Letting Go & Letting Go of Stories You Tell Yourself. A self-guided journey for women of color over 40 to learn to let go of limiting beliefs and behavior patterns. Learn to let go of negative thought and emotions in order to manage stress, decrease anxiety, and increase your mental wellbeing. Read the full blog post here: https://macalarose.com/blogs/mindful-living/letting-go-releasing-the-thoughts-and-emotions-that-weigh-you-down

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Letting Go
www.macalarose.com
Presentation by Macala Rose

2. If you are bored
with your breath,
you're bored
with your life.
- Macala

3. CONSCIOUS
01.
A practice of conscious,
connected breathing.
CONNECTED
02.
A way to alter the breathing
pattern for a prolonged period
of time with the goal of shifting
your state of awareness.
A PATH TO
CALM
03.
A way to calm your mind and
nervous system.
Breathwork Is...

4. I know, a self-led discovery of purpose sounds fantastical. But I’ll also
say it was hard. In it, I had to deal with a lot of unearthed trauma, built up
over time. Learning to let go wasn’t easy, but it was necessary.
What Does Letting Go Have to Do With It?
So what does letting go have to do with creating change, purpose, or
building something new.
Letting Go

5. How many times have you felt that you are holding on too much? Or
doing too much?
Right now, do you feel like your mind is constantly processing the
situations that are happening in your life right now?
And do you find yourself at a loss of how to say no, let go of what
you're “holding” on to, or get out of those situations?
It has everything to do with it. Let me ask you:
All of this results in energetic buildup and pent up emotions. If you don’t
release it, whatever you’re “holding” on to because it takes its toll.
Negative beliefs become reinforced, behaviors cause deeper harm, and
eventually, the emotions manifest themselves physically in the body. (Que
stress, autoimmune issues, and problems in your gut).
Letting Go

6. So How Do You Let Go, And How Does It Help?
I will not sugar coat this for you, letting go is hard. And many of us won’t
do it until we absolutely have to. Why? Because letting go means we have
to change, and change isn’t something the majority us (or our brains) love.
Letting go allows us to be more objective, to relax, to reflect, and to heal.
By loosening our grip on things, we allow ourselves to see the world with
new eyes.
Letting Go Starts with Taking a Deep Breath
Letting go, or exploring the idea of letting go or even what to let go, all
starts with breathing. Yes, it’s that simple. So we’re going to do that
together.
Letting Go

7. Stand up tall with your feet hips distance apart.
Put a slight bend in your knees and let your arms rest at your sides.
Set an intention. For this practice, let’s make it, “I give myself
permission to let go.”
Now I want you to breathe in and out through your nose, two times.
These are regular breaths, just to help you focus.
Now, I want you to inhale deeply as you raise your arms to the sky.
Now hinge your hips and release your arms to the ground.
Bending your knees, exhale a giant sigh through your open mouth.
Let’s do that 10 more times.
Please know, there is no timing or special techniques associated with this
practice, I simply want to encourage you to breathe deeply, and intentionally.
Let’s do it together.
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Be sure to inhale and exhale as deeply as you can. You do not have to focus
on perfection or technique, just breathing. Rest for a few moments, and
notice how you feel.

8. Most of our lives, we’ve been conditioned with a flight or flight response –
always thinking about what to do next. The actions we should take.
Letting go is the opposite of this, because we’re not trying to act.
By using our breath, we let our body and brain know that there is nothing
that we have to act upon right now. We are okay right now, and that
there’s nothing we need to do. It then creates some space for you to
focus on what can be let go of next. I encourage you to journal your
experiences after this.
Put your hand to heart, and say,
“I am proud of myself for giving
myself the permission to let go.”

9. Thank you for breathing with me. Now, if you like, you can drop off the call
here and process the feelings you may be experiencing. But if you like, you
can stay on and we can explore letting go of the stories we tell ourselves.
The stories that we repeatedly tell ourselves about our lives, others, and
the world can be very limiting and inaccurate. Identifying and then letting
go of our stories can often be quite liberating. It can also open us to new
directions and possibilities in our lives.
Even more importantly, they can help us overcome limiting beliefs that we
have about our abilities to do something (like creating a new business, etc.)
Letting Go of
Your Stories

10. Find a quiet place where you can be undisturbed and have time to reflect.
Ask yourself, “What stories about myself or the world do I believe that
keep me from being happy, trying new things, and doing what I really
want?”
It could be a story about how what you provide doesn’t have a high
value.
It could be a fear story that triggers anxiety about being able to grow
or launch a successful VIP day.
It could be something more personal, regarding your physical or
mental health.
It could be about your ability to be compassionate, resilient, or even
about showing up and being seen as the woman you are.
In order to discover your stories, think about how you introduce yourself
to people or explain your actions, emotions, and history.
Now we’re going to examine the stories you currently believe about yourself,
others, or the world. We’re going to question their validity, and practice letting
go of them.
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11. 4. Once you have identified your story (or one of them), notice how it
feels in your body when you believe it.
5. Also notice what thoughts arise when you believe this story.
6. Now, ask yourself who created this story and if it is accurate.
7. Begin to imagine what it would feel like if you didn’t believe this story,
and see how it feels to let go of it, for even a moment.
8. Observe how this feels in your body and mind.
9. Ask yourself what you would do differently if you didn’t believe this
story.

12. After you’ve written this out, how do you feel?
What came up for you in terms of emotions?
Did you notice any themes or patterns?
Throughout the day, whenever you are upset, ask yourself:
“What story am I believing right now?”
Examine whether this story is really true or if it is limiting and negatively
affecting you.
Write about them in your journal.

13. About This Practice
Changing or letting go of one’s story is commonly practiced in psychotherapy and other
meditative/religious traditions. The methods and exercises presented here were adapted
from a practice created by James Baraz in his book Awakening Joy, Ashley Neese in her
book How to Breathe, and Agapi Stassinopulous in her book Waking Up to the Joy of You.
Disclaimer: Letting go of your story can be difficult, especially if it has existed for many
years. Be patient when working to let go of your story and remember to practice great self-
compassion throughout this exercise. Also, it is not necessary to let go of your entire story.
Just identifying and questioning the limiting parts of your story that do not help you is
beneficial.
NOTES: If you are having difficulty letting go of your story, begin by just considering the
possibility of letting it go and see how this feels in your body and mind.

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