Adaptation

Staying Open

 

How can you build adaptation into body awareness, in our ever-changing world? I regularly practice shoulder openers like this one…good ‘ole Goal Post Arms. I find that my body needs this type of stretch due to working even more at my laptop and phone in recent months. I am grateful to have work I love, that aligns with my life purpose, while simultaneously honoring that the way in which much of work is delivered now requires extra loving care of how my body responds.

We humans experience discomfort in our bodies for many reasons. One of these is tuning out our bodies as we move throughout our day. What I mean is that we actually ignore how our feet, hands, face, shoulders, hips, spine etc are experiencing our life as well. So when we hold tension in an area for a long period of time, or roll our shoulders forward while working online, we can feel all sorts of unease at the end of our day.

How do you notice cues your body is sending you? How can you use this information and adapt in a new way, as best you can? Something simple yet with impact. Something that promotes self-compassion. Next time you are on your phone, or any screen, try taking a full breath and let your shoulders drop away from your ears. Simply tune in, with a curious friendly attitude. What is present? That in itself is a practice of self-love.