Stress can be incredibly harmful on the body; not speaking to the healthy stressors given within a powerful Yoga practice or the regular challenge placed upon us within a steady well rested day - the stressors that harm are built up relentless visitors that trigger reactions and lock them into the tissues, bunching shoulders, elevating the heart rate and bashing on the brain. It's rough.
Aside of a therapeutically focused Yoga practice that skilfully massages out a pathway for sustainable change, there has got to be another way. To address those moments when the stress has manifested in the energy body as the kind of discomfort that drains, it is helpful to have tools.
In the case of a tension headache what can we do ? From the perspective of Yoga asana, we've been working in class these past few weeks with a holistic sequence structured particularly for the neck and shoulders to release. Providing a powerful mechanical pathway to unbind unhelpful habit patterns held in these stress sites, not only aids in reducing the probability of tension headaches, it also supports healthy immune/endocrine exchange.
So much can be un-done on the Yoga mat.
During those times in between however, when a painkiller seems the only solution, I urge you to try a protocol less extreme.
Here are a few options;
1. Hydrate - fill a litre glass flask with warm water and a generous squeeze of lemon juice. Add a hefty pinch of Himalayan pink or Celtic Sea salt and drink this each morning upon rising; to rehydrate the tissues and support the liver in all it's detoxifying ways.
2. Abhyanga - the sacred art of daily self massage. Read more about this one on the blog here and know that is it is well worth to do. The very act of massaging tension form the neck and shoulders each morning to begin the day, sets you on a good way to sustainable well-being on all levels, not only physical !
3. doTERRA Past Tense blend - when a headache has come and you must keep trucking' on, try this before you reflexly reach for the pharmaceutical. Past tense is a very clever blend of cooling and pain relieving Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils, that works !
On a personal note, I loathed the smell of this blend upon our first meeting and condemned it to stay stashed. However after a string of tension inducing life experiences bought pain to my brain, I opened myself to try it upon the encouragement of a friend and WOW - a 10% blend rolled right over the drill sites did the trick and took that headache right away. This is not an isolated instance I am pleased to say and I feel as though I am sharing with you a winner.
doTERRA Essential Oils with Amber
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