Hi there! After some reflection post-workshop, I realized that I had a few things that could have been more helpful in addressing the stress part of the equation. With that in mind, here are a few things that could possibly help. First, Here is the audio I promised for the three invitations we made at the workshop:
Invitations to the Adrenal Glands, Liver, and Heart
And... I wanted to tell you about a breathing technique that is a great way to set up the invitations, particularly for the adrenals (the organs that make our stress hormones). Our breath is our connection with our life force energy, and is therefore one of our most powerful tools for connecting back to ourselves... and it's the perfect context for the above invitations. I made a video for some friends of mine about this breathing technique... and maybe it'll help you too.
The concept is three-dimensional breathing... and once you get the hang of it you can do it anytime and anywhere. Deep slow breathing sends the message to the body that it is safe, it's basic needs are met, and that the stress hormones can relax (which is great at setting the stage for the invitation to bring converted adrenalin back to the adrenals). PASSWORD: breath
The other thing I wanted to mention is the thing that underlies stress. Often, that is our inner voices, the ones that seem so much like they are our own... but they tell us how we need to do more, be better, and they drive us to spend our energy on things that don't feed us. While we can tolerate some of that in our lives, we can't sacrifice ourselves for others or some perceived long term payoff. We need to be nourished in the now.
The thing that helps most in this realm are beginning a practice of noticing ourselves a bit more. That is, when we have the thought that we need to do something in particular our own thoughts are triggering the stress response. The hallmarks of these are words like "should" and "have to", and feelings of heaviness in the body, particularly in the shoulders, hanging our heads, and/or a sense of the action being draining.
The short term solution involves adrenal support. Nutritional support might be taking magnesium, a B complex, Ester C, and Vitamin D. All of these are restorative, support immunity, and help the body to calm and repair. Mental support would be interrupting these thoughts as they happen, as well as learning strategies for turning down things that you don't want to do. Emotional support might look like figuring out what you do want your life to look like, and taking meaningful steps toward making those things come to be.
So... I recommend beginning with supplements, healthy eating, good rest, a breathing practice and an embodiment practice. The following is a 17 minute audio that first describes why embodiment is important (about three minutes), and a guided journey to an awareness of your body.
Embodiment Practice
And if you like that, or you feel like your chakras are more accessible than your anatomy (which is true for lots of people) you might try harmonizing the chakras with one another.
Chakra Harmony
The first audio is only necessary to listen to once, it is information about the chakras, how I perceive them, and defines some of the terms in the meditation file. This audio is approximately seven minutes long.
The second audio file is the meditation itself, and in order to repeat the experience you only need listen to this recording. It is approximately 15 minutes long.
Thank you both for coming to the workshop! I hope these help!
