The Uneasy Quiet Inside: When Restlessness Is Your Soul Asking You to Remember

Kathleen Flanagan (00:48.756)

Have you ever felt that uneasy, quiet feeling inside? The restlessness that nags you, even when everything around you appears calm and peaceful. It's a quiet that isn't really quiet at all. It's a quiet that makes you feel unsettled, uncertain, and even a little lost. It feels like you're missing something, but you can't quite name it. 

Kathleen Flanagan (01:19.476)

I want you to know right now that this restlessness, the one you feel when everything looks fine, but inside something feels off, isn't a curse. It's a call, a deep invitation from your soul to remember who you are. Hello everyone and welcome to the journey of an awakening spirit. This is Kathleen Flanagan, your host, and we are going to talk about 

Kathleen Flanagan (01:47.818)

what it's like to come back and find who you are. mean, we are living in really challenging times right now and I get that and I feel the lostness is as much as you do. And I just want to tell you a story that a few years ago I found myself in the place that I felt like I was stuck in, in between the worlds. And I feel that right now partially too. I mean, this hasn't gone away fully and I understand what's happening. 

Kathleen Flanagan (02:15.722)

but you still feel it because there's so much stuff going on outside in the world. But on the outside, my life looked like it was successful because I had the career and I had a house and everything in society was telling me that this should be bringing me happiness. But on the inside, I was restless and no matter how hard I tried to distract myself with the achievements, the restlessness continued to grow. I'm still in that at this moment. 

Kathleen Flanagan (02:42.856)

And it wasn't that I didn't have blessings in my life, and it wasn't that I had forgotten who I was beyond the surface. I hadn't forgotten what truly mattered to me, what made my soul feel alive, and what deeper calling it was. But every time I tried to ignore that restlessness, it became stronger. And it is only when I allowed myself to sit with that discomfort, rather than try to fix it, that I began to understand what was really happening. 

Kathleen Flanagan (03:10.442)

That unease was my soul speaking to me and it was asking me to remember my purpose and my truth. And I was actually reminded of doing that again this week where I just felt that intense restlessness going on because, you know, life is doing what life is doing. I mean, with this AI thing, with the insanity of how our world is with, you know, 

Kathleen Flanagan (03:38.678)

corporate greed happening, all of that, we still get lost. Unfortunately, we still get lost. And I'm right in here with you guys. And I was kind of, cause I just felt like I was just felt almost like I was this pathetic person. And why am I bothering? And why is life so difficult when it shouldn't be continually feeling like it's difficult, especially since I've been around the planet quite a few years now, but it's still felt that way. 

Kathleen Flanagan (04:07.732)

And a friend of mine said, you're not what you think you are. And it was like, shit. Anyways, and it was like this hit in the face of, okay, I don't like you for saying that and thank you for saying that. And it was like, my God, it was like, I just went down this habitual pattern that I have a tendency to go down that I'm still working on breaking habitual patterns. But when I think that I'm not doing well or, 

Kathleen Flanagan (04:35.774)

I'm struggling with why can't I generate revenue? Why am I struggling with this? Am I not getting my message right? That type of thing. When I continually do that to myself and instead of looking that I'm growing and building something because she actually reminded me of, you know, we're building something really powerful here and when you're building something really big, the foundation has to be really big and strong. And it was like, yeah, okay, got it. And it shifted. 

Kathleen Flanagan (05:05.044)

I mean, my mind started to shift. So let's dive into the restlessness. And many of us experience this, but we don't always know what to do with it. And it might show up as a low hum or a sense of dissatisfaction or a nagging feeling that something's not right. Even though everything looks okay on the outside, it feels like you're moving through life, doing all the right things, but something is still missing on the inside. 

Kathleen Flanagan (05:34.152)

And restlessness isn't just anxiety or fear. It's a soul-driven energy that wants to be heard. It arises when we are disconnected from our deeper purpose. And it's as if our soul is tapping us on the shoulder trying to get our attention. I listen to Spirit all the time. And I think when I become the most restless is when they've stepped back and I need that time 

Kathleen Flanagan (06:04.352)

to just reground or make sure this is the path that I wanna choose because we're always being asked, is this where you wanna be? Is this what feels right to your soul? And sometimes it is, sometimes it's a minor tweak, but you gotta trust your intuition because you're the only one that knows what's going on. So think about the last time that you felt restless. Was there a feeling of longing? 

Kathleen Flanagan (06:32.702)

A quiet sense that things should be different. You might have tried to fill that void with distractions with food or work or social media, but the feeling remained, didn't it? I know it did for me. And this is the soul's way of urging you to listen. And it doesn't want us to live a life of surface level achievement. It wants us to dive deeper to rediscover the parts of ourselves that we've forgotten. 

