Sunday, November 28, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Being a Warrior In the Dark
As the days reach towards their shortest and the nights grow into our waking hours, many of us begin to wrestle with ourselves. The sun shines less and we take it personally. The temperatures drop and our bodies are confused, begging for blankets to hide in. We sleep more, or try to, and our motivation to move around and get fresh air dwindles with the daylight. At this time of year, I ask for help. Help was recently dropped in my lap as an assignment from my yoga teachers.
What was the assignment? Read The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times by Pema Chodron. At times, I am very aware that the winter is a beautiful time. When I walk my dog at night, it is quieter. The air is crisp and I am happy to have a fuzzy hat, a long puffy coat and warm boots. My dog is in his element and ecstatic to feel the possibility of snow. The dark winter can also be a time of fear and loss. Things everywhere are sleeping. My garden is stuck until spring. The earth is hard and hidden. Our deepest selves know that we are at the mercy of the seasons. Having a warm home is survival. The balance is more delicate.
Winter can be "the place that scares you". Pema's book allows us to explore our fears, our envy, our egos and anger. Her book invites us to acknowledge and then make a choice. What do we choose to cultivate? Where do I allow my mind to stay? Do I choose resentment towards the cold, or do I choose joy in the mystery of the seasons? Each moment we have a choice to nurture our compassion. As jealousy sneaks up on us when our dear friend is blessed with good fortune, how quickly can we choose to get out from under our ego and join them in their joy?
In the beginning of her book, Pema speaks of "egolessness".
I feel like I can exhale further after reading that. How liberating to know that I don't have to take myself so seriously. Rigidity and seriousness do not work for me, yet some days I cling to them tightly.
Exhale further still.
How free we are when we recognize this tendency in ourselves, and then let it go. It is this tendency that is our biggest challenge and screams for us to stand up and be warriors.
Can we be aware of ourselves when the fear, the anger, the sadness finds us? Can we recognize, and not fall? Can we use the energy of our pain to transform us into more open-hearted, compassionate beings?
We reverted to daylight savings a few weeks ago. The week we set our clocks back, it rained... alot. It was cold and wet and completely dark by 5pm. It was the first week in months that I did not go to a yoga class, or go for a run, or ride my bike and I was pretty invested in being sad. After a week, I finally stood up. I found my warrior mind and my warrior heart and my warrior body and realized my investment was not paying off. Without too much thought, I put my warm fleeces on, pulled my bike out and biked to a yoga class. It took me a bit, but I changed my response to the cold dark. I got out of my own way and choose a new path, because the old path was bringing me someplace I did not want to be. Thanks to my teachers, to my courageous friends, and to a warrior's written word, I was reminded of my choices. May we choose with deepest awareness and may our warrior hearts keep us present, curious, flexible and strong.
What was the assignment? Read The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times by Pema Chodron. At times, I am very aware that the winter is a beautiful time. When I walk my dog at night, it is quieter. The air is crisp and I am happy to have a fuzzy hat, a long puffy coat and warm boots. My dog is in his element and ecstatic to feel the possibility of snow. The dark winter can also be a time of fear and loss. Things everywhere are sleeping. My garden is stuck until spring. The earth is hard and hidden. Our deepest selves know that we are at the mercy of the seasons. Having a warm home is survival. The balance is more delicate.
Winter can be "the place that scares you". Pema's book allows us to explore our fears, our envy, our egos and anger. Her book invites us to acknowledge and then make a choice. What do we choose to cultivate? Where do I allow my mind to stay? Do I choose resentment towards the cold, or do I choose joy in the mystery of the seasons? Each moment we have a choice to nurture our compassion. As jealousy sneaks up on us when our dear friend is blessed with good fortune, how quickly can we choose to get out from under our ego and join them in their joy?
In the beginning of her book, Pema speaks of "egolessness".
The fixed idea that we have about ourselves as solid and separate from each other is painfully limiting. It is possible to move through the drama of our lives without believing so earnestly in the character that we play. That we take ourselves so seriously, that we are so absurdly important in our own minds, is a problem for us.
I feel like I can exhale further after reading that. How liberating to know that I don't have to take myself so seriously. Rigidity and seriousness do not work for me, yet some days I cling to them tightly.
In Buddha's opinion, to train in staying open and curious - to train in dissolving our assumptions and beliefs - is the best use of our human lives... egolessness is a flexible identity. It manifests as inquisitiveness, as adaptability, as humor, as playfulness. It is our capacity to relax with not knowing, not figuring everything out, with not being at all sure about who we are - or who anyone else is either.
