Corona Virus: Mental & Emotional Hygiene
/What’s missing in the dialogue around prevention?
In my effort to find an anchor point outside of paranoia or denial, practical and intelligent messaging around the body politics of Corona Virus are rare. When I find myself complaining about media fear mongering I’m asking myself, how can I be part of the solution rather than just a passive recipients of fear based dialogue? How is this pandemic, like all challenges on our life path, an opportunity to expand our consciousness, investing in immunity rather than fear?
In the midst of these questions, I found the words of my friend Andy Groggle, Shamanic Healer, hit the nail on the head:
When I get a virus it is an immediate cue to me that I need to slow down, drop whatever I’m doing and hunker down for a serious cleanse. And that cleanse doesn't just occur on the physical level…. This Coronavirus is a yearly reminder to our species to slow. The Fuck. Down. It is a reflection of the unsustainability of the global economy….
We must have the courage to say No More together. Because next year it will be a different epidemic, and a bad fire season, and the hottest year on record, and the glaciers will melt faster, and on and on and on. The Earth is speaking to us. She is asking us to slow down immediately or face the Ultimate Fear of extinction.
I'm choosing to listen now.
Me too. Towards that end, here are a few simple practices for mental and emotional hygiene during flu season to be part of the global movement to alchemize illness into awakening.
Use Mindfulness to Uplevel Your Emotional Hygiene
The mind is a thought machine. The mind produces thoughts like a heart pumps blood.
Thoughts produce feelings and emotions by producing chemicals that cause you to feel what you’re thinking. While we have a slim chance of stopping our thoughts, we can consciously direct their flow so that they create healthier emotions.
By the logic of this simple feedback loop, if we think a fearful thought, our brain responds by producing cortisol, known as ‘the stress hormone’, and other chemicals that generate the lived experience of fear. The flight or flight response kicks in, the body shuts down its process of ‘rest & digest,’ which is a state of renewal where our cells are repairing themselves, optimally processing waste and birthing new cells. Furthermore, Cortisol disregulation is tied to a higher disease risk, in part because it generates inflammation, which keeps the immune system busy, tying up its capacity to keep us from operating in peak health and making it more challenging to maintain a healthy weight and consistent energy level.
By regularly checking in with our breath and practicing even a few minutes of mediation regularly, we can become skilled at noticing our thoughts as they emerge, before it is too late and we’ve spun off on a roller coaster of emotion. When we catch our negative thoughts, we can then intentionally change them by choosing a positive thought.
Flu Season is a great time to add a weekly yoga class and incorporate a daily five minute meditation, perhaps using an app like Calm or Headspace, and to set reminders to take regular breaks from work to stretch and breath. If we practice mindfulness regularly it becomes easier to catch a fearful or self deprecating thought and to shift our inner direction by choosing a life affirming, health inspiring thought.
Finding and committing to daily or weekly meditative movement that you enjoy, including yoga, qigong, dance or nature walks, is another opportunity to organically practice mediation, tricking the body into relaxing and returning to the homeostasis that is the neccessary foundation of strong immunity. In terms of creating new neural, life affirming pathways in the brain, the length of time we practice meditation is far less important than the regularity, so even three conscious breaths practiced three times a day is preferable to one 30 minute meditation practice.
Affirmations for Vibrant Health
Melissa Dawn, commenting on Corona Virus, puts it well, “when we are locked in a fear-controlled state, we become part of the problem, not the solution. However, when we set the intention to literally be the change we want to see in the world – to be peace, be strength, be health, be compassion, courage, empathy and reason – we become conscious leaders in our families, communities and workplaces.”
Throughout the day, during transitions from one thing to another, from the car to work, from the bathroom to the kitchen, etc., I’ve been slowing myself down by injecting some deep truth into my thought stream, directing my mood by silently speaking one of the following affirmations or any others that creatively arise and make me feel good:
I trust my Body
I’m grateful for my vibrant health and wellbeing
I believe in the the strength of my immune system
Customize to your hearts delight…. Don't forget to insert a positive inner message each time you reach for the hand sanitizer (see my homemade recipe below).
Hand Washing as Meditation
My Friend and relationship coach, Regina Gelfo, was stoked to notice how much proper hand washing slows down the pace of her day. When she caught herself feeling fear for herself and loved one’s during that time she decided to add a twenty second wellbeing meditation for world peace. I’ve followed suit, using a variation on the simplicity of the classic Metta Bhavana Buddhist Prayer as a guide:
May I be healthy,
May I be happy,
May I be free from the suffering of disconnection.
