by Megan Caper | Happiness
It’s that time of year again, when we all decide that we need new year’s resolutions to overhaul our lives, our exercise plans, or our eating habits. I always had a love/hate relationship with new year’s resolutions until I realized why they rub me the wrong way.
New year’s resolutions are positioned as a way to “fix” or “improve” something that you’re not doing well enough. They are rooted in self-improvement, productivity, and perfectionism ideology.
Let me tell you two things:
- You don’t need improving. You shouldn’t be anywhere other than where you are in your life, and you are perfect at every moment, growing and evolving in the perfect way for your unique soul.
- Guilt, shame and perfectionism has never healed or improved anything.
Let’s look at another way to do new years resolutions that isn’t rooted in shame, guilt or compare and despair. I want you to use the following journaling prompts to find out what will truly make you healthy and happy.
- The type of support, love and emotional nutrients I need are … (this could be emotional, practical, spiritual)
- When I think about the good I want to do in the world, I want to (do, start, make, help)….
- When I think of the moments when I feel cared for, safe, resourced and relaxed, I think of…
Once you’ve identified one or more things from these prompts, I want your resolution to be to manifest more of this in your daily life. Manifestation is one part action and one part magic. If you put yourself in situations where you can find those things you identified (or you ask people around you to help) AND you sit in the feelings of how good these things feel to you, then you’ll find the world softens in a way where these show up in your life more and more.
If you try this method, let me know what you think! And as always, reach out if you have any questions or comments, my virtual door is always open for you.
Xo Megan
by Megan Caper | intuition, Neurology, Uncategorized
Welcome back to my series on your intuitive brains. We’ve looked at how to get intuitive info from your heart brain and your gut brain, and now it’s time to get primal.
We’re gonna look at your pelvic brain.
As a quick recap, you have “brains” (aka dense neural networks) in several areas of your body, including your heart, your gut and your pelvis. These brains work just like the one in your head using neurotransmitters to communicate and interact with your other systems like your immune and cardiovascular systems. Each brain is also wired to receive certain types of intuitive information. Take a look at my posts (linked above) for info on your heart and gut brain if you’re interested.
So, what kind of intuitive information can we get from our pelvic brain? Our pelvic brain is tied into our creative longing and what we are meant to do and make in this world. Our pelvic brain gets fired up when we think about something that’s in alignment with what we’re supposed to do in this world, what we desire to make, create, or interact with.
When we bring to mind something that is in alignment with our soul path, the pelvic brain says, “Yes, I want that so I can create magic with it.”
Our pelvic brain gives us information on what kind of transmutation work we are here to do. We each have a special sort of magic that we’re here to harness and use. Some of us transmute words into prose, some of us transmute love into a family, some of us transmute work into money.
Now, anyone can perform any of those things, and even be successful at them, but each of us has an area (or two or three) where we can sense that we’re doing so with the help of a muse, with the support of something more than just our human powers, with a sense of an almost magical support behind our efforts. We’re supposed to bring that unique, individual magic to the world, and intuitive information from the pelvic brain can help us do just that.
Here’s how to tune into your pelvic brain’s intuition – think of a problem or an issue you are trying to move forward on. Bring to mind the various options you have. Now, bring your attention to your perineum (aka your “taint”) and the area just above and around it. Go through your options one by one and notice if the quality of feeling in your perineum changes. Are there options that make you feel more lusty, more desire, more like you want to go after it and make it yours? The ones that do are more in alignment with your pelvic brain.
Check-in with your heart brain and your gut brain as well (directions for this are in the linked posts). How do they feel about this option? Are all 3 of your brains telling you something similar, in their own way?
Getting in touch with your pelvic intuition can be a very powerful thing, especially if you’ve been in a culture or part of a marginalized group that has been taught to deny your own desires. Let me know how this goes for you. I’d love to hear your experiences – send me an email and let me know!
And if this exercise has been helpful for you, I’m teaching a free class on Zoom, “Harness the Power of Your 4 Intuitive Brains” on September 22, 2022 at 5pm Pacific Time. (I’ll be sending out the recording after for those who can’t make it live.) Sign up here and I’ll keep you in the loop with all the details:
https://megancaper.com/4brains2022
Xo Megan
by Megan Caper | intuition
I’m starting a revolution and I want you to join me.
For too many years, the art and science of intuition has been maligned as nonsensical, silly, invalid or even dangerous and evil. I want to change all that, and I want to help women learn how to use this invaluable source of information to make decisions, lead happier lives, and remember their true power.
I’ve developed a method called the “Four Brains” to help women learn to tune into and receive information from their intuition. Over the next couple of weeks, I’m going to go through each brain and talk about how each one receives intuitive information and what that info looks and sounds like in your body.
This week we’ll dive into your gut brain, look at what kind of intuitive information it contains, and see how to tune into that information so you can hear it for yourself.
Your gut brain is also called your “enteric nervous system.” It’s a dense, semi-autonomous neural network that contains neurons, neurotransmitters, glial cells and similar structures to your head brain. Your gut brain is responsible for a lot of your emotional regulation and your baseline happiness or well-being. Your gut brain is also the seat of your third chakra, which is all about your sense of self, your self-confidence and your personal power.
So, what kind of intuitive information can we get from our gut brain? Gut brains are tied into our sense of instinct and intuition. Primarily, it tells us if something is right or wrong for us (which may not be right or wrong on a logical, head brain level). Since it’s grounded in that 3rd chakra energy of individuality, our gut brain is about what’s right for ME, not necessarily what I “should” do or what would make the most sense.