Exhale further still.
So it is with all of us. We are certain about who we are and who others are and it blinds us. If another version of reality comes knocking on our door, our fixed ideas keep us from accepting it.
How free we are when we recognize this tendency in ourselves, and then let it go. It is this tendency that is our biggest challenge and screams for us to stand up and be warriors.
When we are escaping the present moment with a habitual reaction, can we recall a slogan that might bring us back? Rather than spinning off, can we let the emotional intensity of that red-hot or ice-cold moment transform us? The pith of slogan practice is to take a warrior's attitude towards discomfort. It encourages us to ask, "How can I practice right now, right on this painful spot, and transform this into the path of awakening?"
Can we be aware of ourselves when the fear, the anger, the sadness finds us? Can we recognize, and not fall? Can we use the energy of our pain to transform us into more open-hearted, compassionate beings?
We reverted to daylight savings a few weeks ago. The week we set our clocks back, it rained... alot. It was cold and wet and completely dark by 5pm. It was the first week in months that I did not go to a yoga class, or go for a run, or ride my bike and I was pretty invested in being sad. After a week, I finally stood up. I found my warrior mind and my warrior heart and my warrior body and realized my investment was not paying off. Without too much thought, I put my warm fleeces on, pulled my bike out and biked to a yoga class. It took me a bit, but I changed my response to the cold dark. I got out of my own way and choose a new path, because the old path was bringing me someplace I did not want to be. Thanks to my teachers, to my courageous friends, and to a warrior's written word, I was reminded of my choices. May we choose with deepest awareness and may our warrior hearts keep us present, curious, flexible and strong.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Say Good-bye to Anxiety!
Tired of anxiety ruling your life? Frustrated that you miss out on the things you love? Acupuncture can help. Acupuncture allows the body to relax and deal with stress and tension in new ways. Instead of being hyper-sensitive to certain triggers, your body will learn to integrate the information that is needed and respond appropriately. After a course of acupuncture, you will sleep better, have a more balanced appetite and elimination pattern, and have a general sense of well being you wouldn't had believed was possible.
I often get asked what a course of treatment would like for someone with anxiety. Each person has their own individual pattern that dictates different treatments and frequency, but there are some basic guidelines. It is good to start with 2-3 treatments a week for 1-2 weeks. Within this time period, you will see marked benefits. You may continue with weekly treatments for a period of time to keep your body moving in the right direction. As a renewed sense of calm, increased energy, and peaceful sleep settle into your body, you may only return once every month or two for a tune-up.
Acupuncture has helped so many find themselves again. Underneath that panic, lives a calm and confident person. After a few treatments of acupuncture, you won't believe what you had been missing!
I often get asked what a course of treatment would like for someone with anxiety. Each person has their own individual pattern that dictates different treatments and frequency, but there are some basic guidelines. It is good to start with 2-3 treatments a week for 1-2 weeks. Within this time period, you will see marked benefits. You may continue with weekly treatments for a period of time to keep your body moving in the right direction. As a renewed sense of calm, increased energy, and peaceful sleep settle into your body, you may only return once every month or two for a tune-up.
Acupuncture has helped so many find themselves again. Underneath that panic, lives a calm and confident person. After a few treatments of acupuncture, you won't believe what you had been missing!
Femoral Massage for Fertility
Women: perform from end of menses to ovulation or retrieval date if undergoing IVF. Do not perform during menses, if pregnant, and after transfer date of IVF. Do 2-3 times each leg (separately), 1-2 times per day.
Men: perform daily. Do 2-3 times each leg (separately), 1-2 times per day.
This massage increases the blood flow to the pelvic organs, providing more
nourishment to the uterus and ovaries, testes and penis.
The femoral artery is found at the inguinal area where the thigh meets your groin area. Compress the femoral artery with your fingers, fairly heavy pressure will be required. When you feel the flow has ceased, hold for 30 seconds.
The femoral artery can be located level with your pubic bone, just beneath the crease in your groin between your thigh and lower abdomen.
The blood will then back up and increase the pressure gradient in the iliac arteries which forces more blood into the pelvic arteries. This floods the pelvic organs and genitals with more blood.
When the hold is released, you should feel a sensation of warmth rushing down your legs as the blood supply returns to the lower extremities.
Do not perform this exercise if you:
• are pregnant
• have high blood pressure
• have heart disease or circulatory problems (aneurisms, varicose veins, phlebitis, thrombosis)
• have a history of strokes
• or detached retina
excerpt from: www.acubalance.ca
visit their website for more great fertility info!
