I’m always happy for new opportunities, new learning and ways to support my community. There was a time when I happily said yes to everyone I loved and to all new opportunities that crossed my path.

My life was full and on many levels, I was satisfied. However, when I began growing a wonderful love relationship, I wanted time, energy and space for myself and for the relationship. I found I couldn’t do that without letting go of some things. Thus begun my exploration of finding my big Yes.

This is the 3rd post about ways we lose our power and how to find our center. In addition to giving away our power, we lose power through negative self-talk.

When we experience repetitive negative self-talk, or when we are in environments where there is an abundance of psychic litter (other people’s negative thought patterns), we can lose power. Negative thoughts create their own energy and affect us, others and the environment, depending on where we send the energy. When we target ourselves with that energy, or absorb others’ thoughtforms, the misplaced energy leads to a leaking of our life force. Instant power drain!

Have you had days when you feel fatigued, but don’t know why? Or you may feel like a part of you is missing? If this sounds familiar, you may be giving away your power.

There are many ways we can lose our power and get knocked off balance. We explore 5 of them in the next 5 posts, with easy tips to begin to get your energy back and find you center again. The first way of losing our power we explore is...

We give it away!  It’s true - giving away our power is common. We give it away by:

• Looking outside of ourselves for answers.
• Pouring ourselves (read: our power) into our work, especially people in the helping professions.
• Leaving a part of our heart behind when leaving a relationship or when a loved one passes.

Earlier this year, during a painful time, I was alarmed to notice an impulse to look outside myself to deal with my discomfort. Not the kind of looking-outside-myself that meant seeking support from a therapist, friend or mentor. More the kind that was me waiting for something to arrive and magically remove me from my pain (or it from me). This state of waiting for something (divine intervention??) led to more pain, as I felt little sense of power or authority over my circumstance or feelings.

When I came out on the other side of this experience, I was curious about this impulse to hand over my power, especially when it clearly only caused me more pain. Thus began my exploration of Right Relationship with Self.

As I prepare for next week's Altar Making Workshop, I've been asking myself this question: what's the importance of sacred space? I know that without my mini-altars, I feel unsettled, not at ease. But why?

When I moved to San Francisco one year ago, I found myself in a cozy (read: tiny!) apartment in the heart of the city, with no space for my meditation cushion or a small, permanent altar. I felt slightly panicked. I've always had a space, even if just a corner, to dedicate to my sitting practice and a home for my sacred objects - stones, pictures, a talisman, quotes, photographs, feathers.

Pulling my meditation cushion from behind a chair, digging for a candle and matches and finding a quiet space to sit felt tedious. Not exactly the experience I was going for. It wasn't long before I realized I was the one making the experience tedious.