I feel like a voodoo doll and someone has stuck pins into my low back. Having chronic low grade cramps, due to PMS. Happens for 2 weeks out of every month and it tires me out. It’s been like this for the last 5-6 years now. Not that it’s really bad or anything. It just takes me down a notch. I realize that I should be expecting aches and pains as I’m getting older. Just to make sure, I’ve had this all checked out medically. Now I’ve just gotta deal with it.
Traditional Chinese Medicine has helped but I’ve fallen off the bandwagon for the last year. Hate to say it but, what with the current economic situation, something had to give. Fortunately, it wasn’t yoga! I’m back on the TCM bandwagon once again. Good-bye Advil. TCM helped before and I know that, given time, it will work again to even out my crazed, female hormones.
When I pause and sit still, I can feel how my body has tensed up from the dull pain. Doing yoga gets me through these weeks of cramping because it stretches out my stiff muscles. I lie on my back, draw my knees into my chest and then roll from side-to-side to massage my lumbar spine area. Reclined twists help to unwind the tightness too.
I admit that my patience bottoms out during my PMS times too. I can pretty well behave myself all day at work. Unfortunately, when I get home, I seem to let loose on my family. Sorry all! Doesn’t take much to push my buttons and then…KAPOW!…I have my mini-meltdown. Time to put myself to bed with a good book (or my iPhone) and a warm tea. Practicing yoga and taking teacher-training made me be more mindful of how I was feeling (tired, run-down, sore).
Mary Jaksch of Goodlife Zen recommended this technique, during one of her virtual meditation workshops. She suggested to place a hand overtop the area of the body that is feeling pain, inhale and on the exhale say “O suffering anxiety”. For me, breathing into the area that’s sore seems to help loosen things up.
So, I’m off to the studio. Doing a little self-care so that I can go back out and face the world with a little more kindness…