DEEP LISTENING makes everything in your life, and your pets’ lives, BETTER!
I’m nearly recovered from a long, slow cold. First one I’ve had in years. It’s made me think about deep listening this week. What it is, why it’s important, how to do it. Why? Because I’ve had to listen to myself more closely than usual, so I know when to rest, when to show up, and when to pull back. I’ve also noticed that I’ve not been as good at listening to others – especially my beloved. So I’ve had to dig into my deep listening skills even more than usual, to overcome the brain fog and challenges of being a bit unwell.
What is deep listening?
The first thing is that it’s not about you. It’s about putting yourself, your ideas, and your preconceptions aside, and being powerfully present and very, very curious. You want to have a deep wish to UNDERSTAND this other being (or perhaps a situation, circumstances, place). You want to be open to whatever you are listening too, and have no agendas.
Let’s look at the meanings of the words.
Deep: ‘very strongly felt or experienced and usually lasting a long time’. The older meanings include: ‘profound, awful, mysterious; serious, solemn.’
So with deep listening, you want to experience the process of receiving the other with a strong feeling of them, and what they are sharing with you. In the older meaning, awful is more of the sense of awe-full, full of awe. And deep listening is a serious business. It is meaningful, powerful.
Listening: ‘to give careful attention to any being, place or situation, with the intention to deeply understand and respond to them and their needs’. The older meanings include: ‘to hear; attend to’.
Listening deeply is an active, dynamic, and sensitively receptive thing to do. It’s a beautiful balance of Yang and Yin.
It’s no coincidence that the Whole Energy Body Balance method (the modality for profound healing and connection that I’ve created over the last 28 years) is all about listening deeply. To yourself, and to the beings you are serving. The better you listen, the better human you become, and the greater force for good you become. And the more you can help your pets, horses, and other humans with loving therapeutic touch and energy healing. In fact, I would say that deep listening is the absolute essence of all the healing arts.
With deep listening comes deep understanding. This supports right actions. Right actions create a harmonious, joyful life. And profound healing.
Deep Listening tips and practicalities
- Come into your body. Be present, experience everything that is alive for you. Repeat, repeat, repeat, many times a day. Relax into and appreciate yourself. The better you know yourself, the better you can know others as you listen to them.
- Be intensely curious about the being that you are listening to. Forget what you think you know about them. Forget what you think about them.
- Let go of your side of any conversation. Don’t be thinking of any responses, what you’ll say next. Be an empty cup, allow the communication from the other to fill you up.
- Ask questions, seek clarification. ‘What did you mean by ……’, ‘Tell me more about ……’, and anything else you can think of to get more detail and feeling.
- Ask HOW they would like to be helped (or in the case of your animals, think about this question deeply).
- Act on your understanding, serve this being’s needs, and then see how that goes – you need to practice deep listening even more at this point, to calibrate and understand how you are received.
- And keep on practicing. This is a life long skill, and there is no end to how you can refine and grow into it.
If you want a practical, powerful way to practice and learn deep listening while healing your pets and yourself, I invite you to consider Whole Energy Body Balance™ Bodywork for Pets. Not only will you learn how to find and heal your pet’s Silent Pain, Anxiety, and Trauma, but you’ll learn how to listen deeply as you explore therapeutic touch with your pets (who will LOVE IT).
Here’s a short video of me discussing this topic.
– Enjoy this article? You can check out last week’s one at this link.
– Want to work with me to create harmony for your pets (and maybe for you) with holistic veterinary consultations, intuitive insights, and energy healing? Drop into www.thehealingvet.com and book a free call with me. And if you’d like to learn how to heal your pets (and yourself) with loving touch and energy healing, check out www.wholeenergybodybalance.com
Loki helping me write this blog…
