On Transforming Confusion into Clarity: Spotting Resistance vs. Misalignment
Happy Solstice and happy Cancer season!
In honor of the sun shining the longest it will shine all year (in the northern hemisphere at least!), I thought I’d shine a light on something that I find clients get confused about all the time: resistance vs. misalignment.
As beings that have taken the invitation onto our spiritual journeys, we can get really activated by the idea of misalignment.
We start “shoulding” on ourselves, and spiraling into blame and shame.
“I should have known better.”
“I should have done X instead.”
When we’re in that space, life can often feel like a maze, leaving us feeling stuck, conflicted, and unsure of which way to go.
These feelings and their accompanying moments, while uncomfortable, hold powerful messages that can radically transform our outlook on life. Are you facing resistance, or is it a deeper misalignment?
Understanding the difference between these two states is crucial because it can give you a clear path forward and brings you closer to your desires.
Misalignment is your inner compass telling you that it’s time for a radical change—what you’re doing simply isn’t working anymore.
Resistance, on the other hand, arises when you have a vision, but are held back by internal conflicts and competing intentions.
In this post, we’ll explore how to decipher whether you’re dealing with resistance or misalignment, how each feels in the body, how your mind processes them, and what each is inviting you to realize.
When you get this distinction, I promise you’re going to feel like you cracked a code! I know I did! It becomes much easier to see what’s actually here and shift confusion into clarity and frustration into purposeful action. And as we know, purposeful, aligned action is how our deepest dreams are made manifest. ✨
Misalignment
Let’s talk a bit about understanding misalignment’s energetic distinctions (we can’t just intellectualize our emotions!) and key realizations.
Energetic Distinctions
In the body: Misalignment often feels like a deep sense of unease or discomfort. Nothing really feels right, or you could have this weird sense that you don’t “belong there”.
You might experience physical symptoms such as tightness in the chest, knots in the stomach, or a general feeling of heaviness in the chest, abdomen or throat.
There can be a pervasive sense of being out of sync with yourself or your surroundings.
One or more of the chakras below your heart chakra may feel activated. Typically, I feel this as an emptiness in my solar plexus chakra.
In the mind: The thinking mind processes misalignment as confusion or dissatisfaction.
You might feel stuck, questioning the purpose or direction of your current path.
There may be recurring thoughts about needing a significant change or feeling like something is fundamentally wrong with you.
You may get sucked into a constant comparison spiral that takes some serious time to recover from.
The Invitation: Misalignment invites us into radical change.
It signals that the current iteration of life in this area is no longer working.
It encourages us to reassess our values, goals, and actions, and pushes us to make significant shifts to realign with our true selves.
This might mean changing careers, ending a relationship, or redefining personal goals and values.
Key Realizations
Authenticity: Misalignment is a call to return to your authentic self. It’s an invitation to strip away external expectations and reconnect with what truly matters to you. It doesn’t feel aligned because it’s not aligned babes!
Transformation: Embrace the need for transformation. Everything on earth is constantly in a state of change. Recognize that change, though challenging, is essential for growth and fulfillment. We’re always moving through the stages of life, death and rebirth, whether we like it or not.
Listening to Intuition: Pay attention to your intuition. Misalignment often speaks through gut feelings and inner knowings. I’m going to say this loud for the air and earth signs in the back! 🗣️ You may not be able to put your finger on why something is out of alignment for you, and that’s okay! Just trust your intuition that it is, and move forward accordingly.
Resistance
Now for resistance! Let’s conceptualize what it feels like in the body and in the mind.
Energetic Distinctions
In the body: Resistance may manifest as tension or frustration.
You might feel restless or irritable.
You may have sensations like clenching in the jaw, a tightness in the neck, or fidgetiness.
It’s almost a sense of being pulled in different directions internally.
In the mind: The thinking mind processes resistance as a conflict between competing intentions.
You have an idea of what you want to do, but fear, doubt, or other internal conflicts create a push-pull dynamic.
This can lead to procrastination, self-sabotage, or overthinking.
You also may get easily discouraged when you see someone else doing the thing you’re resisting, instead of inspired. You’re comparing their “day one” to what feels like your “one day”.
The invitation: Resistance invites us to recognize and reconcile competing intentions.
It asks us to address the internal conflicts that prevent us from moving forward.
This might involve identifying fears, challenging limiting beliefs, or integrating different aspects of our desires and goals.
We have to get real about what we’re scared of so we can start to provide more safety for ourselves in that area.
Key Realizations
Clarity: Resistance highlights the need for clarity. It’s an opportunity to get clear about your true desires and the fears or doubts that hold you back. Are you resisting because you don’t actually want it?
Integration: Work on integrating competing intentions. Acknowledge all parts of yourself and find a way to harmonize them to move forward with confidence. The brain craves pattern and routine; that holds true even when we know our patterns and routines are hurting us. The competing intentions the old reality fighting with the possibilities of the new one.
Courage: Overcoming resistance often requires courage. It’s about facing fears and taking steps despite the discomfort. The path will become clearer the longer you stay on it. Sometimes we materialize the “how” as we go.
Practical Steps to Address Each
Understanding whether you’re dealing with resistance or misalignment is just the first step. Once you’ve identified what you’re experiencing, it’s essential to take actionable steps to address it effectively.
Misalignment calls for radical change, urging you to realign with your true path, while resistance requires you to reconcile internal conflicts and competing intentions.
Misalignment often requires more external changes than internal changes and resistance is the opposite. Resistance generally requires more internal audits.
Let’s look at some practical strategies to navigate both of them and transform these challenges into opportunities for growth and clarity. By applying these steps, you can move forward with confidence and create a life that truly aligns with your values and goals.
Addressing Misalignment:
Self-Reflection: Spend time in self-reflection to identify areas of misalignment. Journaling, meditation, or speaking with a trusted friend can help. Remember to feel into the body as well.
Visioning: Create a vision for your life that aligns with your core values and passions. Imagine what a truly aligned life looks and feels like. How does it differ from your current life? That gap is the starting point.
Taking Action: Start making changes, even small ones, that move you closer to your aligned vision. Trust the process and be open to where it leads. What comes up for you when you think about taking action?
Addressing Resistance:
Identify Fears: Acknowledge and name the fears or doubts causing resistance. Understanding these fears is the first step to overcoming them. A great way to do this is to do a thought download, where you record in some way (write, voice-note, doodle, etc.) everything that comes up, stream-of-consciousness-style when you think about pursuing the thing you’re resisting.
Incremental Steps: Break down your goals into smaller, manageable steps. Focus on taking one step at a time to reduce overwhelm. It doesn’t matter how small the steps are! Progress is progress.
Seek Support: Sometimes, talking through your resistance with a trusted friend, lover, coach, therapist, or mentor can provide new and useful perspectives and strategies to move forward.
“Shame can’t survive being spoken. Shame needs 3 things to survive: secrecy, silence and judgment”
Learning to compassionately discern and navigate resistance and misalignment can be a game-changer. Having a clear understanding of what’s going on can give you the clarity and direction you need to weather the storm and remember you are the sky, not the clouds. By recognizing and addressing the challenges of both resistance and misalignment, you can transform frustration into purposeful action.
If you’re looking for more personalized guidance, I offer tarot readings and coaching that can shed light on your unique journey and help you skip the frustration and get straight to the clarity!
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Let’s create a world filled with aligned souls, living their purpose. 💚
