Synchronicity, Intuition and Animals

Many clients and students ask me how they can learn to trust their intuition more, to which I usually reply, “Well, we have this great technique now.”

Silent anticipation, and then the moment of truth:  “It’s called Asking.” 

Huh? 

I let the sentence sink in until my listeners begin to laugh. 

Seriously, though, If you want to learn how to trust messages you receive from God or the universe or your highest self, just ask the respective entity for help in that direction.  If you need signs, ask for signs.  If you need nudges, request those nudges and the courage to act on them.  If you want dreams, then set your intention to receive nightly inspiration.

When people start experiencing more synchronicities, they often feel amazed at their connection with the world but also somewhat overwhelmed.  Events seem to orchestrate themselves in complex patterns whose code seems impossible to crack.  Thinking something must make sense without knowing the details can feel maddening.  Synchronicity neophites “don’t want to miss anything important,” so they have a tendency to note every coincidence coming their way.  Someone called me out of the blue; does that mean I’m supposed to get together with them?  This guy’s also into Sacred Geometry; does that mean we’re soul mates?  I’ve had three dreams about Peru; should I move there?

As someone whose world reflects a huge degree of synchronicity in everyday life, I do understand the simultaneous excitement and overwhelm.  When a 1998 brain injury knocked out my rational side for three plus years, the synchronicities ramped WAY up.  I suddenly had no logical filter to dismiss coinciding events, and I had enough down time to let thoughts swim together into patterns.  Paradox became a huge theme in my life.  If something seemed completely illogical, then of course, it must be “inspired” and therefore right!  Right? Because my brain continually misfired, though, such black and white/either-or thinking left me unnerved.  A paradox one day made perfect sense the next.  My IQ radically fluctuated depending on lighting, amount of sleep, protein levels, noise, and overall mental taxation.  What newbie synchronicity followers and would-be intuitives experience to some degree, I felt keenly in survival mode.  I had no rational side to guide me, so I absolutely needed to develop a trustworthy intuition.  

Unfortunately, placing too much pressure on ourselves inhibits intuition, so I needed to find a way to observe signs, discern the relevant ones, and feel tangibly cared for and guided.  Without too much of that woo woo crap!  When things became too ethereal and yet made sense to me, I grew very nervous.  Bereft of my rational side, I still remembered what it felt like to have one, and blindly following synchronicities felt neither familiar nor comfortable. 

At some point, I realized that animals bridged the gap.  They “existed” in the world I knew, the world of forms and physicality.  Unlike ghosts, visions or clairaudient messages, seeing an eagle did not brand me a heretic, schizophrenic or psychic, because, hey, normal people see eagles, too.  Maybe not too often in Chicago, but it was at least reasonably possible, especially in dreams!  

I began to request that my signs come through animals, because I could more easily share those stories with the non-spiritual people in my life.  I could gage from their responses if such occurences seemed unusual or significant, because most people have had at least some contact with domestic and wild animals.  I also found that animals introduced a safety factor in that people who might otherwise feel threatened by synchronicity or intuition would delight in tales of animal encounters.  The critters offered themselves as a bridge not only from my fledgling intuitive mind to faith, but also as a means for others to let down their guard and explore the idea of a “talking universe.”

In years of professional coaching and intuitive work, I have found animal communication sessions so effective an opening for people that I started teaching classes on how to develop natural aptitude.  If you have a beloved pet, you can start practicing right in your own home.  Simply inviting your pet into the space of sharing will often open up some pathways. 

Other people may want to jump start their telepathic connection or reaffirm their own intuitions by scheduling a reading.  That’s fine; pets usually come into people’s lives in order to support healing on all levels.  Oftentimes they will sacrifice their own health and encourage you to seek help for them from someone who can also help you.  They consider it an honor to serve you in this manner, but they also love when you just come to recognize them as conscious beings!

If you do not have pets (or even if you do), you can ask for guidance from animals in the wild.  Many religions speak of animal totems and animal spirit guides.  These carry the spiritual energy of an entire species, but they usually appear as an actual animal that crosses your path.  You might notice these encounters because of their frequency (like seeing a robin three times), synchronicity (appearance in a dream and then on TV or in life), or rarity (seeing elusive animals like cougars, eagles, wolves or coyotes).  In general, if you feel tingly or hyperaware and wonder if this animal means to commune with you, it probably does. 

When you encounter such animals, thank them for appearing to you.  They don’t have to; they do so as a courtesy for your growth.  Even when an animal only reveals itself through dreams, that spirit offers valuable information to you.  Each person gradually learns what particular animals mean for him or her, but lots of websites exist to get you started.  Unfortunately, my very favorite shamanism website seems to have left the web permanently  Since writing this, my very favorite shamanism website has reappeared under a new name:  http://animalspirits.com.

In order to assess what an animal spirit may want to share with you, consider what sort of decisions you have in front of you right now.  Synchronicity will work to support your intuition, which in turn works to support your decisions and creation of a life you love.  Before locking yourself into a general interpretation, it can also help to note your own instinctive idea of the animal’s message.  Does it remind you of a particular pet or experience?  If so, then those associations may trump traditional meanings.  The typical interpretations may add layers and depth, but this encounter probably reveals a special angle just for you.

For example, I have long had a close association with eagles.  After my head injury, my physical sight grew unreliable, and eagles suddenly showed up in my dreams.  During my recovery, I would have three to six potent eagle dreams per week.  Traditionally, eagles represent keen sight and hearing (both in physical and psychic realms).  They also have a tendency to take in the bigger picture, something that my own compromised vision struggled to do.  I considered this eagle medicine a potent part of my healing journey.

But the eagle also came to represent something more personal to me.  I noticed that whenever I held a question of whether or not I should move somewhere, the eagle dreams would intensify.  My husband and I move often, and we imagine moving even more often than that.  Over the years, I have noticed that I only see eagles in nature when we have either just landed in a new place or just decided upon the right new place to go.  When an eagle appears in my physical realm, it always fills me with a sense of rightness and peace around our moving decision.  In part because I only see the eagles at such times, the message comes across more strongly and clearly.  For someone else, the eagle might have a different set of personal resonances, but for me, I’ve learned that the eagle synchronizes itself in my waking world in conjunction with our moves.

Animals can also support your intuitions by amplifying their energy ahead of time.  My now-husband lived on Vashon Island near Seattle, and one night I had a sense he might be driving too fast.  I suddenly “saw” a deer about two feet in front of his car.  “Stop!” I screamed, “Don’t you see that deer?”  There was no deer in sight, but he slowed down.  About two minutes later, we both saw a deer stopped in the middle of the road.  Had we not slowed down, we would have hit it going around the curve.  We drove slowly the rest of the night and avoided another potential accident as well.

You live in a loving and social universe that welcomes the chance to communicate with you.  Animals offer a gentle way of engaging with synchronicity to help you gain confidence in your intuition.  They also offer loyal support and protection on your journey.  So …  if you’re feeling overwhelmed by circumstances or coincidences, invite the animals to help.  You’ll feel extra blessed and glad you did!

 

Laura Bruno is an Animal Communicator, Medical Intuitive, Life Coach and Reiki Master Teacher:  www.internationalrenaissancecoaching.com.  She has also written two books, If I Only Had a Brain Injury and The Lazy Raw Foodist’s Guide.