Yoga is built on this premise that we use movement to connect our mind-body-heart as doing so, promotes health and well-being in all three elements of our being. This principle is firmly embedded in natural medicine principles and built from thousands of years of use and results. Yoga is but one example of how we can experience the mind-body-heart alignment. Many other forums also support this work, including meditation, hypnosis, chakra work, reflexology and mindfulness. All of these methods are ancient means that are still used today. In my opinion, we still wouldn’t be doing it, talking about it or having it offered in gyms and spas everywhere if they didn’t work.
Rooted in the Ayurveda teachings of the knowledge of longevity and wisdom of life, balancing mind-body-heart balance is where the promotion and protection of health occurs directly. It is why the yoga balancing poses were created as they physically demonstrate this sensation and open us to trigger it throughout our being. Aside from the history of it, there’s no denying we do actually feel better after a yoga class or a deep mediation session. Our body is loose from the stretching, our minds calm and content, our hearts feeling a little light and joyful. It is where we feel complete, whole and at peace with whole being, the person we really are under all the other stuff. Ourselves.
Ancient people did not compartmentalize life like we do today. When there was something that did not feel good in the physical body or mind they diagnosed and treated all three parts. This provided healing support to the interdependencies that links mind-body-heart together. For most of us an instructor led yoga class is the extent to which we tap into this type of healing on any regularity. However, as soon as we leave class and re-enter our lives we are often right back to where we were beforehand. Stressed, overwhelmed, tired, irritated and probably hungry.
What if we could actually extend how we feel when we come out of that last savasana pose and that content feeling we feel in mind-body-heart stuck with us longer than a few minutes? I don’t mean breaking out into a tree pose whenever stress strikes in our day but rather how to create that sensation at any moment. This is where yoga, natural medicine and whole person healthcare strive to guide us but most of us just see it as a yoga class. When you however treat it like a holistic medicine treatment that is actually intended to be, you begin to unravel the where preventative health support can occur.
If there were a pill to achieve this or three easy steps I’d probably be a rich woman who jet-setted around the world doing talks and signing books. The truth is, we all know how to do this but modern life being what it is we no longer practice it outside of a yoga class. The magic pill is actually just learning how to listen to ourselves, respond and support those needs. It is acknowledging when one thing hurts we need to dig a little deeper to balance mind-body-heart in the healing and need. When we strive to create this harmony in daily life it looks these types of activities:
Removing as many toxins from our daily life as possible. This includes processed, chemical based products and foods. It also means toxic relationships, people and situations. This is the detoxification phase and an important step to open up the mind-body-heart for full clarity so we can actually hear what it is saying. It is also a step that continually needs work due to the environment of pollution and chemicals we live in.
Intentionally, including more of what makes us feel good in our day, every day. This is where messaging of stop saving your good china for special occasions comes in. Finding or creating ways to make every day special is where our joy factor rises. This in turn effects our energy that radiates through mind-body-heart to seek more of that higher, richer serotonin level that feels good to us.
Providing outlets for our mind-body-heart to thrive. This means allowing for creativity, play and meditative practices to be part of our day where we can express ourselves openly, freely and positively. It is remarkable what a little creativity and play does to our health.
Listening to our mind-body-heart in a positive, encouraging and supportive way so we can acknowledge and support needs. This means honoring what we need for food, rest, movement, connection and actually giving ourselves those things that fill the needs, when we need them. This is the self-care element.
Yoga, while still important, becomes the gateway to expanded learning in this area where we can go into the infinite space of our aligned being to emerge anew each time. It no longer stays as simply a Band-Aid to our hurting spirits but a forum of expression. Tuning into our mind-body-heart connection is a preventative health need, just like taking vitamins and drinking plenty of water each day. Learning to listen to your whole person as a complete being opens a deeper understanding of our health and empowers us to choose what is right for our needs.
At the bottom of the mind-body-heart work is the journey of living more naturally. It means creating the environment where the harmony of our whole person can live in that balanced state every day. That can seem a challenging task in today’s stressed out modern world but it has always been in our power to create our own health from this source. Taking the steps to create that little-by-little has been shown to have incredible impact to overall health. We feel happier, at peace, are more physically fit and take better care of ourselves. It starts a never ending desire to give ourselves the best we can in life that creates more of those feelings we so often only get glimpses of at the end of a yoga class.
To learn more, contact me and let’s talk about ways to include more nature in your life. Message me on social media (Instagram or Facebook @dragonspitapothecary)
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