Embracing Your Expanding Awareness: A Practical Guide to Managing Spiritual Transformation

Something is shifting inside you. You’re noticing things you never noticed before. Your senses feel sharper. Your feelings run deeper. Your thoughts reach further. This isn’t your imagination—you’re experiencing a genuine expansion of awareness.

But here’s what nobody tells you: becoming more aware doesn’t always feel peaceful. In fact, it can sometimes feel overwhelming, confusing, or even frightening. If you’re experiencing this, you’re not alone—and there’s nothing wrong with you.

This guide will show you practical, step-by-step ways to manage your expanding awareness so you can reduce stress and anxiety, find your stability, and discover the inner peace that comes with genuine transformation.

The Reality Check: What Spiritual Growth Actually Feels Like

When most people imagine spiritual growth, they picture something like floating on a peaceful cloud—calm, happy, and enlightened. The reality? It’s more like learning to swim in the ocean.

Think of it this way: Imagine you’ve been living in a house with dimmer switches on all the lights. Suddenly, someone is gradually turning up the brightness in every room. You can see details you never noticed—the dust particles in the air, the patterns in the wallpaper, the scratches on the furniture. More light means more information. More information can feel overwhelming until you adjust.

Your expanding awareness works the same way. You’re now sensing:

  • Pleasant feelings AND uncomfortable ones
  • Exciting insights AND confusing questions
  • Clear moments AND foggy uncertainty
  • Your evolving self AND who you used to be

This wider range of experience is actually a sign that your awareness is working correctly. You’re becoming conscious of thoughts, feelings, and energies that were always there—you just couldn’t sense them before.

Why You Might Feel “Too Sensitive”

Do you sometimes feel like you’re picking up everyone else’s stress? Like you can sense the mood of a room the moment you walk in? Like your emotions are turned up to maximum volume?

This heightened sensitivity happens because your awareness has expanded outward, like radio antennae picking up more signals. You’re not just sensing your own inner world anymore—you’re also tuning into the energy around you.

The good news? You can learn to adjust the dial. You can become aware without becoming overwhelmed. The key is learning to find your center and stay grounded in your body.

Essential Practice #1: Finding Your Center

Your center is like the calm eye of a hurricane. No matter what swirls around you, this inner space remains steady and quiet. Think of it as your home base—a vertical column of peaceful energy running through the middle of your body, from above your head down through your spine and below your feet.

Quick Centering Practice (2 minutes)

Step 1: Get Comfortable

Sit or stand comfortably. Let your shoulders relax downward.

Step 2: Notice Your Spine

Gently bring your attention to your spine. You don’t need to do anything—just notice it’s there, running down the middle of your back.

Step 3: Imagine a Gentle Column

Picture a soft column of light or energy in the same place as your spine. Let it extend naturally above your head and below your feet. Don’t force it—just imagine it gently.

Step 4: Breathe Into It

Take three slow, easy breaths. As you breathe, imagine the breath flowing through this central column. Notice how things feel quieter, more stable, more… you.

That’s it. You’ve just experienced centering.

Practice tip: Every time you feel scattered or overstimulated, come back to this practice. It takes less than a minute once you get the hang of it.

Essential Practice #2: Grounding in Your Body

Grounding is like plugging yourself into the earth’s power source. When you’re grounded, you feel solid, present, and connected to the physical world. It’s the opposite of feeling spacey or unmoored.

Think of a tree: Its branches can sway in the wind because its roots go deep into the earth. Grounding gives you that same stability—no matter what’s happening around you, you stay rooted in the here and now.

Simple Grounding Practice (3 minutes)

Step 1: Feel Your Body

Place one hand on your chest and feel your heartbeat, OR simply notice your breathing moving in and out. This brings your awareness into your physical body.

Step 2: Notice the Earth

Feel your feet on the floor. Even if you’re in a tall building, there’s still earth beneath you. Just notice it’s there, supporting everything.

