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The Celebration of UTANI
by The Teach Organization
by The Teach Organization
Historians have shown that Afrikans have been in the Americas since the empires of Nubia, Mali and Songhai. There is evidence of both cultural and commercial exchange between Afrikans and native peoples as seen by the artifacts gathered from both sides of the Atlantic. Ivan Van Sertima, the leading scholar of this field, reveals that the natives of Hispaniola told Columbus in 1496, that prior to his arrival, they already had encounters with “(B)lack people who have the tops of their spears made of a metal which they call guan-nin.”
There is also a noted presence of Afrikans in Mexico revealed in the Afrikan or “Negroid” features of the stone colossi heads and reliefs from the Olmec cultures centered in La Venta and Veracruz. The stone markers have been dated as far back at 680 B.C.E., well before the enslavement of Afrikans in Mexico.
The history of Thanksgiving can be traced back to the feast held in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621 between white settlers and the Wampanoag. During this period, the Wampanoag provided the settler colonialists with invaluable food provisions and knowledge of the terrain. In return, the Pilgrims waged a genocidal war against the Wampanoag to take control of their land. This scene would play out many times over, resulting in the mass dispossession of Native Americans, which also paved the way for large land tracts to be cultivated by enslaved Black labor. Thus, “Thanksgiving,” celebrates white prosperity made possible by Native American genocide and Afrikan enslavement.
Facing a common enemy, Afrikan and Indians forged important alliances against the onslaught of white supremacy. Of note, the collective struggle of Afrikans and Native Americans in the 19th century Seminole Wars made this bloody campaign the longest conflict in U.S. history prior to Vietnam. There are also other important examples such as the successful Natchez revolt of 1729 which led to the eventual removal of France from North America.
We are also clear that Afrikan and Native American relations have not always been harmonious. Some indigenous groups captured escaped Afrikans, and others, namely the Five “Civilized” Tribes of the southeastern US, enslaved Black people. Some native groups even supported the Confederacy and dispossessed Black people of land. Also concerning is the history of Afrikans, namely the famed Buffalo Soldiers, who participated in the imperialist march across the American West that resulted in the genocide of Native Americans. Both groups were unmistakably junior partners in the larger project of white supremacy, but collective healing still must take place in light of this history. We are clear that the course of slavery in the United States, fed by Eurocentric greed, was only made possible by the genocide of Native Americans. Genocide and enslavement are twin forces birthed by the same parent of white supremacy.
History also teaches us of the revolutionary potential of alliances between natives and Afrikans. The Seminole and Natchez Wars are only two of many examples during the period of enslavement. Similar struggles outside of the U.S. in places such as Brazil and Jamaica sustained longstanding maroon societies which protected natives and Afrikans from slavery and European colonialism. These examples give us a charge and direction for our continued healing and ongoing struggle for freedom.
How to Celebrate
In recognition of the shared history between Afrikans and native people, whose beginnings predate European imperialism, we celebrate Masanyiko Ya Utani. In the home, before eating the big meal with family on “Thanksgiving” day, words can be said about our historical connections with the native people of this land. The meal can be dedicated to this shared connection and can include dishes we ate together such as beans, corn and squash.
A small candle can be lit and placed in the center of the table in honor of this connection, to give thanks for our blessings, and for our victory in our common struggle for liberation and self-determination. Later that day, or shortly thereafter, a small rock can be taken from the coast of a nearby river or body of water. Positive intentions for Afrikan and native people can be said over the rock before tossing it into the water.
There is also a noted presence of Afrikans in Mexico revealed in the Afrikan or “Negroid” features of the stone colossi heads and reliefs from the Olmec cultures centered in La Venta and Veracruz. The stone markers have been dated as far back at 680 B.C.E., well before the enslavement of Afrikans in Mexico.
The history of Thanksgiving can be traced back to the feast held in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621 between white settlers and the Wampanoag. During this period, the Wampanoag provided the settler colonialists with invaluable food provisions and knowledge of the terrain. In return, the Pilgrims waged a genocidal war against the Wampanoag to take control of their land. This scene would play out many times over, resulting in the mass dispossession of Native Americans, which also paved the way for large land tracts to be cultivated by enslaved Black labor. Thus, “Thanksgiving,” celebrates white prosperity made possible by Native American genocide and Afrikan enslavement.
Facing a common enemy, Afrikan and Indians forged important alliances against the onslaught of white supremacy. Of note, the collective struggle of Afrikans and Native Americans in the 19th century Seminole Wars made this bloody campaign the longest conflict in U.S. history prior to Vietnam. There are also other important examples such as the successful Natchez revolt of 1729 which led to the eventual removal of France from North America.
We are also clear that Afrikan and Native American relations have not always been harmonious. Some indigenous groups captured escaped Afrikans, and others, namely the Five “Civilized” Tribes of the southeastern US, enslaved Black people. Some native groups even supported the Confederacy and dispossessed Black people of land. Also concerning is the history of Afrikans, namely the famed Buffalo Soldiers, who participated in the imperialist march across the American West that resulted in the genocide of Native Americans. Both groups were unmistakably junior partners in the larger project of white supremacy, but collective healing still must take place in light of this history. We are clear that the course of slavery in the United States, fed by Eurocentric greed, was only made possible by the genocide of Native Americans. Genocide and enslavement are twin forces birthed by the same parent of white supremacy.
History also teaches us of the revolutionary potential of alliances between natives and Afrikans. The Seminole and Natchez Wars are only two of many examples during the period of enslavement. Similar struggles outside of the U.S. in places such as Brazil and Jamaica sustained longstanding maroon societies which protected natives and Afrikans from slavery and European colonialism. These examples give us a charge and direction for our continued healing and ongoing struggle for freedom.
How to Celebrate
In recognition of the shared history between Afrikans and native people, whose beginnings predate European imperialism, we celebrate Masanyiko Ya Utani. In the home, before eating the big meal with family on “Thanksgiving” day, words can be said about our historical connections with the native people of this land. The meal can be dedicated to this shared connection and can include dishes we ate together such as beans, corn and squash.
A small candle can be lit and placed in the center of the table in honor of this connection, to give thanks for our blessings, and for our victory in our common struggle for liberation and self-determination. Later that day, or shortly thereafter, a small rock can be taken from the coast of a nearby river or body of water. Positive intentions for Afrikan and native people can be said over the rock before tossing it into the water.
BREATHE INTO YOUR MOM THE LOVE SHE DESERVES
MMPF Patcha Foundation's Breathology FB Live
Power of the BREATH presentation 20 mins.
Ayo, the Breath Sekou demonstrates many breath techniques during an Optimum Life Breathology Certification, and a Power of the Breath Presentation. Breathe and Play with her.
Encouraging Moms - Giving of Herself from the Daily OM
The role of a mother is infinitely complex and one of pure tenderness, compassion, and unflagging loyalty
Mothers throughout history have been worshipped, revered, analyzed and even criticized. Every one of us was created through the wondrous workings of a woman's body; each of us has a mother. But being a mother is more than a biological concept. In India, women who are profoundly nurturing, compassionate, and wise are publicly acknowledged by the title "Holy Mother." Those who have never met their biological mothers often have mothers nonetheless in adoptive parents, relations, and friends. There are human mothers and spiritual mothers, Mother Earth, and mother goddesses. The role of a mother is infinitely complex and one of pure tenderness, compassion, and unflagging loyalty. The mother represents fertility, stability, creation, and sacrifice.
Our mothers determine who we become because they are not only the life givers, but the most influential person in our young lives. Before we are old enough to understand that influence, mothers give us the beginnings of our spirituality and value systems. A mother lauds accomplishment and ignores minor faults, she both teaches and shields her children from misfortune, and hides her own tears, preferring to laugh so her children can laugh with her. She is both a sharer of grief and a healer of many pains. And every mother gives of herself knowing that someday her progeny will leave her.
For these reasons and more, motherhood is a sacred institution, not limited by narrow constraints. It is also not unusual to seek the guidance of a mother in a wise woman or a grandmother because each woman is taught to be a mother by her own mother, whether she chooses to have children or not. Other ways to see Mother is to find a source of motherly nurturing in the earth, which gives us so much and demands little in return. Earth mother continually blesses us with her bounty and we are even born and eventually go back to the universal mother
The definition is necessarily broad because mothers of all types exist in part to put a smooth veneer on the rough edges of life for those they love. A mother never stops growing, never stops becoming more motherly. Though some may argue that a mother is a woman who gives life with her womb and nourishment with her breast, it is important to remember that a mother, any mother, is also one who gives life with her tenderness and nourishment with her love.
The role of a mother is infinitely complex and one of pure tenderness, compassion, and unflagging loyalty
Mothers throughout history have been worshipped, revered, analyzed and even criticized. Every one of us was created through the wondrous workings of a woman's body; each of us has a mother. But being a mother is more than a biological concept. In India, women who are profoundly nurturing, compassionate, and wise are publicly acknowledged by the title "Holy Mother." Those who have never met their biological mothers often have mothers nonetheless in adoptive parents, relations, and friends. There are human mothers and spiritual mothers, Mother Earth, and mother goddesses. The role of a mother is infinitely complex and one of pure tenderness, compassion, and unflagging loyalty. The mother represents fertility, stability, creation, and sacrifice.
Our mothers determine who we become because they are not only the life givers, but the most influential person in our young lives. Before we are old enough to understand that influence, mothers give us the beginnings of our spirituality and value systems. A mother lauds accomplishment and ignores minor faults, she both teaches and shields her children from misfortune, and hides her own tears, preferring to laugh so her children can laugh with her. She is both a sharer of grief and a healer of many pains. And every mother gives of herself knowing that someday her progeny will leave her.
For these reasons and more, motherhood is a sacred institution, not limited by narrow constraints. It is also not unusual to seek the guidance of a mother in a wise woman or a grandmother because each woman is taught to be a mother by her own mother, whether she chooses to have children or not. Other ways to see Mother is to find a source of motherly nurturing in the earth, which gives us so much and demands little in return. Earth mother continually blesses us with her bounty and we are even born and eventually go back to the universal mother
The definition is necessarily broad because mothers of all types exist in part to put a smooth veneer on the rough edges of life for those they love. A mother never stops growing, never stops becoming more motherly. Though some may argue that a mother is a woman who gives life with her womb and nourishment with her breast, it is important to remember that a mother, any mother, is also one who gives life with her tenderness and nourishment with her love.
HOLIDAY STRESS SYNDROME MAY BE OVERWHELMING THIS YEAR DUE CHAOS OF THIS YEAR
by Ayo Handy-Kendi, The Breath Sekou
by Ayo Handy-Kendi, The Breath Sekou
The older I get, time appears to me, that it is collapsing. It.s another year and holiday time seems to have come around again, too quickly. I believe due to the focus on the Presidential election, this year 2016, has flown by, even quicker. And with holiday time, holiday stress syndrome re-occurs. This year, I suspect, will be even more overwhelming, as I am still hearing reports of how many are still rocking and reeling from the stress of ALL OF THE CHAOTIC THINGS GOING ON IN THE WORLD
Again, PositivEnergyWorks and our sister non-profit, The African American Holiday Association (AAHA) stand ready to support you with holiday stress management and wellness support.
AAHA first introduced the concept of “holiday stress syndrome” in the 1980’s. Since that time, more research has documented how stress increases during every holiday, and how this impact creates many social and public health concerns, such as depression, suicide, domestic violence, work-place absenteeism, over-eating, over-drinking, substance abuse, out-of-control spending, increased accidents, suicides and illness, during holiday seasonal periods.
This year, “election stress” was identified as mid-term blues, which showed up just recently. Symptoms of heightened fear, anxiety, panic attacks, with People, literally, holding their “breath”.
Yes, there is lot going on, right now, as people are just beginning to ask “are you ready for the holidays?”.
If the double-wammy of holidays or election stress is over-taking you, here’s a few tips:
1. Time to slow down and really take it easy. Attempt to not go in over-drive mode, just because a holiday is up-coming, and you are not prepared. Instead, put on brakes and put everything in proper perspective. A holiday is just another day, and the old adage “of the perfect holiday” is just that “OLD and outdated.” Relax and let it flow.
2. Create your own personal “wish list” for the next several weeks. Write down the goals that would truly make you feel happy, supported, and productive within your means. Looking at “where you are” compared to the many commercial messages that we hear and see during holiday time, will help us manage the “holiday got to do’s” based on our reality instead of others. This list might include spending priorities, a holiday travel schedule and budget, holiday socializing calendar and a check –list on the emotional qualities and relationships we desire for this time of year. For example, if “feeling jolly” is not where we are right now, indicate your present mood, and be honest with yourself, with no judgement. Acceptance of where we are is the ony way to “honor” ourselves, and move forward instead of avoiding our true feelings
3. Spend quality time in nature or enjoying simple pleasures. Get away from the bustling, crowd and take a walk in the woods, or go sit by a creek or walk in solitude on the beach. Take long warm baths with scented, candle-light and bath salts. Or lounge by a roaring fire-place. These quieter, simple moments of joy allow for reflection and inner peace, which helps us re-connect to our sense of “peace on earth”. Yes, we can have inner peace now and it is up to us to create it, find it and savor it.
4. Feel free to NOT celebrate a holiday or if you do celebrate one, do it your way. Create new traditions that speak to your values, your culture, your spiritual or religious practices; Put aside the old tapes of your childhood holidays that you no longer agree to; Don’t buy anything unless you really desire to; Or don’t visit any relative or friend that you have reservations about. Be in your own lane with “what will make you truly feel the love and joy you deserve”.
5. Holidays can bring up old buried emotions, and these emotions, can be triggered, because many are entering this seasonal period already angry, disappointed and just plain depressed because of the election results. De-stress by trying some “laugh” therapy or breathology. Both modalities increase our endorphines which are the “happy hormones”, which naturally reduce our stress level cortisol. If you need additional emotional help, get support, talk to a friend coach or counselor.
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Remember that WE ARE HERE TO SERVE YOU, so feel free to call us at 202-667-2577, email us at [email protected] Facebook messenger or twitter. We can offer consultations and treatments via phone, internet. Or in person.
Tis the season to LOVE YOURSELF, TAKE CARE of yourself, and HONOR YOU which will make this time of the year extra SPECIAL.
AAHA has offered holiday stress management and holiday wellness support, through workshops, lectures, on-line educational outreach, storytelling, holiday cultural compentency consultations at schools, workplaces and community-based organizations, at sliding fees. And AAHA serves as a clearing house for cultural awareness, providing a wealth of resources and educational information on Kwanzaa, Black Love Day, Black History Month, Emancipation Days, along with rituals and ceremonial cultural services, such as our Racial Healing/Diversity work..
Support AAHA’s tax exempt mission to show the link between emotional health and cultural awareness. Donations over $50 receive a tax deduction.
