A powerful ritualI have spent a lot of time recently chatting with clients about their stress level & wellbeing. Pretty consistently we talk about how out of control stress is right now, and how they just don’t know what to do about it. Since the stressors aren’t going away anytime soon, it’s time to create a healing ritual of mindfulness, meditation and gratitude to allow you to feel calm and to interrupt the chronic stress cycle. Often, I hear that people don’t find breathing exercises helpful in moments of stress crisis (whenever the fight or flight part of your nervous system is triggered for whatever reason). But I think that all it takes is creating a ritual around your breathing exercise and consistent practice to condition your mind and body to relax and breathing to calm. Eventually your ritual will be successful at breaking the stress cycle in those critical moments of stress & crisis. Rituals allow you to quickly and more easily shift and engage in a specific mindset. Basically you are giving your brain the cues that tell it what is coming so it can say “oh, we like the serenity we feel after this, let’s get right to that”. Think about when you get on the massage table for your appointment, once you are settled you probably have a big sigh exhale and immediately start to let go and relax. Same exact thing. So if your goal is to calm and sooth your nervous system, having a ritual around your breathing exercise can help you more quickly achieve that serenity and calm. Creating Your Own Ritual Your ritual should have a couple of key components when your goal is reducing your stress response. Basically the more cues you can give your brain the better, but keep it simple enough that you don’t get bogged down in the process and end up more stressed or frustrated than when you started.
Some other things that can add power to your ritual ... crystals like amethyst (has a calming vibration that is wonderful in times of anxiety and stress) or rose quartz (has a strong vibration of unconditional love, joy, warmth and connection to the heart); a mala to mark of your breaths; a mantra, my favourite one recently is Shima (pronounced she-ma) which means Love; a dedicated space to practice; aura spray (I love these from Alypsis); a mediation cushion (comfort is key). What is the best time of day to practice? Well this depends entirely on you. If your quiet moment is when the kids are down for a nap, do it then. When your stress is waking you up during the night, try preforming your ritual just prior to bed. Alternately, you could try first thing in the morning for a positive and calm start to your day. The key is to pick a time that you can consistently commit to practicing your ritual. Rituals don’t have to take an incredible amount of time, but they do need to be practiced regularly in order for you to experience the quick and easy slip into your desired mindset. Real Life Inspiration One of my clients was struggling to calm her mind and get good restful sleep at night, so the ritual below is what we pulled together for her to try. She practiced this ritual every night, just before turning off the lights, and by her next massage appointment 4 weeks later was already experiencing improved sleep which in turn made the days easier to handle. It was still a work in progress for her, but she was beginning to feel less overwhelmed and stressed; and the plan was to continue with regularly incorporating her ritual into her bedtime routine.
I hope this inspires you and helps guide you in creating your own ritual to calm your stressed nervous system.
If you are needing some further help pulling your ritual together please let me know and we can chat. Remember that this is an extremely personal ritual and what works for me might actually stress you out. So do what works for you!
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My 10 Essential Essential OilsLast post we looked at how I use essential oils and what my most used oils are … so now let’s take a look at why I use so much of the oils I do. What are my most used essential oils & what are they great for?
So now that you know my most used oils, what is my favorite blend to use? Well it happens to be a blend that my son and I created a number of years ago when I first started working with essential oils called Overwhelmed. Overwhelmed is perfect in times of stress or when you are literally feeling overwhelmed and in need of a little grounding. It is soothing and grounding; slows and deepens breath; great for stress, anxiety and nervous tension; wonderful for use in meditation as well. Overwhelmed How do I use this blend? Roll blend on the palm of your hands, rub you hand together then cup them over your nose and mouth, take 5 deep breaths slowly inhaling and exhaling. This covers all the ways you can benefit from the oils and can quickly bring a sense of calm. Or ... rolled this blend underneath jaw line and on pulse points behind ears and in the hollow at the base of the neck. The oil will warm on your skin and you will be able to enjoy the smell and experience the benefits for a longer time. Do you have any essential Essential Oils in your collection? *The essential oil information in this post is combined from my course notes from Alypsis's Intro to Essential Oils Course and from The Encyclopedia of Essential Oils by Julia Lawless
Essential Essential OilsEssential oils have been used throughout history for their aromas as well as their effect on the body. And they have been essential in my home for years now. My passion started when I took the intro to essential oils course offered by Alypsis here in Peterborough. After 2 full days I left with a book full of notes, a brain exploding with ideas, and a rapidly expanding list of oils that I had to have! So how do I use essential oils? Diffused, rollerballs, skin care, massage oils, inhaler tubes, and baths are the main ways we use essential oils; but we do use them in disinfectant spray, deodorizing spray, and hand sanitizer from time to time. When applied topically, essential oils are absorbed through the skin and into the blood stream where they migrate to the organ they need to go to (or the organ system the oil has an affinity for); they can also have an effect directly on the skin. Inhaled essential oils are absorbed through the respiratory tract and into the blood stream; however inhaled oils will not only work physically in or on the body, but also as an emotional connection through the limbic system … think the smell of warm cookies baking makes you remember