This post is all about spiritual upleveling. Spiritual upleveling is an uncomfortable process of transformation where you move from one reality to the next. You go from having a familiar way of operating in the world to a completely new one that has new rules because you have energetically changed. When you go through a spiritual upleveling your physical, mental, and energy bodies need to be re-tooled to work with the new level of energy coming through your system. It’s like when you get a new phone or computer that runs on a newer operating system. All of your programs and apps need to be updated to work with the new operating system.
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Who is Betsy Leighton?
I’m a writer, blogger, and healer dedicated to helping individuals reconnect with their innate peace and wholeness by healing nervous system dysregulation. My personal experience with chronic illness called Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) shapes my work, and my content offers tools to empower those with chronic illness to improve their well-being and take charge of their health.
I created the Sacred Self-Healing Method and am a trained and certified Safe and Sound Protocol provider, an author, blogger, and A Course in Miracles Teacher. I hold a Master of Divinity in Spiritual Counseling and am a trained spiritual mentor, with certificates in sound healing, aromatherapy, nutrition, and Sacred Deathcare. I offer a self-study certificate program in the Sacred Self-Healing Method, provide spiritual counseling and coaching, courses, and supported subscriptions for the Safe and Sound Protocol.
What is MCAS?
Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) is a chronic condition that affects all organ systems. It can cause severe, disabling symptoms every day, including potentially fatal anaphylaxis. MCAS often occurs with other chronic conditions like Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). Managing MCAS is challenging because many healthcare providers are unaware of it, and diagnostic tests can be unreliable. Treatments include antihistamines and mast cell stabilizers, as well as avoiding triggers. Check out this post on managing MCAS.
I was out of sorts
For the last month, I was out of sorts. Things were not well in my mind and body. Old aches and pains resurfaced. I went through periods of intense creativity and wrote a lot, which alternated with periods of complete brain fog and despondency. Many of the tools that helped me in the past were no longer working. And some of my go-to self-care tools were not enough.
Mentally, I was waking up with a sense of dread, and then spending the day vacillating between anxiety and sadness. A friend’s son died unexpectedly, which sent me reeling emotionally. I was planning a surprise party for a family member, and I had daily anxiety attacks about whether it would end up being a Covid-19 superspreader event.
At the same time, my clients echoed this feeling of tiredness, physical discomfort, uncertainty, unease, and lack of motivation. My clients were coming to me stressed and tired, and they were challenging me to find the silver lining to their down period.
I wondered what was going on energetically?
At a point when I felt totally stuck with this constellation of symptoms, I finally googled “what is going on energetically?” I found many posts discussing “the shift,” “ascension,” and “spiritual upleveling.” Aha!
What is spiritual upleveling?
I’ve experienced many upleveling phases before, which have always been uncomfortable, disorienting, and often downright painful. Without going down the rabbit holes these posts discussed, or falling prey to the message that I needed something outside myself to heal, I realized I had gratefully found my answer. I was experiencing another spiritual upleveling, though somehow, in my discomfort, I had forgotten this state of being entirely.
When you go through a spiritual upleveling, your physical, mental, and energy bodies need to be re-tooled to work with the new level of energy coming through your system. It’s like when you get a new phone or computer running a newer operating system. All of your programs and apps need to be updated to work with the latest operating system.
Spiritual upleveling is happening globally
Similarly, imagine that humanity is undergoing a messy mass awakening to a higher vibration, one that involves evolving and shifting. Some people call this shift a transformation from the age of information to the age of intuition. In my experience, the shift is not linear, and it happens in stages.
Each time I experienced my previous uplevelings, it helped me adjust to operating at a new frequency to become the new human I was meant to embody. At each upleveling, the new frequencies running through my system required updates to my physical, mental, and energy bodies to work correctly.
What helps?
So this time, once I realized what was happening, I tried to remember what had helped me previously. And the biggest takeaway from those experiences was the need to practice radical self-care.
I needed to slow down. Rest. Nap. I needed to let myself be idle, staring at the wall, or sit in nature doing nothing. To take baths and aimless walks. To stop striving and quit trying to produce anything. Writing can be helpful, but not when your creativity is tapped out. Meditation can be valuable too. But not when you are dead tired.
So, though it is easy to become upset about the physical and mental discomfort that comes with upleveling, the first step is to adopt a stance of self-compassion. You are outgrowing old patterns and ways of being because you are ready to operate at a higher frequency.
It still sucks to go through the shift to a new vibration because you will experience physical, emotional, and mental symptoms that indicate your systems are critically drained or crashing. If you are a light worker or a person here to be of service to others with your inner light, you will feel these extremes more intensely.
Spiritual upleveling examples
Here are some examples of upleveling phases I’ve experienced in the past:
In 2018, while writing the final chapter of my first book, I knew something was missing. I entered into a deep connection with my spiritual guides, calling on them to help me channel the missing material. Over two weeks, I channeled several spiritual healing protocols and received guidance on how to weave the material into the existing book. I wrote feverishly whenever I could, barely keeping up with the material I was “downloading” from my guides, and surviving on less sleep.
