When You Get The Blues...

Let’s face it, not one of us is happy all the time. As part of the human condition, we are faced with challenges and triggers on the daily. Yes, meditation and exercise are wonderful for keeping our endorphins high and our spirits calm…but what about those days when everything just fucking sucks?

Maybe TMI, but I’ve been introduced to PMS over the last few months - something I never struggled with previously. In the week leading up to my period, I feel like a different person. Rather, a hormonal teenaged version of myself. It’s more than just irritation, it’s real sadness that hits….and it all happens almost overnight which makes me feel kind of betrayed by my body. I get even more frustrated when I consider all the ‘self care’ work I’ve done over the past few years, just to have it fall to the wayside when I hit this part of my cycle.

Now that you have the context, let’s talk about what we can do when any kind of mood swing like this hits you! Facing the pain head on is a good place to start. Over time, I’ve come to respect pain as a teacher instead of seeing it as an evil force of the Universe. It helps me to give pain a shape…for me, that shape is a dark cloud that I envision literally lifting out of my body. When I envision the cloud as something separate from myself, I can label it and manage it. Perhaps the pain is fear or shame or guilt or something physical.

In practice, I will lie down on the floor in Savasana (palms facing up) and say, “Body, I give you permission to release this pain that is no longer serving me….I feel it in my chest (or wherever else you may feel the pain), I acknowledge it with gratitude, and I release it”. Then breathe. Breathe deeply. 4 counts for the inhale, and 8 counts for the exhale. This helps to lower our cortisol levels, bringing us down from fight or flight mode.

Finally, ask yourself - can this pain/sadness be backed up by truth? Is it factual? Likely, it’s not. If the pain is fear - it is almost always irrational.

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