While AAHA’s website presence is being re-worked, Send donations of any amount to [email protected]
OCTOBER IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH
& BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
& BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
THE LINK BETWEEN BREAST CANCER, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND HOW I USED BREATHWORK AND BREATHOLOGY TO BECOME MORE THAN A "SURVIVOR", BUT A 'THRIVER"
By Ayo Handy-Kendi, the Breath Sekou
I know this is a long article, but, if you are dealing with breast cancer or domestic violence, and seeing some health imbalances this is a most read for you
\ To me, it was no coincidence that in October, the month of Breast Cancer and Domestic Violence Awareness Month, that just before mid-night of Saturday, October 28, 2017, my mom, Doris A.M. Thomas, quietly slipped away to “go home” to her Maker, with me, and my sisters, Maria and Donna folding clothes in her bedroom.
She had announced to me and the family, in early August of that year, that she was ready to move on because she was tired of living and had done everything that she ever wanted to do. I knew she had a serious determination, what she called her motto, “the will to live”, and I had seen this “will” many times in my life-time, so I tried to challenge her to stay.
She was a Diva and the rock that was stead-fast for her marriage, her family, her community, her church, her jobs, then her business she started at age 65, and as the founder of her group, the Cameo Club, which spear-headed the service work of the District of Columbia, Ms. Senior D.C. Pageant. Ironically, she went to the annual. Pagent in August, and listened as she was described as the oldest of the Ms. Senior D.C. Queens, crowned in 1972. But she told me after the great program that honored her, “that this would be her last pageant. She said quite calmly with resolve, “I’ve survived cancer twice, and survived the death of my husband’s brain cancer, along with the untimely deaths of both my sons and grandson, and a whole lot of confusion, abuse, and yes, good times too, for 53 years of marriage to your Dad – I.m. tired”.
It would be many days of concern as we saw our Mom turn from a healthy senior with no serious health issues, to a shadow of herself, as she literally willed herself to die. She actually begged God to take her home. And, she was so ready....had written all of her obituary, had paid for most of her expenses, and helped me and my two sisters plan her "great home-going EVENT" she called it. She was 92 at her passing, and her contributions in making a better world, was a glowing testament of a life worth-lived. Her home-going was exceptional, just as she planned, with an entire community coming out to say, "thank you Ms. Thomas for a life-well-lived."..
One of her biggest contributions was her involvement as a volunteer with the American Cancer Society and October was “a very important” time for her.
My Mom, became afflicted with breast cancer, in 1965, the year before I graduated from middle school and I became part of her “care-taking team.”. MY Dad found her lump, and he often bragged about this. Despite it being a small tumor, it resulted in surgical removal of her left breast (radical mastectomy) and all the lymph nodes under her armpit. After undergoing 45 radiation and chemotherapy treatments, my Mom realized her deep desire to help other women who faced the same challenges.
She joined the “Reach To Recovery Program” of the American Cancer Society, visiting in hospitals and homes of countless, women, supporting , praying and motivating them right after their breast cancer surgeries. Eventually she became a spokesperson, featured on radio, television, and in public advertisements on behalf of the Society, encouraging women that “there is life after cancer”. For her consistent volunteerism, she was awarded the American Cancer Society’s most prestigious recognition, The Bartlett Award, named for one of their pioneers.
Although 7 years after her breast removal, she developed cancer in her hips, and again managed radiation but also incorporated a new paradigm shift in her personal treatment. She said that I had motivated her to use more natural approaches. So, she stopped smoking, became vegan, attended yoga classes, started breathing with me, and did lots of walking, stretching and danced. Mom acclaimed, in later years, that she had survived cancer for over 49 years by living a wholistic life-style of increased breathing for greater relaxation, moving, and limited medicines.
While, I was drawn to a wholistic lifestyle as early as 1970 at age 19, due in part to wanting to be a good example for my Mom’s health, I remember as a young child that I was destined to pursue this lifestyle. I was pushed into eating meat, yet was very sensitive to the fate of animals being killed for us to eat them. I remember being terrified, watching a restaurant cook boil some crabs, while they were alive, and feeling the crabs' pain. I was really into nature, plants, talked to trees, and dis-liked violence of all kinds despite my being a tom-girl who loved to physically, tackle down my older brothers on the football field. Quite an introvert, shy, a reader, a writer of poetry, observant, and super sensitive, I felt the inter-relationships of everything, especially people and their emotions. This empathic nature was recognized by my Mom early on, who was quite similar in nature, and she became my best friend and role model..
From this empathic framework as a helper and a care-taker, I wanted to know how my calm, always in control, small-framed, Mom, attracted cancer in the first place, why did it come back and what this imbalance of cancer, was really about?
I questioned the tension that I felt in my family, despite moments of love and laughter, and I really noticed tension in my body and holding my breath, whenever I was around my Dad. I remember being quite young when began to notice that he would drink something that made his behavior change, and next he would be asleep at the dinner table. I would wake him up and help him into bed. I thought that my Dad was just overly, tired when he fell asleep at the table.
As my Mom was getting back on her feet from her first cancer, she started working again in the day, while my Dad worked evening shifts, both federal. government workers. With their work schedule, I was given the responsibility of helping my younger sisters, 12 and 10 years younger than myself, having to miss many after-school extra-curricular activities.. I grew into adolescence, care-taking my Dad, and in some ways my Mom, too.. As the middle-child, it seemed like I was always the “peace-maker”.. I was “wired” to be a helper and by age 15, I declared I wanted to be a social worker.
But, there was an undercurrent that was not peaceful and I started feeling the tension in my family, more and more. My Dad, sitting alone at the dinner table having his "drink", seemed “different" after a while, going from being a joking, caring person to a person who would tease me harshly, saying unkind things about my crooked teeth comparing me to the cartoon character “Mickey Mouse”.. He made negative statements about my curly, frizzy hair, my dark-brown skin color, my thin frame, like my Mom's and as I grew breast, sexual remarks about my body. He would give us "pocket change" he called it, then demand it back. .He was nice-nasty, and you never knew what to expect from him.
I often clung to my Mom, who would tell him to leave me alone, but then he would turn on her with unkind words. I believe, because my Mom had so much grace about her, with a quiet presence, she could quietly and firmly put you in place, which is often how I remember, she handled my Dad during these increased rants. You seldom heard her raise her voice, nor even show anger. One day, I saw him standing over her on the stairs to their bedroom, screaming in a nasty rage, and she actually took her cigarette out of her mouth, and without a word, put it to his arm and burned him, backing him off.
When I look back at my Mom, her manner of dealing with my Dad, must have created a strained peace that went on for years, and that this internalized stress, anger and frustration, eventually became the emotional root of the imbalance from which the serious illness of cancer came from. My Mom survived, ironically, with the help of my Dad, who also was nice-nasty with her, nurturing and loving one moment, then verbally abusive the next.
As I matured, Dad became more verbally abusive and sexual in his language towards me and my girlfriends. However, one day, he made sexual remarks about me, to a male friend, breaking into our phone call. When I confronted him, he physically slammed me into a wooden dresser, then began to beat me, until my brothers stopped him. Totally fed up with pain, I decided to run away from home, to get away from my Dad, leaving out to New York with no plan or connections, which meant, I came right back home after my weekend retreat. I was age 17.
By age 19, I ran away again, this time to Okinawa, to marry my high school sweetheart who had joined the Air Force to get out of his toxic home environment and here, we were introduced to smoking marijuana, dropping pills, drinking and using substances for recreation.. Returning home after 9 months, I pursued my dream of working with people, and went to college to become a human services professional and my husband, Damani, went to work in the federal government at a job, he didn't like.
By the 3rd year of our marriage, I realized that I was re-creating the relationship I had grown up with, watching my Dad and Mom. As drugs and drinking became the “third party” in our relationship, I had a health scare, as my breast thickened, and test showed that I too was at risk for breast cancer. I was truly into wholistic health now, and at the same time, was incongruent with self-abusive behavior with drugs and alcohol. I spoke to Mom to probe deeper into her early childhood, in order to discover how the seeds of her emotions had played into her journey with cancer, to better understand my body.
She shared that while born and raised in Washington, D.C., her grandparents had struggled to leave the South, Rocky Mountain, N.C. so her Mom dealt with serious poverty during the “Great Depression” of the ‘30’s. She had one brother, Gilbert Mitchell, who was 8 years older than her. Because her Dad, left his wife, son and my Mom when she was only a year old, her brother ended up serving as her father figure. I believe, he must have been a good guy, who loved jazz, dressing dapper, who worked as a porter at the Supreme Court. It is from him that my Mom gained a positive perspective about men and parenting skills..
Years later, her Dad came back to the family, just as mysteriously as he left. At the end of the week of his return, he passed out while walking with my Mom, and died that evening. Mommy shared with me, that she did forgive her Dad after he died, for abandoning her Mom and she often spoke about how forgiveness had taught her one of her most valuable lessons in her life, yet she also talked about the resentment she felt, in that she did not really know her father. and that she knew her Mom struggled.
On February 14, 1943, Doris became the wife of Morrie Ignatius Thomas, Jr., my Dad. He was a neighborhood, determined young man, who saw my Mom walking down the street and went home to his mother, and told her, that he had met his future wife. Mom shared that he pursued her assertively, with a determined, "you are the one" attitude. They married on Valentine’s Day, after a whirlwind 3 months courtship and they remained together for over 53-years, until his death. From their union, five children were born and two did not come to term. I was the 3rd born of this family.
World War II interrupted their new marriage, and when my Dad returned from his post in Europe, my Mom had, like her Mom, served as Mom and Dad to their first born, who was 3 years old by the time our Dad came back stateside. Dad returned home an alcoholic, traumatized from the death, destruction and racism he faced in the war.
Doris and Morrie were uniquely different, yet, they worked together despite their differences and many challenges, providing a loving, fun, creative and always exciting family life. So while my Dad, reminded me of "Papa was a Rolling Stone", who worked diligently at his government job for over 30 years, he partied just as hard. My Mom always reminded me of the song, "I'm Every Woman" because she was so vibrantly interested in so many things and pursuits. Since their interests were so at conflict, my Dad had the good sense to NOT curtail his Doris, who was not to be contained, like women often were at that time in the 30's- 50's. My amazing Mom would eventually achiever her dreams to be an actress, a writer and publisher of her poetry and plays; organized and directed a local theater company at age 65 that won national awards for over 25 years; danced, sang, modeled, went to Africa at age 84; and got an honorary PHD in Theater Arts. Not only was her volunteerism noted, but she won many other recognitions, along with being the comforter of so many..
Her bestowed African name "Mother Hajari Kendi, "queen mother of us all". was one such honor to her Spirit.
Years later, her Dad came back to the family, just as mysteriously as he left. At the end of the week of his return, he passed out while walking with my Mom, and died that evening. Mommy shared with me, that she did forgive her Dad after he died, for abandoning her Mom and she often spoke about how forgiveness had taught her one of her most valuable lessons in her life, yet she also talked about the resentment she felt, in that she did not really know her father. and that she knew her Mom struggled.
On February 14, 1943, Doris became the wife of Morrie Ignatius Thomas, Jr., my Dad. He was a neighborhood, determined young man, who saw my Mom walking down the street and went home to his mother, and told her, that he had met his future wife. Mom shared that he pursued her assertively, with a determined, "you are the one" attitude. They married on Valentine’s Day, after a whirlwind 3 months courtship and they remained together for over 53-years, until his death. From their union, five children were born and two did not come to term. I was the 3rd born of this family.
World War II interrupted their new marriage, and when my Dad returned from his post in Europe, my Mom had, like her Mom, served as Mom and Dad to their first born, who was 3 years old by the time our Dad came back stateside. Dad returned home an alcoholic, traumatized from the death, destruction and racism he faced in the war.
Doris and Morrie were uniquely different, yet, they worked together despite their differences and many challenges, providing a loving, fun, creative and always exciting family life. So while my Dad, reminded me of "Papa was a Rolling Stone", who worked diligently at his government job for over 30 years, he partied just as hard. My Mom always reminded me of the song, "I'm Every Woman" because she was so vibrantly interested in so many things and pursuits. Since their interests were so at conflict, my Dad had the good sense to NOT curtail his Doris, who was not to be contained, like women often were at that time in the 30's- 50's. My amazing Mom would eventually achiever her dreams to be an actress, a writer and publisher of her poetry and plays; organized and directed a local theater company at age 65 that won national awards for over 25 years; danced, sang, modeled, went to Africa at age 84; and got an honorary PHD in Theater Arts. Not only was her volunteerism noted, but she won many other recognitions, along with being the comforter of so many.. Her bestowed African name "Mother Hajari Kendi, "queen mother of us all". was one such honor to her Spirit.
As Dad would be coming home from the after-hours club, Mom would be heading out to church, as it became clear they weren't "spiritually yoked".. She started out at a Baptist church, but left in turmoil and became a member of her catholic church in Southeast, Washington, D.C, the working-class side of the city. For 50-years, she served as a member of the solidarity and the choir. She loved her church home, but also would attend other spiritual and religious services always willing to seek “God” in many mansions". I loved that she went to a Buddhist Temple, a Mosque and services at the Nation of Islam, with me, as my spirituality expanded. My father, would only pray when encouraged over a meal, and never went to any religious services, but he would help many and this perhaps was his spiritual work..
More often than not, my Mom went her way and my Dad his, but we saw more of their unified actions as they worked through their many ups and downs, including her serious health challenge with breast cancer, than his illnesses, as he succumbed at age 62, to brain and prostrate cancer, HBP, obesity, gout and alcoholism. She had weathered his extra-marital affairs, too, and seemed not surprised when a 13 year-old, showed up at his funeral stating she was his daughter.
Seems my Dad had been seriously, abused as a child by his parents, and hurt people tend to hurt people, so my Mom, quietly put up with a lot of abuse from him, to keep our family together.. We were together on the outside but not whole on the inside.
1996
At age 26, a lot of my family’s history and emotional dysfunction came crashing down on me. I held my breath a lot, felt numb, disconnected from my body, and felt angry a lot and wasn’t clear about what I was angry about. I was serving as a counselor, during, social justice work and cultural activism and actually thought I was “pissed” about all of the racism, inequality, poverty and human rights abuses that I was confronting.
I started having a health crisis with an intrauterine device infecting my fallopian tubes and the walls of my breast thickened. I was scared that I was getting breast cancer, and went to the hospital for the required tests.
Then, I took myself into therapy to gain greater insight into why was I so unhappy in my home, with my husband, Damani, a man, similar to my Dad. He was a good man, who was also emotionally abusive because he would shut down, not talk for weeks to punish me, creating distance as he physically became absent in our relationship, With both of us dependent on substance abuse, I found myself seriously depressed...
I was also having issues with allowing myself to be sexual with him, despite having 2 sons. The therapist asked me, “did I think that I had been raped or sexually abused as a child”, to which I emphatically said “Oh no way”.but did tell him that my Dad made sexual and nasty remarks about me. As we talked, he helped me see how my substance abuse was an attempt to cope with anger and diagnosed that the mental health issue of depression, comes from anger that you turn on yourself. After that session, when Damani would "disconnect", I became angrier and the drinking and drugging increased. After 9 years, I left this marriage. Changing my mind-set, my habits, and the suppressed anger that I felt from emotional abuse, I believe helped stop the thickening walls in my breast, I did not incur cancer and I took more self-care time.
