You are invited to scroll through Various articles of educational value here
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Abhyanga - The life affirming practice of self-massage with oil

​Abhyanga is the anointing of the body with oil. An ancient tradition, perhaps even one offered to the baby Jesus to calm and settle his nervous system after birth, it has tremendous benefits. Using an oil specific for your ayurvedic dosha, or constitution, you would typically warm the oil and then massage into the entire body before showering. Why? Because it is soothing, particularly for the vata and pitta doshas (which dominate throughout the summer and fall seasons, and need to be addressed through winter). 

The Sanskrit word sneha means both “oil” and “love,” and the effects of abhyanga are similar to being saturated with love. This is a wonderful practice of 'self-love". The experience offers the feeling of stability, warmth and comfort to body, mind, and soul. Sneha—oil and love—is sukshma, or “subtle.” This allows it to pass through minute channels in the body and penetrate deep layers of tissue, soothing and nourishing them.

Ayurveda teaches that there are seven dhatus, or layers of tissue in the body. Each is successively more concentrated and life-giving. It is taught that for the effects of sneha to reach to the deepest layer, it should be massaged into the body for 800 matras, roughly five minutes. If we consider that the entire body needs this kind of attention, a 15-minute massage is the suggested minimum amount of time to spend giving yourself this rejuvinating gift of self-love.

 There are three classical ayurvedic texts (the Charaka Samhita, Sushruta Samhita and Ashtanga Hrdayam) and all three reference the benefits of applying oil to the body (abhyanga).

The benefits include:

• Imparts softness, strength and color to skin and body
• Decreases the effects of aging
• Bestows good vision
• Nourishes the body - inside and out
• Increases longevity
• Benefits sleep patterns
• Strengthens the body’s tolerance to environmental changes
• Imparts a firmness to the limbs
• Imparts tone and vigor to the dhatus (tissues) of the body
• Stimulates the internal organs of the body, increasing circulation
• Pacifies vata (anxiety) and pitta (irritability)

Herbal oils specific to your constitution or current condition are especially good choices for full body massage. This can be determined by an ayurvedic pulse reading, which can be scheduled throughout the year in the Mountain Wisdom Studio.

November Special: Learn more about your Wellness Personality. Gain a better understanding about potential imbalances that your lifestyle can have on your unique body/mind constitution. Enjoy a short reiki energy clearing session to help balance and soothe an achy body or anxious mind. All for only $79. (Discounted from $124. Must schedule online, and come in during the month of November) 

Use this link to schedule an appointment - mountainwisdomwholistichealthlllcappointments.as.me/.

May you be healthy, happy, grounded and content as we move through the fall season, and toward the end of a tumultuous decade!

Note: Some of the material in this article was sourced from Banyan Botanicals, a wonderful company offering ayurveda supplies. 
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Mindfulness, Or How to Polish the Mirror of Your Heart.

"Polishing the mirror of the heart" is something many spiritual practitioners references in their teachings. It basically means to scrub away inattention and distraction from our inner self through the cultivation of daily personal practices that bring us into the present moment. Author and Guru, Ram Dass tells us that “we polish the mirror of the heart with daily practice—and see beyond the illusion of our transient thoughts and emotions to the vast and luminous landscape of our true nature.”

Common ways to do this include meditation, bringing mindfulness into our fitness routine, breathing practice, and even into a conversation with a loved one. Mindfulness is the quality I encourage in our group movement classes - that action of connecting with your breath and letting that guide you into and through the movements and the relaxation offered.

But... really, what is mindfulness, you ask?

From the Google Dictionary:

mind·ful·ness
/ˈmīn(d)f(ə)lnəs/
noun

1. The quality or state of being conscious or aware of something.
"their mindfulness of the wider cinematic tradition" 

2. A mental state achieved by focusing one's awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one's feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.

Mindfulness is a state of being. We are aware. Aware of our bodies, of our minds, of our emotions. And we may even tap into something more than, greater than, or beneath all that - our true self, the Wisdom Body - with continuous practice of mindfulness. Try it.

