Understanding the Push-and-Pull: Karmic vs. Twin Flame

It’s a common misconception that a high-intensity “push-and-pull” dynamic is exclusive to Twin Flames. In reality, that magnetic—and often exhausting—tension is a hallmark of many deep soul connections, particularly Karmic relationships.

In my own journey, I remember the exact moment the ‘magnetic pull’ became undeniable. I was standing in a doorway, and a jolting bolt of energy pulsed through my body so strongly it actually shifted my vision. But as many of you know, that ‘pull’ can quickly turn into a ‘push.’ I realized that Greg and I were like two magnets of the same polarity; the more our unhealed ‘muck and guck’ surfaced, the more we repelled each other. It wasn’t that we weren’t ‘meant to be’—it was that our energetic fields were mirroring our own internal baggage.

To understand why we feel this so strongly, we have to look at how we are built. Every human being has an electromagnetic field (often called an aura or energy field). When we interact with others, our fields overlap.

The Subtle Bodies & the Magnetism

Beyond the physical, we have “subtle bodies”—the etheric, emotional, mental, and astral layers.

When you meet someone with whom you have a significant soul contract or shared history, your energy fields react. If that person has a particularly “strong” or high-frequency energy, you will feel them not just physically, but on those emotional and astral levels. This creates that “unshakeable” feeling that can be mistaken for a Twin Flame connection. But with Twin Flames, this is true magnetism, characterized by the silver cord (sometimes called the golden cord) that bonds you together.

Karmic Relationships: The Mirrors of Growth

Karmic relationships are often brought into our lives to help us resolve “unfinished business” or learn specific lessons. The push-and-pull here is usually driven by unresolved trauma, ego, or patterns that need to be cleared. You are drawn together to trigger these lessons, and pushed apart when the intensity becomes too great or the lesson is being avoided. The purpose of a karmic relationship is usually to break the cycle and eventually move on with more wisdom and self-sovereignty.

The Overlap: Twin Flames and Karma

It’s important to remember: Twin Flames can have karmic cycles. Because Twin Flames are essentially mirrors of one another, they will naturally trigger every unhealed part of the other person. They may have shared past-life “baggage” that needs to be cleared. However, while all Twin Flame journeys involve some level of karma, not all karmic relationships are Twin Flames.

How to tell the difference?

Feature	Karmic Relationship	Twin Flame Journey
Primary Feel	High-drama, volatile, and often draining.	Intense, but ultimately feels like “coming home.”
The “Push”	Driven by ego, power struggles, or toxic cycles.	Driven by the need for soul-purging and healing.
The “Pull”	An addictive, obsessive “need” for the person.	A magnetic soul-resonance that remains even in silence.
The Result	Often ends once the lesson is learned/cycle is broken.	Leads to permanent internal transformation and spiritual union.

TL;DR: If the push-and-pull is making you smaller, more anxious, or keeping you stuck in old habits, it is likely a Karmic cycle intended for you to break. If the dynamic is forcing you to grow, love yourself more, and evolve into your highest version (even if it’s painful), it leans toward the Twin Flame path.

The Overlap: Understanding the Depth of the Connection

It’s a common point of confusion because Karmic relationships can mirror the exact push-and-pull magnetism often attributed to Twin Flames. To make matters more complex, Twin Flame journeys often include karmic ties or cycles that must be resolved as part of the union process.

So, how do we distinguish between the two? The answer lies in the depth of resonance across our subtle bodies.

• Karmic Dynamics: These connections usually vibrate primarily within our “lower” resonances—the physical, emotional, and mental bodies. The push-and-pull is driven by personality clashes, ego-based needs, or emotional patterns that need breaking. It is intense, but it is often contained within the realm of our earthly experience.
• Twin Flame Dynamics: Because this is a foundational spiritual bond, the magnetism vibrates across all layers of the subtle body simultaneously. You aren’t just feeling it in your heart or your head; you are feeling it in the Astral, Etheric, and Ketheric (causal) levels.

While there is significant overlap in the symptoms of the push-and-pull, the Twin Flame connection is a total-system activation. It’s the difference between a chord played on a piano (Karmic) and a full orchestral symphony (Twin Flame). In my own journey, I had to learn that while the lower-level “muck and guck” felt like a karmic struggle, the higher-level resonance—that unshakeable soul-level pull—was the true indicator of our Twin Flame bond.

Identifying the Connection: Is it Karmic or Twin Flame?

Signs of Astral & Subtle-Body Resonance

When a connection transcends the physical, it registers in our “subtle bodies.” These are the layers of our energy field that interact with others long before (and long after) we speak to them. Here is how to tell if you are experiencing a deep energetic resonance:

1. The “Astral Tug” (The Solar Plexus Connection)

The astral body is closely tied to our emotions and our “gut” instincts. With this, you feel a literal pulling sensation or a fluttering in your solar plexus (just above the stomach) when the other person is thinking of you or experiencing high emotion.

In a Karmic connection, this often feels like anxiety or a “knot.” In a Twin Flame connection, it typically feels like a magnetic hum or a sense of “longing” that originates from the heart center.