Kathleen Flanagan (07:02.462)

And this is the soul's way of urging us to listen. And it doesn't want us to live a life, anyways. 

Kathleen Flanagan (07:13.312)

I mean, we come into this world a lot of times and we wonder as we get older, why am I here? What's my purpose? There's gotta be something more than the nine to five grunt, right? Because to me, this wasn't worth living. And that's why I was so suicidal when I was 16 years old is because I didn't wanna live this type of life. 

Kathleen Flanagan (07:34.952)

And I had to feel that and I had to be in that experience because you know the light and the awareness on the planet wasn't as strong as what it is today. So I was really navigating through a lot of darkness to bring the light in that we're in. And you just want to talk about that. You you need to feel that you need to experience it and yes it doesn't feel good to have to feel the restlessness and to sit quiet with yourself because. 

Kathleen Flanagan (08:00.756)

Lots of you think there's monsters in there and they're gonna come and get you or you're gonna think you're this really nasty, ugly, horrible person. And none of that's true. Because when you do quiet and sit and listen and feel the emotion, it will pass and you will get your answers. And that's how you start taking control of your life. So when we talk about that uneasy quiet, it's different from that peaceful moment of stillness. And peaceful quiet is calming, soothing. 

Kathleen Flanagan (08:29.566)

and almost like a gentle embrace. But the restlessness is not quiet. It feels like something is stirring beneath the surface. It's a kind of energetic itch that you can't quite scratch. And to me, that's kind of an annoying feeling because I'm always going, okay, what is it? And I start looking and I always want to look on the outside first because if it's something from the outside, then I need to do it. When I can't find anything on the outside, then I know it's something that I have to do inside. 

Kathleen Flanagan (09:00.544)

So perhaps if you've experienced it during moments of stillness, you sit down to meditate or you rest and instead of finding peace, you find the internal tension. God, do I know that one. And you might feel like you should be doing something, anything just to escape that feeling. I can't tell you how many times I want to do that. And for the last three weeks with Mercury being retrograde, I have felt that, angst of not. 

Kathleen Flanagan (09:29.27)

wanting to move forward. It's almost like I got to get rid of this and thank God I got to work out in the field for the last couple of weeks because it made a difference just to get rid of the angst. And so what I discovered in that process also was I really need to be out of the house. I need to be being out in the world more. Not that I like driving around Denver because traffic is horrible here. 

Kathleen Flanagan (09:56.47)

But just being out in the world and being around people made a big difference and it started to get more clarity for me because I could start, like the angst was going away, I was getting clarity of this is what I need to do, this is really important because for a long time I've been in hibernation, so to speak, and I'm okay with that. 

Kathleen Flanagan (10:20.074)

But this is not that time anymore. think that where I thought I was supposed to be in January is where it's now, where that angst is here and it's time to like, okay, now it's time to bust out. 

Kathleen Flanagan (10:34.676)

And you might feel like you should be doing something, anything just to escape that feeling, but the tension is the soul's whisper. It's not trying to make you uncomfortable for no reason. It's simply trying to get you to wake up. So what if I told you that the quiet, this restlessness is actually an invitation? It's an invitation to remember who you truly are. You see, it's not the discomfort that's the problem. It's the ignoring of it. 

Kathleen Flanagan (11:03.958)

They're not listening. So when you ignore your soul's call, the restlessness only grows louder. And I think that's what I discovered in the last couple of weeks because I know that through a Mercury retrograde, we're supposed to just not be doing a lot of anything. We're supposed to be just kind of like assessing where we were, where do we want to go, make whatever tweaks we need to make. And believe it or not, that all happened. 

Kathleen Flanagan (11:29.93)

Like I got so much clarity and understanding yesterday that I was actually, not that I'm 100 % moving forward, but I've moved forward enough that I think I finally got the clarity of the message. But I needed this quiet time. I needed to be out in the world. I needed to feel this icky, restless feeling that I've been feeling. So I can move forward. And I feel like I can finally start putting a lot of these projects that I've been in the middle of to bed finally. So I can just start feeling 

Kathleen Flanagan (11:59.382)

because I think that's another thing sometimes when we've got so much on our plate and we have to finish it and we're struggling to get it finished. Sometimes I think that's what we have to deal with too is just finish something, just whatever it takes to get it done. Because when I said when I brought the Tasmanian devil out to like clear the way and it took a long time for that she devil to be put away, I think that's part of it. And she's not a hundred percent put away, but she is so much closer because I'm starting to like, 

Kathleen Flanagan (12:28.382)

okay, this is getting all these to do things off of with my environmental business is like being put aside. My roof claim is almost finished. I mean, it's like all of a sudden it's like I see the light at the end of the tunnel and that makes me feel good. So what the soul wants you to remember and is trying to tell you through this restlessness, it's trying to remind you of your truth. It's not asking you to remember what you've forgotten in the busyness of your life. 

