I had the pleasure of spending last weekend in a long-awaited Craniosacral (CST) continuing education workshop, put off for many months by the pandemic, and I got to learn some incredible tools that I’m very excited to bring into my practice. The work we did over the weekend was deeply profound, and left me reflecting on a few other deep places this work has taken me in just the past few months. I thought I’d share some of them here.
Read moreQuarantine and Kindness
I spent Friday evening in a Feldenkrais workshop on presence - presence with yourself, presence with others, and being present with both at the same time while keeping boundaries clear. The original plan was for a full weekend workshop, but obviously that didn’t happen, so the trainer, Donna Blank, offered a short online version. In the beginning of Donna’s work, she asks you to close your eyes, feel your contact and support from your chair and the floor, and look for a “felt sense” of the experience of just being there - sensory cues that tell you how you are rather than thoughts or emotions. It turns out, for me, that this is a very scary thing to do while dealing with quarantine.
Read moreSelf-Care Tips for Covid-19 Times
Over the past few weeks that quarantine has been in effect in Washington, I’ve talked to a few people who are doing really well and enjoying staying home, but the vast majority of us are struggling. Whether you’re stuck at home due to being immuno-compromised or an essential worker still leaving the house, it’s likely that your sympathetic nervous system (fight, flight, or freeze) is on high alert. Here are some easy things to do that will give your parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) a boost.
Read moreMigraines, Headaches, and Jaw Tension
If you’re reading this article, chances are you suffer from migraines and/or headaches. I bet you also clench your jaw a lot. Take a moment to check in with your mouth. If someone put a pressure meter between your teeth, what would it read? A few ounces? A pound? A lot more than one pound?
What part of your mouth is your tongue touching? How hard is it pressing? When you open your mouth, do you experience popping and clicking?
Read moreA Story of Jaws and Panic Attacks
Today, a client brought up her panic attacks, which manifest physically as extreme tension through her upper chest, throat, and jaw. We started to do some work with her jaw, because the tension you carry in your jaw ripples down into your throat and upper chest, and a question came up. In response to asking her to gently open her mouth a little and hold it there, she asked, "Why is this so hard?!"
Read more