Which Side Are You On? Freedom in a Hostile World
For a long time, I thought calm and clarity were distant achievements, something reserved for people who seemed to have life under control. I felt trapped between obligations, racing thoughts, and the sense that something was always missing. That pressure eventually pushed me into a depression that left me without the strength to keep up with my routine.
In the middle of that exhaustion, I began looking for tools that could help me regain balance. I tried several approaches, and one of them was Reiki. I used it in a practical way: as a way to relax my body and lower the stress response that kept me on constant alert. That physical pause opened a small space to listen to myself without so much noise.
At the same time, I came across studies by Joe Dispenza and other researchers showing how meditation and focused attention can change the brain and the nervous system. Seeing scans and concrete data helped me understand that training the mind isn’t an abstract promise; it’s a measurable process—neuroplasticity, heart coherence, and chemical shifts that depend on where we place our attention.
Over time, I learned to give myself permission to feel, not from obsessive analysis but from presence. Practicing heart coherence, regulating my breathing, and noticing the impact on my body taught me that emotions are also physical signals that can settle when I receive them calmly. Feeling without judgment became a tool to strengthen myself.
I came to understand that inner awareness isn’t a place to reach or an endless quest. It’s a steady point that’s always available, even if I sometimes forget it. Remembering that allows me to loosen rigid definitions and regain the ability to choose how to respond to what happens.
That discovery doesn’t erase pain or turn life into a perfect path, but it does create space to choose with clarity. Today, I know every moment holds room to be inhabited with attention—and from there, I can build with purpose instead of staying stuck in what once felt impossible to move.