Kathleen Flanagan (12:58.056)

It's calling you to reconnect with the deeper parts of yourself, your purpose, your passion, and your unique gifts. 

Kathleen Flanagan (13:06.618)

And we go deeper all the time. you know, we're like the layer of an onion where we get one level, then we go to another level and another level. And I think that's what's been going on with me is that I'm just going deeper into where I am. And that restlessness is almost more intense the deeper I go, because I feel like I'm right there ready for a major breakthrough. And I just have to be in it and just 

Kathleen Flanagan (13:33.834)

move through it the way I know how to do it. Because over the years we accumulate layers of conditionings, expectations and responsibilities and we get lost in the shoulds and the musts of life and before we know it we forget who we are beyond those roles. We forget our essence, our soul begins to whisper then scream to remind us of our divine purpose. And the way the world is today, 

Kathleen Flanagan (14:02.57)

The whole planet is in the process of being screamed at. And this restlessness is not random. It's a natural response to being disconnected from your soul's calling. And when we forget who we are, the soul uses the restlessness as a way to get our attention and bring us back to center. It's like a compass pointing us towards something greater than our daily routines. 

Kathleen Flanagan (14:28.278)

So some of the signs that the soul is trying to speak is that if you're not sure whether you're feeling it's a soul calling or just stress, let me offer you a few signs. Maybe you've had a sudden burst of information that comes from nowhere. too many times. I can't even tell you how many times. Or maybe you've been feeling frustrated with a certain area of your life, but when you sit with it, you realize it's because it's no longer aligns with your true self. Been doing that too. 

Kathleen Flanagan (14:58.016)

For some, it might show up as dreams or daydreams, flashes or something more, something that calls to you but feels out of reach. It might show up physically or as an ache or a heaviness in your chest as your heart knows something you're avoiding. Bend through that too. So ask yourself, what is this feeling trying to tell me? Restlessness is the soul's invitation to slow down. 

Kathleen Flanagan (15:28.288)

to listen and to reconnect with your truth. 

Kathleen Flanagan (15:37.024)

So now that we understand that, let me give you some tools that can help you to start moving forward. 

Kathleen Flanagan (15:47.958)

So how do we begin to navigate through this and listen to what our soul is when it feels so hard to sit with this discomfort? Well, we start by creating a quiet space. 

Kathleen Flanagan (16:03.198)

And even though it may feel intimidating, you still have to do it because it just releases so much more. It brings that quietness, that peace inside your body to listen and it's okay. It's okay to sit and just be. 

Kathleen Flanagan (16:25.748)

And it's in that quiet space where all the magic happens. And when you start doing this, you start knowing it. That's why it gets easier and easier to go into a quiet place when you're feeling the agitation and the restlessness that you're feeling. So take a few moments each day to pause. And I mean, really pause. And I don't care if it's in the morning. 

Kathleen Flanagan (16:48.81)

before your morning routines or if you need to take a break at lunch or before you go to bed, but just stop moving. Put down the phone, turn off the TV, turn off the music. Just be in a quiet place with yourself and breathe deeply. And journaling is probably one of the best ways to unlock the soul's voice and ask yourself, what is this restlessness trying to tell me? 

Kathleen Flanagan (17:17.716)

What do I need to remember? And let the pen flow and see what emerges. Now I know people say it's better to use, they say use a computer, but see there's something, there's a magic that happens that when the information's coming in from your brain and coming down through your hand, and even though you can't write as fast as what's in your brain, what comes out through your hand is exactly what you need to hear. I'm telling you this is the only way to write. I've tried writing, 

Kathleen Flanagan (17:47.71)

one of my books through the computer and I couldn't, go back to handwriting because of the information that comes in and the way it comes in. And everybody that I've talked to and suggested they do that, they have had profound experiences through that writing exercise. Just write and journal and just as a way to reconnect with you as well. You might also find solace in nature. 

Kathleen Flanagan (18:14.506)

That's why I sit in my backyard because I have this really beautiful backyard that's a nice safe haven. I'm around foliage. Nobody can see me because of the way it was landscaped. And there's just something about nature that just brings my heart back to peace because the earth has a way of reminding us who we truly are. And it helps us to reconnect with something that's larger than all of our small concerns. Go for a walk or sit in a park or just observe. 

Kathleen Flanagan (18:44.86)

I know years ago, I used to go, when I go on a hike in the mountains, I would always hug trees because there's something, like the tree would take that ick out of me and I just felt so much better. 