But, I continued to attract other disconnected, relationships, very much like the pattern I saw in my Mom and Dad and each time, I would attract a major illness. My gall bladder enlarged, almost burst and had to be removed with relationship No.2 that lasted close to 8 years; Then a small tumor was found in my breast, with my 3rd relationship, to a man, I married from another state, not knowing him well and whose troubled past haunted our lives for over 6 years during the “crack-cocaine” epidemic in D.C.
By now, I.m really into wholistic health, and have gained several certificates in various forms of “breathwork”. I realize now the correlation between emotions and health, so I do a deep dive into breathing, meditation, watched my anger, and worked with my diet. The tumor goes away, once I address how traumatized I felt chasing this man down, in “crack houses”, and being physically and verbally abused in the streets of our home-town. Then, my son Rashid was killed at age 17 (another story), and 2 years later, my Dad laid dying with brain cancer.
Again, I.m. depressed, angry beyond rage, and can barely breathe. The walls of my breast begin to thicken again, and I.m. told that I should consider some type of invasive treatment for the issue. Instead, I take a course, in 1996, in a different, breathing method, called conscious –connected breathing, and get certified as a Transformational Facilitator. This training uncovered and released all the stuck, suppressed emotional anger and subconscious memory of trauma stored within.
After 3 sessions, in which I kicked, screamed and fought off something, the 4th session revealed that I had been fighting off my Dad. I reclaimed the image of him coming into my bedroom after his evening work shift to touch my breasts, fondle me with hugs and kisses and put me on his private area to "ride" him up and down. The trauma of this behavior, for an 8 year old, who silently dealt with these sexual acts, until I was almost age 13 was too much for my young mind to handle, so my mind blocked them out on the conscious level to be stored as stuck energy on the sub-conscious level.
Yet, the trauma laid frozen in my neural pathways, showing up as numbness, anger, guilt and shame turned upon myself which lead to depression. I only felt stimulated and alive as I coped by drinking and drugging and I learned that energy never dies..
This discovery at age 40 something, was life-changing for me, as I felt liberated, restored and transformed from years of held trauma, and I made a commitment to myself to keep up my own personal sessions. Thank God I discovered, conscious connected breathing, along with other breathing techniques, cathartic movements, release work, journaling and disconnecting from the negative energies around me, as all of these modalities sustained me to cope effectively with a succession of adversities within a 6 years span..
My first husband, Damani, who when we divorced, became one of my best friends., died at age 50, after a long illness connected with his years of substance abuse.
Then his mom, my mother-in-law and his dad, my father-in-law passed one month apart from each other. Because the deaths were so close together, there was no time to change legal paperwork, which cause mass confusion which eventually lead to the eviction from their house and eventual homelessness twice. Then, I dealt with incarceration of my second son; and the deaths of many of his friends.
I would later have to breathe through the untimely deaths of both my brothers and the divorce from my 2nd husband. By then, I was working and breathing with hundreds of thousands around the world on radio, t.v., in print and in private practice, using my own system of breath techniques, called Optimum Life Breathology (O.L.B.) which included conscious –connected breathing.
At this writing, I.have been addiction free now for over 25 years and in this time, have weathered the ups and downs of my 4th marriage with my addiction-free, husband John. I;.ve had no more breast concerns and no major health issues
I have also been able to forgive my Dad, who I don’t demonize, but had to be truthful to myself and to my community, that his emotional pain caused serious damage to me, and my family. I found out, that he also inappropriately touched and made sexual advances to other members of our family and to some of my friends. I started speaking on radio about my personal journey as I studied more about trauma and breathed more, gaining greater insights.
In the last years of my Mom’s life, I shared that I had been verbally, mentally and sexually abused by my Dad, her husband, just so I could be authentic and truthful to her during a family gathering. Somehow, the issues of sexual abuse and domestic violence was raised as the root concern of her breast cancer, my scares with breast cancer and my mental health concerns with chronic stress, depression and addiction.
Instead of "stuffing" it down and hiding it, this time, I shared the painful story.. My Mom’s eyes teared up, as she admitted that she often suspected that her husband had done “terrible things” to me, and to others, and she often questioned had she done enough to protect us, as she realized that 4 of her 5 children had, had difficulties with some sort of self-abuse with drugs and alcohol, along with relationship dysfunctions. She apologized for not doing all that she could, and described that in those days, within African American communities, there were many “hidden secrets” of sexual abuse; emotional, physical and mental acts of domestic violence; as well as all levels of child molestation. My Mom thanked me for going public with this issue and encouraged me to continue, even if it meant exposing our Dad’s reputation.
In her name, I continue to share my story and hers, so that the truth may set us all free, not only during the October month of Breast Cancer and Domestic Violence Awareness month, but as often as I.m. able to speak up for survivors, the voiceless and those who are seeking remedies for the emotional link to their health concerns. Every October, I thank my Mom, for giving me permission to share freely, as we are still saving lives, helping many become more than survivors, but “thrivers”..
Here is an article on the emotional link to breast cancer that I found very helpful, and felt that it should be shared
http://www.naturalhealthjourneys.org/2018/02/24/breast-cancer-emotional-health/
As I have continued to help millions on radio, t.v., in print and on stage as a Breathologist and Breathwork facilitator, presenter, and workshop leader, I have been so blessed to share my story of the connection between our breathing and our emotions, health; addictions, domestic violence, conflict resolution de-escalation and cultural, intergenerational, collective trauma. I share here, my personal story, to say, I.m. so thankful to the Creator for blessing me with a solution and a tool to open up suppressed emotional energy blocks before they become illnesses.
Through my wholistic service, PositivEnergyWorks, we offer on-line courses, certifications, on-line presentations and telehealth in Transcendence Breathwork and my signature O.L.B. system to also advance our healing with 60 or more, stress-related, oxygen deprivation, mental health disorders.
We encourage you to breathe better to live better as “the simplest thing we can do to make the most critical impact on our Spirits, Minds and Bodies". I share from experience and training, that "you must feel it to heal it". By simply changing our breathing to change our out-comes, we eliminate long-held, unconscious painful cellular memories that are emotionally and physically toxic. Using breathing as a self-care, tool is free, always available and accessible 24/7, so now, in the times we live in, we encourage you to Breathe Better to Live Better because there is “power in the breath”. Come breathe with us, to regain your power and PositivEnergy to become more than a “survivor” advancing as a “thriver”.
By Ayo Handy-Kendi, the Breath Sekou
I know this is a long article, but, if you are dealing with breast cancer or domestic violence, and seeing some health imbalances this is a most read for you
\ To me, it was no coincidence that in October, the month of Breast Cancer and Domestic Violence Awareness Month, that just before mid-night of Saturday, October 28, 2017, my mom, Doris A.M. Thomas, quietly slipped away to “go home” to her Maker, with me, and my sisters, Maria and Donna folding clothes in her bedroom.
She had announced to me and the family, in early August of that year, that she was ready to move on because she was tired of living and had done everything that she ever wanted to do. I knew she had a serious determination, what she called her motto, “the will to live”, and I had seen this “will” many times in my life-time, so I tried to challenge her to stay.
She was a Diva and the rock that was stead-fast for her marriage, her family, her community, her church, her jobs, then her business she started at age 65, and as the founder of her group, the Cameo Club, which spear-headed the service work of the District of Columbia, Ms. Senior D.C. Pageant. Ironically, she went to the annual. Pagent in August, and listened as she was described as the oldest of the Ms. Senior D.C. Queens, crowned in 1972. But she told me after the great program that honored her, “that this would be her last pageant. She said quite calmly with resolve, “I’ve survived cancer twice, and survived the death of my husband’s brain cancer, along with the untimely deaths of both my sons and grandson, and a whole lot of confusion, abuse, and yes, good times too, for 53 years of marriage to your Dad – I.m. tired”.
It would be many days of concern as we saw our Mom turn from a healthy senior with no serious health issues, to a shadow of herself, as she literally willed herself to die. She actually begged God to take her home. And, she was so ready....had written all of her obituary, had paid for most of her expenses, and helped me and my two sisters plan her "great home-going EVENT" she called it. She was 92 at her passing, and her contributions in making a better world, was a glowing testament of a life worth-lived. Her home-going was exceptional, just as she planned, with an entire community coming out to say, "thank you Ms. Thomas for a life-well-lived."..
One of her biggest contributions was her involvement as a volunteer with the American Cancer Society and October was “a very important” time for her.
My Mom, became afflicted with breast cancer, in 1965, the year before I graduated from middle school and I became part of her “care-taking team.”. MY Dad found her lump, and he often bragged about this. Despite it being a small tumor, it resulted in surgical removal of her left breast (radical mastectomy) and all the lymph nodes under her armpit. After undergoing 45 radiation and chemotherapy treatments, my Mom realized her deep desire to help other women who faced the same challenges.
She joined the “Reach To Recovery Program” of the American Cancer Society, visiting in hospitals and homes of countless, women, supporting , praying and motivating them right after their breast cancer surgeries. Eventually she became a spokesperson, featured on radio, television, and in public advertisements on behalf of the Society, encouraging women that “there is life after cancer”. For her consistent volunteerism, she was awarded the American Cancer Society’s most prestigious recognition, The Bartlett Award, named for one of their pioneers.
Although 7 years after her breast removal, she developed cancer in her hips, and again managed radiation but also incorporated a new paradigm shift in her personal treatment. She said that I had motivated her to use more natural approaches. So, she stopped smoking, became vegan, attended yoga classes, started breathing with me, and did lots of walking, stretching and danced. Mom acclaimed, in later years, that she had survived cancer for over 49 years by living a wholistic life-style of increased breathing for greater relaxation, moving, and limited medicines.
While, I was drawn to a wholistic lifestyle as early as 1970 at age 19, due in part to wanting to be a good example for my Mom’s health, I remember as a young child that I was destined to pursue this lifestyle. I was pushed into eating meat, yet was very sensitive to the fate of animals being killed for us to eat them. I remember being terrified, watching a restaurant cook boil some crabs, while they were alive, and feeling the crabs' pain. I was really into nature, plants, talked to trees, and dis-liked violence of all kinds despite my being a tom-girl who loved to physically, tackle down my older brothers on the football field. Quite an introvert, shy, a reader, a writer of poetry, observant, and super sensitive, I felt the inter-relationships of everything, especially people and their emotions. This empathic nature was recognized by my Mom early on, who was quite similar in nature, and she became my best friend and role model..
From this empathic framework as a helper and a care-taker, I wanted to know how my calm, always in control, small-framed, Mom, attracted cancer in the first place, why did it come back and what this imbalance of cancer, was really about?
I questioned the tension that I felt in my family, despite moments of love and laughter, and I really noticed tension in my body and holding my breath, whenever I was around my Dad. I remember being quite young when began to notice that he would drink something that made his behavior change, and next he would be asleep at the dinner table. I would wake him up and help him into bed. I thought that my Dad was just overly, tired when he fell asleep at the table.
As my Mom was getting back on her feet from her first cancer, she started working again in the day, while my Dad worked evening shifts, both federal. government workers. With their work schedule, I was given the responsibility of helping my younger sisters, 12 and 10 years younger than myself, having to miss many after-school extra-curricular activities.. I grew into adolescence, care-taking my Dad, and in some ways my Mom, too.. As the middle-child, it seemed like I was always the “peace-maker”.. I was “wired” to be a helper and by age 15, I declared I wanted to be a social worker.
But, there was an undercurrent that was not peaceful and I started feeling the tension in my family, more and more. My Dad, sitting alone at the dinner table having his "drink", seemed “different" after a while, going from being a joking, caring person to a person who would tease me harshly, saying unkind things about my crooked teeth comparing me to the cartoon character “Mickey Mouse”.. He made negative statements about my curly, frizzy hair, my dark-brown skin color, my thin frame, like my Mom's and as I grew breast, sexual remarks about my body. He would give us "pocket change" he called it, then demand it back. .He was nice-nasty, and you never knew what to expect from him.
I often clung to my Mom, who would tell him to leave me alone, but then he would turn on her with unkind words. I believe, because my Mom had so much grace about her, with a quiet presence, she could quietly and firmly put you in place, which is often how I remember, she handled my Dad during these increased rants. You seldom heard her raise her voice, nor even show anger. One day, I saw him standing over her on the stairs to their bedroom, screaming in a nasty rage, and she actually took her cigarette out of her mouth, and without a word, put it to his arm and burned him, backing him off.
When I look back at my Mom, her manner of dealing with my Dad, must have created a strained peace that went on for years, and that this internalized stress, anger and frustration, eventually became the emotional root of the imbalance from which the serious illness of cancer came from. My Mom survived, ironically, with the help of my Dad, who also was nice-nasty with her, nurturing and loving one moment, then verbally abusive the next.
As I matured, Dad became more verbally abusive and sexual in his language towards me and my girlfriends. However, one day, he made sexual remarks about me, to a male friend, breaking into our phone call. When I confronted him, he physically slammed me into a wooden dresser, then began to beat me, until my brothers stopped him. Totally fed up with pain, I decided to run away from home, to get away from my Dad, leaving out to New York with no plan or connections, which meant, I came right back home after my weekend retreat. I was age 17.
By age 19, I ran away again, this time to Okinawa, to marry my high school sweetheart who had joined the Air Force to get out of his toxic home environment and here, we were introduced to smoking marijuana, dropping pills, drinking and using substances for recreation.. Returning home after 9 months, I pursued my dream of working with people, and went to college to become a human services professional and my husband, Damani, went to work in the federal government at a job, he didn't like.
By the 3rd year of our marriage, I realized that I was re-creating the relationship I had grown up with, watching my Dad and Mom. As drugs and drinking became the “third party” in our relationship, I had a health scare, as my breast thickened, and test showed that I too was at risk for breast cancer. I was truly into wholistic health now, and at the same time, was incongruent with self-abusive behavior with drugs and alcohol. I spoke to Mom to probe deeper into her early childhood, in order to discover how the seeds of her emotions had played into her journey with cancer, to better understand my body.
She shared that while born and raised in Washington, D.C., her grandparents had struggled to leave the South, Rocky Mountain, N.C. so her Mom dealt with serious poverty during the “Great Depression” of the ‘30’s. She had one brother, Gilbert Mitchell, who was 8 years older than her. Because her Dad, left his wife, son and my Mom when she was only a year old, her brother ended up serving as her father figure. I believe, he must have been a good guy, who loved jazz, dressing dapper, who worked as a porter at the Supreme Court. It is from him that my Mom gained a positive perspective about men and parenting skills..
Years later, her Dad came back to the family, just as mysteriously as he left. At the end of the week of his return, he passed out while walking with my Mom, and died that evening. Mommy shared with me, that she did forgive her Dad after he died, for abandoning her Mom and she often spoke about how forgiveness had taught her one of her most valuable lessons in her life, yet she also talked about the resentment she felt, in that she did not really know her father. and that she knew her Mom struggled.
