Contain Your T-Rex

My boyfriend bought me a t-shirt when he was in Portland that says Hangry with a T-Rex on it. I love it because it is ridiculous and accurate.

After work, I traveled to the store and was accelerating towards hangry by the time I came home. I arrived to find my boyfriend and my son working on the garage shelves.

They asked me to start supper and the recipe for the potato salad, which would take 45 minutes, was on the counter.

My eyes blazed, I went quiet and began to put groceries away.

In my head, the T-Rex was gaining ground. Its diatribe began, and I went down the rabbit hole of all the injustices I have ever experienced in my family as the roar got louder my capability to think waned.

I snatched a few cherries, sat down, and engaged in a deep belly breathing to subdue the roar. A few more minutes and I had returned to my typical emotional state, and the T-Rex became a small lizard.

If I had not satisfied my need for food or sat down to breathe, I wouldn’t have realized where the roar started. My boyfriend could have walked into the kitchen, asked a benign question, and I would have chomped his head clear off. 

Start paying attention to what you require when you meet your T-Rex.

Are you hungry, tired, sad? Ask these questions and satisfy the demand. You might need food, quiet, space, deep breathing.

Make an intentional decision to care for yourself first before you do anything.

Choosing to recognize your inner sensations will make it so you can capture the T-Rex before he or she eats your family.

Call and set up a free Somatic Therapy consultation if you meet your T-Rex far too often. We can work together to see what is feeding it.