Kathleen Flanagan (18:56.822)

So I want you to change your perspective on the restlessness. So instead of viewing it as something to fear or run away from, see it as a guide. Restlessness is that soul calling you to evolve, to stretch into that person that you were always meant to become. So rather than feeling frustrated and embrace the discomfort, and it's hard, believe me, it's hard, but I've learned 

Kathleen Flanagan (19:23.604)

And this is still a practice for me. I've learned that if I can keep moving forward and keep changing how I perceive things and think differently, everything shifts with that change. So ask, so what am I being called to remember in this moment? That's a hard question for me to keep asking myself, but I do ask it more and more. And then you have to just wait for the answer because it may not come right away, but it will come and it may come. 

Kathleen Flanagan (19:53.366)

When you're sitting in nature, could come when you're walking, it could be coming when you walk, when you're working. It doesn't matter when it comes, but it will come. The answers do come. And if it's not coming from you, somebody will deliver the message. Like my friend delivered the message of you're building something amazingly big. It's going to take a little time. I'm like, okay, I got it. You know, sometimes we need that reminder because 

Kathleen Flanagan (20:20.372)

We get so stuck in our own thinking and our own emotions, and I'm just like you. And then trust that your soul is guiding you back to the path that aligns with your true self, because it really does come back to trusting. And there's a magic that you're gonna see as you continue to move forward this way. It's just always trust the magic. Just be observant, be present now, be in this moment now. 

Kathleen Flanagan (20:47.796)

because I know that when I worry about my future or I dwell on the past, I go crazy. If I stay present and keep my head down and do the things I need to do and take those baby steps into the dream that I'm building, I'm okay. Sometimes it's a little much, but I do that more and more all the time. But I also notice that when I'm out in the world, I'm picking up the race mind. 

Kathleen Flanagan (21:15.092)

and I have to let that race mind go. So I have to protect myself. So those are things that you can do. So I really do, I wanna take, thank you for taking the time to be with me today and to reflect on this quiet, easy unrest, this restful, restless place that we're in. And I encourage you to remember. 

Kathleen Flanagan (21:37.78)

you know, this conversation because it's not something to fear and it's not something to push away. It's just an invitation to remember who you are. 

Kathleen Flanagan (21:48.254)

And as I close, I want to leave you with a simple reflection. What do I need to remember about myself in this moment in the restlessness? And then take that question with you and let the soul guide you to the answers, the journey back to yourself, to the journey back to yourself that begins your listening to what you are. 

Kathleen Flanagan (22:13.864)

I also want to remind you that on the Kathleen Flanagan dot com site, I do have a list of services and products that you are more than welcome to download. I do have the de-stress meditation. I also have, if you want to reach out and do a 15 minute call just to talk through this a little bit, I am more than willing to do that with you. I'm very happy to help in any way that I can. 

Kathleen Flanagan (22:41.054)

I also wanted to let you know that the anthology book that I have been talking about since February is actually launching on September 9th. And Courtney Weidner and I are going to be doing a four week podcast launch on what it was like to go through this entire process. We met each other back in April of last year and we have both watched each other's growth, what we've gone through through this alignment process, why we said yes to writing a chapter in the book. 

Kathleen Flanagan (23:10.622)

and what unfolded during that. And I think it's gonna be a really exciting time to listen to us, cause Courtney's a lot of fun. And I think we can have a lot of fun talking about what this was about. So you can get involved in the launch and we'll have the link for the Amazon to purchase the book. And we are doing a book signing on September 11th. And I will have more information on that as we progress through this. And my book's Dancing Souls, 

Kathleen Flanagan (23:40.672)

The Call, The Awakening, and The Dark Knight of the Soul are all on my website. And if you buy all three of them, I will personally sign them. They will be $45 and it'll be free shipping. So if you wanted to get all of that, that's about a 15 % discount. And also I do am doing an Awakening Spirit podcast for my Awakening Spirit company, the Aroma Therapy Company on Fridays at 1.30. 

Kathleen Flanagan (24:10.624)

PM and if you want to join me on that podcast, it's through the Global Podcast Network. So I'm really excited about that. It's been a lot of fun for the last three weeks I've been doing it. This is, I believe it's my fourth week. So I'm pretty excited about that, but I also want to say just thank you so much. And if you learned anything today or if you found any value in this, please like and subscribe to the channel and also send the link to any of your friends or family members that you think might help them. 

Kathleen Flanagan (24:40.99)

And I'm always here for you. Feel free to write, send me an email at Kathleen Flanagan at kmf at KathleenMflanagan.com. I read all the emails and from my heart to yours, I will see all of you next week at 4 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. And I hope you all have a fabulous week. Bye for now.