And if you just don't get it... but would like to... call me. Let's explore it together.

​Namaste, Sharon 


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​Ghee – Superfood of the Divine

Because it lubricates, soothes and calms, Ghee is a wonderful addition to our diets. This is particularily true at the time of seasonal change, and all through the cold, dark months.

Read on to learn more about this super food...

This time of year… Ghee helps lubricate tissues that may be drying out. We have had a cool, dry autum season. It looks like more of that can be expected as we move toward winter. Add in wind. That's a recipe for dryness - inside and out!

Ghee helps keep things moving inside our bodies as the coldness and dryness take a toll.  It's great for creaky, cracky joints and dry skin!

Ghee, a quality fat, is a healthy alternative to butter. With its nuttier flavor and rich golden color, it’s a great addition to the diet.Ghee is a special type of clarified butter that has been used for thousands of years in Indian recipes and Ayurveda, the medical arm of Yoga. As all fats do, Ghee helps pull nutrients into cells, and pull toxins out. 

Becoming more popular every day, it is even considered to be a superfood by many. Use it as you would butter in many recipes. Some even add a spoon full to their coffee in the morning. Those who do this swear that it keeps hunger at bay and sustains their energy through the day. What’s more, Ghee has a way of enhancing the flavor of whatever it’s added to.

Here are a few more of its wonderful health benefits:
* Not only does it help fight inflammation, it’s considered to be lactose friendly;
* It doesn’t need to be refrigerated(shelf stable for 6 months or more);
* It offers a dose of antioxidants and ups your micro-nutrient absorption by pulling them deeper into your cells;
* It increases the effectiveness of some herbs like Turmeric;
* It has a high smoke point so it’s great for sautéing;
* It’s rich in the fat soluble vitamins A, D, and K2;
* It lowers cholesterol; and it contains cancer-fighting fatty acid conjugated linolenic acid (CLA), which also aids in weight loss.

Pretty great benefits, don't you agree? Wow!

Want to start cooking with it? Begin by slathering it on toast, or adding it to hot cereal. It's great in a mug of warm milk (which is a calming beverage to take before going to bed), hot chocolate, and as mentioned above, even in your morning coffee.

Click on the link below for a delicious chicken dinner recipe using Ghee. For those of you going Paleo, this is a yummy, super easy and nourishing dish to make.

Garlic Butter Chicken with Caramelized Onions.
http://lifemadefull.com/garlic-butter-chicken-with-caramelized-onions/

Interested in more information about Ghee? This site has some helpful Ghee articles: http://www.pureindianfoods.com/ghee-articles-a/253.htm

So, why wait? Place your order for some Ghee after class this week! It will be ready for pick up on or after December 12th.

Add some Ghee to your diet today. Enjoy!

FYI: I make Ghee on special order, 4 & 8 oz. jars. Let me know when you’re ready and I’ll have some ready for you.

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Winter Workshop Notes, 2016​

DEEP LISTENING - A CONCEPT OF NON VIOLENT COMMUNICATION 

​Deep listening and empathy stem from a quality of presence that comes by feeling relaxed with another person.

Offering our presence as a listener serves as a gift to the speaker. Holding an open-hearted space in which others can feel safe allows them to express fully and naturally and to even deepen into their own experience.

Using the principles of Compassionate Communication, or Nonviolent Communication, we can offer a different quality of presence and responsiveness than perhaps we are used to. We avoid using some of the habituated responses we may have grown up with like giving advice, telling stories, and commiserating, and we focus instead on what the person and what she or he is feeling and valuing at the heart of the matter.

When we keep the focus on the speaker and what matters most to them, we avoid stealing the spotlight and thus shifting the speaker away from their experience. This allows for them to really be heard and understood. There are a number of ways we habitually and subtly shift the conversation away from them, without even knowing it. Our intentions may be to be supportive, and yet we find that our efforts miss the mark.

