🎧 Are you scared of your own body and mind? Feel the pain and let yourself TRULY heal
One of the meditations I’ve been doing around Samhain since my 20s explores there being greatest light in times of greatest darkness. Pain can be medicine.
It might not FEEL like that.
And, as a culture, we’re conditioned to run away from painful feelings – physical and emotional.
I used to drink too much and have been sober since 2001. Learning to stay alive let alone embodied without anything to numb the endless horrifying thoughts was excruciating those first few months.
Research has shown that mindfulness meditation can be more effective than opioids in the treatment of pain and yet that’s an incredibly advanced practice as when we’re in pain, we want to be anywhere BUT in the body.
Still, no side effects. And free! (I offer loads of free resources throughout the site and you can check out many many more online, too).
But it’s important to pace yourself
Daniel Siegel (one of the guest lecturers on my yoga therapy training back in 2012) originated the beautiful and common sensical ‘window of tolerance’ model where he recognised the need to go exceedingly gently with trauma or any kind of pain.
In a nutshell, if you try to do too much too soon, it’s like opening an old sash window too wide in one go. The whole thing falls, crashes and potentially shatters!
That’s the LAST thing you want for your gorgeous, tender psyche!
You deserve gentleness!
You deserve care!
You deserve compassion!
So open that window slowly.
Gently!
Use as many supports as possible – friends, other loved ones, maybe a good therapist or other helping professional.
By opening the window slowly, it’s more sustainable.
You’re less likely to scare yourself into keeping that window (if it didn’t break) shut forever.
Baby steps.
What hurts right now?
Mentally?
Physically?
Emotionally?
Spiritually?
How might you even IMAGINE being a teeny tiny bit more present to whatever is coming up for healing in each area?
If you want my support, I have a little availability for Monday and Tuesday sessions so do get in touch via the short contact form
Want to delve deeper?
Yesterday’s Personal Peace post has some Sunday Self Care and embodied journal prompts to support you with any grief. There’s also some exciting news (I’m excited!) about two ADDITIONAL live Self care coaching calls every week for Extra Embodied members – Mondays at 12.30pm, 5pm and 8.30pm.
Each are 30 minutes, focused around the theme and members can attend all three or whichever suits best that week.
The week’s new yoga nidra will be after one of them but that timing will vary depending on the rest of my schedule that day and all members will receive the recording by the following evening (usually by Monday evening). Find out more
And the Tune In* Tuesday blog post (31/10/23) is designed to help you use the powerful letting go energies of Samhain to declutter your belongings, behaviours and beliefs to make way for new dreams and wondrousness.
*to that highest, wisest, truest, wildest, most joyful, brilliant and miraculous part of yourself
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with love,