“I can stop at any time and take care of me”
Say this thought to yourself little and often throughout the day.
Information and knowledge are useful. Putting these into action is even more useful. Committing to doing this action one, three, or ten times a day – then you’ll really start to notice the benefits.
As many of you know, one of Alexander’s major discoveries about us mammals is that the relationship between the head and spine govern the coordination of the rest of us. Yes – all of us! Physical, mental, emotional, spiritual – we don’t separate – its all one thing – our Self.
Stopping and resting is punctuation. You are free to stop.
“I am free to stop at any time”
Like many of us, I’m using technology for more things, and more often. And part of me is tired of the flat screen and longs to see proper 3D people in the flesh to hug, touch, be close and share the same air with ease.
I’ve also had various challenges and technological hitches and breakdowns. I was trying to save photos from my phone when it froze and woudn’t work, and wouldn’t restore and was unusuable for more than 24 hours. I use my phone a lot for work, family, friends, photos, calendar, emails, notes, games and ease and connectivitiy. So when this favourite way is not available to me – part of me goes into a mini-shock.
A flurry of questions and worries comes into my mind – crashing one after another – how will I speak to so and so, I can’t remember who I said I’d talk to today I can’t let people down. Argghhh Why me? Why am I so uselesswith technology? Why did I buy a second hand phone surely its second rate too? and so it goes… If I don’t get it sorted now I’ll let so and so down and they’ll hate me and I won’t have any more friends and my work will dry up and …. STOP!
“I am free to stop at any time”
I can choose to stop mid-activity, and I can choose to stop a particularly unproducitve train of thought.
I am not my thoughts. I can choose my thoughts. Alexander knew this and gave us a particular sequence of thoughts which would be constructive under any circumstances. They are so generic they work whether we are sitting, standing, crying, laughing, resting, running, upright or swimming!
So when I notice myself going into a particular pattern of thinking, I also pay attention to how this thinking shapes my body. When I’m worrying and catastrophising, my jaw clenches, my heart races, my shoulders hunch and my breathing is shorter and shallower.
Stop. Just stop. I can say this kindly to myself. I have to really mean it to get my mind off the hamster wheel and back under my conscious control.
My body responds to each and every thought. Mind and muscles are made of the same stuff – we are all one united Self. So when I react with unhelpful thoughts, my body suffers scrunching tension patterns.
It isn’t true that my body scrunches itself – I am scrunching myself.
My body isn’t tensing – I am tensing myself.
I may not know this, of course, I may not be doing this deliberately, I may not even be aware of doing it. And yet if my muscles are tensing – its my brain sending myself these messages to tense. So if I can get back in the driving seat, I can change my experience.
Using Alexander’s principles and discoveries we can unclench ourselves in a particular way and in a particular order and sequence to improve our situation and become more alive in this present moment.
So when my computer fails on top of my phone failing – part of me crumples. This is my default, my go-to mode for technological malfunctions. I feel helpless and weak against the workings of The Machines.
“I am free to stop at any time”
As I notice this reaction, I can choose to stop the cascade and return to a degree of quietness in my nervous system and start to build some resilience in my thinking, having a wider range of choices, asking for help, taking it step by step and really including my mind-muscles and whole body in the chosen responses.
How do you respond to unexpected technological malfunctions – where do you have tension?
How is your jaw?
How is your breathing?
How is the ease or tightness in your neck and shoulder region?
How are your toes and thighs?
How is your digestion and breathing?
What does this cost you in energy?
How do you get yourself out of these pickles – mind, muscle and emotions – one after another and all together?
I have a system to share. It works. It has been working for over 150 years with various triggers and trials and triumphs. If you are curious to hear more, please send me an email with your query and phone number and I’ll give you a call. lucyascham@hotmail.com
I’m so enjoying hearing from many of you, with your feedback, stories and suggestions. Keep them coming!