On being aware.

 Here’s a little something to think about. Did you know that we are floating through life, without being aware? Sure, we are aware of where we are and what we are doing, but we aren’t really acutely aware of ourselves. And who we really are. Sure, you are aware that you are reading this. But are you aware of how your mind flutters as these words fly from your eyes to your brain, sending waves of understanding through you? Once you do, you’ll truly start being aware.

Interested? Read on to know more. 

Naturally, we all have some degree of body awareness, but very few of us make use of the full capacity of feeling. This happens due to most of us having an incomplete sense of our bodies. Some may be strongly aware of their upper bodies, and some lower. Some may feel more of their right side than their left side. In fact, this may shift from moment to moment too. This happens because of hurdles like not understanding how ‘dead’ parts of our bodies are. Now that means that these parts of our bodies are without feeling. Sure, it is our body, but we carry so much stiffness and tension around, these parts become dead to perception. It all happens because we relate to ourselves from the perspective of how we look in the mirror, or in our selfies, rather than how we are feeling. Once we start hearing our bodies, feeling each and every part, looking at our body from the eye of our mind, a new world opens up.

Imagine this new world. As you become aware of your body, the constant traffic in your mind quietens. There’s a serene silence that fills you. And your senses wake up from their deep slumber. You start feeling things you never did before. You stand and move in a more grounded way, with a strong sense of centre. You become confident in yourself. You start radiating that confidence as well.

Now that your mind and body are one, you feel whole as well. Something we rarely get the chance to feel. And once we are whole, positive energy fills our body, making us more alive than we have ever been. That’s when we start living, instead of just being alive. You get a whole sense of self. By standing on a firm grounding of being self-aware, you will be more in touch with your feelings. That means, better relationships because you’ll be communicating more articulately. It means better friendships, because you’ll be more expressive. It means loving the world, and letting it love you back. Because you will be honest, and sincere about yourself.

But it’s not just the mind. It’s also physical health. Because, here’s something most of us don’t know, our bodies are smart machines. They understand how we treat it, and work accordingly. So once we start communicating with it, we can hear what it has to tell us. Sometimes, it will point at its grievances, like an illness or pain. Sometimes it will lead us to what makes it feel good. Maybe for you that’s a long morning walk. When we are in tune with ourselves, our bodies become healthier as well. It heals us. It heals our injuries, and soothes our wounds. But as we live right now, with a lack of contact with our very own body, it hides a tsunami of stressors and tensions. When we can’t speak with our body, we will not get its warning signals and risk injuring ourselves and not even knowing what caused it. We’ll end up suppressing anger or grief, leading to the bubble bursting and lashing out at a loved one.  It’ll affect us physically and mentally, turning into an illness hidden in the corners of our bodies.

So today, promise to have greater awareness of your body. Because with great awareness, comes great responsibility. And with this greater responsibility, you can take care of yourself. In turn, allowing yourself to show your love for the ones you care for. In turn, making the world kinder. The moral being, a better world begins with you. Take care!

What is happiness?

In this modern world, many of us are living unhappy lives. Whether it’s due to work/life balance, or not being able to chase your passion, or monetary problems, unhappiness comes in various shapes and forms. Indian and Buddhist philosophies say that unhappiness is only in our minds. Wanting things we can’t get, and being unsatisfied with the things we do have, is the core of our joylessness. For example, if a person focuses on getting that dream promotion, it only plants the seeds of unhappiness, because once the person gets that dream promotion, the goalposts shift, and the dream promotion becomes the next one. So even before the person could derive joy from the current promotion, they are worried about the next one. So even when people are being challenged creatively, and living what they think are happy fulfilling lives, they are unhappy. Here’s the real deal - A long as you keep desiring for things, you will be in a state of unhappiness. Unhappiness is in our minds.

So the solution to the mass suffering must also lie in our minds.

