This article was contributed by Aurora de Blas of LANidra
http://www.lanidra.com
Whether you are working for yourself or working for someone else there is always something out there weighing on your mind. We have mental 'to do' lists; the people we have to check-in with because of their expectations of us or the people we have to check-in on because we're waiting for them to give us something....It all creates this buzz in our head that can make it hard to sit still and just breathe. The funny thing is, that's exactly what we must do in order to keep up and feel on top of everything that we are juggling, sit still and just breathe.
For a five minute 'screw your head back on straight at the work place' mini vacation; that will have you re-focused and energized try this:
1. sit (with your hands resting on your thighs, palms facing up) or lie down ( with your hands lying next to your body, palms facing up)
2. close your eyes
3. inhale to the count of six
4. hold your breath there for the count of six
5. exhale to the count of six
6. repeat steps 3.- 5. as needed
Keep this cycle going for five minutes and you'll feel your body start to recognize all of the tension that it has built up. Many times I find a tingly sensation happen in my head and muscles that feels like little stars are exploding inside of my body. It's quite pleasurable. If you can, add a minute of simply shaking your whole whole body from head to toe after this. Yes, I am giving you permission to act like a four year old again.
In addition, make room for a weekly physical and/or meditation practice. The incredible thing about incorporating this into your life is that it allows your body to realign itself. Tension and anxiety have us walking around ready to jump at any second ( this reflex called "fight or flight" is something that is built into living creatures so that we can escape danger as promptly as possible). As humans are mental creatures, our triggers for this reflex are oftentimes not so literal. Instead of a bear coming to eat us, we've got the danger of losing a job, an account, etc. However, the tension from those things still gets tucked away into our bodies. If we don't find a way to release it, the tensions pile up and can become debilitating resulting in illness, chronic pain and sleeplessness.
When animals have this trigger they instinctively release it by flapping, shaking or running. We must take the time to do the same for ourselves. I hope this insight into managing stress at work helps to make your day a little easier. "Yoga Nidra" is a fantastically ancient method you can use to manage stress. If you feel that five minutes is just not enough, you can take community, private, and workplace classes are available at www.LAnidra.com
-Aurora de Blas (LaNidra@Gmail.com)
