I’ve recently noticed how much tension I’m holding in my neck and shoulders. It feels as though I’ve been burdening myself with the weight of the world and carrying this extra weight in/on my body. The burden shows up in rounded shoulders—the physical manifestation of shrinking—rather than standing TALL with upright posture so that I can courageously be seen and take up space.
To change this pattern, I’ve been using this simple and slow yoga video:
I appreciate this simple practice because it somehow magically releases the tension and reminds me of the value of releasing, not carrying, burdens. Of allowing instead of trying to control. Of flowing with the rhythms of life. Of remaining open, aware, and still flexible.
I feel grateful that my body speaks my mind and that I can learn from my body’s intuitive cues (in this case, stiff neck and tight shoulders). It’s not by chance that hunching over gadgets (phones and computers) causes neck and shoulder tension, yet it’s not just the hunching that my body is asking me to address.
Rather, my body is signaling the need to address my intake of news, my response to emails, my emotional engagement in communication, and my response-abilities to myself and others. The more I can let go of false ideas that I can control or correct situations, the more I can release this tension. And the more I release this tension, the more I am poised to truly respond, as I can flexibly turn from side-to-side, from issue-to-issue.
So, I’ll keep playing this gentle yoga video with appreciation for my body directing me to s-l-o-w self-care yet again. And I’ll work on releasing what’s not mine so that I’m flexibly attending to what is.
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This post is written by Beth Godbee for Heart-Head-Hands.com. For more posts like this one, you might try “Attending to Anger” or “Gentle Yoga Practice for Healing.” Please also consider following the blog via email. Thanks!
Sooo apropos for me…
Sent from my iPad
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We’re in sync. 🙂
I like this a lot, Beth. Especially the analogy to turning from issue to issue.
Thanks, Sarah! I see there’s a link between me being stiff and not able to turn flexibly from one matter to another … so I hope that being more flexible will allow me to respond with greater ease and ability. So appreciative for being on this journey with you. ~ Beth
Thanks for this. I love your “response-abilities” — breaking the word down like that really shows what it can mean, how it can tie us down, or release us from unrealistic “responsibilities.” Thanks again.
Thanks, Sonia. That pulling apart of “responsibilities” into “response abilities” is something common in my discipline of writing studies (composition, rhetoric, and literacy studies). It helps us name and develop the abilities (competences, literacies, and habits) we need to respond. It helps with seeing that responsibilities ask for response. And I’m thinking more and more that it asks us to get clear on what we’re responsible for and what we’re not … I’m glad this phrase resonated with you, too, and I so appreciate your comment. All best! Beth