All of us can learn more effective ways of deeply connecting and understanding one another. If you are curious about what to do to be able to listen deeply and support others through your listening in some new ways, please join us for this one day workshop event:  Saturday, March 11th from 8:30 am - 5 pm in the Mountain Wisdom Wholistic Health Studio in SE Boulder. Click here to email with questions and/or to RSVP.

Together, let's make the world around us a more compassionate one where everyone feels valued and heard.

~written by Kathy Ziola and edited by Sharon Harvey Alexander

Click here to visit Kathy's website: www.nvctrainingsource.com

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Qi Gong - Ancient Energy Practice (explore this in the fusion class, ChiYogIdra, on Tuesday nights)

This ancient Chinese practice is designed to move energy throughout the body to enhance health and wellbeing.

After practice, one may feel lighter, freer and more comfortable in the body. Just as there are numerous ways to spell it, there are numerous forms and practices associated with Qi Gong.

Qi Gong can be practiced sitting, standing, and even lying down. At it's root, it is a gentle and flowing way to bring the energy systems of the body into alignment with universal energy. Doing this with some regularity, one may begin to notice more fluidity in the joints, strength in muscles and bones, and a serene nature in mind and heart.

Qi Gong exercises increase and balance one's chi (qi, ki). Learning to cultivate a smooth flow of energy throughout the body can boost the immune system, stimulate healing, and lead to greater health.

Practitioners of any age benefit. We will be weaving more and more of this wonderfully soothing, healing and centering practice into classes in the studio. Inquire for details, and I hope you'll join us soon!

Blessings to you for radiant good health, a joyful mind and peaceful heart. Namaste.


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A Delicious Fall Recipe to Help You Enjoy a Healthy Start to the Day:

​Ayurvedic Apple Yum - A simple and infinitely variable recipe crafted by Sharon.

All amounts are approximate. Serves ONE person.

* Take one organic apple, chop and place in water in a pan. 
* Sprinkle with a little salt (1/2 tsp. Salt helps break down fibers.)
* Add dash cinnamon (1 tsp. Helps metabolize sugars.)
* Add grated fresh ginger root (1+ Tbsp. Enhances digestion.)
* Chop and add 5-8 dates (great added natural sweetener.)
* Throw in a small handful of almonds (8-10. Extra fiber, protein and good fat.)
* Top with a spoonful of GHEE (1 Tbsp. Adds great fat, helps body absorb vitamins and minerals, carries nutrition IN to the cells and waste products OUT.)

Bring water to boil, then turn down low and simmer 10 minutes or so (until apples are mushy). 
Mash together and serve.
Enjoy!

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​Tone the Vagus Nerve, and Let All Be Well... A New Year's Resolution.
- by Sharon Harvey Alexander, Yoga Therapist, Adjunct Professor at Naropa University, and Reiki Practitioner

How are you doing with your resolutions for the New Year?

Any interest in cultivating greater physical and mental health as well as feeling more love, within you as well as in those around you? Through simple practices that tune up one amazing mechanism in the body, you can!

Start today and benefit from good health and positive interactions that originate within.

How, you may ask? It begins with relaxation. When you take time out from your busy schedule, and make an effort to breathe slowly and deeply, relaxation begins to settle over the body and mind. As this spreads through you, you can begin allowing it to move out into the world around you as well. Take a moment to offer a hug or share some kind words and you create change, for yourself and for others as well. Why not give this a try right now?

Getting out to walk in nature, resolving to breathe consciously, choosing to give a hug and/or by cultivating positive thoughts and kind words and spreading them around … impacts your health in a positive way. At the same time, you contribute to the health of the planet, too.

Back in August of this year, I was fortunate to hear Dacher Keltner, PhD speak about “The Science of a Meaningful Life: Evidence and Wisdom for Health and Happiness”. Keltner is a Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley and the director of the Berkeley Greater Good Science Center and Social Interaction Lab. As one of the leading scholars today who study the influence of thought and emotion on health, Keltner and his team believe that happiness is the source of creativity and innovation. They suggest that the condition of awe – which he describes as being in the presence of something or someone great, something that pulls you out of your small, self-contained experience of the world - stimulates actions and emotions deep inside of us that can lead to greater health.They have found that these actions work because of their effect on one particular nerve pathway within us.

