Wednesday, April 11, 2007

The yin & yang of headstands

Well, this has been quite a week of yoga-Chinese medicine enlightenment!
Last night's class saw us doing headstands and shoulder stands. I have to tell you that one of my deepest fears is going upside down - something to do with swinging on iron bars in the playground as a kid. Anyhow, as we were progressing through the class, I could see where the teacher was taking us, and it was indeed to the upside-down poses. But after last week and the Liver channel opening stuff, I felt myself able to cope with almost anything. All the folks in the class were happily flailing themselves up into all manner of headstands whilst I gradually plucked up the courage to go for it. Finally, with the help of both the teacher and an advanced student, I got up there, and stayed there for a good few seconds.
What a high! It was such an amazing experience being upside down with nothing supporting me but my shoulders and head (which was barely touching the ground as I was so paranoid about crunching my neck). It was definitely a slightly anxiety-producing position, but an exhilarating one at that.
The feeling of stepping completely out of my comfort zone was very important for me to do as it is something that I ask of my patients on a daily basis. Having acupuncture may seem like a very "normal" thing to do here in northern California, but it is still outside the boundaries of many of our comfort zones.
So, my message to you: get out there and push one of your boundaries ... see if it feels good to you! Happy Wednesday, everybody!