Do you ever feel stress, overwhelmed, sad, angry, have chronic pain, anxiety, burnout?
Try this Powerful simple Somatic Release exercise. Daily for the best most effective results.
Lye flat on the ground, breath, continue to draw your mind back to your breath. That’s the focal point – your breath. Notice the sounds around you, just notice, while you breathe. At times throughout this exercise make an audible exhale breath sound. Like ahh And allow the powerful healing of this exercise to naturally happen. All you have to do is breathe and focus on the breath over and over. You can do this exercise for 5 minutes or longer to your liking and need.
This lying on the floor posture is a grounding Somatic Release/Healing exercise. Also, known in Yoga called Shavasana. Doing this exercise your postural muscles that are constantly working against gravity to keep you upright, are suddenly given permission to turn off. To let go and be relaxed. This posture of reclining horizontally on a hard surface signals to your brain absolute physical safety. Because your body doesn’t need to brace or guard against threats any longer. When this happens the brain turns off the sympathetic (fight or flight) response and turns on the parasympathetic nervous system (the rest and digest state).
This allows for diaphragmatic release, where your ribcage gives your diaphragm more physical space to move more freely. Because of the lying flat on a hard surface naturally eliminates the gravitational pull of a constant load on the spine.
This mechanical freedom naturally shifts your shallow chest breathing to a more deeper state of breathing. From your diaphragm which stimulates the vagus nerve. And the vagus nerve when stimulated signals to the heart to slow down, lowering blood pressure, and mitigates cortisol production.
An anxious and traumatized nervous system suffers from sensory static, which is an overwhelming internal loop of being in hyper – vigilance. When the body is in this state it drains your body of its life force energy, preventing your brain to think clearly and rationally. This state disrupts sleep, and eventually leaving you feeling empty and exhausted.
The combining of the physical position with mindfulness – breaks this cycle of cognitive load. When the body experiences stress it’s typically in a hyperaroisal state, (anxiously rushing around) or a freeze state (feeling numb or mentally frantic).
Stillness and mindfulness intercepts these patterns of bracing or masking. And forces the body to intentionally STOP. This is where healing and rejuvenation from stress, burnout, trauma can take place.
This is simple. yet, a very powerful Somatic exercise by redirecting your awareness inward rather than trying to “fix” or change anything. Allowing your brain to naturally process the present emotional stress, and allowing the emotions to release out of the body. This improves cognitive flexibility, creating restoration within the body bringing it to an – emotional regulation state.
You don’t have to be a yogi, or take a yoga class or go to a retreat to experience this powerful exercise of Somatic Healing to emotional revaluation. All you need is a hard surface to lye on, a willingness, a desire to improve your mental state, to heal, to want to feel more centered, calm and regulated within your body.
You can do this anytime and as frequently as you feel necessary. Consistency is key I have found personally and with my clients I have worked with.
You, your mind and body will benefit and love this.
Until next time, keep smiling,
Best,
Lisa Alarie
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