In his talk, as part of the Opening Convocation at Willamette University, Keltner outlined three simple steps for improving not only our physical health, but our mental and emotional health as well. These steps stimulate good health via a very important nerve pathway in the body - the one associated Cranial Nerve 10, also called the Vagus Nerve. As a Yoga Therapist, and someone who has spent a lot of time outdoors, my ears perked up when Keltner mentioned AWE. I KNOW wonder and nature are both antidotes to stress... and he caught my attention even more as he began to make connections between mental, emotional and physical states and our overall health. These connections interest me both personally and professionally. How 'bout you?

As I listened to Keltner talk, I realized that he was saying what yogis have known for thousands of years. He is one of many scientists in various disciplines around the world who are beginning to understand how thoughts and feelings as well as physical actions not only influence our conscious selves, but can also influence the unconscious parts of ourselves. Excited, I wanted to learn more. So I did a little research. As a result, this article has been written in part to share what I took away from Keltner’s talk, and also to more deeply explore a wee bit of the science behind his statements.

As my writing about this is "a work in progress", and many of you may have more knowledge about the subject than I do, I’d love your feedback. After reading the article, I would love for you to leave a comment. Click here to do so, and let’s grow & learn together. Thank you!

Keltner’s Road Map for a Meaningful Life. 
 
Three simple steps one can practice each day:
 
1) Practice Kindness, through a smile, a hug, a positive or uplifting word
 
2) Cultivate Gratitude, reverence for things given to us
 
3) Express, Pursue, Seek Out Awe & Wonder

With incoming students and their families as his audience, Keltner discussed his Road Map for a Meaningful Life. He shared how the act of accepting and embracing life serves to reduce stress. And when we reduce stress, we facilitate balance and harmony in our bodily systems.

Keltner refers to this as the Psychology of Awe. Keltner and his colleagues from UC Berkeley have found a link between our thoughts, words and actions and our overall health. More interesting to me, as a Yoga Therapist and Wellness Advocate, is the link he and his colleagues have made between the experience of awe and two important conditions in the body: the reduction in the secretion of cortisol and of indicators for inflammation.

According to Keltner, along with others in the science and medical worlds and ancient yogis, our bodies have everything they need to self-regulate, repair, regenerate, and thrive housed deep inside. Did you know that these functions are primarily affected by just one single long nerve pathway within the body? It’s true. The Vagus Nerve travels from the brain, through the chest and into the gut. It carries messages up and down the route, linking these wisdom centers in the body together. The work of Keltner and other modern day scientists and researchers is leading to discoveries of how this happens within us, corroborating what ancient yogis “saw” or “felt” via an intense inner focus (meditation) many years ago.

Why is this important, you may ask? Well, researchers are showing us that even if we aren’t a modern scientist or don’t use ancient yogic practices to enhance health and wellbeing, we can take control of how we feel by making wise choices. Anyone, they say, regardless of age, income, or genetic inheritance can experience a healthy, thriving life – and live out a long lifespan, too - by engaging with a few simple daily practices designed to stimulate and tone the Vagus Nerve (VN).

The Vegas what? No, this is not an invitation to spend a weekend in Vegas, gambling and carousing, if you want better health. This is an invitation to learn more about the Vagus Nerve. The Vagus Nerve (VN), also known as Cranial Nerve 10, is the longest nerve in the body. It serves as a conductor for many important biological and psychological functions. As a result, it is a major communicator between the brain, heart and belly, influencing not only the health and overall functioning of the physical body, but mental and emotional health as well.

