Maybe the better question to ask is “Who DOESN’T have tension?!” For the majority of us, experiencing a certain level of mental and physical tension has become commonplace.
In this context, tension can be defined as:
1. A strained state or condition resulting from forces acting in opposition to each other
2. Mental or emotional strain; stress
Thus we can experience tension physically when parts of our bodies feel strained or opposed. When we have repetitive or “stuck” thoughts and feelings, we also experience mental and/or emotional tension.
Yoga is an excellent way to address all forms of tension. Through a consistent yoga practice, we not only train our minds and bodies to release the tensions, but we also attempt to discover their sources.
How does yoga teach us this? In my therapeutic yoga approach, there are 4 key components to relieving the body and mind of stress and tension:
1. Awareness
2. Breathing
3. Patience
4. Surrender
It all begins with awareness! Many of you who have taken my workshops/classes before know that this is the first thing I always teach. Sometimes, we aren’t even aware of the tensions we hold because we’ve gotten so used to them!
For example, do you find yourself crinkling your forehead when you think? Does squeezing the muscles of your forehead somehow make you think more clearly? NOT!
How about when the temperature in the room suddenly drops… Do you find yourself shrugging and lifting your shoulders? Does this action bring you warmth? NO!
And most of the time we aren’t even aware when we do these things because we are so conditioned to them. So first of all, we must become aware… we must observe our minds and bodies and ask ourselves, “Where are our holding patterns?” It is this type of introspective observation that can also help us to “undo” our conditioned responses.
Once we become aware of the areas we hold our tensions, we begin to breathe into those areas. I know what you’re thinking, “Sheetal, how the heck do I breathe into a part of my body?”
Its actually quite simple… just imagine it! As you stay aware of your area of tension, imagine your breath flowing into that area… slowly and gently soothing the area and causing the tension to dissipate. This is a simple form of visualization that can be surprisingly powerful.
The 3rd key, which for many people is the most difficult, is to be patient with yourself! Only when we give ourselves the patient time to feel supported and safe will our bodies respond. It’s like wanting to come to a gradual stop while driving a car, but we keep giving it gas. If we don’t let the foot off the pedal how can we expect the car to naturally slow down?!
Similarly, we must take the time to stop “fueling” our bodies and minds and instead let them come to a gradual halt where they can then unwind or do whatever needs to happen.
Finally, the last key is to surrender. Just allow yourself to let go. Sometimes, even when practicing first 3 keys we fail to completely release certain tensions because we are unwilling to give them up. I know it sounds strange but it goes back to the idea of our minds and bodies being conditioned to respond in certain ways.
“Muscle memory” may sometimes be so engrained into our beings…. or certain thought patterns may be so woven into our psyches that we must willingly and conscientiously surrender them in order to truly release the tension we hold.
And while all of this may seen logical or at least easy enough to understand, it’s the “doing” that is the tricky part! Like anything, these techniques to releasing tension take practice. But, believe me, they are well worth the effort. In fact, I’ll be so bold as to say that the Keys to Releasing Tension are the also keys to proactively staying healthy!
So I invite you to join me in June to learn AND practice these techniques. Check the Calendar for dates/times/locations in Eastern PA. And at the end of the workshop when I ask you “Got Tension?”…. you may just be surprised by your answer!