I am just like everybody else.
Sometimes I get sick or injured. Maybe not very often, and maybe not as often or not as severely as some people, but it does happen.
So I wanted to explain my process of how I go about handling that when it does happen.
As I have mentioned in my blog, I recently injured my right shoulder.
The original injury happened when I was doing body work on another student in a class.
The person I was working on was a smoker and did not do any form of exercise. I originally volunteered to be his partner because I just knew in my heart that I could help him.
I was working on his calf muscles, which were incredibly tight. Had this been a situation in my own office, I would have stopped and had a discussion with him about what he might be able to do differently. As in, which exercises he could practice on his own that would help. How his smoking cigarettes was affecting his muscles. How it might help his muscles if he drank more water, etc.
But the teacher came around. “Look,” the teacher said, “you (meaning me) have only got his body moving up to his hips. Keep going.”
Unfortunately for me, I did not listen to my own guidance and I did what the teacher told me to do.
Here is roughly a simple outline of what I do when I am trying to heal myself:
- I ask my body what this is about. When I asked my shoulder, I got, “Stop pushing, full stop.” It didn’t matter if someone else was pushing me to push. When I knew I needed to stop, I should have stopped. Complaining or blaming does no good. We have to accept 100 percent responsibility and ask what our part in the game is about, or we never heal. Pushing is such a regular way of being in our society, that when somebody else pushes us to push, most of us just give up and go along with the overdrive, as if this is supposed to be totally normal. I knew better, and this was just another reminder to me to listen to my own guidance.
- I find out if I need any nutrition. I usually eat a pretty excellent diet, probably 90/10, or 95/5, depending on the day. A few chips, a margarita, maybe a piece of chocolate, but overall a high degree of awareness and self worth is manifest by me in this area. I juice not every day but maybe 5 to 6 days per week. So if I need some nutrition, it may be an herb or a supplement that I am not already taking. I needed natural anti inflammatories.
- I find the emotion or emotions. If we have a severe injury, this can bring up a litany of present issues. I clear the issues at the same time I am working on the physical, otherwise, if we just pretend something is purely physical, we are missing the boat. As long as there is pain and suffering, I keep finding the emotions and processing them through. My shoulder issues pointed out to me a lot of issues with my heart and lung meridians. Because I hurt so bad, I actually stopped to address them.
- I figure out if there is something I need to start doing or stop doing. I am like everybody else in that this information is not always welcome news. I have had to stop using my upper body, which has posed quite a challenge in my work on all levels. When I do kinesiology, I have had to muscle test with my non dominant hand and run my hand modes with my dominant hand. Teaching yoga and doing body work, I have had to run through my mind at every point to figure out how to do things totally differently. I love challenges, and this has actually been kind of fun as I have thought through how to be more creative in my ways of being.
- I figure out if I need help. To date, I believe I have now received 12 healings on my shoulder. Reiki. Kinesiology. Cranio sacral therapy. Acupressure. Gua sha treatments.
- Once I figure out I need help, I ask for guidance about who is the best person or persons to facilitate my transformation. Many people say they are good at whatever they do, but not everybody who does treatments is a true healer.
- I am patient with my process. I notice what is better, and I pay attention to how I feel when I move. I am grateful for my progress and thankful to all those who have reached out to help me. In January, my left shoulder was hurting, but I followed this same process and now my left shoulder is perfect. Focusing on the fact that I know I can get better is very important. Many people who are hurt or injured allow themselves to be defeated. I know from personal and professional experience that you can heal anything.
