move, or decide until we read the stack of books, take the course, do all the research, fully comprehend, develop mastery, become an expert. Do we really believe we can ever know all there is to know about anything? My advice: Know enough to jump in, then keep learning. I can’t guarantee you won’t look stupid, but I can promise you’ll be happier 🙂