On February 14, 1943, Doris became the wife of Morrie Ignatius Thomas, Jr., my Dad. He was a neighborhood, determined young man, who saw my Mom walking down the street and went home to his mother, and told her, that he had met his future wife. Mom shared that he pursued her assertively, with a determined, "you are the one" attitude. They married on Valentine’s Day, after a whirlwind 3 months courtship and they remained together for over 53-years, until his death. From their union, five children were born and two did not come to term. I was the 3rd born of this family.
World War II interrupted their new marriage, and when my Dad returned from his post in Europe, my Mom had, like her Mom, served as Mom and Dad to their first born, who was 3 years old by the time our Dad came back stateside. Dad returned home an alcoholic, traumatized from the death, destruction and racism he faced in the war.
Doris and Morrie were uniquely different, yet, they worked together despite their differences and many challenges, providing a loving, fun, creative and always exciting family life. So while my Dad, reminded me of "Papa was a Rolling Stone", who worked diligently at his government job for over 30 years, he partied just as hard. My Mom always reminded me of the song, "I'm Every Woman" because she was so vibrantly interested in so many things and pursuits. Since their interests were so at conflict, my Dad had the good sense to NOT curtail his Doris, who was not to be contained, like women often were at that time in the 30's- 50's. My amazing Mom would eventually achiever her dreams to be an actress, a writer and publisher of her poetry and plays; organized and directed a local theater company at age 65 that won national awards for over 25 years; danced, sang, modeled, went to Africa at age 84; and got an honorary PHD in Theater Arts. Not only was her volunteerism noted, but she won many other recognitions, along with being the comforter of so many..
Her bestowed African name "Mother Hajari Kendi, "queen mother of us all". was one such honor to her Spirit.
Years later, her Dad came back to the family, just as mysteriously as he left. At the end of the week of his return, he passed out while walking with my Mom, and died that evening. Mommy shared with me, that she did forgive her Dad after he died, for abandoning her Mom and she often spoke about how forgiveness had taught her one of her most valuable lessons in her life, yet she also talked about the resentment she felt, in that she did not really know her father. and that she knew her Mom struggled.
On February 14, 1943, Doris became the wife of Morrie Ignatius Thomas, Jr., my Dad. He was a neighborhood, determined young man, who saw my Mom walking down the street and went home to his mother, and told her, that he had met his future wife. Mom shared that he pursued her assertively, with a determined, "you are the one" attitude. They married on Valentine’s Day, after a whirlwind 3 months courtship and they remained together for over 53-years, until his death. From their union, five children were born and two did not come to term. I was the 3rd born of this family.
World War II interrupted their new marriage, and when my Dad returned from his post in Europe, my Mom had, like her Mom, served as Mom and Dad to their first born, who was 3 years old by the time our Dad came back stateside. Dad returned home an alcoholic, traumatized from the death, destruction and racism he faced in the war.
Doris and Morrie were uniquely different, yet, they worked together despite their differences and many challenges, providing a loving, fun, creative and always exciting family life. So while my Dad, reminded me of "Papa was a Rolling Stone", who worked diligently at his government job for over 30 years, he partied just as hard. My Mom always reminded me of the song, "I'm Every Woman" because she was so vibrantly interested in so many things and pursuits. Since their interests were so at conflict, my Dad had the good sense to NOT curtail his Doris, who was not to be contained, like women often were at that time in the 30's- 50's. My amazing Mom would eventually achiever her dreams to be an actress, a writer and publisher of her poetry and plays; organized and directed a local theater company at age 65 that won national awards for over 25 years; danced, sang, modeled, went to Africa at age 84; and got an honorary PHD in Theater Arts. Not only was her volunteerism noted, but she won many other recognitions, along with being the comforter of so many.. Her bestowed African name "Mother Hajari Kendi, "queen mother of us all". was one such honor to her Spirit.
As Dad would be coming home from the after-hours club, Mom would be heading out to church, as it became clear they weren't "spiritually yoked".. She started out at a Baptist church, but left in turmoil and became a member of her catholic church in Southeast, Washington, D.C, the working-class side of the city. For 50-years, she served as a member of the solidarity and the choir. She loved her church home, but also would attend other spiritual and religious services always willing to seek “God” in many mansions". I loved that she went to a Buddhist Temple, a Mosque and services at the Nation of Islam, with me, as my spirituality expanded. My father, would only pray when encouraged over a meal, and never went to any religious services, but he would help many and this perhaps was his spiritual work..
More often than not, my Mom went her way and my Dad his, but we saw more of their unified actions as they worked through their many ups and downs, including her serious health challenge with breast cancer, than his illnesses, as he succumbed at age 62, to brain and prostrate cancer, HBP, obesity, gout and alcoholism. She had weathered his extra-marital affairs, too, and seemed not surprised when a 13 year-old, showed up at his funeral stating she was his daughter.
Seems my Dad had been seriously, abused as a child by his parents, and hurt people tend to hurt people, so my Mom, quietly put up with a lot of abuse from him, to keep our family together.. We were together on the outside but not whole on the inside.
1996
At age 26, a lot of my family’s history and emotional dysfunction came crashing down on me. I held my breath a lot, felt numb, disconnected from my body, and felt angry a lot and wasn’t clear about what I was angry about. I was serving as a counselor, during, social justice work and cultural activism and actually thought I was “pissed” about all of the racism, inequality, poverty and human rights abuses that I was confronting.
I started having a health crisis with an intrauterine device infecting my fallopian tubes and the walls of my breast thickened. I was scared that I was getting breast cancer, and went to the hospital for the required tests.
Then, I took myself into therapy to gain greater insight into why was I so unhappy in my home, with my husband, Damani, a man, similar to my Dad. He was a good man, who was also emotionally abusive because he would shut down, not talk for weeks to punish me, creating distance as he physically became absent in our relationship, With both of us dependent on substance abuse, I found myself seriously depressed...
I was also having issues with allowing myself to be sexual with him, despite having 2 sons. The therapist asked me, “did I think that I had been raped or sexually abused as a child”, to which I emphatically said “Oh no way”.but did tell him that my Dad made sexual and nasty remarks about me. As we talked, he helped me see how my substance abuse was an attempt to cope with anger and diagnosed that the mental health issue of depression, comes from anger that you turn on yourself. After that session, when Damani would "disconnect", I became angrier and the drinking and drugging increased. After 9 years, I left this marriage. Changing my mind-set, my habits, and the suppressed anger that I felt from emotional abuse, I believe helped stop the thickening walls in my breast, I did not incur cancer and I took more self-care time.
But, I continued to attract other disconnected, relationships, very much like the pattern I saw in my Mom and Dad and each time, I would attract a major illness. My gall bladder enlarged, almost burst and had to be removed with relationship No.2 that lasted close to 8 years; Then a small tumor was found in my breast, with my 3rd relationship, to a man, I married from another state, not knowing him well and whose troubled past haunted our lives for over 6 years during the “crack-cocaine” epidemic in D.C.
By now, I.m really into wholistic health, and have gained several certificates in various forms of “breathwork”. I realize now the correlation between emotions and health, so I do a deep dive into breathing, meditation, watched my anger, and worked with my diet. The tumor goes away, once I address how traumatized I felt chasing this man down, in “crack houses”, and being physically and verbally abused in the streets of our home-town. Then, my son Rashid was killed at age 17 (another story), and 2 years later, my Dad laid dying with brain cancer.
Again, I.m. depressed, angry beyond rage, and can barely breathe. The walls of my breast begin to thicken again, and I.m. told that I should consider some type of invasive treatment for the issue. Instead, I take a course, in 1996, in a different, breathing method, called conscious –connected breathing, and get certified as a Transformational Facilitator. This training uncovered and released all the stuck, suppressed emotional anger and subconscious memory of trauma stored within.
After 3 sessions, in which I kicked, screamed and fought off something, the 4th session revealed that I had been fighting off my Dad. I reclaimed the image of him coming into my bedroom after his evening work shift to touch my breasts, fondle me with hugs and kisses and put me on his private area to "ride" him up and down. The trauma of this behavior, for an 8 year old, who silently dealt with these sexual acts, until I was almost age 13 was too much for my young mind to handle, so my mind blocked them out on the conscious level to be stored as stuck energy on the sub-conscious level.
Yet, the trauma laid frozen in my neural pathways, showing up as numbness, anger, guilt and shame turned upon myself which lead to depression. I only felt stimulated and alive as I coped by drinking and drugging and I learned that energy never dies..
This discovery at age 40 something, was life-changing for me, as I felt liberated, restored and transformed from years of held trauma, and I made a commitment to myself to keep up my own personal sessions. Thank God I discovered, conscious connected breathing, along with other breathing techniques, cathartic movements, release work, journaling and disconnecting from the negative energies around me, as all of these modalities sustained me to cope effectively with a succession of adversities within a 6 years span..
My first husband, Damani, who when we divorced, became one of my best friends., died at age 50, after a long illness connected with his years of substance abuse.
Then his mom, my mother-in-law and his dad, my father-in-law passed one month apart from each other. Because the deaths were so close together, there was no time to change legal paperwork, which cause mass confusion which eventually lead to the eviction from their house and eventual homelessness twice. Then, I dealt with incarceration of my second son; and the deaths of many of his friends.
I would later have to breathe through the untimely deaths of both my brothers and the divorce from my 2nd husband. By then, I was working and breathing with hundreds of thousands around the world on radio, t.v., in print and in private practice, using my own system of breath techniques, called Optimum Life Breathology (O.L.B.) which included conscious –connected breathing.
At this writing, I.have been addiction free now for over 25 years and in this time, have weathered the ups and downs of my 4th marriage with my addiction-free, husband John. I;.ve had no more breast concerns and no major health issues
I have also been able to forgive my Dad, who I don’t demonize, but had to be truthful to myself and to my community, that his emotional pain caused serious damage to me, and my family. I found out, that he also inappropriately touched and made sexual advances to other members of our family and to some of my friends. I started speaking on radio about my personal journey as I studied more about trauma and breathed more, gaining greater insights.
In the last years of my Mom’s life, I shared that I had been verbally, mentally and sexually abused by my Dad, her husband, just so I could be authentic and truthful to her during a family gathering. Somehow, the issues of sexual abuse and domestic violence was raised as the root concern of her breast cancer, my scares with breast cancer and my mental health concerns with chronic stress, depression and addiction.
Instead of "stuffing" it down and hiding it, this time, I shared the painful story.. My Mom’s eyes teared up, as she admitted that she often suspected that her husband had done “terrible things” to me, and to others, and she often questioned had she done enough to protect us, as she realized that 4 of her 5 children had, had difficulties with some sort of self-abuse with drugs and alcohol, along with relationship dysfunctions. She apologized for not doing all that she could, and described that in those days, within African American communities, there were many “hidden secrets” of sexual abuse; emotional, physical and mental acts of domestic violence; as well as all levels of child molestation. My Mom thanked me for going public with this issue and encouraged me to continue, even if it meant exposing our Dad’s reputation.
In her name, I continue to share my story and hers, so that the truth may set us all free, not only during the October month of Breast Cancer and Domestic Violence Awareness month, but as often as I.m. able to speak up for survivors, the voiceless and those who are seeking remedies for the emotional link to their health concerns. Every October, I thank my Mom, for giving me permission to share freely, as we are still saving lives, helping many become more than survivors, but “thrivers”..
Here is an article on the emotional link to breast cancer that I found very helpful, and felt that it should be shared
http://www.naturalhealthjourneys.org/2018/02/24/breast-cancer-emotional-health/
As I have continued to help millions on radio, t.v., in print and on stage as a Breathologist and Breathwork facilitator, presenter, and workshop leader, I have been so blessed to share my story of the connection between our breathing and our emotions, health; addictions, domestic violence, conflict resolution de-escalation and cultural, intergenerational, collective trauma. I share here, my personal story, to say, I.m. so thankful to the Creator for blessing me with a solution and a tool to open up suppressed emotional energy blocks before they become illnesses.
Through my wholistic service, PositivEnergyWorks, we offer on-line courses, certifications, on-line presentations and telehealth in Transcendence Breathwork and my signature O.L.B. system to also advance our healing with 60 or more, stress-related, oxygen deprivation, mental health disorders.
We encourage you to breathe better to live better as “the simplest thing we can do to make the most critical impact on our Spirits, Minds and Bodies". I share from experience and training, that "you must feel it to heal it". By simply changing our breathing to change our out-comes, we eliminate long-held, unconscious painful cellular memories that are emotionally and physically toxic. Using breathing as a self-care, tool is free, always available and accessible 24/7, so now, in the times we live in, we encourage you to Breathe Better to Live Better because there is “power in the breath”. Come breathe with us, to regain your power and PositivEnergy to become more than a “survivor” advancing as a “thriver”.
HOW TO BOOST YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM NATURALLY
https://youtu.be/LRoWmaDUTuc
Top 10 Herbs for Lung Health, Clearing Mucus, COPD, and Killing Viruses
https://youtu.be/KjwHKMjr_1o
MORINGA - See P.E.W. Products Section
https://www.positivenergyworks.com/black-business-network.html
https://youtu.be/LRoWmaDUTuc
Top 10 Herbs for Lung Health, Clearing Mucus, COPD, and Killing Viruses
https://youtu.be/KjwHKMjr_1o
MORINGA - See P.E.W. Products Section
https://www.positivenergyworks.com/black-business-network.html
7 PRINCIPLES OF POSITIVENERGY
by Ayo Handy-Kendi, The Breath Sekou,
Mastering some simple fundamentals of health and wellness can make a critical difference in life, stress management, injury healing, dis-ease support weight control, emotional balance, vitality, energy, peak performance, and living life to the fullest with purpose, inner peace and joy. We can gain understanding of wholistic living, wellness and health prevention concepts recognizing that we are the sum total of all of our parts. When we gain awareness of these basic concepts, we find that we come into an attitude of “PositivEnergy” – the ability to weather life’s many challenges with a “positive” attitude of gratitude and thinking of what we want (not what we don’t want). Where our mind goes, so does our body, so to create our own abundant health, we stay up-beat and hopeful as we practice better thinking with better choices for life/work balance.
These 7 Principles are simple to initiate with awareness and practice until you see new habits. Practice makes perfect. Be gentle with yourself. It took a long time to get to the place that you are – be consistent and expect Success in due time! We encourage group action using our PositivEnergy Approach which helps each one have support.
Principle #1: HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THAT WHICH IS HIGHER THAN YOURSELF – Some of us call this relationship “God” and there are many other names for a ”Supreme Being”. By what-ever name that you acknowledge that there is some force, realm, or identity bigger and higher than yourself, you become more conscious that “you have a co-creation role” of which your responsibility is to be intentional in your desire and put your desire into action. Out of belief comes hope, possibilities and miracles. You also stay connected to a larger universe than yourself as all humanity reminds you that you are not alone in your efforts.