The way to tune into your gut brain is to bring your attention to that part of your body, the area spanning from about 2 inches above to 2 inches below your navel, and ask your bodymind a question you’ve been pondering. Our gut brains synthesize and provide information almost instantaneously, usually in a feeling of being pulled towards something or being pushed away or slightly disgusted by something. Gut brain information is usually a “yes” or a “no”, meaning “yes, this is right for me” or “no, it’s not right for me.” Oftentimes a feeling of deep knowing or a sense that something is the right decision comes from our gut brains and it’s not always the most logical decision. If you think of the phrase, “I had a gut feeling” it means you intuitively knew it, without needing the facts or logic to back it up.
If you’re having trouble feeling the “yes” and the “no” from your gut brain, then try this. Think about something or someone you KNOW is right for you. It could be a dream job, a dream travel spot, or a creative endeavor or activity you’ve always wanted to try. (Make sure it’s not something you think you “should” do, like have a mansion in the city or a high paying job. If what you’ve always dreamed of is a cabin in the woods or to get paid to read books, think of that.) That feeling you have in your belly? That warm, excited, satisfied feeling? That’s your gut brain “yes.”
Now think of something that you KNOW is not right for you. For me it would be a life making tons of money as a corporate executive for Perdue Pharma or living in a sterile, minimalist, all white loft space. I feel slightly repulsed or disgusted by both of these things and I know that’s my gut brain’s intuitive “no” that’s not right for me.
I like teaching about the gut brain first because that “yes” or “no” is pretty easy to tune into and so it’s a good place to start learning to listen to your intuition. (I’ll teach about your other three brains in upcoming weeks.) I also like it because if you only ever practice and develop this one aspect of your intuition, this alone can completely change your life. If you can learn to tune into that Third Chakra information about what is right for YOU, what your soul’s life path is during this incarnation, that’s the basis for a happy and meaningful life.
If you like this post and want to know more and get some hands-on practice, I’m going to be teaching a workshop on your “Four Brains” in September. Send me a note and I’ll put you on the list to get more info as we get closer.
In the meantime, the intuition revolution starts with you. Get out there and start messing with the status quo — listen to your gut brain and do what’s right for YOU, not what you’ve been told you should do. I’ll be here cheering for you every step of the way.
Xo Megan
by Megan Caper | Neurology
I want to talk about your brains. Yes, brains plural. All four of them. Most of us know about one of them, maybe two, but in fact you have FOUR separate brains.
Let me explain what I mean by a brain. There are different areas in our bodies that have dense, semi-autonomous neural networks. One is in your head (what we commonly call your “brain”) but you also have dense neural networks in your heart, your gut and your pelvis.
Up until a couple years ago, medical science thought that there was only one brain (the one in your head) but recent research has definitively shown you have another one in your gut (your enteric nervous system) and there is mounting evidence for neural networks in your heart and pelvis too.
Each of these brains has different abilities and access to different ways of processing information. For a balanced bodymind, it’s important to be able to use and rely on all four brains equally.
Let me go through the information gathering and decision-making aspects of each brain so you can learn how to access that information for yourself. BTW — Each brain can do way more than what I’m describing here, but here’s a summary of the capabilities of each one for the purposes of information gathering and making wholistic decisions.
Our head brain, or what we commonly just call the brain, is very good at logical, deductive reasoning. This can come in handy when we’re trying to figure out the possible consequences of each possible decision, weigh the pros and cons, or using executive function skills to figure out the best solution. Basically, this is the brain that gives us rational, logical information and can compare and contrast the possible outcomes of that information. This brain is very helpful for interacting with the rational, ego-driven world that we live in. Most things that people would call a “good decision” (aka well reasoned, low risk, etc) come from this brain.
The heart brain considers things from an emotional perspective. How do I feel about each of these options? Which one feels in alignment with bringing more love, joy and connection into my life? Which one am I drawn to with a sense of emotional excitement, longing and fulfillment? Our heart brain gives us information on what would help us feel happy, connected and loved. Heart brain information is often not logical, for example, think of the saying “the heart wants what the heart wants” which implies that the decision isn’t logical but is compelling and fulfilling.
Gut brains are tied into our sense of instinct and intuition. Our gut brain can tell us if something is right or wrong for us (which may not be right or wrong on a logical, head brain level). Gut brain information is more grounded in that 2nd and 3rd chakra energy of creativity and individuality. If you think of the phrase, “I had a gut feeling” it means you just knew it, without having the facts or logic to back it up. Our gut brains synthesize and provide information almost instantaneously. Oftentimes a feeling of deep knowing or a sense that something is the right decision comes from our gut brains.
Finally, there’s your pelvic brain. This brain is tied into our creative longing, what we are meant to do and create and be in this world. Our pelvic brain gets fired up when we think about an option that is in alignment with what we’re supposed to do in this world, what we desire to make, create or interact with. The pelvic brain says, “Yes, I want that so I can create magic with it.” Pelvic brain gives us information on what kind of transmutation work we are here to do and how we’re supposed to bring our unique, individual magic to the world.
When you have a decision to make or are thinking about taking action (or not taking action) make sure you tune into all four of your brains and see what they have to add to the conversation. It may be challenging at first to hear the wisdom of your heart, gut and pelvic brains because we’ve all been trained by modern society to only ask our head brains for an opinion, but I promise you those other brains are there, waiting for you to ask for their input, happy to give you the best possible guidance you can get — the wisdom of your own multifaceted ways of knowing.
Xo Megan
