From Stress to Peace (part 2)
Peace is always inside you. When it feels stuck under a thick blanket, you may need a tool to uncover it. There are Wellness Tools that can move you from stress to peace, you just need to know what tools work for you.
Refresher:
For a refresher on the first 3 tools, click here.
In this week’s post, we'll go through the next three 10 basic #wellnesstools. If a tool works for you, add it to your #wellnesstoolbox!
TEST IT !
To know if a Wellness Tool works for you, test it. Testing a tool is as easy as 1-2-3!
(1) Ask yourself: On a scale of 1-5, how stressed do I feel? (2) Use a Wellness Tool (such as: 3 deep breaths). (3) Use the same scale to retest your stress level.
With Likert measurement scales, you can use any question + set up your scale any which way. For another example of how to test if “take 3 deep breaths” really works for you, watch this video).
Your next Wellness Tool is:
4. Breathe
Paying attention to this breath brings us into this moment. When we're in this moment, we're not in the past, not in the future - we're in the present. Being present in this moment is enlivening + peace-creating. Being present, moment-to-moment, creates a full + peaceful future.
There are many #breathingtechniques that help us focus. The following is one of my favorites. Try this guided #Mindfulness breathing technique now! (Remember: test it - before + after).
Focus on the Inhale
Focus on the air as it first enters your body - a tickle at the end of the nostrils.
Notice the temperature + sensations inside the nose + mouth as you breath in.
Notice the breath in the back of the throat (between the nose + mouth).
Follow the breath into the lungs.
Notice how, when you inhale, the chest expands (because the ribs separate + move outward, to make room for the expansion of the lungs).
Notice how, when you inhale, the belly expands (because the diaphragm pushes down, to make room for the expansion of the lungs).
Focus on the Exhale
Notice how when you exhale, the belly contracts (as the diaphragm tucks back up under the ribs).
Notice how when you exhale, the chest contracts (as the ribs knit back together).
Follow the breath out of the lungs, up to the throat, into the nose + mouth.
Notice the temperature + sensations of the breath just before it's exhaled out.
Here are some more of my favorite breathing techniques:
Focus on the rise + fall of breathing in + out, like the tide - like a wave.
Count your inhales from 1 to 10. Then count your exhales from 1 to 10.
Focus on the 'PAUSE' between the inhale + exhale, and between the exhale + inhale. Notice each moment before the breath changes direction.
#SquareBreathing: breathe in for a count of 3; hold the pause for a count of 3; breathe out for a count of 3; hole the pause for a count of 3.
Slow down your breathing by inhaling for a longer count, + exhaling for a longer count.
Even-out your breaths by making the inhale + exhale the same count.
Try each one of these (and any other breathing techniques you come across) - one-at-a-time, to know which work well for you. Use a simplified Likert measurement scale to test each one. You might try asking yourself:
"Do I feel at-peace?", using a scale of 1-10, 1 being 'not at all' + 10 being 'I'm in a state pf bliss'
"Do I feel stressed?", using a scale of 1-10, 1 being 'not at all' + 10 being 'I will not survive this'
When a technique increases your level of peace or decreases your level of stress, add it to your toolbox + use it often.
5. Move
There's an adage: move your body, move your emotions, move your mind. There's more + more research about #somatic awareness + healing that you can explore if you'd like. Even more powerful, though, is your personal experience. Test different ways of being in your body to know what moves you away from stress + toward peace.
Your physical body will tell you how it wants to move. Listen to your body sensations + allow their expression. Each time you do this, test your mental + emotional states before + after moving. In this way, you'll learn to trust your body's ability to guide you toward whole health.
You have a physical body, and also - mental, emotional, energetic + spiritual bodies. Untangling knots in any one of these bodies can loosen + untangle knots + blocks in the others. It’s often easiest to get things started by moving the physical body. Try any of the following (or your own) ways of moving:
Vigorously shake to release trauma
Move aerobically to increase your heart rate, oxygen flow, + energy level
Take a long walk to get away from a stressful situation, process, + figure out a healthy solution to a problem
Combine conscious (Mindful) breathing and physical exercise (with yoga, Tai Chi + Qigong, for examples) to find your peace
Give your body permission to 'let go' + unwind itself (with subtle tools such as: Alexander Technique + restorative yoga)
Move alone or with others (such as with solo or partner dancing)
Do a daily 'Energy Medicine' routine for one-month (try using Donna Eden's routine. Find it online, for free)
Check in with your body. Ask it: "What do you want right now?"
6. Rest
Your physical, mental, emotional, energetic, + spiritual bodies will tell you when it's time for rest, sleep + stillness. Listen. Trust your #bodywisdom above all else. When you test your emotional + mental state before + after you give yourself permission + time to rest, you’ll know if this tool works to bring you peace.