SPENCER: Root down to rise up

Article content

Just when we thought the dust was settling, it was not.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.

SPENCER: Root down to rise up Back to video

Pandemic, politics, protests and now a war crisis that experts are warning may lead to a global conflict and could impact Western countries, including the state of our democracies.

How are you coping? Really?

Nervous systems feel raw, like an exposed nerve left dangling in the wind. Many feeling more sensitive, frustrated, worried and unsettled now, than any time during this turbulent roller coaster ride of the last couple years.

Taking care of ourselves – body, mind and spirit – is as important as it ever was. But how do we do that?

When we practice yoga, we often hear the term “root down to rise up” when doing certain poses like mountain or tree pose. It means to press your feet, hips, legs downward to the earth, to elongate the spine, activating the core muscles and reaching crown of head up to sky. There is a sense of grounding, rooting, stability with a reciprocal response of expansion, flowering and growth.

Yoga often parallels nature and the elements. We see this when birds take flight, the bird presses down before lifting up. A mountain, whose origin lies deep in the molten layers of the Earth, rises up to touch the sky. A Redwood tree seed, no bigger than one found in a tomato, sprouts roots, rises up and reaches 100 metres into the sky.

So how we can we take the lessons of yoga and nature into our every day lives? How can we root down to rise up during such a tumultuous time in our lives?

Turn off the TV and put down your smart phone. You can still be informed without flooding your nervous system with upsetting imagery and information for hours on end.

Avoid further drama. When we are frazzled or in a state of anxiety or nervous system imbalance, avoiding dramatic conversations, decisions or energies is okay for now. Put it on a shelf for now and you can get to these when feeling more grounded, if needed at all.

Get rooted. What helps you to be grounded and calmer? Do that. Some examples of what many people find helpful are: getting outside particularly a walk in the woods or a drive through the country side, a mindfulness practice such as yoga, Thai Chi, meditation or breath work, getting near water, getting in water, sports/physical activity, laughter with loved ones/friends/family, colouring or creativity, get a massage, play a board game, find an inspiring book to get lost in, movie marathons of epic films or whatever helps you to feel a little more grounded, centred and rooted.

Rise up. During a yoga pose, even when it’s a simple sitting pose, we root or press down through the sitz bones and hips, feeling our spine lengthen, dropping the shoulders down and back, and lifting our ribs up a little. Try it right now. Notice what happens in your heart area. There is an expansion, a freeing up of space. When we rise up, we make room in our hearts. Once we feel centred and rooted, we can cultivate expansion in our hearts. Volunteer, donate, help a friend, reach out to someone and check in, compliment a stranger, engage in thought-feelings and actions that nurture feelings of inspiration and appreciation.

We can not stop the storm of life from raging around us, but we can root down into ourselves and seek the strength and nourishment we need to withstand it.