Step 3: Make the Connection

Imagine a gentle connection between your feet and the earth below. Like tuning forks that vibrate together, let your body and the earth resonate. You don’t have to make it happen—just allow it.

Step 4: Breathe and Settle

Take three deep breaths and feel yourself settling, like snow falling gently to the ground. Notice how your body feels more present, more real, more here.

Practice tip: Ground yourself first thing in the morning, before important conversations, or whenever you feel anxious or disconnected.

Essential Practice #3: Conscious Breathing

Your breath is the bridge between your mind and your body. When you pay gentle attention to your breathing, you naturally come back to yourself. You remember: “I am here. I am okay. This is now.”

Important: Conscious breathing doesn’t mean forcing your breath into a specific pattern. It simply means noticing your breath exactly as it is—gentle, unforced, natural.

Breath Awareness Practice (any time, anywhere)

Step 1: Just Notice

Without changing anything, notice that you’re breathing. Feel the air moving in… and out. That’s all.

Step 2: Feel the Sensations

Where do you feel your breath most clearly? In your nose? Your chest? Your belly? Just notice the sensations.

Step 3: Count Three Breaths

Silently count three complete breaths. In… out… one. In… out… two. In… out… three.

Step 4: Return to Your Day

That’s it. You’ve just centered yourself using your breath. You can do this dozens of times a day—while waiting in line, before opening an email, during a difficult conversation.

The magic: These small moments of breath awareness accumulate. Over time, you’ll find yourself naturally staying more centered throughout your day.

Discovering Your Authentic Inner Voice

Inside you, there are two distinct voices. Learning to tell them apart changes everything.

The Nervous Voice lives in your outer awareness. It chatters constantly, jumps from thought to thought, worries about the future, rehashes the past, and picks up anxiety from the world around you. It’s like a radio stuck on a news station—always talking, rarely helpful.

Your Authentic Voice speaks from your deep center. It’s quiet, calm, and wise. It doesn’t chatter or insist. It simply knows. This is the voice of your true self—your soul, your essence, the real you beneath all the noise.

Think of it like this: The nervous voice is like the waves on the surface of the ocean—constantly moving, churning, responding to every wind. Your authentic voice is like the deep, still water far below—peaceful, powerful, and unchanging.

Practice: Finding Your Authentic Voice (5 minutes)

Step 1: Center and Ground

Use the centering practice (bring attention to your core) and grounding practice (connect with earth through your feet). Take three conscious breaths.

Step 2: Notice the Chatter

Listen to the thoughts moving through your mind. Notice how they jump around, worry, plan, or replay conversations. Don’t try to stop them—just notice their restless quality.

Step 3: Shift Deeper

Gently move your attention deeper inside, toward your heart center or your belly. Imagine you’re diving below the surface waves into the quiet depths.

Step 4: Ask a Simple Question

Silently ask yourself, “What do I need right now?” or “What is true for me in this moment?” Then listen with your inner ear.

Step 5: Sense the Difference

The nervous voice will jump in quickly with worried answers. Your authentic voice speaks more quietly, simply, and truly. It feels peaceful, even if what it’s saying is challenging.

Step 6: Trust What You Sense

Whatever gentle knowing arises from that deep place—even if it’s just a feeling or a sense—trust it. That’s your authentic voice.

The revelation: The more you practice listening to your authentic voice, the more you realize you’ve always had access to profound wisdom. You just didn’t know where to look.

The Power of Choice

Here’s a life-changing realization: You can choose which voice you listen to.

You’re not stuck with the nervous chatter. You’re not trapped in overwhelm. Every moment, you can shift your attention from the anxious outer noise to the peaceful inner knowing.

This isn’t about fighting your thoughts or forcing yourself to be calm. It’s simply about redirecting your attention—like changing the channel on a TV.

