I’m in the Catskill Mountains this week enjoying nature. This video is a chance to practice being with the thoughts and feelings within you and appreciating nature.
Month: June 2017
Tips for Sleep
After my weekly Wellness Warriors Yoga Class, a new student asked for ideas to help her sleep. A four time cancer survivor, she says she falls asleep ok, but wakes around 3am and lies sleepless for hours.
Insomnia-it’s the worst! I would wager that the majority of cancer patients and survivors experience it, as well as many in the general population.
Yogic postures, meditations, and lifestyle practices can help foster sleep.
This week, I’m sharing three (of the many) that you can do next to your bed when you experience sleeplessness:
1.Forward Bends-forward bends help you relax. Come into a gentle forward bend and begin to breathe long and deep. Enjoy breathing and your ability to stretch, no matter how far forward you come. Stretch one leg at a time to protect your lower back if you have pain or concerns about lower discs.
2.Table pose. Place your hands under your shoulders and your feet beneath your hips. Press the hips up until they are parallel to the floor. Look up at the ceiling. Eyes can be open or closed. Breathe long and deep and stay with the posture until you can no longer hold the position. Come down from the posture and relax a few moments. Then resume the posture. Continue to release tension by coming into the posture with slow, deep breathing until you find yourself worn out and ready to meditate.
3.Meditation for Sleep
This meditation uses 2 mantras from Kundalini Yoga as Taught by Yogi Bhajan: Sa Ta Na Ma (Cycle of Life-Life, Birth, Death, Rebirth) and Wahe Guru (expression of ecstasy and connection with the Infinite).
You can sit up in bed or sit on the floor or in a chair.
It has 4 parts:
- First, take 4 even sniffs in through the nose. With each sniff, think to yourself one of the syllables of the mantra: Sa Ta Na Ma.
- Then, suspend your breath in and think to yourself 4 rounds of Sa Ta Na Ma.
- Next, exhale though the nose as you think to yourself Wahe Guru.
- Eyes are either gently closed or focused at the tip of your nose.
In this short video, I explain the meditation and postures for relaxation.
https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=KBb-LW20U0U
Let me know your experience, questions, and need for modifications. Sweet dreams to you!
Act of Rebellion
The news is troubling to me. And I know I’m not alone.
I hear from friends and clients who also worry about our country’s leadership, the economy, violence and oppression.
Among people touched by cancer, there is a genuine fear of losing health insurance benefits which could mean the difference between continuing to live and thrive and dying.
It’s a heavy situation. And yet, cancer survivors have faced heavy situations before. To survive and thrive, you must pace yourself. http://www.kellyinselmann.com/monday-morning-videos/learning-to-pace-yourself/
Rest is essential if you want to be strong enough to continue living and to stand up for yourself and others. Can you give yourself permission to nourish your body and mind by setting aside the unknowns and the fears for a few moments?
The rebel in me likes Child’s Pose.
I bring my forehead to the floor and feel relief. Closing my eyes, I temporarily
withdraw from resonating with the sorrows of the world.
Sitting on my heels, forehead to the floor, my arms are relaxed to the sides or along the floor above my head.
Knees are open to relax the hips.
In this era of “infomania,” we are stimulated by thousands of competing thoughts, fears, feelings, and ideas. There is much information and precious little understanding.
In this context, Child’s Pose is a subversive and vital act of rebellion.
Simple and intrinsic to our bodies; babies and children do it in their sleep and play.
In Child’s Pose, time slows down. I temporarily reject the outside world to experience my inner one. I feel grounded, connected to the earth, and aware of the sensations in my body.
Symbolically, it is a classic position of vulnerability and humility.Neck exposed, my head (and intellect) is momentarily surrendered. No more obsessing, problem solving, planning, attempting to control things.
In my Yoga and Talk ® Therapy Group, “Denise,” who suffers from chronic fatigue since her cancer treatment, feels a shift when she comes into Child’s Pose, dropping into her body and the felt experience of herself. She later describes child’s pose as a refuge– from her fearful thoughts about her condition, the expectations of others, and anxiety about the future. Over time, Child’s Pose has become an experience of safety she draws on when stressed or exhausted.
And for me, each time a group comes into this resting posture, or I do it myself, I feel the subversive power and potential that is cultivated through deep rest.
Which Side of Your NOSE are YOU Breathing Through? (and why is this important?!)
Before reading further, take a moment to feel connected to your body. Notice the sensations connecting you to a chair, the floor, or bed.
Breathe long and deep a few times, allowing your chest and belly to expand on the inhale like you are filling a balloon with air, and relax with the exhale.
Now bring your fingertips just below your nostrils and breathe out powerfully a few times. Can you discern which side of your nostrils is more open than the other at this moment? Left, right, or equal?
I’m going to share a secret about your body you probably never learned growing up or in school: several times a day, our bodies naturally change which nostril side is more open and easier to breathe through.
Why on earth is this important?!
Many of us, but cancer survivors in particular, struggle with fatigue, difficulty focusing, anxiety and insomnia.
Yogic breathing practices such as alternate nostril breathing can help you bring more prana (life force energy) into your body to manage the side effects of cancer.
At a given moment, the nostril side which is more open reveals the state of your mind and energy. You can even learn to track your mental state and physical energy by observing which side is more open or more blocked.
You have an incredible potential to change your state of mind and body by deliberately switching which nostril side is more open through alternate nostril breathing.
When I first learned about this and started using it in my daily life, I felt like I had a hidden superpower to lower stress, calm emotional reactions, make me more alert, reduce anxiety, and choose to focus.
But which side is which?
TO RELAX-Open the Left Side
When your left side is more open, you are usually calmer, more relaxed, less anxious. (You might also feel tired or sleepy, unfocused or fatigued). When the left side is more open, it is easier to fall asleep.
If you find yourself struggling to sleep, check which side of your nostrils is more open. With insomnia, based on my own experience, I can almost guarantee that the left side is blocked and the right side is open.
To encourage relaxation or sleep, block the right nostril and begin long deep breathing through the left. Continue for 3-11 minutes or until the dominance changes to the left. Lie on your right side to sleep, allowing the left nostril more ease at being open.
Anxiety: If you are feeling anxious during the day, check your nostrils. No doubt the right side is more open and the left side is blocked. Again, block the right side and begin long deep breathing through the left. You can practice anywhere!
Practice along with me to lower anxiety OR get ready to sleep by clicking here:http://www.kellyinselmann.com/monday-morning-videos/lower-anxiety-with-left-nostril-breathing/
FIGHT FATIGUE-Open the Right Side
When the right side is open, you are usually more alert and awake with higher energy. (You might also be feeling anxious or restless).
If you need to stay awake, drive, study, listen to a friend or client, care for a child, block the left nostril with your left thumb and begin breathing long and deep through the right side for 3-11 minutes or until the dominance switches to the right.
To wake up, energize your body, focus, become more alert OR to lift your mood, practice along with me by clicking here:http://www.kellyinselmann.com/monday-morning-videos/energize-with-right-nostril-breathing/
Believe it or not, there are some yogis who, with practice, can learn to switch the dominance of the nostril without even using the fingers to block one side. Through deep self awareness and attention they are able to open up one side or the other.
Let me know the results of your observations and experiments!
