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BODY AWARENESS

So many of us these days are completely out of touch with our bodies.  We do not eat healthfully, get enough sleep, relax and/or meditate, spend quality time with family and loved ones.  We sell our soul and sense of peace out in order to earn a buck, keep the bill collector from the front door and a roof over our heads.

It is becoming increasingly important to step out of the rat race and pay attention to what is important – your and your family’s health, emotional wellbeing and spiritual growth.  So many people work extremely hard so that they can enjoy life when they get there… you know – get out of debt, have a baby, find a significant other, get married, own a home, retire, etc., etc. – the fact is if you do not figure out that where you are now is it, the journey is the reward, this is how you are to learn your most valuable lessons; you will miss what your life has to offer.

One of the best and perhaps easiest ways to start bringing your focus back to where it matters is to concentrate on your physical body from head to toe.  If you can get back into communication with your own body, it will become so much easier to figure out what you body needs to ensure vital health.  This will then allow you to expand your awareness to your emotional and spiritual health.

Massage and bodywork serve to heighten relaxation as well as help you tune in more fully to your body with increased sensation and circulation.  Muscle tone improves and with certain types of bodywork you will start to feel an improvement in flexibility and range of motion.

The more you are able to let go of the stresses you experience in life, self inflicted and externally perceived, the more energy and time you will have to develop in the way that you really wanted to in the first place.  I believe that we all started out with a purpose in this life; it is just that our egos, environment and perceived social pressure allow that purpose to become occluded and oftentimes disappear completely.

The best way to re-connect with your soul purpose, your goal in this life is to raise your level of fitness, by this I am referring to your physical, emotional and spiritual bodies – real success and happiness can be realized when you are true to yourself.

Doing bodywork on yourself certainly does not beat going for a full session of therapy and I strongly recommend that you start scheduling yourself regular massage/bodywork sessions.  However, there are some exercises that really help with this concept of re-awakening your body awareness.

My favourite one is…

Lying flat on your back, in bed or on the floor – you are going to tense up and then relax each part of the body… starting with the lower body, contract all of the muscles of the legs and feet tight and hold for 5 seconds.  When you let go sense how your legs and feet feel, they might tingle a bit, they might feel heavy, and they might feel warm.  Do this same process with your abdominal and buttock area, then your shoulders and arms and finally your neck and facial muscles.

The other exercise that helps clear the mind and relax the body is deep belly breathing… as you breathe in, allow your belly to expand -  hold your breath for a moment and then exhale completely as your belly flattens.  Doing this 5 – 10 times will enhance your own body awareness as well as allow you to manage your stress level.

My passion is to help you get on track on your journey to health wellness and wholeness; I hope that you’ve found a bit of inspiration in what I have written.

--moira--