 When life gets overwhelming and we find ourselves stressed and scattered, allow yourself some time (if only a few minutes!) to focus on gratitude and to offer yourself some kindness. Turn off your phone, power down the PC, and for Pete's sake turn off the news! We can too easily allow ourselves to get consumed in the chaos. Find a comfortable spot, make some tea, and take some time to reboot. Start to settle into a quiet space within yourself & away from the turmoil of the outside world. Allow your eyes to gently close and begin to tune into your breath. Start to connect with the rhythm of your breath moving in and out of your lungs, noticing how the body expands and then contracts. Allow the breath to regulate and hone in on any tension. Smooth over your forehead, soften your jaw. Begin to work with your breath to ease any stress or tension clinging to you or your thoughts.
Begin to let the mind settle down, and start to draw gratitude into your heart space with each breath in and out. Start to bring to mind anything you are grateful for from today. A sunny morning, no traffic on your commute, the person in front of you picking up the tab for your coffee....allow the good things take precedence. Think of the people in your life you are thankful for, sending them well wishes. Draw in gratitude for the automatic functioning of your lungs, allowing fresh oxygen to nourish your body. Give thanks for your legs and your feet for taking you everywhere you wanted to go today.....for your eyes for all that they see......for your mouth and your throat, allowing you to communicate with others. Continue to draw gratitude into your heart with your breath, thanking your intuition for guiding you along the way and keeping you safe. Give thanks for your mind and the ability to make decisions and live a full, rich life. And finally give thanks to yourself, for all that you do each day. For showing up to take care of yourself and of others.......for all that you have.....and for all that you are. When life gets us down or stressed sometimes all it takes is a little shift in perspective to show us that everything is ok. Namaste, Heather Rae Listen to guided meditations on my podcast or follow me on Insight Timer!
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 The past few months of this have been the most stressful than most of us can remember; and for some the of us the cost has been more than we can bear. It's been the fear of the unknown, fear for the future and safety of our family and friends. The list is different for everyone, but collectively much of the country and the world has felt a tremendous impact of the past few months. It's important to sit, acknowledge and feel your feelings. Not react. Process. Support. Plan. We spend much time holding space for others, our children especially. Take time now to hold some space for yourself. Sit comfortably. Scan the body and feel where all of the tension is sitting......is it buried into your shoulders? Spread between your eyes, neck and head? Close your eyes and begin to slow your breathing down. Shut out everything in the outside world and begin to reside in the calm, peaceful, and safe place within yourself. Keep the breath moving in and out.
And simply hold space for yourself. Holding space is to be present, without judgement. It's being centered and grounded and to simply allow. It's getting out of your own way, slowing down the 100s of thoughts spinning around in your head to a slow hum; honing in on specifics. Continue to keep the focus inward and on your breath, soothing the central nervous system and allowing you to relax. Not trying to fix, do or change anything. And ask the question 'How am I doing?' 'What am I feeling?'. Hold space for yourself to feel and process. Let the feelings and thoughts come and go as easily as your breath. In, and out. Stay with this process for a while, offering support. Take all that you need, and finding solace in your breath. Offer yourself permission to trust and connect with the innate healing wisdom within yourself and ask. 'What do I need?' 'How do I take back control?' 'What's my plan of action?' Trust in yourself to offer the time and space you need for growth and transformation. Breathe in peace. Release stress. Breathe in clarity. Let go of fear. Breath in love. Taking time to hold space for ourselves as well as others is important in our process to become more reflective and less reactive. To tap into our higher selves and see things more clearly. Take a step back, and breathe. I offer peace and love to everyone and our unity is important now more than ever before. United we stand. Divided we fall. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti. Peace, Peace. Peace. Be well and Namaste. Sit back and listen to this meditation here...and find more on my podcast Modern Goddess Living here.  Tara-The Goddess of Compassion Om, Tara. Tu Tara. Turey. Swaha We all have hard times in life. Personal struggles, illness, watching loved ones suffer, terrible things going on in the world..... and we feel can helpless. Even if we are good at putting on a brave face and being the rock for ourselves and others, we need to hold space for ourselves and offer compassion. I've faced struggles in my life, suffered great anxiety, trepidation and more like most of us have. And according to the first of the four Noble Truths in Buddhism, life is dukkha-which has many meanings including suffering, stress, and impermanence. It's what we all need to go through to reach Enlightenment. And before I had some of the tools I have now it was much harder to hold that space, not understanding some of the suffering that happens in this world. I found I can take solace in my yoga asana and meditation practice. My mat, that tiny little space where so many transformational and powerful things can happen, is always there to catch me when I fall. In times of sadness or sorrow we can tap into the ultimate source, find our connection to everything in the Universe and know that we are not alone. Gods, Goddesses and Deities can be called upon for support. These are often archetypes possessing attributes we hold within ourselves, we may just need help in finding them. For anything we ever need is already within us, we simply need to turn within and and let our own inner light guide the way. Tara is a Goddess of Peace and Compassion. Honored by Hindus, Buddhists and Tibetans alike, she is the Mother Creator who can offer us protection and navigate us when confronted with obstacles. She holds many forms across the world; connected to the Chinese Goddess of Compassion Kuan Yin as well as the Egyptians, the Celts and people all across the globe. She's available in one way or another to all who call upon her. She embodies feminine strength and offers us the courage to prevail over stressful and troubling times, gifting a long life and the ability to work selflessly for the betterment of others. There are said to be 21 Taras, varying in color and attributes for what we may need to call upon from peaceful to auspicious to even wrathful. So when we find ourselves holding onto fear, stress or even anger, we can call upon not only ourselves but those who came before us but who still remain. Energy makes up the entire Universe, none is created nor destroyed but forever in transformation. We are all the clouds, the sea, the stars and the Gods-and when we can feel that connection in our hearts we can be the ones who wrap our arms around the world in compassion and love. Many Blessings, Heather
 Often times life can get in the way of getting a good night's sleep. We rest our head down after a long day, and our minds can't help but run through the never ending to-do list in our minds. That mind chatter, we call chitta, also called monkey brain can be a hard one to train. Perhaps we like to run stories over and over of our day, of yesterday, or what we hope for for tomorrow. It's when we realize that everything swirling around in our minds will be there tomorrow that we can take the power away from those thoughts and get some good shut eye.
So much happens when we sleep-our tissues repair, our body heals, our short term memory gets logged into long term. Lack of quality sleep can not only make us cranky the next day but have an effect on our overall health. If you have a hard time 'turning it off' when you lay down to rest, I suggest keeping a notebook or journal next to your bed. If certain thoughts, stories or ideas keep coming up, then first pay attention. Give them the attention they seek, and then write them down, get them out of you. Say, I see you. I know you'll still be here when I get up in the morning, but for now I'll leave you here. I shall return to you when I'm ready to give you my energy. Gratitude journals are also a great way to end that day. Write down everything you were grateful for that day, only let the good things take precedence. Lay your head down in a peaceful state, not agitated or distracted by things that went wrong. Television and electronics are of course not ideal to have on to fall asleep, and if left on you will not get quality sleep. Even though you may be sleeping your brain is still in some way active and aware of the sounds and light around you. Find what works best for you, and I've written this mediation to help wind down your mind and prepare for a good night's sleep, Enjoy! |
AuthorHello lovelies. I am a life/Goddess/meditation coach, body and energy worker , yoga instructor and author. I hope you enjoy my journey of discovering our magic and connecting along our journey of health, wealth of spirit and evolution. I am happy to share my experiences with you to heal, love, and evolve. ArchivesCategories
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