Once the material was down on paper, I was suddenly exhausted on every level, and my body hurt. I needed to sit in the sauna and detox. I was alarmed because I couldn’t write or think about the book, but I identified with the upleveling experiences I had read about in Machaelle Small Wright’s books. I knew I was in an upleveling phase and needed to give myself love and space to rest. After a month or so of feeling completely burned out, I suddenly came out on the other side, finished my book, and within a couple of months, it was at the publisher.
In 2020, after my first book was published, my brain turned to mush again. I entered peri-menopause and needed to focus on the changes taking place in my body. While I was paying attention to and honoring these physical and mental changes, I was apparently being prepared energetically for what was coming next. After six months of being unable to meditate, write, or create anything, I spontaneously began writing my second book, completing it within six months. Information simply streamed through my consciousness, and the book practically wrote itself.
This brings me to my recent upleveling. After writing the Sacred Self-Healing certificate program curriculum over an intense period of about three months this summer, I found myself exhausted and unexpectedly experiencing physical and mental symptoms. I started mindlessly watching reels on Facebook when I had never shown any interest in them before. My brain felt like it would never come up with a creative thought again. I experienced waves of depression and anxiety seemingly for no reason, while my back and neck ached. Once I realized I was in an upleveling, I felt immediate relief to know what was going on, and I gave myself permission to rest and let it happen.
Does this resonate with you?
If you resonate with what I’m describing, the good news is that you are not alone and not crazy. You have been given the chance to uplevel, and though it may be uncomfortable, it will be well worth it in the end.
What are the signs of spiritual upleveling?
So, what are the signs that you are experiencing spiritual upleveling?
Feeling intense energy and high levels of stress
You may feel extra stress or intensity. During an upleveling, old patterns, behaviors, and beliefs come to the surface, forcing you to look at them. It can feel like you are going insane in one moment, and that you are bored out of your mind the next.
Feeling disoriented
You may feel out of sorts or that you have lost your sense of place. Energetically, your systems are being retooled to function at a new, higher frequency, and that shifting of gears can leave you unsure of everything that once felt certain. You are rapidly experiencing multiple dimensions at once, and it can make you feel crazy. Your awareness has been heightened, and your boundaries are being challenged. This sense of disorientation will pass, and you will eventually feel at home in your new normal.
Experiencing aversion to or cravings for foods
The foods you once liked might not be appealing. Or you may need to eat often, along with what feels like attacks of low blood sugar. You may gain weight, especially in your abdomen. You may need much more protein than you are used to. You need an enormous amount of energy to fuel this upleveling process. Weight gain with an inability to lose it is a typical leveling experience. Trust that your body knows what it is doing, and eat when you are hungry. Once the upleveling has passed, your metabolism will stabilize.
Experiencing aches and pains in different parts of your body
You may have flu-like symptoms, waves of nausea, dizziness, rashes, or body aches. Your body is actually detoxifying from the old frequencies you were running at, and gearing up to function smoothly at a higher vibration. All of this is uncomfortable, so go easy on yourself.
Having odd sleep patterns and vivid dreams
You may need more or less sleep than usual, or go through periods of needing less sleep. Rest when you need to as your body and energy systems acclimate to and integrate with the new energy level. Know that your dreams can be great teachers. Pay attention to what you feel, see, and experience in your dream life, as it can offer guidance on this transition. You may also wake up between 2 and 4 a.m. when your liver is detoxifying.
Memory loss
Memory loss is widespread during an upleveling. You are literally existing in more than one dimension at a time, and as you go back and forth during the transition, you experience a “disconnect.” Details get lost. But don’t worry — the important information will remain intact!
“Seeing” and “hearing” things
You might hear ringing in your ears or see sparks of light out of the corner of your eye. You may begin to experience super-sensory powers for the first time, such as clairaudience or clairvoyance. You are experiencing different dimensions as you transition, all according to how sensitive you are and how you are wired. You are not crazy. You are getting more in touch with your intuition, and these are everyday experiences for those going through an upleveling.
Losing your sense of identity
The old you no longer feels good because it doesn’t align with the new vibration. You aren’t that person anymore, so what happens is a loss of identity. The liminal space in between can feel like death. Try not to worry. During upleveling, the real you is emerging, and you may lose friendships, change jobs, or experience a move. The way you were wired before is no longer serving you, so what was familiar will shift to match your new vibration. You may need to change your plans as you realize they no longer feel right.
Feeling “out of body”
You might feel light-headed, clumsy, or not fully present because your body is going through a lot during this transition. Dissociation is a natural defense mechanism for survival when you are under acute stress, trauma, or feel out of control. You may experience periods of intense fatigue and night sweats or hot flashes. Your body is “heating” to burn off energetic residue. Don’t worry, it will pass.
Experiencing greater sensitivity to your surroundings
You may not be able to tolerate crowds, noise, certain foods, EMFs, and other triggers such as strong fragrances. You may become overwhelmed easily. Everything has a vibration, and some situations will be barely tolerable as you have so much shifting within. Lower vibrational sensory experiences may even make you feel sick.