Principle #2: RELEARN HOW TO BREATHE Breath is life and there is life in the breath. With better breathing we optimize the essential element of life – oxygen- which increases every metabolic function in the body at the cellular level as the first nutrient and detoxifies waste. Breath is the connection between the Spirit, the Mind and the Body. Ineffective breathing puts us at great risks to 60 or more imbalances. Elevate on every level through “Breathology” for the “Power of the Breath” for better life, health, work and longevity.
Principle #3: DRINK WATER – Here’s the oxygen need, now in liquid form, as the body is made up from 60- 75% (some say more) of water. Water is the second oxygen nourishment, feeding on the cellular level while providing detoxification of the waste matter of the cells and the chemical stimulant that turns the cells on. Better hydration reverses many dis-eases.
Principle #4: PROPER NUTRITION – Many live to eat instead of eat to live. Nutrition provides essential nourishment to the cells that offer repair, growth, stimulation and detoxification for maximum life. Better choices include raw and live food preparation; wholesome instead of depleted nourishment; greater variety of food choices; better food mixing; supplements – all aid in greater intake of oxygen, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, amino acids and proper elimination.
Principle #5: MOVEMENT – The body and the mind must move to circulate oxygen and nutrients. Walk, stand more than sit, and exercise. Without movement of body or mind, we become stiff, stagnant and inflexible. Bone fluid most move.
Principle #6: REST/DESTRESS - The Spirit, Mind and Body must have rest, relaxation, and time for reflection. We must re-charge and not be “on” all of the time. The release of stress is critical as stress is a silent killer affecting every system of the body.
Principle #7: DETOXIFICATION - To bring in the good we must let go of the waste and toxicity. This includes caustic chemicals, household products, skin or hair care products, foods and medicines. People and environments can be toxic, too. Try natural alternatives and simplify for results.
Ayo Handy-Kendi is “The Breath Sekou”, a master teacher of Breathology, a wholistic practitioner of many modalities,, storyteller, speaker, author cultural/spiritual facilitator. www.PositivEnergyWorks.com; email: [email protected] or 202-667-2577
by Ayo Handy-Kendi, The Breath Sekou,
Mastering some simple fundamentals of health and wellness can make a critical difference in life, stress management, injury healing, dis-ease support weight control, emotional balance, vitality, energy, peak performance, and living life to the fullest with purpose, inner peace and joy. We can gain understanding of wholistic living, wellness and health prevention concepts recognizing that we are the sum total of all of our parts. When we gain awareness of these basic concepts, we find that we come into an attitude of “PositivEnergy” – the ability to weather life’s many challenges with a “positive” attitude of gratitude and thinking of what we want (not what we don’t want). Where our mind goes, so does our body, so to create our own abundant health, we stay up-beat and hopeful as we practice better thinking with better choices for life/work balance.
These 7 Principles are simple to initiate with awareness and practice until you see new habits. Practice makes perfect. Be gentle with yourself. It took a long time to get to the place that you are – be consistent and expect Success in due time! We encourage group action using our PositivEnergy Approach which helps each one have support.
Principle #1: HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THAT WHICH IS HIGHER THAN YOURSELF – Some of us call this relationship “God” and there are many other names for a ”Supreme Being”. By what-ever name that you acknowledge that there is some force, realm, or identity bigger and higher than yourself, you become more conscious that “you have a co-creation role” of which your responsibility is to be intentional in your desire and put your desire into action. Out of belief comes hope, possibilities and miracles. You also stay connected to a larger universe than yourself as all humanity reminds you that you are not alone in your efforts.
Principle #2: RELEARN HOW TO BREATHE Breath is life and there is life in the breath. With better breathing we optimize the essential element of life – oxygen- which increases every metabolic function in the body at the cellular level as the first nutrient and detoxifies waste. Breath is the connection between the Spirit, the Mind and the Body. Ineffective breathing puts us at great risks to 60 or more imbalances. Elevate on every level through “Breathology” for the “Power of the Breath” for better life, health, work and longevity.
Principle #3: DRINK WATER – Here’s the oxygen need, now in liquid form, as the body is made up from 60- 75% (some say more) of water. Water is the second oxygen nourishment, feeding on the cellular level while providing detoxification of the waste matter of the cells and the chemical stimulant that turns the cells on. Better hydration reverses many dis-eases.
Principle #4: PROPER NUTRITION – Many live to eat instead of eat to live. Nutrition provides essential nourishment to the cells that offer repair, growth, stimulation and detoxification for maximum life. Better choices include raw and live food preparation; wholesome instead of depleted nourishment; greater variety of food choices; better food mixing; supplements – all aid in greater intake of oxygen, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, amino acids and proper elimination.
Principle #5: MOVEMENT – The body and the mind must move to circulate oxygen and nutrients. Walk, stand more than sit, and exercise. Without movement of body or mind, we become stiff, stagnant and inflexible. Bone fluid most move.
Principle #6: REST/DESTRESS - The Spirit, Mind and Body must have rest, relaxation, and time for reflection. We must re-charge and not be “on” all of the time. The release of stress is critical as stress is a silent killer affecting every system of the body.
Principle #7: DETOXIFICATION - To bring in the good we must let go of the waste and toxicity. This includes caustic chemicals, household products, skin or hair care products, foods and medicines. People and environments can be toxic, too. Try natural alternatives and simplify for results.
Ayo Handy-Kendi is “The Breath Sekou”, a master teacher of Breathology, a wholistic practitioner of many modalities,, storyteller, speaker, author cultural/spiritual facilitator. www.PositivEnergyWorks.com; email: [email protected] or 202-667-2577
COVID HAS MADE US REALLY HAVE TO FOCUS ON THE BREATH OF LIFE.
SO Here at P.E.W. we focused this month on "Gratitude.". .
As always there is a lot of "stuff" going on in the world. But, I care to dwell in the good feeling, of "PositivEnergy", that charged up attitude that focuses on being thankful for what I have,
compared to what I don't have. And being grateful for the blessings,
be they small or large. Now, it isn't easy to be grateful when so much around you looks so bleak.
We got some serious issues going on in the world and I don't even have to name them....
Yet, we have life itself. We have the opportunity to turn our low energy,
small bank accounts, challenged health and relationships, all around.
We are alive, or let's hope that we are truly alive
with full breath flowing abundantly in our bodies, minds and spirits.
So this month we breathe in "Gratitude" and we breathe away the blues...holiday blues,
Donald Trump blues....election blues...whatever could be making you blue, blues.....
And we breathe in life. Abundant life,
Grateful for life. Gratitude for all that life has given us and all that is yet to come.
This month, In deep Gratitude,
we appreciate the Veterans who served willingly.
We give thanks to Native Americans this month
for how their Ancestry is so much a part of ALL Americans.
We honor some dearly departed who played a great significance in my life and in many communities.
And on the day we call Thanksgiving, we share a simpler message.
Be in Gratitude for what you have and breathe away any lack or limitation for what you don't.
We will help you breathe and be in gratitude so that this principle of appreciation,
this attitude of gratitude, will shift your life and expand your "positivEnergy" with each breath..
Join the Breath Movement. to breathe in gratitude.
Ayo Handy-Kendiy, the Breath Sekou
SO Here at P.E.W. we focused this month on "Gratitude.". .
As always there is a lot of "stuff" going on in the world. But, I care to dwell in the good feeling, of "PositivEnergy", that charged up attitude that focuses on being thankful for what I have,
compared to what I don't have. And being grateful for the blessings,
be they small or large. Now, it isn't easy to be grateful when so much around you looks so bleak.
We got some serious issues going on in the world and I don't even have to name them....
Yet, we have life itself. We have the opportunity to turn our low energy,
small bank accounts, challenged health and relationships, all around.
We are alive, or let's hope that we are truly alive
with full breath flowing abundantly in our bodies, minds and spirits.
So this month we breathe in "Gratitude" and we breathe away the blues...holiday blues,
Donald Trump blues....election blues...whatever could be making you blue, blues.....
And we breathe in life. Abundant life,
Grateful for life. Gratitude for all that life has given us and all that is yet to come.
This month, In deep Gratitude,
we appreciate the Veterans who served willingly.
We give thanks to Native Americans this month
for how their Ancestry is so much a part of ALL Americans.
We honor some dearly departed who played a great significance in my life and in many communities.
And on the day we call Thanksgiving, we share a simpler message.
Be in Gratitude for what you have and breathe away any lack or limitation for what you don't.
We will help you breathe and be in gratitude so that this principle of appreciation,
this attitude of gratitude, will shift your life and expand your "positivEnergy" with each breath..
Join the Breath Movement. to breathe in gratitude.
Ayo Handy-Kendiy, the Breath Sekou
CORONA VIRUS INFORMATION FROM PATHOLOGIST JAMES ROBB
The below “Dear Colleague” email came to me yesterday…maybe you got it too as it’s gone viral in the last week or so
It’s from a pathologist/molecular virologist, James Robb, MD FCAP, who has been studying the corona virus since the 70s. I verified that he is a real person and in deed wrote the letter for his family and friends but then it got shared via social media, causing it to go viral.
Here’s more about him:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Robb_(pathologist)
And verification from “Snopes” that he did write it and his comment on zinc as a possible prophylactic measure:
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/zinc-lozenges-coronavirus/
Regardless of his warnings and guidance, there is still no need for hysteria; instead just calm, prudent, diligent protective action, like we would do during any flu season. He gives some good advice below.
Here’s his letter:
Dear Colleagues, as some of you may recall, when I was a professor of pathology at the University of California San Diego, I was one of the first molecular virologists in the world to work on coronaviruses (the 1970s). I was the first to demonstrate the number of genes the virus contained. Since then, I have kept up with the coronavirus field and its multiple clinical transfers into the human population (e.g., SARS, MERS), from different animal sources.
The current projections for its expansion in the US are only probable, due to continued insufficient worldwide data, but it is most likely to be widespread in the US by mid to late March and April.
Here is what I have done and the precautions that I take and will take. These are the same precautions I currently use during our influenza seasons, except for the mask and gloves:
1) NO HANDSHAKING! Use a fist bump, slight bow, elbow bump, etc.
2) Use ONLY your knuckle to touch light switches. elevator buttons, etc.. Lift the gasoline dispenser with a paper towel or use a disposable glove.
3) Open doors with your closed fist or hip - do not grasp the handle with your hand, unless there is no other way to open the door. Especially important on bathroom and post office/commercial doors.
4) Use disinfectant wipes at the stores when they are available, including wiping the handle and child seat in grocery carts.
5) Wash your hands with soap for 10-20 seconds and/or use a greater than 60% alcohol-based hand sanitizer whenever you return home from ANY activity that involves locations where other people have been.
6) Keep a bottle of sanitizer available at each of your home's entrances. AND in your car for use after getting gas or touching other contaminated objects when you can't immediately wash your hands.
7) If possible, cough or sneeze into a disposable tissue and discard. Use your elbow only if you have to. The clothing on your elbow will contain infectious virus that can be passed on for up to a week or more!
What I have stocked in preparation for the pandemic spread to the US:
1) Latex or nitrile latex disposable gloves for use when going shopping, using the gasoline pump, and all other outside activity when you come in contact with contaminated areas. Note: This virus is spread in large droplets by coughing and sneezing. This means that the air will not infect you! BUT all the surfaces where these droplets land are infectious for about a week on average - everything that is associated with infected people will be contaminated and potentially infectious. The virus is on surfaces and you will not be infected unless your unprotected face is directly coughed or sneezed upon. This virus only has cell receptors for lung cells (it only infects your lungs) The only way for the virus to infect you is through your nose or mouth via your hands or an infected cough or sneeze onto or into your nose or mouth.
2) Stock up now with disposable surgical masks and use them to prevent you from touching your nose and/or mouth (We touch our nose/mouth 90X/day without knowing it!). This is the only way this virus can infect you - it is lung-specific. The mask will not prevent the virus in a direct sneeze from getting into your nose or mouth - it is only to keep you from touching your nose or mouth.
3) Stock up now with hand sanitizers and latex/nitrile gloves (get the appropriate sizes for your family). The hand sanitizers must be alcohol-based and greater than 60% alcohol to be effective.
4) Stock up now with zinc lozenges. These lozenges have been proven to be effective in blocking coronavirus (and most other viruses) from multiplying in your throat and nasopharynx. Use as directed several times each day when you begin to feel ANY "cold-like" symptoms beginning. It is best to lie down and let the lozenge dissolve in the back of your throat and nasopharynx. Cold-Eeze lozenges is one brand available, but there are other brands available.
I, as many others do, hope that this pandemic will be reasonably contained, BUT I personally do not think it will be. Humans have never seen this snake-associated virus before and have no internal defense against it. Tremendous worldwide efforts are being made to understand the molecular and clinical virology of this virus. Unbelievable molecular knowledge about the genomics, structure, and virulence of this virus has already been achieved. BUT, there will be NO drugs or vaccines available this year to protect us or limit the infection within us. Only symptomatic support is available.
I hope these personal thoughts will be helpful during this potentially catastrophic pandemic. You are welcome to share this email.
Good luck to all of us! James Robb, MD FCAP
It’s from a pathologist/molecular virologist, James Robb, MD FCAP, who has been studying the corona virus since the 70s. I verified that he is a real person and in deed wrote the letter for his family and friends but then it got shared via social media, causing it to go viral.
Here’s more about him:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Robb_(pathologist)
And verification from “Snopes” that he did write it and his comment on zinc as a possible prophylactic measure:
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/zinc-lozenges-coronavirus/
Regardless of his warnings and guidance, there is still no need for hysteria; instead just calm, prudent, diligent protective action, like we would do during any flu season. He gives some good advice below.
Here’s his letter:
Dear Colleagues, as some of you may recall, when I was a professor of pathology at the University of California San Diego, I was one of the first molecular virologists in the world to work on coronaviruses (the 1970s). I was the first to demonstrate the number of genes the virus contained. Since then, I have kept up with the coronavirus field and its multiple clinical transfers into the human population (e.g., SARS, MERS), from different animal sources.
The current projections for its expansion in the US are only probable, due to continued insufficient worldwide data, but it is most likely to be widespread in the US by mid to late March and April.
Here is what I have done and the precautions that I take and will take. These are the same precautions I currently use during our influenza seasons, except for the mask and gloves:
1) NO HANDSHAKING! Use a fist bump, slight bow, elbow bump, etc.
2) Use ONLY your knuckle to touch light switches. elevator buttons, etc.. Lift the gasoline dispenser with a paper towel or use a disposable glove.
3) Open doors with your closed fist or hip - do not grasp the handle with your hand, unless there is no other way to open the door. Especially important on bathroom and post office/commercial doors.
4) Use disinfectant wipes at the stores when they are available, including wiping the handle and child seat in grocery carts.
5) Wash your hands with soap for 10-20 seconds and/or use a greater than 60% alcohol-based hand sanitizer whenever you return home from ANY activity that involves locations where other people have been.
6) Keep a bottle of sanitizer available at each of your home's entrances. AND in your car for use after getting gas or touching other contaminated objects when you can't immediately wash your hands.
