The Benefit of Self-Care

"If you are not actively keeping your body healthy, you are passively allowing it to deteriorate."

Kikuki Zutrau Miyazaki, Headmaster Shiatsu teacher, Boston Shiatsu School

Self-care is a little-known practice in the US that has potential for tremendous improvements and supports conscious re-balancing of our body systems. Also known as "prevention," it consists of small, medium or large acts of awareness. It can also be called "maintenance," as our bodies truly are highly sophisticated biochemical mechanisms.

In my years as a body work therapist, the two most common reasons for not doing self-care:
1) no time/money/memory for that.
2) feel like it is self-endulgance and takes time from other people.

In this post I have two objectives:
1) to point out the real, simple nature of self-care.
2) to convey the benefits of self-care.

All healthy, natural cultures have self-care built into daily and yearly life. In our American Dream we allow ourselves to answer to the time clock rather than our natural cycles, and have this idea of independence from birth to death (okay, maybe from graduation to death... ). Both of these external impositions on our health exists only in our minds.

All natural beings seek support.

In observing the natural world we see continual self-regulation. Natural beings move toward homeostasis, as seen in worms crawling out of water-soaked ground, and mammals storing food for the cold season.
Children and animals are our best role-models for natural self-care.
They pay attention to the little cues of their bodies. Any time there is an ache, a shift in mental focus or a feeling of indigestion, this is a sign that balance it needed. It isn't taught in school, in fact, it's taught out of us in school. We learn to suppress our impulses, to not respond when these physical, mental and emotional cues call on us.

How do we re-connect when this has happened?  Let's consider how infants act if given full rein to express themselves vocally.

Joy through Laughter - Connecting with the human spirit.
Grief through Sobbing - Releasing loss when a loved-one departs.
Anger through Shouting - Release pressure from unwanted experiences.
Anxiety through Singing - Drawing attention to the environment.
Fear through Screaming - Dispersing the intensity of a surprise.

These are pure, innate expressions that we are all given. If you observe carefully, infants use their voices with precision, vibrating their whole being with sound. As the energy of a moment moves through them, their moods change. And they might make something change that creates a greater harmony around them... imagine that!

But you're an adult, so how does this work for you?

Exactly as it works for little babies, only you have a more mature body and can control the volume and intensity of your voice. But do you? Even just vocalizing some small sing-songy question to release some anxiety when things seem just a little out of balance in a group? Will you try that for me and tell me how it goes please? 

Our voice can be medicine, too!

What happens when you do these little stress-releases is wonderful and unexpected. Just like with the baby crying because his toy went over the edge of a high-chair, you start to feel different. Maybe even better! And guess what happens next? You get a choice!

Because you're an adult, you can let go of feelings and make choices about reality. That's what we get with long femur bones, we get choices to bend down and pick up the toy we just dropped or recognize that it's time to stop playing and move on to what needs to happen next. Or ask someone for help. Why not? You just freed your voice! Use it!

Simple as it may sound, this is self-care. If we listen to our inner cues and act upon them, we will find our way to a better lifestyle! As in the quote from Hippocrates, one of our first physicians, if you grocery shop "out loud" you will be able to hear your voice telling you what food is good in your body. Pay attention, you might find yourself shouting that someone is between you and your cheese. What is that cheese really doing for you that is worth the anger?

The moral of the post: When you attend to your own self-care you become more balanced. More balanced people do less erratic things, listen more attentively and help inspire awareness in the world around them. It is a service to humanity, in other words. I encourage you whole-heartedly to practice this simple act of kindness as often as possible.

Best regards for abundant health,
Christian
http://www.mindbodyenergetics.us/shiatsu.html

The hardest part....

As I've been writing this blog on getting out of a rut it occurred to me that someone reading it might think I have an answer for him or her personally. I want to be clear that the only person I have an answer for is myself. I know that if you are in a place where change is needed in your life, you also have your own answers. I share my understanding with the intention of inspiring new perspective.

Some people say if something we are doing is not working, awareness of this glitch is the "first step." After all, they might reason, we wouldn't even see an "innocuous habit" as a Problem with out awareness. I am more proactive, plus I'm a body worker and therefore solution-oriented. I think this logic is actually only a half step, and provides a stopping place for needed change. On the bright side, a half step gets us off the spot we've been occupying for perhaps years. But it is important to ask "How long will acknowledging a (fill in the blank) problem actually change the negative effect on my life?"
(In defense of many, it is a testament to the magnitude of self-improvement that people stop on the precipice of "awareness is the first step.") My question to a person using awareness as a stopping place is, "Do you want to improve your life?"

