Remembering to Breathe…flowers are our allies

How many times in a day do you notice your breathing is shallow? Or that you are holding your breath?  Do you wish that your breathing was more easeful and peaceful?

 

Bougainvillea flower essence  (made by Desert Alchemy) has a tremendous capacity to assist us in breathing and finding our inner peace and stillness, even if chaos still surrounds us.  This can be very helpful in our fast paced world or if we find ourselves holding our breath while watching the news.

 

As a long time yoga teacher I am noticing that my breathing is often shallow or disturbed during this time in our country and I find this among my students.  Bougainvillea is such a strong support to help us deepen our breath, with effortless effort.

 

The actual flower of this plant is the cluster of 3 tiny white flowers surrounded by the bracts of bright colors!

 

 

Clients of all ages have reported that including bougainvillea in their custom essence combination allowed them to avoid altitude sickness when travelling to a much higher elevation than they normally are accustomed.  What a great travelling companion!

SPACE please, on your own!

Creating space for your organs and your baby can be a big deal in pregnancy and it is nice to know some poses you can do on your own!

This can also be used for others who need to create more flexibility in their ribcage.

Thread the Needle on the Wall:

Bring the chair to the wall and straddle the chair facing the wall.  Place the arms up the wall and tuck the tail under. Take 10 deep breaths into the side of the ribs and also down in the sit bones.

Now, thread one arm between the chest and wall walking the arm and hand under opposite armpit and as far from the breastbone as possible. Turn the head so the ear is on the wall and the nose is facing the threaded arm’s hand. Angle the hand either in line with shoulder or lower, find your comfort zone. Take 10 deep breaths.

Come back to center walking both hands as high up the wall as you can and take 10 deep breaths. Feel the difference between the 2 sides.

Now, thread the other arm through finding the comfort zone for this arm and shoulder. It could be quite different. Honor that difference. Take another 10 deep breaths.

Come back to center and take another 10 breaths noticing the changes!

This is great for opening shoulders, chest and ribs and it’s easy on the knees!

SPACE please!

In the last trimester of pregnancy getting a good deep breath or even having room for more than a snack can become a problem. Getting some temporary space can feel heavenly. Here is a partner pose that can help create space.

Mom sits with big toes together and knees far apart. She sits as heavily on her feet as she can while tucking her tail under while being pulled up.

Partner stands either in front (or for taller folk like in the picture, behind) and lifts mom from shoulders, while mom holds on to shoulders or arms. Partner gently coaxes the ribs up and away from the pelvis.

(Thanks to Mami and Paul for demonstrating!)

Now everyone take 5-10 deep breaths!

This can be helpful in labor as the sitting down action can help the baby drop while mom gets a good deep breath!