Which leads us to yoga, somatics, and mindfulness. All these practices play off of each other, and help us be present in the current moment, to be aware of our thoughts and emotions, to be open to feelings, and instead of judging what we feel, just observing it. Being mindful helps us let go of any barriers, and observe the sensations we feel in our bodies and just…release them. Mindfulness and Yoga help us physically improve the structures in our brain, making them increase the activity of our thinking, and reduce fear. It also helps us pause, and be able to think and respond adequately.  So by forcing us to slow down and appreciate what is in front of us, these practices help us fight our need for more (our desires). Our calms mind can then carry an enhanced sense of self-awareness. This helps us recognise the paths that lead to unhappiness and instead stop, and do something more enriching instead.

This is how a mind, more capable of understanding itself, leads to happiness.

This does not mean we do not strive for more. But by being mindful, we only strive for things that fulfil our main purpose - to be happy. We do things that truly make us happy.

So today, I wish you happiness. And if you aren’t happy, I wish you the strength to let go of your desires. And achieve what you truly want.

A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of desires—that enter like rivers into the ocean which is ever being filled but is always still—can alone achieve peace, and not the man who strives to satisfy such desires. - Bhagavad Gita

Freedom

The dictionary says that freedom is the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved.

Living in a progressive and developing world, most of us are lucky enough to believe that we are free. After all, we are free to speak, free to move around, free to do what we love. But are we really free? The answer to this only lies in the skies. When we look up at birds, free from concern, just flying. Free from stresses of life, and free from worrying about tomorrow.

The bird has many reasons to worry, undoubtedly. There are predators in the same skies, waiting to catch them, but the birds only focus on the 'now'. On spreading their wings, and flying. On being free.

Today, let's promise to be more like the birds above us. To worry a little less about tomorrow. To be mindful of 'now' and be Free.

Quick Relief from Back Pain with Somatics

Have you been feeling back-pain regularly? Like your spine just doesn't feel ok anymore? Or your back just hurts all the time. Are you looking for relief? 

Then Somatics might be the right fit for you. Somatics uses the mind-body connection to help you listen to the signals your body sends about pain or discomfort. Even imbalances. This, in turn, allows you to know how your body holds on to these pain points.

But how are you getting back pain in the first place?

Most of us don't take the time to relax our muscles after any strenuous activity, so the muscles in our body learn to stay contracted. So to un-contract them, most forms of recovery try to strengthen, stretch, or adjust people out of back pain But the problem isn't in your muscles; it's in your brain, the part of your body that learns and unlearns everything. Even how you hold your body.

One very basic Somatics movement that can help aid this is the Back Lift. In the back lift, you move by slowly contracting your back, and then slowly lengthening into relaxation. This method is called pandiculation. It is a natural movement for all vertebrate animals like cats and dogs when they get up from rest. Doing the back lift brings your brain back into sensory and motor control of the muscles. 

Back pain can be healed through gentle Somatics. Here's a testimony from my client who I've worked with regularly:

I am sharing my experience with Somatic Yoga, as taught by a certified practitioner Hina Sampat.

Life was flowing normally until one fine day, my wife was suddenly in terrible and acute pain. Not knowing what had happened, we visited a couple of doctors. After consulting them, we came to know that her hip muscle had torn, and this was the cause of her immense pain. When your hip muscles tear, you can barely move around. My wife was  bedridden. Along with that, she was constantly feeling a sharp pain in her legs. Things looked bad.

We knew we had to fix this and relieve my wife’s pain. That is when my daughter-in-law suggested we consult Mrs. Hina Sampat. I already knew Mrs. Hina as she frequented our house to take Somatics sessions for my daughter-in-law, who was also showing great signs of recovery from her personal pain-points, but that is a story for another time. Mrs. Hina met my wife and could empathise with her condition. But more importantly, she knew exactly what would help her. She charted out a path of recovery which began with Daily Sessions. In two weeks her daily sessions , gradually but definitely, started making a difference. My wife can now get up without any support and move on her own. The progress has been incredible to witness. When Mrs. Hina started taking the sessions, my wife started using a stick to walk around. Two weeks in, she can walk around the house with zero support. Her back pain has considerably reduced as well.  My wife will continue taking her sessions and surely seeing further improvements.

Hina Sampat's dedication and commitments to cure my wife are praiseworthy. I wish her every success in promoting Somatic Yoga for all those who need it as a cure as well as for healthier beings to avoid any future health problems. Prevention is better than cure!