If you really want to take the first step, look beyond awareness. This is unknown territory where we are faced with the real shocker: it's Your problem. 

This is like putting both feet on the train rather than standing with one foot on the platform. Owning your problem will get you in deep, will show you a path you took for a very good reason sometime in your past. Most importantly, owning your problem takes all the responsibility off everyone else and plops it right where it belongs, on you. At some point that choice you made all those years ago needed to be re-evaluated, but for whatever reason, you didn't go there.

Once you've taken the first step to improve your health and well-being you are faced with the hardest part: staying in the discomfort until a new path emerges.

If you are committed to self-improvement, as the moment to check-out of awareness looms and you decide to wait and learn from it, life becomes uncomfortable.

Our minds have carefully constructed escape routes to take us away from this moment. The first thing we do is engage a habit. This is sneaky, because there are benefit of habits. They are necessary, they keep us involved in life rather than giving complete focus to menial tasks like washing dishes or making breakfast. The thing about habits is that they either make your time more efficient or successfully waste it for you. Are you employing these highly useful tools to distract you from an emotional experience? Are you conscious of what some habits are hiding from you?

The one useful suggestion I have at this point is to practice impulse control: ask "Why?"

"Why do I refuse to speak before my first sip of coffee?" "Why do I say the same thing to the first person I see at work?" "Why do I go to the liquor store at the beginning of a shopping trip?"

This may seem tedious and exaggerated, but it's one way you can make all of your choices conscious.
Many of your answers, if you are honest, are quite legitimate. "I don't feel human before java jolts me into reality." "I am juggling my keys, cell phone and brief case as I walk in the office and just want to get to my desk." "I have a date every Friday and want to get the wine while I'm at the store." These are perfectly truthful answers and productive uses of habitual actions.

It's when you and find another person as the subject, or becoming irritated at your mind for inquiring that you have found a habit covering a poor choice. "Coffee reminds me of a time when life was happy." "This job sucks and I don't want to share my personal life here." "My father did it that way." These are clues that you are on auto-pilot and could benefit from deeper examination of your choices.

What to do once a well-formed habit is no longer hiding an on-going, negative choice? My advise is to ask: "how do I feel with this?" And then be real.

You know improving your life is not going to happen with the same habits that took it down. So begin to get into your life in the moment. The most readily available tool we all have for this act of self love is our breath. It can be your shuttle into feelings that inform you of previous choices. Our breath is the most powerful tool we have to release physical discomforts that are a result of suppressed emotions. As you are choosing to wait and ask why, whatever you've been hiding from will emerge. You can detect this event of emergence because it will change how you breathe. At this moment your breath will represent for you the protective mechanism you activated to shield yourself from difficult experiences in the past. It got you through those moments then and it will get you through the moment now.

The only rule of breathing through a feeling is Let it Go!

I suggest that if you are diving into this openning you be in a safe place and have a good amount of time available. In our culture we have a strangely useful increment of time called "an hour" which is a good amount of time if you are going into completely new territory. If it's a place you've seen and are braving repeat forays to gather more information, 15 to 30 minutes might work well. Mainly I want to emphasize the actual fact: if a poor choice has been hidden deep enough to have an obviously negative effect on your life, it will take a few trips to identify the root.

For most of us, myself included, the first time we look this closely at our lives is a point of crisis. It could initiate a major life change or an earnest "house cleaning" spree. As you learn more about why a choice has entrenched itself in your life you might become aware that outside assistance is needed. I will venture no guidance at this point as this is a highly personalized moment. You have already found the way into your heart, the answers are ready for you to know.

 "Heart Plunger" : one of the hundreds of Art Therapy pieces I did at the beginning of Shiatsu school.

Inner Smile* : )

"Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile,

but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy." Thich Nhat Hanh

Aside from focusing on relaxing your breath, Inner Smile is probably the simplest way to improve life in the moment. It is well known that a genuine smile from one person, even a stranger, can be infectious. There is scientific evidence that the act of smiling releases endorphin peptides from the pituitary gland and hypothalamus, producing a full-body sensation of well-being.

But in the heat of difficulty, in moments of anxiety or strong emotion, how do we conjur up this same effect?
My suggestion: cultivate and draw on your Inner Smile.

