Understanding and listening to your intuition can be a powerful tool for avoiding relationships that could potentially result in disappointment and pain. Embracing your intuition can also help you foster old and new meaningful connections. In light of this, we offer 7 practical tips on how to effectively tune into your intuition.
But first, let’s describe what intuition is.
What is Intuition?
Intuition is that inner wise voice that alerts you when something is off or when you’re about to choose the wrong path for you.
Intuition is not based on facts or reasonal thinking. It’s knowing without having an explanation. It’s a strong sensation — a feeling.
It can come to you in a dream, or it can come as a subtle whisper. It can knock you down like a sack of bricks or it can come as a slight sensation.
But how do you know if you should listen to it? These 7 tips on how to listen to your intuition will help you decipher the messages from your inner wisdom.
7 Tips on How to Listen to your Intuition in Relationships
Tip #1. Cultivate Mindfulness
Cultivating mindfulness in a relationship involves being consciously aware of all aspects of the interaction, while understanding the dynamics at play. This involves actively listening to comments, questions, and the topics discussed. But most importantly, it requires you to look closely at your emotions.
Are you left feeling uneasy? Uncomfortable? Upset? Disheartened?
If you are then, your emotions are trying to tell you something regarding this person. Listen to them. They’re intuitive signs that something’s not quite right. This takes us to tip #2 on how to listen to your intuition.
Tip #2. Reflect on Your Emotions
Are you feeling uneasy because you’ve been triggered because of past trauma?
If in the past had a friend who would constantly put you down in the most subtle ways, perhaps you will have an exaggerated, and inadequate response whenever someone else provides you with positive constructivism.
Or perhaps someone in the past would twist everything you said, so whenever someone disagrees with you, you become triggered.
These are all trauma responses, and instead of providing you with accurate intuitive hunches, they steer you away from your wise inner voice. This takes us to tip #3 on how to listen to your intuition.
Tip#3. Become Self-Aware of Your Traumatic Experiences
Part of recognizing your intuition is knowing yourself deeply and thoroughly.
What triggers you the most?
Can you connect your triggers with specific past traumatic experiences?
Failure to bring the unconscious into your conscious awareness means you will act from a place of trauma rather than intuition.
“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.”
Carl Jung
Through understanding and self-awareness, the unconscious loses its grip on your psyche, and its detrimental influence ceases to manifest in your behaviors. Healing also takes a pivotal spot when it comes to nurturing your intuition.
Tip #4. Embark on a Healing Journey
Healing is a unique journey for each of us, often taking a non-linear path. The most important thing is to understand your pain, integrate it, and in some way subdue it. Looking at your wounds and applying soothing balm prevents your pain from surfacing when you least expect it.
Once you heal your past trauma, you no longer confuse your extreme trauma responses with your gut feeling. But beware! Intuition is the voice of experience. Do not force yourself to trust someone that makes you feel strange just because you’re determined not to let past trauma dictate your life.
This takes you to dismiss your intuition consistently. You may then start justifying or excusing the behaviors of others, even when your intuition signals discomfort. True healing involves a delicate balance—honoring the lessons learned from past experiences while allowing your intuition to guide you towards healthier connections and choices.
Tip #5. When in Doubt, Meditate
If you’re feeling uneasy or doubtful about a specific person or situation, take some time off in a silent place where you can connect with your wise inner voice. The best way to connect is through meditation.
Meditation helps because it calms you down, and your intuition flourishes amid mental peace and stillness. In effect, meditation takes you to a space of awareness —a space where you learn to recognize your intuition from thoughts based on fear or trauma.
If the answer is clear but you refuse to move act on your intuition, ask for a sign.
Tip #6. Listen to the Signs
I once met someone that gave me a bad gut feeling. So seeking reassurance, I requested a sign—something unassuming, not readily found in everyday places. “If this relationship isn’t meant for me, please God, show me an orange anywhere.”
An hour later, a basket of oranges materialized in the coffee shop where I was working. However, overshadowed by loneliness, skepticism, and stubbornness, I dismissed this clear sign and chose to persist in the relationship.
Days later, my intuition came knocking on my door even harder than before and I couldn’t ignore it anymore. Seeking confirmation, I once again asked for the same sign: an orange. This time, it didn’t keep me waiting. Within a minute, the word “orange” was written on a random Instagram post. The undeniable synchronicity amazed me; I couldn’t ignore my wise inner voice anymore. But even then, I struggled to remove this person from my life. I then decided to pray.
This takes us to the last tip on how to listen to your intuition in relationships:
Tip # 7.Nudge your Intuition out Through Prayer
Prayer serves as a conduit for reaching out to God; it provides divine guidance and support.
The approaches to prayers are diverse. You can seek guidance by enacting a small prayer and then drifting into a meditative state. Or you can ask for a sign or message by opening your Bible or Quran at a random page. You can even write letters to God; this can be a profound communication channel.
In this particular case, and because I have a catholic background, I decided to pray the Rosary. I simply asked for guidance. After falling asleep while praying, I woke up at 5 am with an intense and disturbing emotion.
My intuition was, once more, knocking at my door. It was wide awake and loud. It was requesting me to choose myself, “now!” I couldn’t ignore it any longer, so I finally made the decision and followed through. An immediate sense of peace took over. The battle between my ego and my Higher Self was finally over.
This is the perfect example on how to listen to your intuition in relationships. The beauty of all this is that the more you listen to that gut feeling, the stronger it becomes.
Conclusion
In the realm of relationships, paying attention to your intuition holds particular significance. If there’s uncertainty surrounding a specific individual or situation, self reflect, meditate, ask for signs and turn to prayer for guidance. It’s crucial to trust your intuition if anything feels unsettling. Keep in mind that your intuition is a potent instrument capable of steering you toward relationships that are both nourishing and satisfying.
For more insights about intuition, download our eBook, The Psychology of Intuition. Within these pages, we delve into the scientific underpinnings behind the gut feeling, providing valuable insights on how you can nurture and trust this powerful aspect within your psyche.
Sneak Peek of the book!: The Psychology of Intuition: The Human Mind and Intuition
If you liked our article, “How to Listen to Your Intuition in Relationships, you will like:
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Carl Jung’s Insights on Intuition
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