Practice: Making the Shift (1 minute, use throughout your day)

When you notice yourself feeling scattered, anxious, or overwhelmed:

  1. Pause and take one conscious breath
  2. Say to yourself: “I choose to come back to center”
  3. Feel your center (that vertical column through your core)
  4. Ask: “What does my authentic voice say?”
  5. Listen quietly for just 10 seconds

That’s it. You’ve just exercised your power to choose.

The first few times might feel awkward or unclear. That’s normal. With practice, this shift becomes as natural as turning toward the sun for warmth.

What You’ll Discover

As you practice these essential techniques—centering, grounding, conscious breathing, and listening to your authentic voice—something remarkable begins to happen.

You’ll discover that:

The wisdom isn’t outside you. All those insights from spiritual teachers and books? They’re pointing you toward the same deep wisdom you already carry inside. Your authentic voice speaks from the same source.

Your body is your ally. Instead of feeling at war with your physical form, you realize your body is the instrument through which you experience your divine essence. It’s not separate from your spiritual nature—it’s essential to it.

Balance is always available. Even when the world feels chaotic, even when your awareness keeps expanding, you have direct access to inner stability. It’s not something you have to earn or achieve—it’s already there, waiting for you to notice it.

You’re not broken. Those overwhelming feelings? That heightened sensitivity? They’re not signs that something’s wrong with you. They’re signs that you’re waking up, becoming more aware, evolving into your fuller self.

Living With Expanding Awareness

The transformation you’re experiencing isn’t something that happens once and then you’re done. It’s an ongoing journey of expansion, integration, expansion, integration—like breathing.

Each time your awareness expands, you’ll need to return to these centering practices. Think of it like this: If your consciousness is a balloon that keeps inflating, these practices are what keep you tethered to the ground so you don’t float away.

The more you practice:

  • The faster you’ll recognize when you’re becoming ungrounded
  • The easier it becomes to shift from nervous chatter to authentic knowing
  • The more stable you’ll feel, even as your awareness continues to grow
  • The clearer you’ll hear your inner wisdom

Eventually, what once required focused practice becomes your natural way of being. Staying centered becomes as automatic as breathing.

Your Daily Practice Blueprint

Here’s a simple daily routine to integrate these practices into your life:

Morning (5 minutes):

  • Center yourself (feel your core)
  • Ground yourself (connect to earth)
  • Take 10 conscious breaths
  • Ask your authentic voice: “What’s important for me today?”

Throughout the Day:

  • Take three conscious breaths before any important activity
  • When you feel overwhelmed, return to center and ground
  • Notice which voice you’re listening to (nervous or authentic)
  • Choose to shift your attention to your authentic voice

Evening (5 minutes):

  • Center and ground again
  • Reflect: When did I feel most centered today?
  • Reflect: When did I successfully shift to my authentic voice?
  • Breathe into your core and feel gratitude for your inner wisdom

Embracing Your Journey

You are living in extraordinary times. Your consciousness is expanding, your sensitivity is increasing, and your awareness is deepening. This isn’t random—it’s part of a natural evolution happening within you and throughout humanity.

Yes, it can feel overwhelming. Yes, it’s different from what you expected. Yes, it requires you to learn new skills for managing your expanding awareness.

But here’s the truth: You already have everything you need to navigate this transformation.

Your center is always there, waiting for you to notice it. The earth is always beneath you, ready to ground you. Your breath is always flowing, inviting you to return to now. And your authentic voice is always speaking, offering wisdom from the deepest part of your being.

The practices in this guide aren’t about adding more work to your life. They’re about remembering what you already know at the deepest level: You are not lost. You are not broken. You are not too sensitive.

You are awakening.

And with each breath, each moment of centering, each time you choose to listen to your authentic inner voice, you’re learning to navigate this transformation with grace, stability, and wisdom.

Take a breath right now. Feel your center. Notice the earth beneath you. Listen to that quiet, wise voice within.

That’s your true self, welcoming you home.

You can do this.