May all beings be well,
May all beings be happy,
May all beings be free from the suffering of disconnection.
If I’m consciously breathing, this mantra takes me about twenty seconds and is much more rewarding than singing the Happy Birthday Song twice. Visualizing the words you’re speaking has the further benefit of relieving stress, reducing inflammation and thereby boosting immunity.
Immunity is Free
Hand sanitizer is on back order and vaccine scientists are working around the clock. It’s easy to see how a global security threat is capitalized upon by chemical corporations to sell products. But guess what? The most effective ways to bolster your immunity and reduce stress & inflammation are free! Here are a few ideas:
Restful sleep seven to eight hours night
Adding a midday nap or quiet meditative moment
Daily exercise and gentle, mindful movement
Spending time relaxing around people you enjoy
Reducing exposure to Electro Magnetic Frequencies by limiting the time you stare at a screen
Living in alignment with your values
Spending time in nature
Taking ten minute walks throughout the day to stimulate lymphatic flow
Slowing and lengthening your breathing
Feeling loved and appreciated
Telling others you love and appreciate them
Staying hydrated with clean, high quality spring water
Substituting sugar and processed foods that wreck havoc on your inflammatory response with healthy fats and a diverse variety of nutrient dense, local, organic vegetables and fruit
Forgive Someone and release a grudge
Rub oil on your body after a shower or bath, coating your nerves with fat to bolster immunity and calming the nervous system while flushing your lymph
Reduce exposure to negative people who make. you feel drained after contact
Earthing: walk barefoot on the grass or soil
Use your intuition and experience to easily add ten more to this list that are personal to your preferences. By reducing stress and giving not just our body but our minds and our hearts the rest and nourishment they need, we reduce inflammation, which allows our cells to optimal state of renewal and clearing out of toxins. May we be brave enough to make subtle shifts towards remembering a lifestyle where our immune system can thrive.
Prayer for Reframing Illness as Global Awakening
May this moment be an opportunity to slow down, to nourish our body-minds, to remember and choose the easeful pace of wellbeing. May this moment be an opportunity for us and our global leaders to come together, acknowledging the interconnection and interdependence of all humans and the planet that supports our lives. May this challenge be a gift, coaxing us to wake up, to create a true global culture of equality and wellbeing and to live harmoniously with the ecosystem of Mother Earth. May this day be an opportunity to embody the change we wish to see in the world.
Prayer for Peace in the Face of Challenge
May this challenge teach us how to listen inward and soften towards ourselves
Instead of shutting down or numbing out, may we honor all of our emotions, the fear, the anger, the uncertainty, with the softness of compassion.
May this challenge teach us that personal grief is collective grief and collective grief is personal grief and that all grief is a sacred teacher
May we trust that whatever mystery creates the multiverse, that same creative light shines through humanity.
May we trust that while there is suffering, there is also a deeper meaning, ever unfolding.
May this challenge be a gift, coaxing us to awaken, to create a culture of equality and wellbeing, to live more harmoniously with our Mother, Planet Earth.
May this challenge awaken our commitment to healing our waters, our soil, our rainforests, to protecting all the animal beings that walk, fly and crawl
May this day be an opportunity to embody the change we wish to see in the world.
May we trust our life
May we be the light in the darkness
May compassion go viral
Easy DIY Tea Tree + Aloe Herbal Hand Sanitizer Recipe
Ingredients
½ Tablespoons Rubbing Alcohol
1ml (20 drops) Tea Tree essential oil
1ml (20 drops) Lavender essential oil
¾ cup Organic Aloe Vera Gel
Combine ingredients in a mixing bowl or jar until they are blended.
Sources
Chronic Stress, Cortisol Dysfunction, and Pain: A Psychoneuroendocrine Rationale for Stress Management in Pain Rehabilitation. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4263906/
Cortisol — Its Role in Stress, Inflammation, and Indications for Nutrition Therapy. https://www.todaysdietitian.com/newarchives/111609p38.shtml
Worried About Coronavirus? Here’s How Physical, Mental, Emotional and Spiritual Strength Can Help by Melissa Dawn
Deepak Chopra, Facebook Video, February 28, “Dealing with the Corona Virus”
Yoga Circle Offering Gratitude for Our Health at Sierra Hot Springs Retreat 2019