Beryl's Blog

Managing Pain using Yoga
Physical Pain can be one of our biggest health challenges. It can be temporary or long lasting and we can easily be tempted to succumb to drugs to management its effects. This can create relief, however the side effects can create all kinds of other problems. Long term, the mind has a way of disabling these painkillers so that they become less effective
Is there an alternative? Well the incredible power of the mind is now becoming known to Scientists. We are all aware of the term ‘mind over matter’. Now if you are suffering pain right now, you may be thinking, well that is easier said than done. However, it may be that you have never tried this method of pain relief.
Here’s what to do. Sit quietly, breathe gently into your abdomen. As you inhale, feel the belly move slightly forwards and as you exhale, it draws back. Just pay attention to this movement. Relax the jaw. As you do this, what is going on inside you is that your nervous system is being to re-balance, your whole body will respond by relaxing. Pay attention to your shoulders and let them drop. Give this a good five mins practise.
Then go into the very centre of where you feel pain. Go deep inside. Imagine that you are directing the breath into the core of the discomfort. Just observe what happens. Be patient. You may not notice too much change immediately, but regular practise can create amazing changes. Give it a go!

My new friend Alex Smith a Chiropractor from Bricketwood http://www.facebook.com/BricketwoodChiropractic shared with me how important he believes it is to keep the body moving, yoga does this perfectly. The ideal anti-dote to ageing. Neural pathways are opened up and reinforced by the wide range of movements yoga postures offer. So keep coming to class and if you have not yet tried yoga, give it a go!

No arms, no legs, no worries

We all have times when life brings us down, and Nick Vujicic is no exception, except he is...exceptional.

http://www.maniacworld.com/are-you-going-to-finish-strong.html

New Scientist - Play the piano

New Scientist mag (9.5.09) has an article about playing the piano and stimulating left and right brain working.  In a nutshell, Sohee Park and her colleagues at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee wanted to find out what was different about the brains of people who are good at 'divergent thinking' - creativity characterized by coming up with novel ideas.  She recruited 20 students of classical music, who had each had at least eight years of formal training, and 20 people matching for age, gender and IQ.  The volunteers were each given one or more objects - for instance, a toothbrush, toothpaste and dental floss - and asked to come up with alternative uses for them.  The musicians, it turned out, were far more creative. What's more, brain scans taken during the task reveled that while the non-musicians primarily employed their left frontal cortex, the musicians used the right hand side too.  This is unusual, says Park and suggests the musicians are accessing more information: "It could be that by training with both hands, they have been forced to communicate between both sides of the brain."

So should we all start a vigorous course of musical training, or take up other ambidextrous activities , such as karate or touch-typing?  Park admits that it is not clear whether an enhanced ability to think using the left hand right brain simultaneously is the cause of good musicianship or a consequence of it.  Nevertheless, she points out that no matter what your age, your brain is affected by the things you do.  "There's still cortical reorganization, even when you're older", she says it is never too late to change your mind.

Comfort Zones Brian Tracy

I always believe comfort zone is a bit of a misnomer.  They actually feel pretty uncomfortable.

I'm with Brian Tracy on this one, 'the comfort zone is the enemy of human potential'.  (From Maximum Achievement)

Public Speaking NLP and EFT

The human brain starts working the moment you are born and never stops until you stand up to speak in public.

George Jessel

 

If only I had known about NLP and EFT when I first started giving presentations!  Life would have been so much easier.  I would have avoided all that panicking and heading for the bathroom right before I had to speak, sticky palms, hyperventilating, need I go on?!

There are some neat little tricks in NLP that can put you in a brilliant state of composure within seconds.  Likewise, EFT can almost instantly change your emotional state from fear to confidence.

Exercise and moods

Just done the classic new year thing and booked an induction at the gym. Haven't been near the place for 10 years, it has changed somewhat!  Anyway was inspired by my 19 year old son who had his induction today (different gym, mustn't cramp his style!).  What are my goals at the gym?  I am quite clear about these.

1.  To release those endorphins, there's nothing to beat the good feeling they give you.

2.  'Tidy up' the tummy area...

3.  Feel good that I am taking action to be the best that I can be in terms of fitness.

Simplicity

Don't  you sometimes yearn for a simpler life.  Less choice, particulary when we are being bombarded more than ever this Christmas with ideas of what to buy.  Of course choice is good and essential for us to feel empowered, and yet maybe we could just do with life being a little simpler.  Take a look here to find out more  http://www.onsimplicity.net/2008/11/why-simplicity-is-more-important-than-ever/

Tweet me on Twitter

Feel free to come tweet with me at www.Twitter.com/berylwh.  Twitter is a great social networking site.  Was so excited when Stephen Fry (yes THE Stephen Fry) started following me!  Must confess, he follows everyone who follows him, nice chap isn't he?  Even though you are only allowed to write a few characters, his tweets usually make me smile and brighten my day.

Procrastination

Who hasn't got a little something tucked in the back of their mind, hidden under a pile of paper, shoved in a closet that they should really be turning their attention to?  Don't all shout at once!  I have come to the conclusion that procrastination is part of being human.  It seems that each of us has our own 'thing' about which we procrastinate.  I am wondering what yours is......OK I will go first.  Mine is by accounts.  Numbers always did bore me (big yawn...).  However accounts have to be done.  Even if I hand them over to a book keeper I still need to make a few notes and sort them a bit. 

Since I discovered and trained in EFT I can manage to get round to those accounts much much easier.  Just a bit of tapping clears whatever resistance there is.  The tricky bit is that we don't always want to tap when we now we SHOULD.   (I don't like the word SHOULD, to me it is a curse, but in this case it is entirely appropriate.) 

Here's where we could do with a bit of support.  The easiest thing to do is to pick up the phone and dial 07817959161 and that will get you through to me and the opportunity for me to help you tap tap tap away that procrastination.  Just do it!  It will only cost you £35! So cheap to get that niggling job done...