The Chemistry of Joy by Henry Emmons MD

Author:Henry Emmons, MD
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Touchstone

VATA TYPES: CHART YOUR PERSONAL JOURNEY

While everyone’s life path is unique, certain themes tend to be predominant for Air types. Self-acceptance is one prominent issue for such people, since fear feeds their tendency to feel insecure, unworthy, or ashamed. Believing that they are not good enough as they are draws many vata people to the pursuit of “self-improvement.” Ironically, what would really be healing and balancing for them is self-acceptance.

Fear likewise drives vatas’ frequent belief that they risk not having enough—not enough food, activities, friends, love, or anything else they find valuable. This fear-based belief can lead to a grasping quality, underlying some of the excessive movement and inability to rest that is so unbalancing to Air types. Remembering that there is enough—with the help of the techniques in Step Three—can free vatas from this prison of scarcity.

Vatas can likewise benefit from techniques designed to help clear the mind, particularly meditation with awareness of breathing, and then meditation with awareness of thoughts and feelings. The emotions that Air types find particularly “sticky” are fear and insecurity. Learning to release these toxic emotions frees you from their control.

Reflection is also useful for vatas—taking the time to step back, get out of the fray, and reflect on what you are truly thinking and feeling. Using a journal is one way to reflect; finding a therapist or counselor is another. You can also just give yourself some downtime to sit and ponder a question or even daydream. Just don’t move into fretting or worry. That will only undo all the good balancing work you’ve achieved.

It’s not only your mind that needs balancing if you’re an Air type. Your spirit also needs sustenance. Inspiration is one key form of nourishment for vatas, who thrive on becoming enthusiastic about new things and are drawn into spiritual practices. Inspiration may come from a wide range of sources: friends, books, speakers, tapes, movies, sermons, worship services, prayer. You can also find inspiration within yourself, from listening to your inner voice—a great and never-ending source of inspiration, as we’ll see in Chapter 15. Contemplation—time spent in solitude, in relationship with the divine—is also a key balancing practice for vatas. You can experience contemplation through many of the practices described in Step Three as well as through prayer, reflective reading of Scripture, and chanting.

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