A friend of mine has recently started having seizures that doctors can’t diagnose. She’s seen her GP, a neurologist, an acupuncturist, a nutritionist, and a sleep specialist, and no one can figure out why this is happening to her. Suffering with such a debilitating condition is difficult enough, but to have no clear path or plan to try to fix it? Excruciating.
In looking for answers, I came across this book, Deep Listening, by yoga practitioner Jillian Pransky. Years ago, she also had seizures that doctors could not diagnose, and looking back, she realizes that at the time she had so much going on that she was never able to truly rest. Deep listening refers to the practice of taking care of and paying attention to our bodies, minds, hearts, and stress levels.
Here's an excerpt:
The Mind-Body Conversation
Since one of the most powerful ways to feel more okay mentally and emotionally is to learn how to relax the body, we begin by learning how to release one of the most chronically tensed muscles in all of us.
The psoas is a long muscle that connects our legs to our spine. When we feel unsafe, this muscle contracts. In fact, it’s the very first muscle that’s activated if we need to fight, flee, or freeze. Think of a sprinter at the starting line of a race, ready to take off. That is the stance of a contracted psoas.
When we don’t feel “okay,” the psoas gets tight.
And when the psoas is tight
It perpetuates the belief that we’re not okay.
To release the psoas, Pransky suggests a few different exercises. Here’s one to try:
- Lie on your back and bring your right knee toward your belly, and interlace your hands around the back of your thigh. Your knee is bent at a 90-degree angle.
- Leave your left leg bent or if you have no lower-back issues, extend our left leg out long, reaching actively through the heel of your left foot.
- Enjoy 5 to 10 breaths while you steadily press your right thigh into your hands.
- Then interlace your hands around your shin and hug your thigh toward your belly for another 5 to 10 breaths.
- Slowly switch to do the other side.