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An Excerpt from The Full Spirit Workout by Kate Eckman
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A friend recently said to me, “I just want to feel at peace.”

“I understand,” I said. “That is the ultimate goal for all of us. Are you willing to choose peace?”

“Yes,” she said. Then I saw her eyes light up, like, Wow, that was easy!

And it is that easy. If you want love, choose to be in love, starting with yourself. I believe if peace and love are what we truly want, we will choose peace and love. Oftentimes, we think we want them but are still stuck in past wounds that make us feel more at home and “safe” in chaos, lack, and trauma. But just like we can decide to be willing to stretch before a workout because we know it will make us perform better and avoid injury, we can be willing to choose thoughts that empower us to get out of our comfort zone. That leads us into the life that’s waiting for us to claim it — a life where we get to live in our divine perfection.

I don’t think you have to move to a different city, change careers, start a new relationship, adopt a new workout routine, or go vegan to stretch your comfort zone, although I highly recommend all of that. It can be as simple (not easy, mind you, but simple) as choosing to look in the mirror and notice something you love about your body rather than thinking, Gosh, I’m looking older or Ugh, I have stomach rolls.

Say to yourself, I am willing to feel love, peace, and joy, instead of this. Make that a daily practice, and I promise you will start to think, look, feel, and be your most glorious self.

When we stretch our comfort zones, we automatically get to discover our greatness, our highest self. We find our true essence and desires, naturally attracting what lights us up and gives our lives meaning and purpose. Simply put, it is healing to stretch. And when we are willing to stretch, the universe responds to even our slightest invitation to assist us in our efforts. We are never alone. We are always co-creating.

If you’ve ever started a new business or family, I’m guessing it wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t painless. (If you are a parent, you are my own personal hero!) But I’ll bet that allowing yourself to expand your personal boundaries and devote your most precious resource — time — to your cherished new venture opened up the space you needed to take on this exciting challenge.

When I recently took on a new project outside my comfort zone, I was able to keep taking steps forward because I first allowed myself to experience my heavy feelings and cry to a supportive friend. My tears washed the space clear for me to express myself. I’m learning that one of the worst things we can do is to pretend uncomfortable feelings like worry, stress, sadness, fear, and discomfort don’t exist — or that we’re somehow too precious, too positive, or too evolved to feel something other than pleasant feelings. When we are in that place of loneliness, fear, sadness, and discomfort, it’s important not to try to jump right to gratitude or “positivity.” Sometimes crying and acknowledging how much things suck, or how heavy our feelings weigh on us, put us on the fast train to returning home to ourselves, where appreciation and gratitude occur naturally. This certainty offers me peace, just as it did during that uncertain time.

The period of forced isolation we all experienced during the pandemic was a deep stretch for all of us, and while seclusion could feel uncomfortable, I also noticed benefits. For example, many of us learned, or relearned, how little we really need. It helped me remember to be more simple and minimal in my day-to-day living. We also had more time to reflect on and challenge old ways of thinking — giving us spiritual fitness workouts. I brainstormed new ways to help clients and, in turn, myself. I saw old problems in a new light and was able to devote energy to discovering new ways of being because, quite simply, why not?

And just like physical exercise has cumulative effects over time, so does spiritual fitness. Once we start stepping out of our comfort zone, it gets easier. We become more and more comfortable with our own discomfort. Awesome, right?

Kate Eckman is the author of The Full Spirit Workout and a Columbia University–certified executive leadership coach. She leverages her experience as a well-known communications, performance, and mindfulness expert, accomplished entrepreneur, and elite athlete to equip leaders with the tools, methodology, and energetic boost they need to excel. Visit her online at www.kateeckman.tv.

Excerpted from the book from The Full Spirit Workout. Copyright ©2021 by Kate Eckman. Printed with permission from New World Library.

I dreamed that I was a white male, mid 20s. I do not remember seeing this male before outside of this dream. I was a gang member and I was with other gang members that I have never seen before. One of them tried to show me up, and I tried to ignore him. He had knives and was trying to throw them at me. He shouted something that I couldn't understand. Finally, he was too close for comfort. I panicked and grabbed a knife and threw it at him, piercing him. He fell to the ground. I then grabbed another knife and cut him into pieces. Covered in blood, I ran back to a big house with a truck in the front. Some guys outside working on the truck asked where the guy I killed was, and I didn't answer. I walked back over to them and said, I took care of it, and went inside. I awoke from this dream with a start, feeling so scared and disturbed. I have never dreamed of killing anyone before. I am a nineteen-year-old female. I am a Virgo and definitely fit the Virgo description. I'd really like to know what this dream is trying to tell me. Though I don't often remember my dreams, when I do, I am often someone else in those dreams. This has been bothering me for a while. Thank you for reading; I look forward to your answer.

