It's Women's Health Month at Tribe!

Celebrate Women’s Health Month with 3 simple daily practices that deepen your relationship with your body for greater overall health and well-being.

Please note: these practices benefit ALL BEINGS as they focus on the dynamic of feminine aspects vs. the female body, traits that we all carry and which we all have the ability to access for improved daily health and vitality.

PRACTICE “BEING”
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Let’s face it, we live chaotic, busy, scheduled mornings, afternoons and nights, where the demands of work and life often overlap, intertwine or conflict. The need to DO and GO and be ON all the time seems to be a cultural norm that it becomes very easy to be in our heads, but not so much in our bodies. It’s no wonder that adrenal fatigue, autoimmune issues, fertility issues and mood disorders are prevalent.
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And yet, taking just a little bit of time, minutes even, to breathe, meditate, enjoy the breeze on your skin, to simply BE has shown to have wonderful benefits for health. Take a quick look at this infographic for 76 scientific benefits of meditation from liveanddare.com. Click image to enlarge: https://liveanddare.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Benefits-of-Meditation-Infographic.png#.WusS47GXr4E.link

How to implement: The next time you find yourself rationalizing busyness by saying “I don’t have time to…”, disrupt that thought with a deep breath down into the lowest part of your ribs, exhaling slowly, and taking just a moment in that stillness at the bottom of the exhale to enjoy what it feels like to just be in your body. You may find these opportunities spread, popping up in your work day, as you travel from place to place, and as you settle into bed at night. You may even begin to notice that time is way more abundant than you’ve been believing. Begin practice today.

PRACTICE “ACCEPTANCE”
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What would it feel like to completely accept yourself, every aspect of your being? What would it feel like to whole-heartedly accept circumstances beyond your control? Is it as simple as just… practicing?

Dr. Margaret Paul, creator of Inner Bonding®, a process of self-healing, states that decision making is either an act of “learning to love” or an act of “attempting to control.” Dr. Paul explains that anytime we make decisions that are rooted in our wounds, we are attempting to control, whether it be to control our own fear or to control another being or circumstances. The process of self-healing asks us to make choices that are aligned to “learning to love,” requiring that we loosen the grip around controlling and move into acceptance, or non-attachment.

How to implement this simple (but definitely NOT easy) self-care practice: the next time you feel yourself in a moment of negative self-talk, whether it is beating yourself up about how you handled a situation, or saying something unloving about how you’re looking today, or punishing yourself for “always” doing something wrong, INTERRUPT it and ask yourself, “Is this learning to love? What do I accept about myself right now that might heal this wound?”

Redirecting your harmful thoughts into acceptance is a daily habit-changing practice that will transform your wounds of rejection and control into acceptance and self-love. You may begin to notice that how you view your body or the sensations showing up in your body begin to slowly shift and heal. Begin practice today.

PRACTICE “AWARENESS”
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As we explore the concepts of practicing Being & Acceptance, one overarching element becomes key to shifting your body consciousness, and that is awareness.

Especially as it relates to trauma, your body has an incredible ability to adapt in an effort to protect you. Unfortunately, over time that adaptation can present as numbness, shutting off or completely shutting down your ability to think clearly, to feel emotions or to experience sensations in your body.

Practicing awareness is a means of becoming present in your thoughts, feelings and sensations. It requires that there is no intention to judge or change what is happening, but to merely observe what is happening at any given moment in an effort to quiet the mind and settle into the body.

How to implement: Notice a moment when you realize that your mind has drifted off and you’re feeling “spacey”, or the opposite, when you notice that your thoughts are racing. When you become aware of that, take a slow, deep breath, then move & stretch your body in a way that feels good. Pause, and ask yourself the following questions: “What am I thinking about right now? What feelings are showing up right now? What sensations do I notice in my body right now?”

And remember, this is a practice of just noticing! You do not need to judge your thoughts, feelings or sensations, nor do you need to change them. You merely get to observe what is happening, and by doing so you become present and aware. Often all that is needed is that subtle redirection to feel more deeply connected and present in your body. Begin practice today.

Being, Acceptance and Awareness are themes that center around the idea of Feminine Energy, the aspects of which we can all embody. What will you begin practicing today to honor your body, your health and your well-being?

(Pictures courtesy of Pixabay:  http://pixabay.com)