As the word suggests, a practice that cultivates something is more intentional than simply smiling and calling it good. Concentration and direction will improve your long-term results, and taking time to re-fresh the source of your smile will bring you a fountain of joy even in the most dire moments.

To begin, get some space and time when you will be uninterrupted. I suggest a minimum of 10 minutes.
The basic steps:

Smiling in your Mind -

• Calm your breath and settle into your body.
• Close your eyes and focus on the space in the center of your head at the level of your eyes.
• Bring to mind a time/place/event that brings you happiness. 
• Hold this thought and breathe with it for at least 30 seconds.
• As the thought of happiness affects your pituitary gland, stay aware of the feeling in your head.

Build an Inner Smile pool in your Mind -

• Continue to breathe as the feeling of well-being naturally produces a smile at the corners of your mouth and eyes. Allow this sensation to build in your head, strengthening your smile and shifting the sensation in your brain.
• Note: It is common to experience discomfort after the first 10 seconds of Inner Smile cultivation. This is due to a number of naturally occurring variables. Continue to breathe and focus on your joyful thought. You are on the right track and with patience will feel the pressure ease. It is important to be persistent and give it as much time as needed for your brain to adjust to the natural release of endorphins.
• Once you get the feeling that your inner mind is "full" with the energy of your smile your exhales will be long and relaxed. 

Store the Inner Smile in your Heart -

• Now is the time to begin storing the energy in your heart.
• Allow the smile to pour down into your chest and permeate the cells of your heart. As the heart is a natural conductor of joyful energy, this step will happen faster.
• Continue to breathe and experience your mind smiling into your heart. Notice the shift in your chest. 
• Dwell in this sensation thoroughly! This is a natural storage place for your Inner Smile, so fill it with your best.

Return the Inner Smile from your Heart to your Mind -

• Once the open, uplifted sensation is well-rooted in your heart, allow your heart to return the smile to your mind. This will create even greater sensations of well-being and relaxation.

This is the first loop of the Inner Smile!

If you still have time and would like to continue, create another loop between your Smiling Heart and your abdomen. This area is known as the dantian or One Point.
You can rest the Inner Smile in dantian or complete the loop from your mind to your heart to your One Point and back again. This is a full-mind/body Inner Smile.

As mentioned above, this is a cultivation practice thus best begun before needed. Well-practiced people need only focus on the space behind their eyes and exhale to complete the initial loop from Mind to Heart. After practicing only once you may be able to bring forth your Inner Smile with only a few breathing cycles.

If you practice this a few times weekly, soon you will notice that new events spring to mind when beginning a practice session. This is a great sign that you are returning to a natural state of relaxed contentment. Your progress is confirmed when people start asking what is making you so happy!

Feel free to leave comments and questions below.
See my website for more information about Shiatsu therapy and my natural healing work.
http://mindbodyenergetics.us/shiatsu.html
best wishes for your Inner Smile cultivation,
Christian

* The name Inner Smile and above method was presented to me in 2000 by a teacher of Mantak Chia's Universal Healing Tao lineage.

Shiatsu Practitioner mandate

In 1998 the Boston Shiatsu School released me onto the world a Shiatsu Practitioner with four mandates: do no harm; always be a student; be healthier than your clients; and teach people.

With very few exceptions, I have remained faithful to the first three, with the last, teach people, always looming as something that will come in time.

My intention with this blog is to share my understanding of natural health. I have lived an extremely healthy life since learning basic Shiatsu and beginning my study of the human experience. There are so many small balancing maneuvers embedded into my everyday life, I now consider caring for myself to be part of my job description. 

Turns out I've learned quite a bit along the way. To support the world of humanity more fully, I intend to offer as much as possible through blog format. What I cannot give in blog, I will attempt to share through teaching events. I plan to make use of the resource available through my workplace, Bodywork Bistro, when classroom space is required, and otherwise will schedule events in public parks around Boulder.

I invite everyone who reads this Shiatsu Blog to reply with comments and observations. As a perpetual student I learn from every possible source, and do my best to maintain authentic presence and integrity in the process.

For today, I end with questions. You are welcome to answer in a comment. What does self-care mean to you? How many times a day/week do you do something that qualifies as self-care?

Please contact me with questions about Shiatsu or to make an appointment in one of my Boulder, CO, locations.

Best wishes for a wonderful month,
Christian
mindbodyenergetics@gmail.com