7) If possible, cough or sneeze into a disposable tissue and discard. Use your elbow only if you have to. The clothing on your elbow will contain infectious virus that can be passed on for up to a week or more!
What I have stocked in preparation for the pandemic spread to the US:
1) Latex or nitrile latex disposable gloves for use when going shopping, using the gasoline pump, and all other outside activity when you come in contact with contaminated areas. Note: This virus is spread in large droplets by coughing and sneezing. This means that the air will not infect you! BUT all the surfaces where these droplets land are infectious for about a week on average - everything that is associated with infected people will be contaminated and potentially infectious. The virus is on surfaces and you will not be infected unless your unprotected face is directly coughed or sneezed upon. This virus only has cell receptors for lung cells (it only infects your lungs) The only way for the virus to infect you is through your nose or mouth via your hands or an infected cough or sneeze onto or into your nose or mouth.
2) Stock up now with disposable surgical masks and use them to prevent you from touching your nose and/or mouth (We touch our nose/mouth 90X/day without knowing it!). This is the only way this virus can infect you - it is lung-specific. The mask will not prevent the virus in a direct sneeze from getting into your nose or mouth - it is only to keep you from touching your nose or mouth.
3) Stock up now with hand sanitizers and latex/nitrile gloves (get the appropriate sizes for your family). The hand sanitizers must be alcohol-based and greater than 60% alcohol to be effective.
4) Stock up now with zinc lozenges. These lozenges have been proven to be effective in blocking coronavirus (and most other viruses) from multiplying in your throat and nasopharynx. Use as directed several times each day when you begin to feel ANY "cold-like" symptoms beginning. It is best to lie down and let the lozenge dissolve in the back of your throat and nasopharynx. Cold-Eeze lozenges is one brand available, but there are other brands available.
I, as many others do, hope that this pandemic will be reasonably contained, BUT I personally do not think it will be. Humans have never seen this snake-associated virus before and have no internal defense against it. Tremendous worldwide efforts are being made to understand the molecular and clinical virology of this virus. Unbelievable molecular knowledge about the genomics, structure, and virulence of this virus has already been achieved. BUT, there will be NO drugs or vaccines available this year to protect us or limit the infection within us. Only symptomatic support is available.
I hope these personal thoughts will be helpful during this potentially catastrophic pandemic. You are welcome to share this email.
Good luck to all of us! James Robb, MD FCAP
One of the most easiest, natural and highly effective mental health/wellness tools that you can use on a daily basis, is to simply be in touch with your breathing.
Our breath simply relaxes us to calm our nervous system. It boosts our immunity. It alleviates fears and anxiety. Our breathing provides everything we need when we feel attacked, overwhelmed and out of control. Breathing lifts and regulates our moods by increasing happy hormones like dopamine, helps us rest and go to sleep with the hormone of serotonin, and reduces stress by decreasing the hormone cortisol. Effective versus non-effective breathing, makes all the difference in achieving a healthy Spirit, Mind and Body.
Here's just a few "Breath Break" techniques you can try today for best mental health:
1. Stretch and make yourself yawn with inhale of breath as you lift your arms high in the air, and open the mouth wide. Fake a yawn to make a yawn. Feel immediately more relaxed as we open up the air passage (trachea) so that breathing is deeper. Do 3 or more when feeling tired, grumpy and out-of sorts.
2. When feeling emotional or overwhelmed, slow your breathing down. Connect with the breath using hand on chest near the heart and other hand on belly. Close your eyes and "just breathe". Connect with your thoughts and send love and light to them.
3. Make yourself laugh. The mind doesn't know the difference between fake laughing and real laughing. Laughter helps us breathe deeper. Talk less, breathe more is very therapeutic and healing. 10 minutes of laughter is equal to a 30 minute aerobic workouts.
4. Learn your stress signals and breathe through them.
Our breath simply relaxes us to calm our nervous system. It boosts our immunity. It alleviates fears and anxiety. Our breathing provides everything we need when we feel attacked, overwhelmed and out of control. Breathing lifts and regulates our moods by increasing happy hormones like dopamine, helps us rest and go to sleep with the hormone of serotonin, and reduces stress by decreasing the hormone cortisol. Effective versus non-effective breathing, makes all the difference in achieving a healthy Spirit, Mind and Body.
Here's just a few "Breath Break" techniques you can try today for best mental health:
1. Stretch and make yourself yawn with inhale of breath as you lift your arms high in the air, and open the mouth wide. Fake a yawn to make a yawn. Feel immediately more relaxed as we open up the air passage (trachea) so that breathing is deeper. Do 3 or more when feeling tired, grumpy and out-of sorts.
2. When feeling emotional or overwhelmed, slow your breathing down. Connect with the breath using hand on chest near the heart and other hand on belly. Close your eyes and "just breathe". Connect with your thoughts and send love and light to them.
3. Make yourself laugh. The mind doesn't know the difference between fake laughing and real laughing. Laughter helps us breathe deeper. Talk less, breathe more is very therapeutic and healing. 10 minutes of laughter is equal to a 30 minute aerobic workouts.
4. Learn your stress signals and breathe through them.
VIDEO OF THE MONTH
As enslaved African people were stolen to the Americas, they were often given guidance, survival skills, and intermixed and married into the tribes of Indigenous dwellers of the lands. When running away from enslavement, people were told to follow the "north star" to freedom. Listen to the words of this homage "North Star".by Maimouna Youssef aka "Mumu Fresh" and D Smoke. This month as we celebrate Native American Heritage Month, know of the rich Native heritage that most Americans share as we are "one" and never lose your way near the end of the year holidays..
https://youtu.be/2Ukh-binjn8
As enslaved African people were stolen to the Americas, they were often given guidance, survival skills, and intermixed and married into the tribes of Indigenous dwellers of the lands. When running away from enslavement, people were told to follow the "north star" to freedom. Listen to the words of this homage "North Star".by Maimouna Youssef aka "Mumu Fresh" and D Smoke. This month as we celebrate Native American Heritage Month, know of the rich Native heritage that most Americans share as we are "one" and never lose your way near the end of the year holidays..
https://youtu.be/2Ukh-binjn8
Being Truly Thankful - an afterthought in the days after the November celebration
Our gratitude deepens when we begin to be thankful for being alive and living the life we are living.
Often when we practice being thankful, we go through the process of counting our blessings, acknowledging the wonderful people, things and places that make up our reality. While it is fine to be grateful for the good fortune we have accumulated, true thankfulness stems from a powerful comprehension of the gift of simply being alive, and when we feel it, we feel it regardless of our circumstances. In this deep state of gratitude, we recognize the purity of the experience of being, in and of itself, and our thankfulness is part and parcel of our awareness that we are one with this great mystery that is life.
It is difficult for most of us to access this level of consciousness as we are very caught up in the ups and downs of our individual experiences in the world. The thing to remember about the world, though, is that it ebbs and flows, expands and contracts, gives and takes, and is by its very nature somewhat unreliable. If we only feel gratitude when it serves our desires, this is not true thankfulness. No one is exempt from the twists and turns of fate, which may, at any time, take the possessions, situations, and people we love away from us. Ironically, it is sometimes this kind of loss that awakens us to a thankfulness that goes deeper than just being grateful when things go our way. Illness and near-miss accidents can also serve as wake-up calls to the deeper realization that we are truly lucky to be alive.
We do not have to wait to be shaken to experience this state of being truly thankful for our lives. Tuning in to our breath and making an effort to be fully present for a set period of time each day can do wonders for our ability to connect with true gratitude. We can also awaken ourselves with the intention to be more aware of the unconditional generosity of the life force that flows through us regardless of our circumstances.
From the Daily OM
https://www.dailyom.com/
Our gratitude deepens when we begin to be thankful for being alive and living the life we are living.
Often when we practice being thankful, we go through the process of counting our blessings, acknowledging the wonderful people, things and places that make up our reality. While it is fine to be grateful for the good fortune we have accumulated, true thankfulness stems from a powerful comprehension of the gift of simply being alive, and when we feel it, we feel it regardless of our circumstances. In this deep state of gratitude, we recognize the purity of the experience of being, in and of itself, and our thankfulness is part and parcel of our awareness that we are one with this great mystery that is life.
It is difficult for most of us to access this level of consciousness as we are very caught up in the ups and downs of our individual experiences in the world. The thing to remember about the world, though, is that it ebbs and flows, expands and contracts, gives and takes, and is by its very nature somewhat unreliable. If we only feel gratitude when it serves our desires, this is not true thankfulness. No one is exempt from the twists and turns of fate, which may, at any time, take the possessions, situations, and people we love away from us. Ironically, it is sometimes this kind of loss that awakens us to a thankfulness that goes deeper than just being grateful when things go our way. Illness and near-miss accidents can also serve as wake-up calls to the deeper realization that we are truly lucky to be alive.
We do not have to wait to be shaken to experience this state of being truly thankful for our lives. Tuning in to our breath and making an effort to be fully present for a set period of time each day can do wonders for our ability to connect with true gratitude. We can also awaken ourselves with the intention to be more aware of the unconditional generosity of the life force that flows through us regardless of our circumstances.
From the Daily OM
https://www.dailyom.com/
ALLOWING OURSELVES TO GRIEVE
by Susan Hough
Every day when I wake up, I take a moment to welcome myself back from the dream world. I was taught this from Sobonfu Somé, and it helps me kick-start my day in a positive way. This morning, I was aware of my feelings of grief. My own isolation and fears started to come through. Then I paused and realized I needed a place to talk and speak of my grief.
As the past two weeks have gone by, I have realized it is my connection to Spirit and Community that is keeping me strong. I don’t know about you, but I am aware of all the grief that is coming up. The death of so many people and the fear of more deaths, the isolation, loss of jobs -everything is heightened. The distance we have between one another is palpable. Sobonfu called this compounded grief and collective grief. Even other layers of grief can be reignited because of the heaviness of now. Your grief from former abuse and everything else that has happened along your journey is held in our bodies, and ancestral grief/past grief can be reignited. Maybe you were bullied and felt isolated as a child, and now this isolation is making you feel even worse. This is a time we aren’t able to gather together to cry and release grief as we should.
As a culture, we are told we are weak when we express ourselves and cry. We are told to suck it up. I remember the first time Sobonfu told me I needed a grief ritual. I thought I don’t need a grief ritual your crazy, but over time I knew and trusted she was right. I hadn’t lost my parents yet. She said, “Oh, Susan, you have a lot of grief, and so does everyone else." Shortly after that, I organized my first grief ritual in 2004 for her. I began to understand the value of grief rituals and how much they allow me to let go so I can move forward.
In this time of grief, this is unchartered territory for all. Never in our lifetime have we been so isolated. We must take the time to feel these feelings even more than we have before. We must lean into each other and hold the space for one another to let go of this grief, this isolation, so we can awaken and open to the healings that will support us in moving forward into this new paradigm.
Take time to feel it, but don’t do it alone! Call your friends, get on zoom, create a space. Don’t think anyone's grief is unfounded (more or less significant). Don’t compare your grief to others; it is grief, and we all deserve a place to let it go—no hierarchy in this. The time is now to do it differently. This is the opportunity of getting real with yourself and finding your village that can hold you in your authentic self and allow the space to be you in all of what that may look like.
I am blessed to have a community, and if you feel called, you can connect with us. The Zoom ID is 193732734. Monday-Saturday @5pm Pacific (excluding Thursday) and on an extra zoom call each Wednesday at 1pm Pacific.
by Susan Hough
Every day when I wake up, I take a moment to welcome myself back from the dream world. I was taught this from Sobonfu Somé, and it helps me kick-start my day in a positive way. This morning, I was aware of my feelings of grief. My own isolation and fears started to come through. Then I paused and realized I needed a place to talk and speak of my grief.
As the past two weeks have gone by, I have realized it is my connection to Spirit and Community that is keeping me strong. I don’t know about you, but I am aware of all the grief that is coming up. The death of so many people and the fear of more deaths, the isolation, loss of jobs -everything is heightened. The distance we have between one another is palpable. Sobonfu called this compounded grief and collective grief. Even other layers of grief can be reignited because of the heaviness of now. Your grief from former abuse and everything else that has happened along your journey is held in our bodies, and ancestral grief/past grief can be reignited. Maybe you were bullied and felt isolated as a child, and now this isolation is making you feel even worse. This is a time we aren’t able to gather together to cry and release grief as we should.
As a culture, we are told we are weak when we express ourselves and cry. We are told to suck it up. I remember the first time Sobonfu told me I needed a grief ritual. I thought I don’t need a grief ritual your crazy, but over time I knew and trusted she was right. I hadn’t lost my parents yet. She said, “Oh, Susan, you have a lot of grief, and so does everyone else." Shortly after that, I organized my first grief ritual in 2004 for her. I began to understand the value of grief rituals and how much they allow me to let go so I can move forward.
In this time of grief, this is unchartered territory for all. Never in our lifetime have we been so isolated. We must take the time to feel these feelings even more than we have before. We must lean into each other and hold the space for one another to let go of this grief, this isolation, so we can awaken and open to the healings that will support us in moving forward into this new paradigm.
Take time to feel it, but don’t do it alone! Call your friends, get on zoom, create a space. Don’t think anyone's grief is unfounded (more or less significant). Don’t compare your grief to others; it is grief, and we all deserve a place to let it go—no hierarchy in this. The time is now to do it differently. This is the opportunity of getting real with yourself and finding your village that can hold you in your authentic self and allow the space to be you in all of what that may look like.
I am blessed to have a community, and if you feel called, you can connect with us. The Zoom ID is 193732734. Monday-Saturday @5pm Pacific (excluding Thursday) and on an extra zoom call each Wednesday at 1pm Pacific.
The Autuminal Equinox comes into the Northern Hemisphere on Wed, September 22 @ 3:20 EDT after a Harvest Moon or full moon of Monday, September 20th. Time to plant the seeds of our intentions for the up-coming colder months, and preparing to go within, like our birds and animals hybernate. Vibrate higher in this seasonal time for growth through our inner reflections.
Check out a Farmer's Almanec for more history, rituals, ceremonies, and harvesting concepts to capture the beauty of Fall.
Check out a Farmer's Almanec for more history, rituals, ceremonies, and harvesting concepts to capture the beauty of Fall.
Giving of Herself from the Daily OM
The role of a mother is infinitely complex and one of pure tenderness, compassion, and unflagging loyalty
Mothers throughout history have been worshipped, revered, analyzed and even criticized. Every one of us was created through the wondrous workings of a woman's body; each of us has a mother. But being a mother is more than a biological concept. In India, women who are profoundly nurturing, compassionate, and wise are publicly acknowledged by the title "Holy Mother." Those who have never met their biological mothers often have mothers nonetheless in adoptive parents, relations, and friends. There are human mothers and spiritual mothers, Mother Earth, and mother goddesses. The role of a mother is infinitely complex and one of pure tenderness, compassion, and unflagging loyalty. The mother represents fertility, stability, creation, and sacrifice.
