History of humankind is the history of storytelling. Stories were exchanged on the dark nights around the fire, in the middle-eastern coffee shops, at family gatherings and dinner celebrations.
Yet, there's another type of storytelling - the internal kind. These are the stories we don't share with others. Hidden from the conscious mind, they are buried in the darkest passages of subconscious, constantly sending Trojan horse messages of doubt, insecurity and fear into our awareness. That's the little voice in the back of your mind telling you what you can't do, reminding you how silly this or that is, and how stupid your would look doing it; making sure that you know you are not good enough, strong enough, healthy enough, or financially secure enough.
The universe sends her invitations only once or twice, three times if you are really lucky. Eventually the opportunities stop coming, and the vibrant life you have imagined as a bright-eyed child, becomes a mundane existence of doing the same thing day after day every day.
It gets worse: we get so wrapped up in those stories, we loose the sight of who we are, and what is important to us. We begin to believe that the little voice in the back of our mind is, indeed, our true self. We continue to live our lives with a subtle (or sometimes not so subtle) level of discontent, not completely happy with our bodies, job, our partner or the way our kids are behaving, yet, not consciously aware of our needs, wants, or desires. You might find this surprising, but the most difficult question I have ever asked my students is " What is it that you want?" It seems that our internal stories and guilt - induced " What should I want?" or " Would it be too selfish of me to want this?" have the power to overwrite our authentic needs, dreams and desires.
How do we get unstuck?
While the destination - emotional freedom, happiness, and vibrant, passionate living - is a common one, the journey is different for each one of us.
For me it clicked when I realized that the easiest way to change my external circumstances, be it my financial situation, relationships with others, or my health, was to change my thinking. Here are some of my field notes. Quite often when I feel unsettled, I turn to my e-mailbox in search of inspiration or a fresh new perspective - it is so comforting to know that I am not alone on this path. I sincerely hope these do the same for you.
I don't remember who said that change happens at the speed of thought, or, like my good friend Kelly says, " Change the stinking thinking." Whenever I feel stuck in my head, those words always remind that solution is available in that very instant. Granted, changing thinking is easier said than done. For starters, being simply aware of our thoughts is a skill that many of us lack. That's where meditation comes in handy - it doesn't just relax us or help us manage stress. Meditation helps us gain clarity and focus needed to change faulty mental wiring.
From an Ayurvedic point of view, each of us has different challenges along the way - Vatas struggle with disorganization, inability to commit to changes and generally turbulent mind; Pittas have to let go of their competitive mind-set and the need to control everything around them, while Kaphas struggle to overcome complacency and mental inertia. Satori offers a plethora of workshops designed to help you understand the process of meditation, and also get to know yourself - body and mind - better through the teachings of Ayurveda.
When I am tired - mentally, emotionally or physically - old stories like to come out and play. All I do now is watch them and listen to sensations in my body. Practice of mindfullness, essential to yoga and meditation , has taught me to connect my thought patterns to feelings of expansion or contraction, freedom or tightness present in my body. I know that when my mind tells me my relationship is threatened, my chest contracts and I can hear the heartbeat snapping like a rubber band in my throat; when my mind is in the throws of some sort of financial story, I feel like my guts are tied up in knots; and when the deadline is approaching fast - a pressure cooker situation, my gallbladder gets unhappy. Still, I watch the stories and breathe into the tightness...

Life is too great of a gift to waste it living half-heartedly, afraid of what might go wrong. It is too short to listen to some voice, even if it is your own inner voice, that tells you that you are not good enough. Somewhere, underneath all the mental and emotional clutter, underneath the stories your mind tells you, is your dream life, just waiting to unfold. It is time you remembered who you really are. It is time to make space for what's important. Once you do, the universe will meet you half-way and the change will happen at the speed of thought.