3 Ways to Come Home to Yourself
This heart-share blog was written by Liv Kesselhaut. She is a beam of light based out of NJ, and we have been blessed to have her as part of our SK for 5 years now. You can learn more about Liv and her offerings down below.
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In times of stress or discomfort, we may find that we yearn to push harder, rather than give ourselves space to feel and breathe.
When we notice ourselves feeling stressed, whether it is emotional, physical, mental, or spiritual (maybe all 4), it's time to pause. Instead of fueling the stress, try these practices.
1. Breathe
Have you noticed that when you feel stressed, your breath may be sharp or in retention? Our breath can indicate our mood. Try this practice.
Inhale for a count of 4, hold the breath at the top for 4 counts, exhale out of the nose for 4 counts, hold the breath at the bottom for 4 counts. Repeat for 10 rounds.
2. Body Scan
When we are in the mind, we are not in the body. Residing safely in the body may quiet the mind. Forehead scrunched, jaw clenched, shoulders up to the ears? Try this practice.
Beginning at the toes, scan the body up the legs, the torso, the arms, neck, and head. Observe any areas of tension or openness. When you find an area of tension, pause, and breathe into this space. At the end of the practice, re-scan the body and take a full round of breath.
3. Meditate
We'll call this a ‘meditation snack’: consciously taking 1-5 minutes to sit with yourself. Find a comfortable seat, away from where you work. Elongate the spine, melt the shoulders away from the ears, relax the jaw, bring a slight smile to the lips. Notice the breath moving in and out through the nose. Allow thoughts to move just like the breath. At the end of your meditation, have a good thought - maybe think of one thing that you’re grateful for.
In addition to these practices, we love to take a moment to assess what could best nourish us. Anima Mundi products Happiness Tincture and Blue Lotus Tea are two of our favorites for supporting the brain and nervous system. Creating a nourishing drink is a simple way of telling yourself, “I got you”.
Spending time in the infrared sauna aids in regulating the nervous system, calming the body, supporting whole body flow and radiance and creates the space to BE rather than DO.
Learn more here.
About Liv:
Olivia came to us in 2018 following the third year of her studies at San Diego State University, where she completed her B.A. in Psychology. Throughout her studies she found refuge in Yoga, food as medicine, Buddhist Psychology and their effects on the mind, body, and spirit. She completed her RYT-200 in 2019, beginning the transformation of her practice. Her background in Psychology sets the frequency of her offerings, tuning in with the innate wisdom of the body and utilizing the breath as a bridge. Olivia is a mental health advocate, believing that befriending the mind is the ultimate gift to oneself.
She is LoveYourBrain Yoga certified and has worked closely with the brain injury community since 2019. Olivia holds a T. Colin Campbell Plant-Based Nutrition certification, believing that food can be the truest medicine. Olivia offers Reiki as an energy healing modality and weaves this into her offerings.
