High or Low? Fast or Slow?

I’ve been tuning into some Instagram sources on manifestation, just out of curiosity, and there is a lot of talk about frequency, vibe, and vibration which is both useful and confusing. I’ve seen it described in many ways, including comparing high frequency/high vibration (i.e., positivity, happiness, wealth, abundance, success, love, etc.) to high notes in the musical register and low frequency/low vibration (i.e., negativity, anger, criticism, failure, lying, betrayal, etc.) to bass notes on a keyboard. 

I have experimented with setting intentions since I first read The Secret many moons ago, but it must have sounded like the symphony orchestra just warming up. Random notes and tuning instruments. Or maybe it sounded like me on my recorder in fourth grade. A cacophony of just getting started. 

I had no idea who I was or what I wanted, but I also can confirm that the Universe has always sent me whatever I asked for. That BLEEP is so real that I actually feel embarrassed by how many opportunities I have ruined in my confusion and lack of faith. Now I know I have to be very cautious and deliberate about what I am putting out there in the ether, because several of my answered prayers arrived half-finished, unclear, or just plain disastrous, just as I was. I could not make the most of them when Good (or God) delivered them, because I wasn’t ready and had NO healing on board. 

In my experience, faith comes before all things. We have to create some internal quiet, calm, and safety before we start meddling in the Universe. Sending out the right vibe to attract the right things into our lives requires an acquaintance with our authentic selves, and faith in that self, in the future, in our environment, in our social support. Arriving at that place requires a significant time commitment, a fair amount of therapy, along with practice, focus, prayer, meditation, trial, and error.  

Some of the discourse about law of attraction, vibration, and frequency on social media sounds quite similar to telling trauma victims/anxious people/the hyper-vigilant to just stop thinking about your problems. Just feel better and then you will do better.

YEAH. SURE. GEE WHIZ, THANK YOU, HADN’T THOUGHT OF THAT. 

One of the primary reasons therapy exists is because most of us cannot actually just magically wash our worries away with a splash of cold water and an attitude adjustment. That BLEEP is stuck in our bodies and nervous systems; it is a stress response to old experiences, and often there’s not even a coherent memory to go with it or focus on in the healing process. We just know conflict makes us shutdown or bullying makes us take flight or absence makes us spiral, so redirecting our frequency or choosing high energy vibes is like asking us to bring a horse back into a burning barn. 

The other issue is that I think a lot of people associate high frequency with moving fast or being high energy or getting a lot done. If you look at sound waves, high frequency/high notes are taller, tighter together, and many more happen in a cycle or vibration per second (Hertz). So when we talk about high vibration in the context of manifestation, it feels like we are also saying we need to move faster or do more, buuuuuuuut…. all the research shows this is not the case. I know plenty of people who are moving at warp speed nine, trying to out run their demons, and driven by the harshest internal self-talk. With every problem they solve, they create three more. It’s really hard to watch, probably because I used to be one of them.  

Meanwhile, research shows that slowing down, improving our internal monologue to something positive or at least neutral, and choosing our response (rather than being at the mercy of our reactions) is the most effective, efficient, and soothing path forward. But doesn’t that sound low frequency, like a lower vibration? There is a reason why low sounds on the sound spectrum, humming, and even the didgeridoo (try spelling that word phonetically for fun sometime) are soothing. Our vagus nerve responds to slow, low sounds. 

There is a theory out there called Life History Theory, which includes two modes for going about life: Fast Life Strategy and Slow Life Strategy. There is a lot of research to support these two outlooks on life, but here is a very brief summary: 

“Life history orientations range on a continuum from ‘fast’ to ‘slow.’ Broadly, fast life [strategies] characterize individuals who tend to engage in impulsive and present-oriented decision-making and behavior, whereas slow life [strategies] characterize individuals who tend to engage in more deliberative, future-oriented decision-making and behavior.”

There are a variety of reasons why or how someone ends up living by a fast life strategy, but most of it involves a special cocktail of modeling, beliefs, and trauma. If we believe the world is a cold, cruel place, we might be more inclined to live in the now, give into our impulses, and seek to “fortify” our children against that harshness by forcing them to toughen up or stifle their feelings, all of which may be done with the best of intentions but can also be incredibly harmful. 

Many of us are faithless and addicted to external sources of validation because of where we come from, what we went through, and the mentality behind it. The remedy for such ailments appears to be slowing down, mindfulness, meditation, cultivating a healthy relationship with our emotions, boundaries, and, in my experience, faith in Good or God through prayer and paying attention. 

So, which is it? High or low? Fast or slow? High frequency or slowing down? Mindfulness or high vibes? The answer is I don’t think we can set positive intentions and believe in them without a little faith and healing first. Getting what we want and knowing what to do with it often requires a spiritual reset first, where we’re focused on calm and healing and we’re not seeking anything at all, other than peace, wellness, and self-awareness. 

It’s actually an incredible place to arrive at, and it usually comes after a breakdown or a trip to rock bottom or complete and utter destruction. We’re just worn out and we don’t even ask for anything at all. We just hold still, meditate, pray a lot, and pay attention. We set boundaries, create safety, and get to know ourselves without our addiction(s) to external sources of feeling Good. 

Once we’ve spent a little time with our authentic selves, we will have a better sense of our purpose and the motivation behind our intentions, we can ask for anything we want, and trust that we will know what to do with it when we receive it.