Men: perform daily. Do 2-3 times each leg (separately), 1-2 times per day.
This massage increases the blood flow to the pelvic organs, providing more
nourishment to the uterus and ovaries, testes and penis.
The femoral artery is found at the inguinal area where the thigh meets your groin area. Compress the femoral artery with your fingers, fairly heavy pressure will be required. When you feel the flow has ceased, hold for 30 seconds.
The femoral artery can be located level with your pubic bone, just beneath the crease in your groin between your thigh and lower abdomen.
The blood will then back up and increase the pressure gradient in the iliac arteries which forces more blood into the pelvic arteries. This floods the pelvic organs and genitals with more blood.
When the hold is released, you should feel a sensation of warmth rushing down your legs as the blood supply returns to the lower extremities.
Do not perform this exercise if you:
• are pregnant
• have high blood pressure
• have heart disease or circulatory problems (aneurisms, varicose veins, phlebitis, thrombosis)
• have a history of strokes
• or detached retina
excerpt from: www.acubalance.ca
visit their website for more great fertility info!
Fertility Support: Good Books for your Journey
Fertility Support: Physical and Emotional
Navigating through infertility is a difficult process on multiple levels. Western and Eastern medicine both offer options that can be used alone or in conjunction with each other. Some individuals and couples choose to try acupuncture and herbs for a few months before starting assisted reproduction methods, while other people choose to use acupuncture to support their IVF or IUI treatments.
As you journey through your own individual choices, don’t forget to take care of your mental and emotional selves. Whether making this journey alone or with a partner, you will face many challenges. Remember that you are not alone. There are support groups through your local fertility clinics and online. Reach out to family and friends that have gone through similar situations. Books can also be helpful guides. Here are two books that I think are valuable for anyone facing fertility concerns.
The Mind-Body Fertility Connection, by James Schwartz, examines the possibility of emotional and mental blocks to conception. Many women leave their doctors office with unexplained infertility. Schwartz believes when women or couples are given this diagnosis they should begin to consider the possible involvement of their minds and hearts in their fertility journey. His book asks provocative questions that may be difficult to work through. Treating fertility patients, I see women and couples dealing with many hard questions. While this work is a strain on our perceptions of ourselves and our relationships, it many times brings people closer to their own personal truths and into a more compassionate relationship. Schwartz’s book offers these opportunities and also effective exercises to help overcome limiting beliefs. This book is truly a holistic approach to fertility.
Unsung Lullabies, by Janet Jaffe, Ph.D and Martha and David Diamond, Ph.D, explores the emotional maze involved with infertility. This book invites couples and individuals to acknowledge their reproductive story – what they thought it would be and how they see it now. The book speaks to differing styles of coping for couples and the intricacies of expectations we hold for ourselves and our partners. This book will help you further explore your emotions, helping to reduce your sense of helplessness and isolation.
Navigating through infertility is a difficult process on multiple levels. Western and Eastern medicine both offer options that can be used alone or in conjunction with each other. Some individuals and couples choose to try acupuncture and herbs for a few months before starting assisted reproduction methods, while other people choose to use acupuncture to support their IVF or IUI treatments.
As you journey through your own individual choices, don’t forget to take care of your mental and emotional selves. Whether making this journey alone or with a partner, you will face many challenges. Remember that you are not alone. There are support groups through your local fertility clinics and online. Reach out to family and friends that have gone through similar situations. Books can also be helpful guides. Here are two books that I think are valuable for anyone facing fertility concerns.
The Mind-Body Fertility Connection, by James Schwartz, examines the possibility of emotional and mental blocks to conception. Many women leave their doctors office with unexplained infertility. Schwartz believes when women or couples are given this diagnosis they should begin to consider the possible involvement of their minds and hearts in their fertility journey. His book asks provocative questions that may be difficult to work through. Treating fertility patients, I see women and couples dealing with many hard questions. While this work is a strain on our perceptions of ourselves and our relationships, it many times brings people closer to their own personal truths and into a more compassionate relationship. Schwartz’s book offers these opportunities and also effective exercises to help overcome limiting beliefs. This book is truly a holistic approach to fertility.
Unsung Lullabies, by Janet Jaffe, Ph.D and Martha and David Diamond, Ph.D, explores the emotional maze involved with infertility. This book invites couples and individuals to acknowledge their reproductive story – what they thought it would be and how they see it now. The book speaks to differing styles of coping for couples and the intricacies of expectations we hold for ourselves and our partners. This book will help you further explore your emotions, helping to reduce your sense of helplessness and isolation.
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