2. Dream Integration (The Astral Plane)

When there’s push-and-pull on the astral plane, you have vivid, “more real than real” dreams where you aren’t just watching the person, but interacting with their energy. You may wake up feeling their physical presence or emotional state.

While both dynamics involve dreaming of the person, Karmic dreams often involve repeating a stressful scenario or an argument. Twin Flame dreams tend to be more telepathic, involving shared landscapes or receiving specific guidance.

Related Reading: Having a Lucid Dream with Your Twin Flame, a Visit on the Astral Plane

3. Mental Body Telepathy (The “Download”)

The mental body carries our thought patterns. When two people are energetically entwined, their mental fields can overlap. You “download” their thoughts or moods. You might suddenly feel an unexplained wave of sadness or anger, only to find out later that they were experiencing that exact emotion at that time.

Tip: If you suddenly feel an emotion that doesn’t belong to your current situation, it’s likely a “bleed-through” from the person you are connected to.

4. The Etheric “Double” (Physical Sensations)

The etheric body is the blueprint for the physical body. In interacting with your Twin Flame on this level, you may feel “phantom” touches—a hand on your shoulder, a tingling on your skin, or a sudden change in body temperature (chills or heat) when there is no physical cause.

This is your electromagnetic field reacting to their energy entering your personal space, regardless of physical distance.

Why Does This Matter?

Understanding these sensations helps you move from reaction to observation. When you feel a “pull” in your astral body, you can stop and ask: “Is this a call for healing (Twin Flame) or a warning that a cycle is repeating (Karmic)?” Remembering that we are electromagnetic beings allows us to work with our energy—through grounding, meditation, and cord-cutting—rather than being at the mercy of the “push-and-pull.”

My Journey of Discernment: Was it Karma or my Twin Flame?

When I first met Greg, I didn’t have a manual to tell me what kind of soul connection we shared. All I knew was that reality itself seemed to shift in a powerful moment of electric connection that pulsed through my entire body. But as many of you know, that high-voltage beginning often leads into a period of intense “push-and-pull”.

In my journey, I had to learn the difference between a purely karmic cycle and the deeper Twin Flame path through several years of trial, error, and deep soul-searching:

• Understanding the “Mirror”: For a long time, I struggled with Greg’s unhealed insecurities and fear. I realized we were experiencing a “mirroring effect” where his unresolved trauma was reflected onto me until I couldn’t tell whose energy was whose. This felt very “karmic,” but I eventually understood that Twin Flames often carry karmic cycles they are meant to surface and heal together.
• The “Repelling” Magnets: I often explain our dynamic using a magnet metaphor. Because we shared the same spiritual frequency (polarity), we didn’t always “stick”—we often repelled each other because our own “muck and guck” was getting in the way. I had to learn that the “push” wasn’t a sign to give up, but a call to clear my own energy field.
• The Role of Other Soulmates: During our seven-year separation, I entered a relationship with a soulmate named Mike. This was a beautiful, fated connection that felt like a “green light” from the universe. However, even with all the material success and stability we built, I could still feel a “metaphysical hole” in my soul that only my Twin Flame connection could fill.
• Discernment Through Growth: Ultimately, I knew Greg was my Twin Flame because the connection didn’t just break a cycle—it catapulted my entire spiritual evolution. While a purely karmic relationship might leave you feeling drained or “done,” this connection acted as a permanent activation for my soul’s purpose.

Look at the “fruit” of the push-and-pull. Is the dynamic just exhausting you (Karmic), or is it stripping away your ego to reveal your truest, most powerful self (Twin Flame)? Your intuition, if you listen closely, will never lead you astray.

When the Journey Transcends the Physical

If you are currently in the push-and-pull phase, you might feel like your journey depends entirely on the other person’s physical presence. But I learned the hard way that these connections are truly energetic, not just physical.

My Twin Flame, Greg, passed away in 2021, just days before his 33rd birthday. At the time, I was forced to ask the hardest question of all: Were we really Twin Flames if he was gone?

The answer came through the very energy fields we’ve been discussing. At the exact moment he transitioned to the other side—though he was miles away and I had no idea what was happening—I felt a massive, undeniable shift in the energy around me.

In the wake of his passing, the “pull” didn’t stop; it intensified. I began receiving a flood of signs, messages, and intuitive downloads. For a while, my inner skeptic fought it, dismissed it as a figment of my imagination or a byproduct of grief. But when I finally surrendered and allowed myself to believe, the journey accelerated in ways I never could have predicted.

I received a premonition that he was somehow coming back. It sounds impossible, but I was led directly to my “new” partner, John. Through this connection, I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to finally resolve the karmic cycles that Greg and I were meant to break. We are healing things on both sides of the veil and continuing our larger mission: bringing high-frequency, unconditional love to the world and raising the collective vibration.

If you are feeling lost in the push-and-pull, know that your soul knows the way, even when your eyes can’t see the path. I invite you to dive deeper into this story of transformation, energy, and reunion in my book, Rebirth: The Spiritual Evolution that Reunited Two Souls.

Love & Light,
Lisa

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