Practice these techniques daily, be patient with yourself, and trust the wisdom of your own unfolding. Your expanding awareness is not a problem to be solved—it’s a gift to be integrated, one centered breath at a time.

Joel Bruce Wallach

35 Responses to Embracing Your Expanding Awareness: A Practical Guide to Managing Spiritual Transformation

  1. Charles says:

    Dear Joel,

    Thankyou very much for the article. I have been in AA for one year sober now. I have very much got my feelings back, for good or for worse and what the hell to do now. I just did the energy imagination thing as I was reading the article and a huge knot in my gut let go, so thank you.

    In between drink and or drug years before I would abstain and try to intensely practice spirituality.

    I found great relief in reiki, then a break, then vedantic spirituality, then back to drink, then aikido etc etc.

    A year or two into any spiritual practice, a certain point, intense fear, sadness and or anger would come up more and more and I would feel have to abandon it, until eventually doing a runner and cutting off contact with that group completely.

    I am now starting to do this dissapearing act with AA, but Im aware im doing it now and am communicating about it and going to meetings, and it feels like I can expose the fear that is the actual culprit for my behaviour. Do you have any advise?

    Thanks

    Charlie

  2. Natalie Webb says:

    There has always been light and darkness surrounding me.
    My
    Mother was scared of it. It forced her away from me.
    We lived In A home full of awful spirits. My mom would hold prayer vigils. She had pastors pray over me. It would put me in a meditation state that I could not wake from at times. I felt like it was a minute and it was much longer. Embarrassingly so.
    I knew when my grandfather passed before everyone else. He visited me. I knew he was ok. But I was mad because he was my person.
    I was always Ill. I still am a lot.
    I’ve been approached about my gifts, but I’ve always been very angry about them. I’ve tried to accept them. I’ve never been able to center the or balance the power of it all.
    It often gives me anxiety, depression and makes me feel sick.
    I’ll sleep and dream of another plane. Another place I’m living. It warns me about things to come. Yet it seems like it has already happened to me. Then I carry those sad feelings around and others don’t understand because nothing has happened. Yet.
    I fight it still.
    I’m afraid of the darkness that also tries to talk to me. There’s so many types of entities or energies around me that I’m unsure of how to talk or channel the positive energy and the light.
    I even smell bad smells, when there’s nothing bad to smell.
    I want or need real guidance. A connection. A way to utilize this or channel it for whatever it’s meant for.
    It’s driving a wedge between me and people. I can’t get close or close for long. Before I need to be alone. For unknown amounts of time. With no real take away from it.
    Loss. Grief. Confusion. Deep heartbreak.

  3. Yari says:

    I have had very intense panic attacks, stomach aches, nausea have gone to the er many times and nothing is wrong with me. I seem to panic right away when I have these episodes. What can I do to slow down the symptoms?

  4. Gloria Ortiz says:

    All my life I felt a disconnect from my family. Right now I’m going through a spiritual transformation with the auralite 23 gemstone. I have dizzy spells, get these I sights out of no where! And the know I think of my teenage years, I realize how unhappy I felt with my family! Right now I’m realizing I truly look different from the rest and how they lI’d to me about my true soul identity! About 4 psychics have sensed that I cane to my family as a foster baby and the never told me the truth! My dad who raised raised me, tragically got killed. If he wold have been living, I would have known the truth about who I was, but because of his unexpected death, I lost my compass in life and the family he left behind, hid the truth from me abd I was a totally lost soul. This transformation will lead me to the truth of my being❤

    • Gloria,

      Yes, you can tune in to your inner soul light. You can feel your connection between your soul light and the human family. You can feel your connection with the center of the planet, and you can feel your connection with the cosmic center of the universe.