Feeling unmotivated
Lack of motivation does not indicate that you are not off track or behind, but actually that you are in a much-needed time of rest and “rebooting.” Remember that your body knows what it needs. Let yourself sink into idleness for its value to bring you back into homeostasis.
Experiencing emotional ups and downs
Anxiety and panic are common when your system is under overload. The things that used to feel familiar in your old existence are falling away, which can again feel like a sort of death. You may also experience a rapid shift in your emotions from anxiety to depression as you release old (dark) energies. Your emotions are an outlet for excess energy, and you are releasing a lot of it. Let it go. Let yourself cry.
Living your worst nightmare
You may feel as though you are living your worst nightmare. As your body and energy are retooled, you will find your new normal. Your energy will return to balance. You will find your way to peace through this situation. Even though it is intensely uncomfortable, you will eventually be grateful for the experience and become a different person.
It’s like being turned inside out
Experiencing an upleveling is like being turned inside out because energetically, you are being taken apart and put back together in a new configuration. It is helpful to drink enough water, take naps, practice radical self-care, have compassion for yourself, detach from emotional entanglements, and avoid stress when you can, and allow what is unfolding to happen at the right time.
Intention
Sacred Self-Healing relies on intention and frequency. Intention directs frequency to bring about healing. The universal formula for healing is:
Intention + Frequency = Healing.
In this expression, “frequency” refers to the specific healing modality being applied. Setting an intention is particularly beneficial when utilizing self-healing methods such as frequency and forgiveness. This post covers more information on the power of intention.
Beneficial Frequency
Beneficial frequency refers to natural vibrations that synchronize biological and Earth systems, to support overall harmony. For instance, visible red and blue light from the sun are beneficial frequencies because they regulate circadian rhythms. Likewise, Earth’s Schumann resonance is a naturally occurring frequency that aligns internal and external rhythms for health. This post discusses beneficial frequency in more depth.
Forgiveness
Forgiveness, like love, is seen as a high-frequency energetic state connected to compassion and gratitude. In contrast, emotions such as resentment and anger are thought to have lower frequencies, constricting rather than elevating well-being. Forgiveness helps elevate energy, promote emotional healing, and support physiological balance. Science hasn’t measured the frequency of forgiveness, but studies show that forgiveness can improve heart and brain patterns and help the body work more smoothly. Forgiveness brings balance, healing, and peace—both emotionally and physically. This post delves deeper into forgiveness.
Check out these circadian health tools!
I’m an affiliate with Bon Charge, a company that makes tools for circadian health, and you can receive 15% off your order with my coupon code BETSYL.
Bon Charge offers tools such as yellow– and red-tone blue-blocking glasses, red light therapy devices, PEMF mats, infrared saunas, and EMF-blocking products.
Sign up for the SSP!
I’ve found the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) to be the most helpful bottom-up healing strategy if your nervous system has been overloaded with toxic exposures, including mold or non-native EMFs, chronic infections, concussions, stress, or trauma. The SSP is a passive listening therapy based on Polyvagal Theory that helps heal nervous system dysregulation. Many people with MCAS and other chronic conditions have nervous system dysregulation stemming from infections, toxic exposures, concussions, and trauma. The SSP is an easy-to-use app that lets you listen to specially filtered music for 30 minutes each day as part of a 5-hour cycle. Studies show the SSP has a profound effect on mental health and chronic conditions. Here’s a short podcast describing the Safe and Sound Protocol.
You can sign up for the SSP here!
Heal your mind!
While the SSP is a bottom-up, somatic therapy for healing the nervous system, the Sacred Self-Healing Method I offer is a top-down nervous system-healing modality that focuses on cognition, attention, perception, and emotion, using the mind’s higher functions. The SSP and the Sacred Self-Healing Method complement each other and together produce lasting results. Here’s a short podcast on my self-healing practice.
I provide one-on-one in-person and remote chronic illness and caregiver coaching, as well as Sacred Self-Healing Sessions based on the Sacred Self-Healing Method, a proven, novel co-creative healing modality detailed in my Books.
Order my books!
Here’s a short podcast highlighting my five books.
My latest book, Living In The Light: Healing with Forgiveness, Sound, and Light, is all about the tools that have been most helpful for me to heal: forgiveness, sound, through nervous system retraining using the Safe and Sound Protocol, and light, through entraining my circadian rhythm with the energy of the sun. Living In The Light is available here!
Rocks and Roots chronicles my solo backpacking journey on the Superior Hiking Trail and my efforts to overcome nervous system dysregulation, gut dysbiosis, and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome symptoms to complete the 328-mile hike successfully.
The Sacred Self-Healing Method ebook is available here and in most ebook retailers!
The Sacred Self-Healing Workbook is available for purchase here!
Betsy’s first book, Sacred Self-Healing: Finding Peace Through Forgiveness, is available here
Companion Recordings
The companion audio recordings of chants, guided meditations, and sound healing demonstrations that accompany the Sacred Self-Healing Method are available for free on my YouTube channel here
What do you think?
I’d love to have your reply below!
Disclaimer
The preceding material does not constitute medical advice. This information is for information purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, cure, or treatment.