According to Keltner, the Vagus Nerve (VN) has many important and unique qualities. It is unique to mammals; it starts at top of spinal cord and wanders throughout the body; it is connected with oxytocin networks (the feel good hormone) and other neurotransmitters; it influences our immune system response; and most recently it has been found to regulate inflammation response (a). Not only does this important nerve help you nod your head, steady your gaze, speak, breathe, digest and more, it may be the primary player in what Herbert Benson, PhD has referred to as The Relaxation Response (b). What’s more, according to Keltner, researchers are continuing to deepen their understanding of how this nerve acts as a key nexus between body and mind, and serves as a biological building block for the experience and expression of human compassion (a).

Let’s learn more about this:
Deep in the core of our physical body runs a long, sinewy nerve. It travels from the brain through the chest and abdominal cavities, relaying information along the way. Like a gypsy, it wanders over vast terrain from its origin in the medulla of the brain through the jaw, the throat, the chest and diaphragm and deep into the belly, influencing the functioning and overall health of many organs along its pathway. Carrying nerve impulses from the brain to a multitude of organs and tissues along its path, it also reports back from those organs housed in the various cavities in our body. As a matter-of-fact, scientists are finding that more of the information carried by the nerve travels up the chain of communication from the stomach and other organs in the digestive tract as well as from the heart and lungs to the brain than down. This has led researchers to acknowledge intelligence located in these other parts of the body that is independent from that in our head. They now refer to these parts of the body as brains, too.

Vagus, a word with origins in Medieval Latin, literally means "wandering". The words vagrant, vagabond, and vague share its root. This long nerve begins to branch out and travel through the body once it leaves the brainstem, influencing every vital section of the body. Its branches, some of which move down the left side of the neck into the torso and others which move down the right side (ida/pingala, anyone?), stimulate many organs and actions along the way. Moving through the throat and neck, the VN plays an important role in our ability to speak because of its influence on the pharynx and larynx.

Some refer to the VN as the Pneumogastric Nerve because as it moves into the chest and abdomen, it sends branches into the lungs, heart and stomach. In the abdomen its branches not only enter the stomach, but also the pancreas, small intestine, large intestine and colon. This influences the quality of our digestion. The VN conveys sensory information about the state of the body's systems and organs back to the central nervous system. This contributes to homeostasis or balanced action within the body and its systems. Because more messages are coming out from of these organs in the chest and belly into the CNS than are being relayed from the brain to these organs, researchers now believe that these organs, including the heart and stomach, actually exert an independent influence on the Central Nervous System (CNS).

Would you like a few more details about the Nervous System? Our nervous system functions as the main control and communication system of the body. Ideally, it tells us when to rest and when to rev up based on cues from our environment.  As a communicator, this system sends and receives messages from various locations throughout the body via a network of nerve cells and fibers.  

There are two main components of the nervous system - The Central Nervous System and The Peripheral Nervous System.  These two parts, working together, control all our thoughts and movements, whether voluntary or involuntary. The Central Nervous System includes the brain and the spinal cord. The Peripheral Nervous System consists of nerve bundles that link the outlying parts of the body to the CNS (chakras, anyone?).

The PNS can be broken down into two systems. The Autonomic Nervous System, which acts unconsciously for the most part, and regulates bodily functions including heart rate, respiratory rate, pupillary response, digestion and excretion, and sexual arousal and the Somatic Nervous System which governs voluntary action and body reflexes.

Within the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) – that which operates whether we’re aware of it, or not - exists the Sympathetic Nervous System and the Parasympathetic Nervous System. The Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) activates the "fight, flight, or freeze" response to stress. The Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS) facilitates what some call the "rest-and-digest” or “feed and breed" response. Through these opposing actions, the two systems of the ANS strive to facilitate harmony and balance within the body over time.  

This is where the VN comes in. It is a player in the PNS. Researchers associate it primarily with actions of a restful nature. By communicating about the state of the organs in our chest and belly to the brain in our heads, it supports the body in finding balance. That is, after exertion, it guides the body toward rest. That rest serves to balance exertion, maintaining homeostasis. At least in an ideal world.