  5. Nabamita says:

    Hi,
    I have been going through a lot of health issues which couldn’t be explained by medical practitioners. In 2015 when I conceived with lots of pregnancy symptoms all I wanted to hear was spiritual talks. No amount of worldly talks pleased me. My symptoms left me debilitated, only God’s mention relaxed me. Since then I had been on a rollercoaster ride with a baby in one hand and vertigo, ibs, fatigue for the last six months out of blue in the other.one day when I was worried with my health there was a kind of sensation of God holding my hand asking me to calm down and then gradually I was introduced to mindful meditation by one of God’s ardent disciple. My health issues have flared up but somehow I can feel stillness within me.. Do these health issues have anything to do with spiritual awakening?

  6. Kat says:

    Hi, I’ve just come across your article in light of a recent spiritual awakening… it’s been several months now that I’ve noticed shifts in my behaviors and inner thoughts, but over the past few weeks, it’s become more profound.

    It can feel overwhelming at times, but this article has been extremely helpful. Thank you so much for the information! I will be sure to integrate grounding, centering, and knowledge of boundaries and auras into my daily life and practices to guide myself through this period of vibrational intensity.

    Best wishes!

    • Kat,

      Congratulations on owning your power.

      It will also help if you detox the body via green supplements, such as tablets of wheatgrass, alfalfa, and spirulina. And make sure you’re getting enough protein and healthy fats (organic butter and coconut oil) daily.

  7. Carolina Quiroz says:

    Hello, I’ve recently had a spiritual awakening, Mid-July while I was on vacation at Mexico. At first I felt like I was losing my mind, like I was crazy, but then I started searching on how to handle it & i’m a bit better now, but I think I still need some additional help. It would mean a lot if you could help me

  8. Nina Sinanan Mungroo says:

    hi, I had a spiritual awakening in the middle of july 2017, my head feels like a pressure cooker, and i am trying to deal with it, having faith in God, knowing that he will get me through this. God directed me back to the temple, for prays and worship, my family supports me , but sometimes i feel that i will lose them

    • Nina,

      When you have a spiritual awakening, there can be a lot of energy in the body. Here is how you can release the excess energy.

      – Imagine that your head expands, so that you have more space in your head. This will start to release the pressure.
      – Imagine that your hands are made of light. Use your hands to gently move the excess energy in the head downwards.
      – Sweep the excess energy down the body, and out of your feet. This will help you feel more stable and grounded.
      – Do this process for a few minutes each day, and you will gradually feel more stable. You will be able to handle the increased spiritual energies safely.

  9. Lovelove says:

    Thank you for this article, it has been really helpful and assuring that me using my breath to keep myself centered and grounded is good thing to do. I had a heavy sudden awakening in May 2016 which was quite scary and then another big wave jan-march 2017, and it’s settled a lot but I still feel it, just not as intense.
    It was very scary this recent wave, to the point I felt like I was going crazy, lots of doubts of what’s really what’s not. I get this fairly constant pressure on the top of my head that fluctuates in intensity and sometimes it feels like energy vibrating around inside just under my skull. Sometimes I get pressure around my sinus cavities and third eye area. About 2mths ago I now started to see a white glow around people’s heads. I don’t know if this is ever going to end?

    • Lovelove,

      When the spiritual energy awakens, it can open up the chakras in the head. However, it’s important to move the excess energy down from the head, so that it doesn’t overstimulate the brain.

      You can find chi gong videos on youtube that will show you how to circulate energy in the body so it doesn’t get stuck in the head.

      • Lovelove says:

        Oh interesting, it came up to me last night that I need to get back into doing qigong again to help with this. Thank you

  10. I recently in the last few years realized my gifts – I feel they are getting stronger day by day. I know answers to questions, not even asking first, it’s kinda nerve wracking trying to bring everything together, and why now at 30, vs. as a child ? Why me – is this my purpose, cause I have felt outta place my whole life…

    • Cassie,

      It’s true that everyone is becoming more aware, but this comes with a requirement to practice being more centered, stable, and grounded in your body, in present time, each day.

      The soul is infinite divine consciousness, and that is why many soul-aware people might sometimes feel at odds with the planet. However, here you are, and you can make a difference each day, in small and subtle ways. Stay centered and grounded, be aware, and choose your thoughts and actions. Don’t overreact; just add to the good on the planet when you can.