Skincare: The reality

Taking care of your skin can be an extremely difficult task. Because everyone is unique in their own way. So even when you think you’re taking a lot of care of your skin, you might actually be doing more harm than good.

Take for example, one of my clients.

She was facing a constant issue of acne breakouts. She did what anyone would do… contact a doctor. The doctor simply took a look and told her it’s a hormonal problem, and gave her suitable products for that problem. Fast forward a few weeks, and her acne is worse than ever. This is when she came to me. After talking to her in-depth and understanding her skin and nutrition, the truth was revealed… It was an infection she was carrying from her place of work (and not a hormonal problem). I only came to know this after my long conversation with her. I whipped up a suitable product for her by hand which turned out to be the perfect match, and just within a week, her acne breakouts stopped recurring. 

Take a look at the magic yourself - 

  

BEFORE

A WEEK LATER

This was the product I exclusively made for her - 

I am not saying that going to the doctor is wrong. What I am saying is you need to be careful and stay informed of your treatment. There are so many unique ways your skin and body work in, it can be difficult to diagnose the problem in just a ten-minute doctor's consultation. Because we are all unique individuals with our own distinct skin type, you should shy away from factory-made “one-for-all” facewashes and creams because they are simply not made “for your unique self”.

I say this with the experience of working with another one of my clients.

He was facing skin troubles like pimples, skin darkening, and more. Again, he consulted a specialist. They gave him the products they give everyone. Things went from bad to worse, and that is when he came to me. In our in-depth conversation, I was shocked to know that the products he was currently using were making his skin peel-off. Harmful chemicals and severely harsh products do more harm than you can imagine. I immediately concocted a more sensitive product for him, to not just take care of the new problems caused, but also the older issues.

In only FIVE days, he is seeing a world of difference. His skin is slowly coming back to normalcy. And as this progress continues, in a few more weeks, he will be back to his glowing self. Just see this beautiful progress - 

BEFORE

JUST 5 DAYS LATER

This was the product I exclusively made for him - 

To conclude, I want to tell you… knowledge is key. More important than anything else. And when you have a conversation with me, we will take out the time required to know you inside out, because that is the only way to pamper your skin. Otherwise, you end up mistreating it…and when you do that, your skin mistreats you back. Harsh chemicals harm your skin from within, and natural products give it the love it deserves to heal it. So treat it with love, give with the time and attention it deserves, and it will glow for you. 

A reminder

How Should We Sleep?

Somatics is not just about fixing your body. It is also about avoiding future problems. In today’s post, we will talk about the way we sleep, and how it affects our daily lifestyle.

Apart from your place of work, most of our time is spent on our bed. If you feel any kind of pain or tension, around your back, shoulders, neck or hips, the problem could be your sleeping posture.

So what is the correct position to sleep anyway? 

First, let’s get the wrong position out of the way- 
Sleeping on your stomach.

With a pillow causing your head to be raised, the spine doesn’t stay in a neutral position. So it tends to puts a strain on the back and neck. The spine gets overarched as the middle of your body is the heaviest part. Turning the head to one side while lying down can limit blood circulation. Doing this regularly can lead to pain and nerve issues over the years.


The better way to sleep is - 
Sleeping on your back.

Your head, neck, and spine are in a neutral position so you're less likely to experience pain. Sleeping on your back with your head slightly elevated with a small pillow is considered the best sleeping position for heartburn as well.

But it has its disadvantages.
This position is not good if you have lower back pain. It can aggravate this pain. If you suffer from snoring or sleep apnea, sleeping on your back may aggravate these conditions as well.


The best way to sleep is -
On your side.
With a pillow under your head to keep your spine neutral, and another pillow between your knees, this position exerts the least pressure on your body. It also aids digestion, reduces snoring and boosts brain health. 


Tonight, try sleeping on your side. Feel the difference yourself. A good sleeping posture brings a deep restful sleep. It reduces stress and heals your body. If you want to retrain yourself to sleep in another posture, take your time. It’s going to take a while for you to be able to fall asleep and stay asleep in your new position. Stay patient.