My physical foibles (labelled such things as EDS and chronic pain) don't render me unentitled to a gloriously reimagined health future but even more prone to be open minded and eager enough to embark on the journey because there are no rules where I dwell, it is all a giant leap in the dark so why not make it a leap towards what I prefer to envision and thus create. The first step is to make friends with movement...
Shaking the body is how wild animals get rid of stress from their bodies...straight after the trigger event...which is why they don't suffer PTSD but what about humans? Here's a simple daily practice that not only shakes off what you don't want but re-energises every cell in the body (something we could all use right now), it takes just a few moments, can be done anywhere and is free!
Adopting healthy habits is the thing that will get us all through this challenging phase and so here's the point I'm making here: The religious practice I speak of here is nothing to do with attending "church" (we need to reclaim that association back, to re-empower ourselves), its to do with devotion…to one's self, one's life…and the conscientious, faithful practice of observances that affirm one's existence as spirit in human form (a long way around of saying “health”); and on this topic I have much to say.
Hard science has uncovered a mechanism whereby the same collagen abnormalities in EDS that make joints especially flexible seem to affect blood vessels, making those with it prone to accumulation of blood in the veins of the legs, an effect that may lead to exaggerated cardiovascular responses to maintain the output of blood from the heart. This and other foibles, which I feel are versions of the same response, put those of us with this issue under immense pressure and strain, all the time, as our version of "normal" so just imagine how much we then react to any additional triggers, to which we tend to be hypersensitive (I share my about theory about that too...), setting off our nervous system at regular intervals in a way that has nothing inherently to do with mental health...although, no surprise, it can start to manifest as anxiety over time. Joining some dots and celebrating just how much people with hypermobility type EDS deal with as their daily benchmark...plus some practical ways of making it better.
It can feel like a very long walk down a dimly lit corridor when you are trying to fathom your way out of a long running health condition such as fibromyalgia, as I expect others on the journey could probably relate to. From time to time, if you’re fortunate and diligent enough in pursuit of … Continue reading Ehlers-Danlos, POTS and Asperger’s…many lightbulbs go on at once
Why do we long for diagnosis, for validation, for something so fixed to get a grip on and is it always such a great idea? What happens when we court the softer possibilities, a nonlinear or quantum approach...or mix this up with a plan of action that leaves room for both? A personal review of these topics from a fibromyalgia perspective.
There's literally nothing to lose and everything to gain from a healthier vagus nerve. Like all the best paths, it starts out a little mysterious but that's where its adventure lies. I've certainly had cause to explore it lately as its been found to have just so many links with the most chronic, mysterious, health conditions....and here's what I found out (to my benefit, maybe yours). So, having found it and become so much more aware of it, I like to think the vagus nerve is a path worth following as, so it turns out, it may very well lead us back to ourselves in more ways than one!
Almost as an aside to my usual topics (though it feels like an important one), I feel I want to share an observation this morning and its that I believe there is such a strong correlation between health and the solar cycles as they switch between solar maximum and minimum. There’s no denying that I … Continue reading Dealing with solar minimum blues
Sometimes acute episodes in the body can play out as so much more than just a nice metaphor of something that feels stagnant or wounded in your life. Some powerful experiences waiting to liberate and transform your life are what await just the other side of listening to what the body has to tell you; which can be one of the most transformative experiences you ever get to encounter, taking the power and the very interpretation of what it means to heal to a whole other level.
Is it fair to say that the world is embracing male-led yoga classes even more so than those run by women and is there a niche opening up? If so, what does this say about where we are as a collective? Is this because there are ever more males looking for something just like this to offer new coherence to their lives along with a relatable person to teach it to them? I take it all as a very good sign.
Living whole 