It’s been a long time since I have posted a blog, and a lot has happened since then. I have expanded my scope as a yoga and meditation guide to include somatic and mental health counseling. When I feel the impulse to, I might occasionally share some thoughts or practices that support mental health and nervous system wellbeing through this blog. Please feel welcome to unsubscribe, if this is not information that you are wanting or needing.
These times are dragging our individual and collective nervous systems through a lot.
For many of us, we might be feeling overwhelm, shutdown, or are able to functionally move through life ‘business as usual’, and beneath that there still might be tension, heaviness, agitation, and more. All of these states, take a lot of energy even if we appear to be calm on the outside.
What I know from my own body and training is that – when we are able to – bringing micro-doses of stabilization and vitality online can be supportive. This is not meant to make the underlying stressor go away necessarily. But we cannot be in relationship with life, nor process it coherently, when our system is feeling dysregulated and disorganized.
When you are in a place of relative safety, a brief (30s-1m) practice you might play with is called Orienting in the Somatic Experiencing world.
This is an invitation to:
- Pause (this does not necessarily mean stillness)
- Sense supports beneath your body (take in the textures and temperature)
- Slowly let your eyes wander around the space, letting your eyes and physiology take in the visual cues, and let your eyes settle on something that might be neutral or in the pleasant range. This supports you to be in the here and now.
- Allow a little movement in the head and neck as the eyes wander, and even a little movement in the jaw. When our nervous system is perceiving danger, these areas of the body, among others, can feel tense, rigid, and stuck.
- When you’re ready, take a few more seconds to notice how your system is responding, the pace and rhythm of your breath, heart rate, and general tone across the body.
This practice is not intended to induce calm always. It is meant to offer you an opportunity to bring the tone of your nervous system towards stabilization by a notch or two (imagine that your nervous system has a dial).
I will be offering more group opportunities for nervous system work and iRest yoga nidra experiences at Studio Satya.
I also highly recommend Viasomatic practitioners if you are looking for support in this area.
Till then be well,
Sheila
Sheila Singh Therapy 