The problem comes when our lives are full of more busyness and stress than rest, pleasure and recreation. To better understand this, let’s look at the role stress plays in the Nervous System. The VN is what initiates the body’s relaxation response. When stressed, the SNS responds to what it perceives as an impending fight, flight or freeze situation by releasing the stress hormones (neurotransmitters) cortisol and adrenaline. When released into the body, these hormones support actions needed to escape from a potential threat. In contrast, the VN – which some refer to as the Love Nerve - stimulates the release of acetylcholine, a calming neurotransmitter. This mitigates the stress response.

When a rabbit runs in front of your car and barely escapes with its life, for instance, the release of cortisol and adrenaline allow it to continue running until it finds a safe place to hide and rest. The rest allows its body to recover, which happens because the stress hormones stop secreting and the relaxation hormones take over for the time being. Then, once recovered, the rabbit goes about its normal functions of eating, reproducing and sleeping until the next stressor emerges and this natural cycle repeats itself.

Calming neurotransmitters are what the VN secretes in its communication role in the body. Via numerous branches and tendrils that extend into the organs along its path, the VN releases enzymes and proteins in addition to acetylcholine such as prolactin, vasopressin, and oxytocin, all of which serve to calm us. When secreted, we feel less stressed. When calm, we may even begin to feel peaceful. And in such a state, we can also develop compassion…

In addition to linking the VN to calm mental states and experiences of compassion and altruism, researchers have found that one’s ability to recover from stressful experiences, including injuries and illness, depends in large part on the health of the VN and its ability to release these chemicals. In this way, the VN plays an important role in vital physical, mental and emotional health. As a result, researchers now believe that this long nerve may be the single most relevant organ in our body. Because of its role in facilitating peace-of-mind, happiness and well-being I believe there is value in pursuing activities that positively influence the health of this nerve, including yoga, deep breathing and meditation. You might even say such activities are vital to our wellbeing.

Here are a few ideas for keeping your Vagus Nerve healthy:
One well known way to stimulate the release of oxytocin is to give/receive a hug. Some believe that we each need a minimum of four hugs a day just to stay healthy; more to thrive.

Along with giving and receiving hugs, applying conscious breathing (see previous article here http://www.mountainwisdomyoga.com/blog), and engaging regularly in gentle forms of yoga and meditation (especially the practice of Yoga Nidra) these activites also stimulate the Vagus Nerve: positive thinking, spending time in nature, eating a healthy and balanced diet full of fresh foods (organic foods have been found to have more beneficial organisms still on them which are helpful to good digestion), and getting adequate exercise. These are all great activities to engage in everyday. What's important is to make time for activities that counter the non-stop stimulation of modern life. 

​Want more ideas? Adopt one of these suggested practices and let me know the results.

1) Apply Conscious Breathing (read the blog post before this one for a short and detailed article).
The Vagus Nerve can be massaged through deep breathing. The article in last month's newletter talks about Conscious Breathing. Read it again for ideas about how to do this…

Two additional methods:

A) Abdominal breathing – breathe in slowly, filling the lungs completely and letting the belly move out to accommodate that. It’s as if you are breathing all the way down to belly (allowing chest and rib cage to expand too). Then, with the exhale, consciously and gently contract the belly to help release all the air from the lungs. This expansion of belly on inhale and contraction of belly on exhale massages the VN.

Take your time with this. Do it several times a day for several repetitions. If you become light headed, return to normal breathing. Remain aware of what’s happening.
•             Do this once. Pause and then begin again.
•             Let the belly expand as you breathe in and fill the lungs.
•             Let it contract as you release the breath out from the lungs.
 
B) Holding your breath. This is suitable only for very healthy individuals (please note: holding the breath is contraindicated for anyone with cancer).
•             Breathe in all the way, and pause holding your breath for two to four counts.
•             Then breathe out more slowly than you breathed in and pause again, holding the breath out briefly.
•             Repeat a few more times, as long as you remain comfortable and grounded.
•             Only do this as long as you remain relaxed and calm in head, heart, and gut.
•             Then let it go, and take a moment to notice the results.  
 