Our mothers determine who we become because they are not only the life givers, but the most influential person in our young lives. Before we are old enough to understand that influence, mothers give us the beginnings of our spirituality and value systems. A mother lauds accomplishment and ignores minor faults, she both teaches and shields her children from misfortune, and hides her own tears, preferring to laugh so her children can laugh with her. She is both a sharer of grief and a healer of many pains. And every mother gives of herself knowing that someday her progeny will leave her. For these reasons and more, motherhood is a sacred institution, not limited by narrow constraints. It is also not unusual to seek the guidance of a mother in a wise woman or a grandmother because each woman is taught to be a mother by her own mother, whether she chooses to have children or not. Other ways to see Mother is to find a source of motherly nurturing in the earth, which gives us so much and demands little in return. Earth mother continually blesses us with her bounty and we are even born and eventually go back to the universal mother
The definition is necessarily broad because mothers of all types exist in part to put a smooth veneer on the rough edges of life for those they love. A mother never stops growing, never stops becoming more motherly. Though some may argue that a mother is a woman who gives life with her womb and nourishment with her breast, it is important to remember that a mother, any mother, is also one who gives life with her tenderness and nourishment with her love.
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Ayo, the Breath Sekou demonstrates many breath techniques during an Optimum Life Breathology Certification, and a Power of the Breath Presentation. Breathe and Play with her.
AFFIRMATIONS FOR WORLD BREATHING DAY, 2021
Today, I will honor our breathing as the sacred connection between Spirit, Mind and Body.
Today, I will not take my breath for granted but will show gratitude for this life-force that connects me with all other life forms - plants, animals, our clothing, the air, the soil, the environment. the plastics, etc. An African proverbs says, "Everything that has life, has breath".
Today, I will breathe for those who cannot, for many who are struggling to breathe or holding their breath in stress, in trauma, in grief, in sickness, in quarantine, in ill health, in fear, in pain, in despair, in confusion.
Today, I will breathe to lesson my fears of Covid 19 and see my immune system strengthen for my protection.
Today, I will breathe to end the "divides" of race, gender, health inequality, gender, sexual orientation, politics, religion, ethnicity, and mitigate these issues.
Today, I will breathe deeply, fully and consciously, aware of every breath I take and every breath that I don't, being sensitive to breath's ebb, flow, shifts and holds.
Today, I will breathe for myself for self care. Today, I will watch my "holding my breath" as an indication of my stress, tensions and sub-conscious reactions.
Today, I will send my breath as vibrational energy to my family, my community, my world.
Today, I breathe to be in harmony and to harmonize with the planet and beyond. Today, I breathe as millions do, 20,000 estimated times a day, and I will connect each breathe, as a common bond to our common shared humanity.
Today, I will talk less and breathe more, to be more loving, caring, compassionate, kind, tolerant, joyful and abundantly well.
We may not be able to control everything going around us, but we can control the breath.
Today, I breathe and affirm that we take this WORLD BREATHING DAY, APRIL 11, very intentionally so that we will continue to be conscious and use the breath of life to cope and "wake-up" to our best selves and our empowerment.
So, Breathe... now more than ever. Pause and breathe through what-ever. Breathe on this day and beyond to make this world a better place with abundant life and best health.
What the world needs now....Breathe! HONOR THE BREATH BECAUSE THERE IS POWER IN THE BREATH.
Today, I will not take my breath for granted but will show gratitude for this life-force that connects me with all other life forms - plants, animals, our clothing, the air, the soil, the environment. the plastics, etc. An African proverbs says, "Everything that has life, has breath".
Today, I will breathe for those who cannot, for many who are struggling to breathe or holding their breath in stress, in trauma, in grief, in sickness, in quarantine, in ill health, in fear, in pain, in despair, in confusion.
Today, I will breathe to lesson my fears of Covid 19 and see my immune system strengthen for my protection.
Today, I will breathe to end the "divides" of race, gender, health inequality, gender, sexual orientation, politics, religion, ethnicity, and mitigate these issues.
Today, I will breathe deeply, fully and consciously, aware of every breath I take and every breath that I don't, being sensitive to breath's ebb, flow, shifts and holds.
Today, I will breathe for myself for self care. Today, I will watch my "holding my breath" as an indication of my stress, tensions and sub-conscious reactions.
Today, I will send my breath as vibrational energy to my family, my community, my world.
Today, I breathe to be in harmony and to harmonize with the planet and beyond. Today, I breathe as millions do, 20,000 estimated times a day, and I will connect each breathe, as a common bond to our common shared humanity.
Today, I will talk less and breathe more, to be more loving, caring, compassionate, kind, tolerant, joyful and abundantly well.
We may not be able to control everything going around us, but we can control the breath.
Today, I breathe and affirm that we take this WORLD BREATHING DAY, APRIL 11, very intentionally so that we will continue to be conscious and use the breath of life to cope and "wake-up" to our best selves and our empowerment.
So, Breathe... now more than ever. Pause and breathe through what-ever. Breathe on this day and beyond to make this world a better place with abundant life and best health.
What the world needs now....Breathe! HONOR THE BREATH BECAUSE THERE IS POWER IN THE BREATH.
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Better Breathing demonstrated through art, music & culture is exemplified here with a performance in France by Sekou Ayo Handy-Kendi, aka the Storyteller,
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Feeling anxious? The way you breathe could be adding to it
Jan 8, 2021 / Kira M. Newma
Krystal Quiles
Scrolling social media, amid frantic posts about politics and COVID-19 cases, you may have come across a friend or two reminding everyone to “just breathe.”
But can just breathing really make a difference?
In his new book Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, journalist James Nestor argues that modern humans have become pretty bad at this most basic act of living. We breathe through our mouths and into our chests, and we do it way too fast. There’s even a phenomenon called “email apnea,” where multitasking office workers breathe irregularly and shallowly — or even hold their breath — for half a minute or more while glued to their devices.
Besides all the worrisome health problems this may cause, which Nestor details in his book, our ineptitude at breathing may have another big consequence — contributing to our anxiety and other mental health problems.
“The rate and depth we breathe at is a huge determinant of our mental state,” says Elissa Epel, a professor at UC San Francisco.
Researchers like Epel are exploring how using breathing techniques — some new, some ancient — can help people stave off anxiety. What they’re discovering is that breathing could be an overlooked key to finding more calm and peace.
How breathing can calm usWe often try to tame anxiety by changing our thoughts — questioning the worst-case scenarios in our heads, interrupting rumination with some kind of distraction or going to therapy. But breathing offers a different approach, bypassing the complexities of the mind and targeting the body directly. Instead of trying to think yourself out of feeling anxious, you can do something concrete — breathe slow or fast, in a particular rhythm, or through one nostril — and sometimes find immediate relief.
In a 2017 study, highly anxious people were assigned to take a course in diaphragmatic breathing relaxation and they practiced twice a day at home. Diaphragmatic breathing, or belly breathing, involves breathing deeply into the abdomen rather than taking shallow breaths into the chest. After eight weeks, they reported feeling less anxious compared to a group that didn’t receive the training. They also showed physical signs of reduced anxiety, including lower heart rate, slower breathing and lower skin conductivity.
So, a regular breathing practice might help you feel calmer in your everyday life. But other studies suggest that focusing on your breathing in moments of acute stress could also be useful.
In an older study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, researchers brought participants into the lab and told them they were going to receive electric shocks. Some of the participants practiced breathing slowly before the shocks (which were actually never administered), while others focused on breathing at a normal rate or didn’t regulate their breathing at all. The slow breathers — breathing about eight breaths per minute — not only reported feeling less anxious while anticipating the pain, they also showed lower anxiety on a physical level, as measured by sweat and blood flow to the fingers.
Another study followed up on this research and tested three different breathing rhythms: fast inhaling with slow exhaling; slow inhaling with fast exhaling; or evenly paced inhaling and exhaling. Here, the fast inhaling with slow exhaling (2 seconds in, 8 seconds out) was the most effective at relieving both the physical and mental experience of anxiety.
Of course, breathing is a major component of many meditation and Buddhist mindfulness practices, and it may be a key reason why they work. In a small 2017 study, researchers asked people with anxiety disorder to try either alternate nostril breathing or mindful breath awareness for 10 minutes, two days in a row. They found that practicing alternate nostril breathing was about three times as effective at reducing people’s feelings of anxiety.
These benefits felt profound to the participants in a small, 12-week yoga breathing class in the United Kingdom. According to researchers from the University of Southampton:
Participants described feeling “more in control,” noting “anxiety doesn’t feel debilitating anymore.” One participant reported marked increases in confidence, mindfulness, and spirituality; [and] greater ability to relax … Three participants returned to paid employment, another was able to secure a long-desired job, and another became able to contemplate a return to work, having been unable to do so for many years.
The ripple effects of breathingThe way we breathe can set off a cascade of physical changes in the body that promote either stress or relaxation.
“If we’re breathing really shallowly and fast, it causes our nervous system to up-regulate and we feel tense and anxious,” says Epel. “If we’re breathing slowly, it actually turns on the anti-stress response.”
Technically, breathing influences the sympathetic (“fight or flight”) and parasympathetic (“rest and digest”) branches of our nervous system, and certain techniques can promote more parasympathetic calm and relaxation. Some may also cause us to release hormones like prolactin and possibly oxytocin, the feel-good hormone of love and bonding.
“[Breathing techniques] are allowing you to consciously take control of your breathing so you can take control of your nervous system so you can take control of your anxiety,” says Nestor. “When we breathe in a certain way, we are sending messages to those emotional centers of our brain to calm down.”
Other techniques, like tummo — a yogic breathing practice that involves forceful or gentle breathing, abdominal contractions during breath holding, and visualization — actually amp up the sympathetic nervous system, spiking our body’s stress to activate a deeper relaxation afterward, similar to how tensing a muscle and then letting it go works.
This is similar to the kind of breathing that “Iceman” Wim Hof teaches his followers, a method that Epel is currently researching. Hof is famous for his seemingly superhuman feats, like climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in shorts and changing his immune response to E. coli, which he attributes to a finely tuned control over his own physiology thanks to breathing practices and more.
Fast breathing can be triggering for people with anxiety — causing the tingling limbs and lightheadedness that often accompany panic attacks — but that’s part of the point. When you breathe fast and start to feel symptoms you normally associate with anxiety, it may help you re-interpret those symptoms in a less threatening way. They become less worrisome because they have a clear cause, the same way that an elevated heart rate during exercise doesn’t bother us. And if you can connect anxiety to faulty breathing habits, it means you can change the way you breathe and potentially see some improvement.
How to breathe betterIf you want to practice breathing for better mental and physical health, there are endless techniques to try. Although these shouldn’t be seen as a replacement for therapy or a cure for severe anxiety, they can be a free and simple tool for both short-term relief and long-term benefit. “Breathing techniques could be used as first-line and supplemental treatments for stress [and] anxiety,” write Ravinder Jerath and colleagues in a 2015 study.
Many of the techniques that have been formally researched are derived from pranayama, yogic breathing that dates back to ancient India:
In the same way that mindfulness practice isn’t just meditation, breathing as a practice isn’t just waking up every morning and doing 10 minutes of box breathing. It’s also important to be aware of the way you breathe in everyday life (or while you’re checking your email).
In Breath, Nestor’s tips boil down to a short list of general principles, including make sure to breathe through your nose and not your mouth, slow your breathing down (to five or six seconds in and five or six seconds out), and extend your exhales for even greater relaxation.
Now so much talk about breathing might have you feeling anxious — that’s how I felt, at least, while reading about all the ways that our breathing habits are faulty. In one study, the researchers noted that anxious people were skeptical in the beginning of the experiment and had some difficulty practicing. But this group still went on to feel better at the end of 12 weeks of practice.
All this research illustrates just how much influence our body has on our mind. Modern life brings many things to be worried about, but, as Nestor writes, not being able to breathe remains one of our deepest and most primal anxieties. If somehow the way we’re breathing is signaling to our brains that something is wrong, it’s no wonder we feel anxious — and it’s no wonder all these breathing techniques can bring such profound healing.
This article was originally published on Greater Good, the online magazine of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley.
Watch James Nestor’s TEDxMarin Talk on diving and whales here:
Jan 8, 2021 / Kira M. Newma
Krystal Quiles
Scrolling social media, amid frantic posts about politics and COVID-19 cases, you may have come across a friend or two reminding everyone to “just breathe.”
But can just breathing really make a difference?
In his new book Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, journalist James Nestor argues that modern humans have become pretty bad at this most basic act of living. We breathe through our mouths and into our chests, and we do it way too fast. There’s even a phenomenon called “email apnea,” where multitasking office workers breathe irregularly and shallowly — or even hold their breath — for half a minute or more while glued to their devices.
Besides all the worrisome health problems this may cause, which Nestor details in his book, our ineptitude at breathing may have another big consequence — contributing to our anxiety and other mental health problems.
“The rate and depth we breathe at is a huge determinant of our mental state,” says Elissa Epel, a professor at UC San Francisco.
Researchers like Epel are exploring how using breathing techniques — some new, some ancient — can help people stave off anxiety. What they’re discovering is that breathing could be an overlooked key to finding more calm and peace.
How breathing can calm usWe often try to tame anxiety by changing our thoughts — questioning the worst-case scenarios in our heads, interrupting rumination with some kind of distraction or going to therapy. But breathing offers a different approach, bypassing the complexities of the mind and targeting the body directly. Instead of trying to think yourself out of feeling anxious, you can do something concrete — breathe slow or fast, in a particular rhythm, or through one nostril — and sometimes find immediate relief.
In a 2017 study, highly anxious people were assigned to take a course in diaphragmatic breathing relaxation and they practiced twice a day at home. Diaphragmatic breathing, or belly breathing, involves breathing deeply into the abdomen rather than taking shallow breaths into the chest. After eight weeks, they reported feeling less anxious compared to a group that didn’t receive the training. They also showed physical signs of reduced anxiety, including lower heart rate, slower breathing and lower skin conductivity.
So, a regular breathing practice might help you feel calmer in your everyday life. But other studies suggest that focusing on your breathing in moments of acute stress could also be useful.
In an older study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, researchers brought participants into the lab and told them they were going to receive electric shocks. Some of the participants practiced breathing slowly before the shocks (which were actually never administered), while others focused on breathing at a normal rate or didn’t regulate their breathing at all. The slow breathers — breathing about eight breaths per minute — not only reported feeling less anxious while anticipating the pain, they also showed lower anxiety on a physical level, as measured by sweat and blood flow to the fingers.
Another study followed up on this research and tested three different breathing rhythms: fast inhaling with slow exhaling; slow inhaling with fast exhaling; or evenly paced inhaling and exhaling. Here, the fast inhaling with slow exhaling (2 seconds in, 8 seconds out) was the most effective at relieving both the physical and mental experience of anxiety.
Of course, breathing is a major component of many meditation and Buddhist mindfulness practices, and it may be a key reason why they work. In a small 2017 study, researchers asked people with anxiety disorder to try either alternate nostril breathing or mindful breath awareness for 10 minutes, two days in a row. They found that practicing alternate nostril breathing was about three times as effective at reducing people’s feelings of anxiety.
