Be Still My Heart

Hope you're well and enjoying the start of spring! Soon, the energy of warmer weather and sunshine will propel us to get up and out to do more. As a health coach, I have the tough job of trying to convince my clients to do less.

I've even been known to suggest that some stop exercising (for a while). Like adding kerosene to an inferno, many people start or end their stressful days with a rigorous workout. If you need a refresher on what stress does to your body, read my last post. Simply, stress causes dis-ease in the body. Rigorous exercise exacerbates this. Your body takes in that energy, reads it as stress and puts the body into protective mode. Can't imagine life without that addicting, jaw-clenching, sweat-spraying workout? You're not alone. You'll find, though, that there's more power in the pause, then in your quads.

Excessive exercise is what I call a physical food, those things in life we do to fill us up in the moment. Think food we eat, material items, excessive plans, drugs, alcohol, etc. Spiritual foods on the other hand are those foods for the soul that fill us up and sustain us. Your spirit lives in your heart, which makes love (for self) the most basic and most important spiritual food. Feeding one's spirit is a learned skill and sadly one that gets pushed to the bottom of those to-do lists.

To get started, I suggest that you "lop off your head" and go straight to your heart for all decisions. Simply, ask your heart (spirit) if you truly want to do or eat what's presented to you. When you make more decisions that are in alignment with what you truly want for self, your body takes in THAT energy and reads it as peace.

I haven't met a client yet who wasn't seeking more peace. Rightly so. Life is loud. Days are full. The reverb is electric. Coming down from it all can be challenging. For me that can manifest in the occasional mid-night wake up call. Sometimes I think I seek the stillness of the night, so I naturally wake up to hear it. It's awesome and wild to be awake when my world is asleep.

Like a kid who snuck away from a party, I soak up the silence. No birds chirping, dogs barking, cars revving, leaf blowers blowing, neighbors squawking, phones pinging. It's both heavy and light, dark and bright. It's really peaceful.

When you combine the two - following your heart with stillness - you let your body know it's ok. When your body truly feels it, you truly find peace.

Here are some antidotes to our wild life that help create connection and stillness without having to wake up in the middle of the night (but I do recommend it at least once)...

Say no. Cancel anything on your calendar that doesn't make you say, "I'm excited to do that." Keep going as long as you can.
Eat for cravings. Give the body what it truly wants - seasonal whole foods.
Breathe. We take 20,000 breaths a day. Connecting to just a couple deep ones is magical.
Get outside. Crazy enough, it's a healing modality now called "nature bathing" that brings us back to our natural habitat.
Try Reiki. This technique uses peace to heal.

As always, I'll leave you with...