Get to Know Your Body’s Stress Response & Stress Relief Practices
We are all in this sacred container of growth, evolution and transformation together right now. We may feel uncomfortable, we may be experiencing feeling tense, fearful, stuck in worry thoughts, trouble sleeping, feeling anxious and overwhelmed, irritable, low energy, low tolerance for others, numb, feeling disconnected or shut down. We likely are over it all.
This is our body’s stress response...
and it’s our body’s attempt to protect itself from all that is going on. Some stress is healthy for the body to feel as it can help us learn to adapt to life. However, the stressors we currently face are very different than the stressors we were designed to face, and they are seemingly endless. How we perceive stress and react to it is SO important!
Learn to recognize your body’s physical stress response.
As you read this, take a moment to consider the following questions
How do I know when I feel stressed?
What does my body feel like when I am stressed?
Where do I feel it?
What is my breath like?
What is my mood like
How do I feel around and treat others?
What are my favorite ways to discharge stress?
Be mindful of the content that you’re taking in with all of your senses as it is directly absorbed by your nervous system. Notice how you feel when you’re around certain people, how you feel when you read the news or another person’s social media post. These things can move you away from a healthy, balanced, connected, calm, compassionate state where you’re able to make decisions, be in your body and in the present moment, and connect with others.
Learn to recognize your body’s optimal engagement, relaxation and connection response.
As you read this, take a moment to consider the following questions
How do I know when I feel relaxed, calm, and connected?
What does my body feel like in this state?
What is my breath like?
What is my mood like?
How do I feel around and treat others when I am calm and connected?
What are my favorite ways to relax, nourish myself, to play and to rest?
How often am I doing those things?
We must come back to our bodies again and again and ask, “What am I feeling, and what do I need?” And then we must honor it! We must reclaim our nervous system and life and give ourselves the experiences, places, people, news, social media, music, etc. that feels like healing, recovery, rejuvenation, nourishment and energized calm.
Stress Relief Practices
Do you enjoy podcasts?
Feeling the collective stress and tension?
This one is too good not to share! Brené Brown with Emily and Amelia Nagoski discuss Burnout and How to Complete the Stress Cycle :-)
Hridaya Mudra
Gesture of the Spiritual Heart for Seeking Divine Refuge
“As I open to grace in challenging times, I receive the full support of the Divine.”
Instructions
Gently place the right hand over the heart, leaving a slight hollow between the right palm and the heart.
Place the left hand over the right hand.
Allow the chin to bow slightly forward in a gesture of surrender.
Relax the shoulders back and down , with the spine naturally aligned.
Repeat the above affirmation out loud or silently.
ॐ A Centering Exercise ॐ
Sit in a comfortable position with a tall spine and relaxed shoulders
Feel free to hold the mudra above
Soften your gaze or close your eyes and bring awareness to the center of your body
Notice the front, back, left and right sides, and the top and bottom of your body
Take 5 deep breaths through the nose while feeling the path of your breath in your belly
Now, breath with your awareness from your feet to your head as you inhale and then from your head to your feet as you exhale
I hope wherever you are, you are doing whatever you can and need to at this time to lift your own spirit and care for yourself.
Let’s continue to ride the waves of 2021 with our breath.