Keep it together, Keep it together, Keep it together. This is my mantra this time of year. I promise you it is totally possible to keep it together during the holidays it just takes some faith mixed with a touch of effort.
In terms of Ayurveda the holidays fall right in the middle of Vata season. Briefly, about Ayurveda, it is an ancient Eastern health system that encourages one to follow the rhythms of nature to find balance and health. One of the components of Ayurveda is the interplay of 3 major combinations of the 5 natural elements of Space, Air, Fire, Water, and Earth.
The mix of water and earth energy presenting as a grounded solid tangible force such as physical mass is described as Kapha. The combination of fire and water which presents as heat, fire of digestion and transformation as in digestion of and assimilation of food or thoughts into the mind body form is Pitta energy. Space and air mix to form the energy of Vara which governs movement and communication. These energies match the seasons where Kapha season is late winter and spring when there is a thaw and the earth is moist and rich for fostering regrowth, heavy, muddy, cool. Pitta season would relate to Summer and its intensity, high heat and humidity. Fall and early winter translate to Vata season windy dry cold leaves wither and fall.
Vata season brings with it dryness cold temperatures and energy of air as wind. Being surrounded by this energy in the environment can leave us feeling very ungrounded and “swirley”. Add to that layers of stress like preparing for holidays and all that may mean for you weather that is coordinating festivities or navigating trauma and grief that may accompany this time of year. All may elicit your stress response simply by activating your triggers. Loss of control, pressure to perform, worry, anxiety and depression in mild forms or in their strongest expression are frequently revealed during this time of year.
I promise you! I promise you! I promise you, there is relief, help is available to you. Powerful yet simple help. If stress presents as “Vata”energy with all its coolness and airy swirley movement it would make sense to balance this one would need to apply warm grounding principles to counteract and balance that energy. I will give you a couple super easy tools you can use when needed to help ground your stress, over active Vata energy.
One easy way to ground the body is to apply warm oil to the body. Single ingredient, organic, oil such as sesame can be very soothing and warming to the stressed out nervous system. Try this before or after a warm shower or bath. Gently, rhythmically massaging the oil into the skin, long strokes on the arms and legs and circular massages on the joints can be so divine. This can be done in the morning to start the day with the extra grounding support or in the evening to release tension of a stressful day. Express version: No time for the luxury of self body massage then just rub oil on lower legs and feet to encourage feeling of groundedness and stability by attracting the swirling Vata energy from around your head to the feet where it can be safely grounded and stabilized. This is a good life hack to encourage sleep as well.
3 Deep breaths at various times during the day. Did you know that on average humans go though their days only using the upper 3rd of the lungs for breathing. Find a reminder that will you to take 3 deep breaths. As a nurse, I encourage regular deep breaths of my patients. For them I may use commercial breaks as they watch tv from their hospital beds. I instruct them to take 3 long slow deep 3 part breaths at each commercial break. I’ll ask them to imagine they are filling their entire torso with air as inflating a balloon. In through the nose, imagine filling the belly first, puff the belly out as you inhale to draw down the diaphragm and make more room for lungs to expand with fresh oxygen. Next as s you deepen the inhale imagine expanding the rib cage as if they are unfurling their angel wings, opening outward. Lastly with the last sips of air filling the rest of the torso by inhaling to fill all the way up to the collarbones. I ask them to hold the breath for just a moment then exhale through the nose taking twice as long to empty. The extra oxygen is soothing and healing to the nervous system and instantly brings feelings of well being and calm and is so easy. The few moments of focus it takes to turning your attention inward into the body into the breath are moments of being present and bringing the minds attention away from stress. This I call taking an internal break, a break from the monkey mind and its relentless chatter.
You are Enough, as you are, without adding anything or taking anything away. Right now as you sit reading this you are enough. You don’t need to change one thing. Catch yourself when your self talk turns to phases like, “if only I could do this, be that. look like him/her….then I would be happy”. It’s a big lie coming from your ego, tell your ego to keep quiet. Hold your head up high and just be present with your beautifully and perfectly flawed self and tell yourself you are enough as you are right now.
Nameste