Emilah In-Depth: Understanding and Listening to Intuitive Guidance (or not!)
Please Note: This blog was originally published on July 1, 2021, on my Intuitive Coaching website/blog. I have shared it here as a way to understand a bit more about me and how I work.
It’s been a while since I blogged on intuition and psychic experiences. A few weeks ago, I pondered these questions in preparation for an interview. I took some time to clean up my answers and fill in some details for this blog post. I hope you enjoy this in-depth look at my intuitive process!
Have you always listened to your intuitive guidance (inner wisdom, intuition, divine guidance, Spirit, etc.)?
When I was a child, under six, I spent lots of time in the woods with the fairies and my dog. Honestly, I only remembered that experience in my mid-thirties.
So, for many years I would have answered “no” to that question. And yet, I did make decisions based on just knowing it was the thing to do. For decades I didn’t know what to call that “knowing.”
That changed in my mid-30s when I started doing yoga and working at the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona. I was introduced to a whole new world of eastern philosophy, yoga, meditation and woo. Around that time, I also discovered that I was an empath and that contributed to my “just knowing” what other people needed and the sometimes codependent ways I used that “knowing.”
It cracked open even further after a car accident in the fall of 2004 when I sustained a head injury. I came to understand what it means to be connected to the invisible realm—spirits, guides, angels, gurus, my own higher self/soul, etc. I began spontaneously channeling and healing energy started flowing through my hands.
I would stand next to someone and know a lot about them and what they needed to heal or change. I suddenly could communicate with plants, animals, rocks and knew how to use gems and minerals for healing. It felt like I was high on life and universal energy all the time.
There was no filter, and it was overwhelming! In time, I learned how to integrate all of that into a human body. I worked with some masterful teachers and healers during that time. Deborra Sanders helped me understand what was happening (a spiritual awakening, duh!) and how to set boundaries so I was not overwhelmed or trespassing other people’s boundaries.
Lee Cartwright, a masterful healer who lived in Santa Fe until he left his body, reconnected the left and right hemispheres of my brain and helped me land back into the human realm. I haven’t been high since, but I can live an integrated life on the planet, take care of myself and my body, and access my left brain again thanks to his work.
Talk to me about a time when you were not listening to your intuitive guidance.
I did not listen to divine guidance when I entered my first marriage. I didn’t know what inside of me was telling me not to marry him, but I heard it loud and clear.
He was a kind, caring guy. We loved each other. It didn’t make any sense. But I kept getting this nudge to call off the wedding. That it was not for my highest good. I went to visit an old friend about a month before the wedding, but I didn’t have the courage to bring it up.
As I was walking down the aisle, I knew this was not a good idea, but I just couldn’t stop myself. It seemed like the right thing to do despite the clear direction from somewhere inside me not to do it.
What was that like for you when you didn’t follow guidance? What happened when you did not listen?
My marriage was fine in the traditional sense. We were caring, young people learning how to be in a marriage. No abuse, no financial troubles. My husband was the salt of the earth.
But I could see, over time, that I was wilting, losing touch with myself, my sense of adventure, and my love of life by trying to fit into his world. I simply could not be a “good wife,” have children, go to the family camp and have fun, or get comfortable with his weekends with the guys hunting and fishing knowing that if I had kids, I’d be home with them simply because that’s the way it was.
That just wasn’t me and my body rebelled. Our final Christmas together I swelled up like a balloon and was diagnosed with an unspecified autoimmune disease. Shortly after I read Marianne Williamson’s A Woman’s Worth and within a few months I asked for a divorce.
In retrospect, I became aware of two things this experience taught me:
Although I didn’t know what that “knowing” was, I knew I had to follow it. Over time I learned that following inner guidance (intuition, divine guidance, God, Universe, whatever) causes me less suffering. I’ve cultivated my way of knowing – clairsentience – so that it is fine-tuned, and I can translate much better now than I could then.
I also learned that my body gets ill when I don’t listen to guidance. Sometimes very ill. Autoimmune flare-ups, adrenal fatigue, chronic fatigue and the like. This happened again recently with work I was doing at a college I loved. I just couldn’t hear that it was time to leave until my body collapsed from adrenal fatigue. I have definitely learned this lesson and treat my body with great care now.
What happens when you do listen? How does that feel?
When I listen and act on what I hear, I am in the flow of life. Doors open where I couldn’t have imagined. I am invited in. I’m lighter and happier most of the time. There are times when following divine guidance means stepping away, letting go, etc. In those times, there is grief to process as well. But it is ALWAYS better on the other side of feeling my feelings.
How do you know the difference between a thought you are thinking and a thought you are receiving? What has helped you trust that it is a divinely guided thought/feeling/emotion?
When I am hearing divine guidance (intuition). I have a sense of calm, quiet, peacefulness. It may be firm and persistent, but it’s also gentle and allows me agency—choice.
When I hear thoughts or my ego self, my thinking is very active; I wind myself up and my mind goes in circles. It becomes obsessive and very demanding. Intuitive or divine guidance is steady and flows easily, even when it’s something I don’t want to hear. I can feel that steady flow in my body.
I say prayers before I intentionally listen for guidance, whether for a client or for myself. This sets a container or safe space where information, guides and energy can come through with clarity and intention. Of course, intuition is active all the time, but when I am reading for clients or on issues that are murky for myself, I say prayers and meditate first to create a clear channel.
I can feel the hum in my body and the switch happen in my neuropathways. I can sense in my body and neuropathways the different frequencies of the beings providing guidance.
How do you receive intuitive guidance?
I am primarily clairsentient. My body receives it kinesthetically and/or it comes in as an energy or knowing. Because of this, “I” need to translate it into language or movement. This was hard to learn at first—learning to translate or to just follow along.
The translation often comes through speaking—I start talking and something that resonates with my whole being/body comes out. I usually have no idea what I am going to say until I hear it coming out of my mouth.
Something similar happens when I write. It’s like a conduit opens up and words, stories, etc. come out through my fingers and onto the keyboard. Often, the blog, story, text, is written onto the page fully formed.
I am also claircognizant – sometimes I just know things.
What final advice would you give to those listening today, wanting to have more “in the flow” moments?
Learn how YOUR divine/intuitive guidance system works. Practice, patience, and persistence are key. We all have it, discover yours and learn to fine-tune it. Then use it for everything. Even if you make mistakes interpreting the guidance, you’ll learn something. Just go out and try again. No blame, no shame.
Lean into curiosity instead of fear. Curiosity and willingness allow for a gentle flow of guidance. Fear and anxiety kink the flow, so to speak.
As you come to understand how your guidance system works, you’ll learn to trust it and yourself. And remember, the best way to learn to trust your divine guidance is to act on it. It will send you in directions you couldn’t imagine and may seem scary. But do it! The reason will be revealed eventually!
How do we connect with you?
Right here on my website, you can explore my offerings and book a session. I blog monthly and you can connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Thanks for reading!
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