  11. Namaste says:

    Hey. Thanks for the article. My awakening started in August. I suddenly realized so many things about my past and how I was all my life someone I was not really supposed to be.

    I made changes. I moved to another country (again) And finally started to study what I always wanted to study. I try to do the right things. Though the amount of changes is insane and I keep on being on this emotional rollercoaster.

    Sometimes I feel so alone and I want more, more, more. Other days I just want an end to it all, as there is no stability. I feel so confused.

    My twin flame and I also separated (again) though this time it feels like forever. This is OK in a way as I need to focus on myself and fill my own voids.

    I thought following my purpose would bring me more peace. Maybe I just need to get used to everything that has changed so quickly. I mean I bought a flat last year in Berlin, planning to stay there, got hit in an accident which made me go revalidate in my home country where I then decided to go study again. And this is just a top of the iceberg.

    • Namaste,

      Take it one day at a time. Move forward gently and gradually.

      Release blame of self, and of other people. Peace is a daily decision; it is even a moment by moment decision.

      As challenges appear, bring your energy back to center, and gently release your strong reactions. This lets you address each situation from a place of inner strength and balance.

  12. Light says:

    I transformed over past~6 yrs after a death of a parent and some more tough experience. Now I’m at a point of feeling a disconnect, seems like …I know all this. …only thing worthy seems is loving and healing …often I’m not interested in what’s fun for others. Same frnds seem childish now. I’m scared how change has changed me…I’m only 38. What will I do …venues so far available r not worth investing. I don’t want to loose connection with my husband. I don’t want to be called Looney. I’m feeling lost,alone, confused scared. And then at lot ytimes it’s simply bliss… Deep voice tells not to be afraid, the journey is lonely, and that is a fact…keep faith. But how to straddle both worlds?

    • Light,

      You’ve been through a lot, and you can learn to integrate your experiences.

      The key to integrating the worlds is to bring your soul into your body.

      Practice noticing your breath as it is happening. Feel the experience in your body.

      Learn to find your heartbeat. Feel it in your body. This connects your mind and soul with your heart. It connects your heart with the heart of your family.

      Bring the light of the soul into your heart and into your body. Feel your soul light shining within you as you breathe. You will gently discover that the worlds are all One.

  13. Samantha grifin says:

    Thank you, I have been going through this and it was scary and new. I have had several times when I get to deep and loose the reins, because I didn’t realize that it can be dangerous. I understand that I have to be grounded now, but how do if everything is happening all at once. Gifts, awakening, and I found my literal soul mate. We were told we are two of the same soul. We can feel each other and have both had the same spiritual experiences. I sometimes wonder if it is to much all at once.

    • Samantha,

      When everything seems to be happening “all at once,” imagine that time is slowing down. Imagine that you have the time and space to calmly tune into just one thing. Bring that one thing into balance.

      When you feel overly connected with someone else, so that you are experiencing things together, imagine that you have your own aura, and that your soul mate has their own aura. Even though you are soul mates, you each need to develop your own individual aura boundary.

  14. John says:

    You mention in the article:

    When you bring your attention to your core, it draws your focus from the overly sensitive outer aura inwards to the stability of your physical body.

    Can relate to this strongly, is there any further advise or instruction on being able to shift the awareness away from the sensitive feeling aspects of the aura to a more stable and ground sense of self? This has be my main challenge but am making progress finally 🙂

  15. You’re becoming more aware, and you’re sane as can be. Bring your awareness within to your inner light, and breathe gently and slowly. The healing divine presence is within you, within your twin flame, and within all.

  16. the queen says:

    I thought i was loosing my mind. And durning my tranformation. I met my twinflame. And everything started coming up. Anger that i thought was gone. When i look at him i see myself. Sometimes its not easy looking at ones self. But at least im not going crazy.

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