 
2) Work with Visualization: Develop a visualization/meditation practice to cultivate the wisdom of the three brains (exercises taken from a book called Grow Me Well; Urban Remedy, New Zealand):

•             Step One - spend a few minutes every day sitting quietly. Close your eyes. Gently breathe into head, heart and belly. Each area, one at a time for several breaths before pausing and moving on. This activate each of your three brains.

Start by breathing deeply with awareness into your head (3-9 deep breaths with awareness here), then move down to your chest (3-9 deep breaths here), and finally bring awareness into your belly area (just below your belly button) and breathe ((3-9 deep breaths here).

Do nothing other than close your eyes, breathe and notice what happens as you bring your attention into each area of the three brains. As you do this, day after day, you’ll begin to notice how these areas are responding. Are there messages they have for you? Cultivate deep internal listening...

When this is comfortable, move to step two.

•             Step Two - Take a problem you are experiencing right now in your life or a decision you need to make. To help you see more options and come to the right answer for you, take a few moments, focus on the problem and then begin the breathing exercise as directed above, taking time to breathe into/out from each of your three brains.

• As you breathe into your head ask yourself: What do I think about this situation?
• As you breathe into your chest ask yourself: How do I feel about this situation?
• As you breathe into your belly ask yourself: What are my gut instincts or inner voice telling me to do?

Write down, draw or talk out loud to yourself about the answers or insights that are revealed through this practice. Then make a plan and follow through on “next steps” based on what feels right for you.

“Next Steps” may include:

• “Take no action yet, just sit with it for a time;
•  Take action (what would that be?);
•  Ask for help, or get more information before moving forward.

This exercise will help you to look internally for your own answers as opposed to looking outside of yourself to others for what is right for you. You will begin to trust in your own thoughts and feelings the more you do this exercise. You will begin to experience better health.


3) Give yourself a belly massage (This is a common practice around the world that can lead to relaxation, better digestion, and overall health of the belly organs. Great to do 1st thing in the morning before you get out of bed.)

•             Start in the upper left quadrant of your abdomen, just below the ribs. Gently, as if using cat’s paws, begin to massage straight down to the inside of the pelvic bone. Do this a few times to release the colon.

•             Next, begin massaging from the lower right corner of the abdomen. Travel up along the right edge from pelvic bone to low ribs on the right side. Then gently travel across the upper edge of the abdominal cavity, from right to left, and down the left side again. Pause.

•             Repeat this clockwise pattern several more times, being gentle and “listening” for messages from the gut.

•             When this feels complete, spend some time gently massaging the area inside this quadrant – starting about an inch out from the navel and moving in a clockwise pattern as well. You might move in circles, beginning an inch out from the navel and progressing slowly out to the area you already massaged.

•             Once again, at the end, pause and listen in – how did this feel? What messages is the body sending you?

This is a great way to relieve occasional stomach upset, as well as to gently bring more circulation and communication into all the organs in the belly. And it benefits many of the branches of the Vagus Nerve as well. For more information, I invite you to refer to a book entitled Unwinding the Belly by Post and Cavaliere.


4) Prepare and consume a healthy diet:

• Taking time to relax while preparing and enjoying healthy meals can relieve stress and enhance digestion.
• A healthy gut flora is produced through the bugs we eat. This facilitates the growth of good intestinal bacteria and serves to activate the Vagus Nerve. There is a relationship between good bacteria and the release of GABA, another calming neurotransmitter in the brain.
• Eat organic when possible (there are more natural bugs present) and give the body time to digest before eating again.
• Remove processed foods. Consider adding probiotics and fermented foods each day, as these support a healthy gut flora.
• Add in foods with a bitter taste. Not only do they detoxify and lighten tissues, according the Ayurveda Practitioners, herbalists have traditionally recommended bitter herbs to aid digestion. Interestingly they find this also calms the mind. These foods include dark leafy greens, herbs and spices. 