Kayla

Susyn:

Usually, our dreams are not to be taken literally. Given its vivid, violent nature, it's possible that you were reliving a past life experience in this dream, but even if this is the case, the fact that it rose from your subconscious and played itself out through a dream suggests that it holds important messages for you.

Let's start with the fact that you dreamed of yourself as a young man in your 20's who belongs to a gang. The word gang obviously has a negative connotation; it implies that one is hanging out with questionable characters who are probably involved in some sort of illegal activity.

This could be a reflection of a social group you are currently involved in; even though they may not be lawbreakers or hell raisers, they might be behaving in ways that are detrimental to their spirits and yours. This could be one person or many; if you review the relationships you're involved in and find one that you no longer feel comfortable with, you'll have a clue as to the message of this dream.

One of the gang members tried to compete with you and began throwing knives at you. This could be reflected in your real life as a competitive coworker or jealous friend who is backstabbing or criticizing you. It may be that you need to stand up to this person or confront them in some way, which is what you did in the dream.

Though you would never cut another person to pieces in real life, the events of this dream affirm that you are more powerful than whoever is trying to undermine you, and if forced, you could stop them dead in their tracks.

Imagine a scenario where you are being critically attacked at work. You confront the perpetrator and end the attack. After that, were a boss or manager to question you about the trouble, you might respond I took care of it, just as you said in your dream.

One of the outstanding features of this dream is finding yourself covered in blood. Though it came from another person as you cut them to pieces, blood in a dream represents the lifeforce and often the start of a new cycle of life. You can take this aspect of the dream as a promise that you are about to enter a new level of awareness and achievement.

I would take this dream as a confirmation that you may be emotionally, mentally or spiritually under attack and need to make some changes. Even if you are unaware of a situation in your waking life that this dream may symbolize, it is a wonderful reminder that you have the strength and power to take care of yourself should the need arise in the future.

*****

Oceania:

This dream represents your fear of expressing anger. You're afraid you'll lose control and that someone might get hurt if you get mad. This is a common fear among nice people. When used constructively, however, anger is a useful tool.

Your dreaming mind used strangers to enact the tale because you weren't quite ready to see that it's about you and someone close to you whom you're mad at. The gang theme just goes to show how scary anger is to you. Because gangs are surrogate families, chances are the dream was about YOUR family.

It seems that one person in particular may have emotionally abused you. This person, who could be male or female, was portrayed by the attacker. The knives he threw represent cutting words. He shouts something you can't understand, meaning you can't understand why this person is so aggressive towards you! It's not personal. Mean people are battling inner wars; those around them simply suffer collateral damage.

That he was too close for comfort suggests this person crosses your boundaries and invades your privacy, leaving you feeling violated and intruded upon. You have a desire to defend yourself, but you're afraid your anger might do some serious damage. It's likely you grew up around a harsh person, which led you to believe that anger is always loud, violent or critical. You're learning that anger is simply energy our body musters up when our safety or comfort is threatened. You can learn to channel this energy in a gentle, creative, even humorous manner.

After you pierced your attacker with a knife, you proceeded to cut him into pieces. This shows your fear of losing control should you ever get mad. Instead of seeing yourself as a gang member wielding a weapon, imagine yourself as one of those big rubber balls you might buy for a child, about the size of a basketball and usually pastel or neon in color. Rubber represents a flexible boundary somewhere in between rigid metal and flimsy paper. You'll feel it when someone bumps up against you; you can then make your presence known by pushing back, or you can choose to roll away!

I'm assuming the truck in your dream was more of a moving van than a pickup truck, and capable of concealing its contents. Your unconscious mind was hoping to contain the evidence of your anger and haul it away, but there will be no need to deny your anger once you learn to use it positively. A book or class on assertiveness would be helpful to you, and therapy would be a supportive, safe place to dump any old anger you're hauling around!

Astrea:

Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.

Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!

While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!

I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!

As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.

I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.

You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!

Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.

A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.

You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.