baking with your mom as a kid and all the warm gooey emotions that come with that. Often when you apply oils to your skin you get a combination of the inhaled and absorbed benefits ... as long as you can smell it you are inhaling it. One of my favorite ways to use essential oils every day is through my rollerball blends. Try this … roll a blend on the palm of your hands (absorbed), rub you hand together then cup them over your nose and mouth, take 5 deep breaths slowly inhaling and exhaling (inhaled). This covers all the ways you can benefit from the oils and can quickly bring a sense of calm when used with a relaxing or stress relief oil blend. An alternate is to roll your blend under your jaw line, on your neck, behind your ears … as the oil warms with you body, you will be able to smell it (inhaled) in addition to the oil being absorbed through your skin. Diffusing essential oils in your space is a wonderful way to enjoy the smell and the benefits all day. I usually run something in our diffusers every day (yes, we have multiple in the house). One thing to note when you diffuse essential oils … only diffuse straight essential oils, not ones that are blended with a carrier oil, or it will just gunk up your diffuser. What are my most used Essential Oils? This was a little tricky for me to narrow down as I currently have 46 individual essential oils and 14 blends (purchased blends not including the ones that I have made), but even out of all of that there are a main set of oils that I am always running out of. So here you go, these are my most used individual oils …
Want to know why these are my most used oils? Next post I will delve into all of the reasons why I use each of these oils along with my most use rollerball blend! Be well. Karooch oils are from Alypsis in Peterborough Ontario. Check out their website for their full range of Essential Oils, Carrier oils, containers and more. *note I’m not affiliated with Alypsis in any way ...
I simply love their products, staff, and workshops! Forest TherapySo much of our world now is fast, fast, fast … even the physical speed we move at can be fast. How much can you accomplish in a small amount of time? How much can you cram into a weekend or a day off? How productive can you be? But is that really what is best for us? What would happen if you tried to slow down and be a little less busy? A little less productive? Move a little slower? Accomplished a little less? One of my favorite ways to slow down is to head to a forest for a wander. Not a speed walk, but a dawdle through the trees with my camera. Taking in all that I can and capturing all the amazing things that I see along the way. This way of basking in nature is actually referred to as Forest Therapy or Forest Bathing. Forest Therapy in the simplest of forms can be described as mindfulness in nature. It revolves around spending time in nature, particularly among the trees. Taking your time to move slowly through the environment, or even just sit. Close your eyes and just breath … then open your eyes and open your senses. What can you see … what do you smell … what can you hear … is it warm or cool … what does the light look like as it filters through the trees? Taking the time to notice big & little things like tiny mushrooms on the forest floor or how the branches of the trees catch the falling snow. Spending time in nature can actually be an antidote for stress! It can actually lower you blood pressure and cortisol levels, decrease nervous system arousal, enhance immune system function, decrease anxiety, and improve mood. “As we strengthen our connection with the natural world, our sense of beauty, wonder, awe and curiosity is restored and our brains and nervous system are calmed. Stress levels are lowered and the immune system boosted.” Where are my favorite places around Peterborough to get a dose of nature?
So, will you join me for a little Forest Therapy this week?
I think we could all use a dose right about now, don't you? Just BreatheI think that we have reached the point in time where everything is getting to be a bit much … or at least it is for me.
Working full time, kids learning online from home, technology problems, internet problems, covid rules/recommendations, lockdown fatigue, dire predictions, feeling disconnected from friends & loved ones … just a few examples of what is leading us towards feeling overwhelmed. So what can you possibly do? First … take a deep breath and saw out loud “I am feeling overwhelmed” … (substitute in whatever specifically you are feeling if it is different) … Acknowledging what you are feeling is always the first step to making positive changes. Second … take a deep breath … not to minimize what you are feeling, but we are all struggling with the same things right now. So join the club and let’s figure this shit out! Third … figure out what issues are in your control to fix and what issues aren’t … There is absolutely no point stressing about something you cannot control. I will let you in on a little secret that I just figured out for myself this morning … grade 6 success does not hinge on your kid’s ability to connect to their google class meet for the full 225 minutes each day, and if the internet goes down, there is literally nothing that you can do about it … so just take a deep breath. Forth … make a list of activities, people, places or things that help you relax, feel connected and fill your heart … there is a way to navigate while making sure to follow covid guidelines, it just takes a little creative thinking sometimes. Fifth … prioritize something from that list every day … with one conscious step at a time you can shift towards being in a place where you feel less overwhelmed and more relaxed and happier. Sixth … try including some conscious breathing exercises in to every day (as often as you need) … here are some breathing exercises that I really like … conscious breathing directs your awareness to the qualities of you breath, is it shallow and fast or deep and slow, and can allow you body to shift away from a sympathetic nervous system response (fight or flight) and back to a more restful and restorative pathway. Don't forget, we will get through and be better for our experiences in the end. Breathe in ... breathe out ... and repeat as often as necessary ... YOU HAVE GOT THIS! |
Brien-anne RMT, CAI am passionate not only about Massage Therapy & Aromatherapy, but also living a holistic lifestyle and empowering & inspiring others to do the same! Categories
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