The past few weeks, I've been studying a little bit about our energy bodies. We have them; MRIs measure them as do EEGs. We just avoid calling it that to not turn off those who may assume this is of the occult. It's not; it's science. We really don't understand it too well though, as clinicians. We aren't integrating this more widely into our wellness plans, although as a profession, we really don't appreciate the role of clean food and movement either. Here's what I think you may want to know: if your energy body is out of balance, you will not achieve optimal health.
Not only will you lack optimal health, you may suffer significant consequence, particularly if your root chakra is off kilter. The #muladhara is our root chakra. It offers us grounding and is where we feel safe. It's our physical identity. It's where we meet our needs. Its purpose is self-preservation. Our body is our vehicle in which we take this journey, so it must be maintained. On a psychological level, the root chakra is associated with the survival instinct and the will to live, your most basic health and vitality.
When we suffer excess or deficiency in the first chakra, we may not feel grounded or may feel a bit disembodied. We may have difficulty dealing with work, home, finances, and basic worldly matters. The opposite is also true. We may be over committed without boundaries to our work and material comfort. We may over eat, be controlling, hoard, or have great fear or anxiety.
We only get one body per lifetime so it is essential that we care for ours, especially if we want to enjoy the time we are gifted on this Earth. Honoring your body as the sacred temple for the divine within you is the primary task of the first chakra.
How Well Do You Relate to Your Body?
This is a hard point to write about or to give voice to in a way that will reach people because when you are disembodied, you don't recognize it often. You haven't awareness of what is missing until it comes back into view. For some, you were never embodied, so this is a completely foreign concept. Consider though, do you ever notice a bruise or even blood on your arm or leg and not have any idea how or even when you got that injury? Maybe you have some discomforts but you can't really identify when that started? Maybe you have irritable bowel, but you just deal, not really paying attention to what may be the trigger? Do you ever lose your temper a bit? Do you know why, the true underlying cause?
Do You Like Your Body?
Do you even pay attention to your body? Do you take care of it? Many times I meet with clients who admit to eating poorly, not moving enough, or who partake in harmful behaviors. The reality is if we love ourselves, we don't harm ourselves. These "bad habits" are a reflection of our love and self-worth.
Men and women in our community have shared that they feel pressure to look better or to not show emotions and this causes them great disconnect or dissatisfaction with their bodies. We've talked about how we speak to ourselves, and more recently I am learning the challenge of really being familiar with oneself. As I start to create videos for yoga or even educational videos for clients, I struggle with the person I see in the recording. That just isn't who I thought I was and it is especially uncomfortable. I am not sure it is dissatisfaction with my body, although certainly that plays a role, but more so I think it is complete unfamiliarity. I don't spend enough time with myself, so that I am not familiar with who I am in a physical sense.
Do you notice what you eat? If not, don't commit to a new diet right now, just stop and pay attention. Don't eat on the run. Just stop and chew your food. Think on what you put in your mouth. Why did you choose this food? How do you feel about it?
How often are you moving each day? Are you even aware? Sometimes we feel busy, running after the kids all day, but the reality is that we are mentally busy but not actually physically active. Running after the kids all day within the house may make for less than 1000 steps when our minimum goal for optimal health is ten times that number, not to mention that indoors our air quality is far more toxic than it is outdoors.
Are you investing in your wellness, screenings, evaluations, consults, talk therapy - checking in with your physical health with a professional?
Eden Member Exclusives
If you are a member of Eden, jump into the forum and read about chakras in the Yoga & Mindfulness group. This is the point of discussion today in our Wellness Wednesday Gathering as well. Dr. Layne will offer yoga classes to address grounding and of course, we have hikes prepared for you! Register online under "book online."