5) Release the muscles of the neck and jaw (when tight, they can restrict flow through VN):
•             Kundalini yoga practitioners recommend lying on your belly and turning your head to the side.
•             Then release your jaw/chin down toward your feet.
•             Notice if there is resistance here and move slowly.
•             Hold the position while breathing deeply to remove deep seated tension in this area.
•             Repeat on the second side.

Each of these activities are designed to gently tone and massage the Vagus Nerve and can be practiced every day.

I hope you now better understand what the VN is, and the role it plays in bringing about an end to your body’s fight-or-flight response once a stress has passed. This awareness, and these activities can also help to modulate mood and lift one out of depression. Similar to Vagus Nerve Stimulation, a medical technique that has been shown to relieve migraines and rapidly quench inflammation, these more gentle activities serve the same purpose by helping to keep the VN healthy and active. This in turn can lead to a greater sense of calmness and ease in daily life. From that place, it is easier to develop compassion not only for ourselves but also for others, too, and to contribute to greater peace in the world. What have you got to lose? Get started today!

If keeping the VN toned and healthy because you feel better isn’t motivation enough, know that researchers including Dacher Keltner, PhD believe that this nerve plays an important role in our ability to observe, perceive, and make complex decisions as well as to experience empathy and foster social bonding (a). Researchers are now linking impaired vagal activity with cases of depression, anxiety, panic disorders, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Irritable Bowel Syndrome, severe mood swings, fibromyalgia, early onset Alzheimer’s, obesity and many other inflammation-based conditions in the body. Thus, doctors now artificially stimulate the VN. 

FYI - Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) is a process whereby electrical impulses are released in the body via a surgically implanted pacemaker-like device. This has been attributed to a reduction in cases of depression, anxiety and Rheumatoid Arthritis as well as conditions such as epilepsy and obesity, all of which have been attributed to a poorly functioning Vagus Nerve. For some, the benefits of such a device has brought relief for the first time from what has been an often times debilitating experience. Apply the practices above, and take charge of your health now to avoid moving deeper into a state of dis-ease.

In summary, I have come to learn from the research of Dacher Keltner, PhD and many others around the world, that stimulating the VN is not only good for us as individuals, it’s also good for the world around us. Cultivating the practice of awe – stepping out of our self-contained world and bringing positive thinking and joyful interactions into the spaces around us - not only makes others feel good, but also leads to better health for us. As a Yoga Therapist and Stress Management Educator, I love learning about ways to help my clients balance the demands of a busy life, and the toll that takes on their body/minds. In short, I love finding ways to help people thrive. Meditation works for me. I invite you to experiment with one or more of the practices outlined in this paper, and find what works for you...

Take one of the suggestions above and fold it into your daily routine. Then please let me know what you experience. May each of us find ways to live with greater ease, calmness and serenity every day. Namaste.

Please email me with comments, questions, information to add, or anything else. Or click here to return to the comment page. 

Thank you.
Sharon Harvey Alexander, Yoga Therapist
[email protected]                                                 click here to go back to leave a comment.

References:
A – Dacher Keltner | Greater Good  greatergood.berkeley.edu/Greater Good Science Center
B – Relaxation Response, Benson  (The Relaxation Response is a book written in 1975 by Herbert Benson, a Harvard physician, and Miriam Z. Klipper. The response is a simple version of Transcendental Meditation presented for people in the Western world.)
C - http://www.rewireme.com/explorations/your-heart-and-stomach-may-be-smarter-than-you-think/
D - http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/gut-second-brain/
E - http://mentalfloss.com/article/65710/9-nervy-facts-about-vagus-nerve
F - Frank Huguenard   http://www.wakingtimes.com/2013
G - www.m.webmd.com/depression
H - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5d6e_Un6dv8
I-  “The Peripheral Nervous System (PNS).” Boundless Psychology. Boundless, 20 Aug. 2015. Retrieved 03 Jan. 2016 from https://www.boundless.com/psychology/textbooks/boundless-psychology-textbook/biological-foundations-of-psychology-3/the-nervous-system-34/the-peripheral-nervous-system-pns-148-12683/