These benefits felt profound to the participants in a small, 12-week yoga breathing class in the United Kingdom. According to researchers from the University of Southampton:
Participants described feeling “more in control,” noting “anxiety doesn’t feel debilitating anymore.” One participant reported marked increases in confidence, mindfulness, and spirituality; [and] greater ability to relax … Three participants returned to paid employment, another was able to secure a long-desired job, and another became able to contemplate a return to work, having been unable to do so for many years.
The ripple effects of breathingThe way we breathe can set off a cascade of physical changes in the body that promote either stress or relaxation.
“If we’re breathing really shallowly and fast, it causes our nervous system to up-regulate and we feel tense and anxious,” says Epel. “If we’re breathing slowly, it actually turns on the anti-stress response.”
Technically, breathing influences the sympathetic (“fight or flight”) and parasympathetic (“rest and digest”) branches of our nervous system, and certain techniques can promote more parasympathetic calm and relaxation. Some may also cause us to release hormones like prolactin and possibly oxytocin, the feel-good hormone of love and bonding.
“[Breathing techniques] are allowing you to consciously take control of your breathing so you can take control of your nervous system so you can take control of your anxiety,” says Nestor. “When we breathe in a certain way, we are sending messages to those emotional centers of our brain to calm down.”
Other techniques, like tummo — a yogic breathing practice that involves forceful or gentle breathing, abdominal contractions during breath holding, and visualization — actually amp up the sympathetic nervous system, spiking our body’s stress to activate a deeper relaxation afterward, similar to how tensing a muscle and then letting it go works.
This is similar to the kind of breathing that “Iceman” Wim Hof teaches his followers, a method that Epel is currently researching. Hof is famous for his seemingly superhuman feats, like climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in shorts and changing his immune response to E. coli, which he attributes to a finely tuned control over his own physiology thanks to breathing practices and more.
Fast breathing can be triggering for people with anxiety — causing the tingling limbs and lightheadedness that often accompany panic attacks — but that’s part of the point. When you breathe fast and start to feel symptoms you normally associate with anxiety, it may help you re-interpret those symptoms in a less threatening way. They become less worrisome because they have a clear cause, the same way that an elevated heart rate during exercise doesn’t bother us. And if you can connect anxiety to faulty breathing habits, it means you can change the way you breathe and potentially see some improvement.
How to breathe betterIf you want to practice breathing for better mental and physical health, there are endless techniques to try. Although these shouldn’t be seen as a replacement for therapy or a cure for severe anxiety, they can be a free and simple tool for both short-term relief and long-term benefit. “Breathing techniques could be used as first-line and supplemental treatments for stress [and] anxiety,” write Ravinder Jerath and colleagues in a 2015 study.
Many of the techniques that have been formally researched are derived from pranayama, yogic breathing that dates back to ancient India:
- Ujayyi: Deep breathing with a narrowed throat, creating an ocean-like sound, often recommended while doing yoga asanas.
- Bhastrika, or “bellows breath”: inhaling and exhaling forcefully.
- Nadi Sodhan and Anulom Vilom: Types of alternate nostril breathing, where air is inhaled in one nostril and exhaled through the other, sometimes with breath holding.
In the same way that mindfulness practice isn’t just meditation, breathing as a practice isn’t just waking up every morning and doing 10 minutes of box breathing. It’s also important to be aware of the way you breathe in everyday life (or while you’re checking your email).
In Breath, Nestor’s tips boil down to a short list of general principles, including make sure to breathe through your nose and not your mouth, slow your breathing down (to five or six seconds in and five or six seconds out), and extend your exhales for even greater relaxation.
Now so much talk about breathing might have you feeling anxious — that’s how I felt, at least, while reading about all the ways that our breathing habits are faulty. In one study, the researchers noted that anxious people were skeptical in the beginning of the experiment and had some difficulty practicing. But this group still went on to feel better at the end of 12 weeks of practice.
All this research illustrates just how much influence our body has on our mind. Modern life brings many things to be worried about, but, as Nestor writes, not being able to breathe remains one of our deepest and most primal anxieties. If somehow the way we’re breathing is signaling to our brains that something is wrong, it’s no wonder we feel anxious — and it’s no wonder all these breathing techniques can bring such profound healing.
This article was originally published on Greater Good, the online magazine of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley.
Watch James Nestor’s TEDxMarin Talk on diving and whales here:
In Mental Health Month, “Mental Health and Breathing with COVID Bonus
by Dr. Philippa Wheble
This letter came from IBF.
“I had been scanning the internet for possible answers to this question and waiting for Pippa to recover from her Covid experience to ask her. Then she kindly sent me a very useful Utube video she had made for World Breathing Day on 11th April about anxiety and depression and the benefits of breathwork. And, 39 minutes into the video, I found just what I was looking for: a first hand explanation of Covid 19 from Pippa’s experience both of having the virus and from her perspective both as a medical practitioner and a TBr trainer. (Transformational Breath, a conscious-connected breath practice)
I urge you to listen to this for yourself (see below for the link). Here are a few key points that Pippa makes. Thank you so much for sharing this Pippa. Its unique perspective is so very important at this time!
The major challenge of the Covid 19 virus is that while the patient is able to breathe deeply, it is the oxygen exchange in the lungs that is impaired; covid 19 breathlessness is caused by the body’s inability to get oxygen out of the lungs into the blood and into the tissues where it’s needed.
Pippa does not recommend TBr or any conscious connected breathing technique either during the illness or the recovery period (7-21 days) because of the need to maintain CO2 levels to enable as much oxygen as possible to get to the tissues
For breathlessness caused by Covid 19, Pippa recommends a breathing practice through the nose that promotes a slow, full and balanced breathing pattern (Pippa herself used box or hong sau breathing to a rhythm of four breaths in and four breaths out with a pause of four breaths between them)
Breathing through our noses in any shared or public space is very important, to enable the air to be filtered and moistened – breathing through our mouths can result in a dry mouth which can allow the covid 19 virus to invade the throat and lungs
Pippa recommends the importance of a healing routine in the recovery stages ( she suggests meditation, gentle exercise, goal setting, diet, social support, laughter, maintaining social contacts; as she says ‘investing in our personal resilience is crucial at this time’.
Breathworkers should only work on line, never face to face, at this time
Social distancing saves lives.
Utube video: Breathwork and anxiety (with corona virus bonus) COVID info from 30 seconds – 48.24
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyaXVkuGoa0&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR20Di8rOLvfXYeKGn-R5bJBUxWe3xClLBEM1r-jm-OJUV0FD6LfOjPZEy4
Remember to watch the beginning part of the video about anxiety and depression too, which is especially prevalent in these uncertain times - and look out for the section near the end about the benefits of breathwork
Copyright: Dr. Philippa Wheble, Article by Andria Falk
by Dr. Philippa Wheble
This letter came from IBF.
“I had been scanning the internet for possible answers to this question and waiting for Pippa to recover from her Covid experience to ask her. Then she kindly sent me a very useful Utube video she had made for World Breathing Day on 11th April about anxiety and depression and the benefits of breathwork. And, 39 minutes into the video, I found just what I was looking for: a first hand explanation of Covid 19 from Pippa’s experience both of having the virus and from her perspective both as a medical practitioner and a TBr trainer. (Transformational Breath, a conscious-connected breath practice)
I urge you to listen to this for yourself (see below for the link). Here are a few key points that Pippa makes. Thank you so much for sharing this Pippa. Its unique perspective is so very important at this time!
The major challenge of the Covid 19 virus is that while the patient is able to breathe deeply, it is the oxygen exchange in the lungs that is impaired; covid 19 breathlessness is caused by the body’s inability to get oxygen out of the lungs into the blood and into the tissues where it’s needed.
Pippa does not recommend TBr or any conscious connected breathing technique either during the illness or the recovery period (7-21 days) because of the need to maintain CO2 levels to enable as much oxygen as possible to get to the tissues
For breathlessness caused by Covid 19, Pippa recommends a breathing practice through the nose that promotes a slow, full and balanced breathing pattern (Pippa herself used box or hong sau breathing to a rhythm of four breaths in and four breaths out with a pause of four breaths between them)
Breathing through our noses in any shared or public space is very important, to enable the air to be filtered and moistened – breathing through our mouths can result in a dry mouth which can allow the covid 19 virus to invade the throat and lungs
Pippa recommends the importance of a healing routine in the recovery stages ( she suggests meditation, gentle exercise, goal setting, diet, social support, laughter, maintaining social contacts; as she says ‘investing in our personal resilience is crucial at this time’.
Breathworkers should only work on line, never face to face, at this time
Social distancing saves lives.
Utube video: Breathwork and anxiety (with corona virus bonus) COVID info from 30 seconds – 48.24
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyaXVkuGoa0&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR20Di8rOLvfXYeKGn-R5bJBUxWe3xClLBEM1r-jm-OJUV0FD6LfOjPZEy4
Remember to watch the beginning part of the video about anxiety and depression too, which is especially prevalent in these uncertain times - and look out for the section near the end about the benefits of breathwork
Copyright: Dr. Philippa Wheble, Article by Andria Falk
A 50 year+ Organizer and Breathologist Launches New Virtual Diversity Training Model to Heal the Divides As FBI Elevates White Supremacy As Domestic Terrorism
COVID has undressed “white supremacy” as another issue in this country and the world, that needs a “reckoning” just like the hot button issues of race, police brutality, economic justice, LGBT, women and immigrant rights which pushed countless to protests this Spring, despite a pandemic. “Watching the mix of protestors was inspiring considering the rise in polarization and divisions” stated Ayo Handy-Kendi, reknown as the “Breath Sekou (master teacher), founder of Black Love Day and Optimum Life Breathology™ (O.L.B.) who has practiced breathology and served as a wholistic practitioner, organizer and social justice advocate for over 50+ years.
So, she was not shocked to see the September issued Threat Assessment report by U.S.A Homeland Security that documented that “white supremacist” had infiltrated those peaceful protests, turning them violent. This report also indicated that Donald Trumps’ 4 years of polarizing rhetoric and behavior has motivated a 55% spike in white supremacist memberships and has stroked and emboldened, hateful nation-wide violence, elevating “white supremacy” as a “domestic violence threat” by the F.B.I
Always on the front-line with solutions for pro-peace and anti-violence, Handy-Kendi has also monitored the rise of hate. In August, she launched a new solution to “heal the divides”. To stop the divisions, increase peace and stop violence, especially as white supremacist have threatened to start race wars after the outcome of the U.S.A. presidential election, she is calling on 100 courageous people to join her in learning a new practice and model of diversity training called, BREATH CIRCLES FOR RACE, DIVERSITY AND GENDER HEALING™. Limited spots are available for her “100 LEADERS LAUNCH” scheduled for November 6-8 and December 4-6, 2020. Registration is open with 2021 dates being added.
Informally called THE CIRCLES, Handy-Kendi, first created this training as a workshop in 1995 then re-invented it in 2020, as a virtual, 3-day intensive, leadership development training course. It is shared as a 7 step group process, similar to the N.A./AA models of healing drug and alcohol addictions, with participants encouraged to take personal responsibility to use and customize their CIRCLES for critical self care work for themselves, their families and their communities.
The course offers her wholistic, unique approach to healing the polarizing "divides" around race, diversity and gender using Handy-Kendi's solution-based system of breathing techniques and transformative practices, called O.L.B., which includes her signature techniques, Transcendence Breathwork™ and “Relearn How to Breathe™”. Since 2004, she has trained and certified over 165 Breathologists, giving them the tools to impact everyday life, wellness, growth/development, stress/disease management, trauma/emotional release and conflict resolution. She has further, breathed with millions on the internet, radio, t.v, in print, on stage, in workshops, in private practice and as the author/producer of several breathology books, dvd’s and cd’s.Handy-Kendi affirms that her research lead her to highly effective breath techniques which unlocked the repressed memory of childhood emotional and sexual abuse, which helped heal her adult depression and addictive behavior. Applying her findings, she realized that the key to healing racism and altering un-conscious biases, is to open up and release our earliest stored programing and repressed race-based trauma/stress held in the sub-conscious, cellular memory because “we must breathe to feel to heal”. Through THE CIRCLES, she intends on creating a paradigm shift in diversity work, advancing us beyond the traditional dialogues and exercises, to thoroughly heal the deep wounds of inequality, unpack the toxic waste of race-based trauma, and open the tourniquet for our unconscious biases to shift from their earliest programming into new levels of growth and acceptance of our differences..
Trumps presidential debate shout-out to the “Proud Boys to stand-by” was revealing of his own “white supremacy” incitements, as the world seems to be pulling apart during these reckonings. You can be a “foot soldier” in our 100 Leaders Launch for Breath Circles for Race, Diversity and Gender Healing, to help reconnect us with the one thing we have in common - the breath. Be one of the first to use the "power of the breath" to transform our divisions into unified power.
For information on “THE CIRCLE”, course registrations, presentation/talk bookings or media interviews, contact: Rashida Thomas, publicist for Ayo Handy-Kendi, the Breath Sekou. 202-667-2577, www.PositivEnergyWorks.com
The PositivEnergy Center 1311 Opus Avenue Capitol Heights Md. 20743
www.PositivEnergyWorks.com [email protected] 202-667-2577
COVID has undressed “white supremacy” as another issue in this country and the world, that needs a “reckoning” just like the hot button issues of race, police brutality, economic justice, LGBT, women and immigrant rights which pushed countless to protests this Spring, despite a pandemic. “Watching the mix of protestors was inspiring considering the rise in polarization and divisions” stated Ayo Handy-Kendi, reknown as the “Breath Sekou (master teacher), founder of Black Love Day and Optimum Life Breathology™ (O.L.B.) who has practiced breathology and served as a wholistic practitioner, organizer and social justice advocate for over 50+ years.
So, she was not shocked to see the September issued Threat Assessment report by U.S.A Homeland Security that documented that “white supremacist” had infiltrated those peaceful protests, turning them violent. This report also indicated that Donald Trumps’ 4 years of polarizing rhetoric and behavior has motivated a 55% spike in white supremacist memberships and has stroked and emboldened, hateful nation-wide violence, elevating “white supremacy” as a “domestic violence threat” by the F.B.I
Always on the front-line with solutions for pro-peace and anti-violence, Handy-Kendi has also monitored the rise of hate. In August, she launched a new solution to “heal the divides”. To stop the divisions, increase peace and stop violence, especially as white supremacist have threatened to start race wars after the outcome of the U.S.A. presidential election, she is calling on 100 courageous people to join her in learning a new practice and model of diversity training called, BREATH CIRCLES FOR RACE, DIVERSITY AND GENDER HEALING™. Limited spots are available for her “100 LEADERS LAUNCH” scheduled for November 6-8 and December 4-6, 2020. Registration is open with 2021 dates being added.
Informally called THE CIRCLES, Handy-Kendi, first created this training as a workshop in 1995 then re-invented it in 2020, as a virtual, 3-day intensive, leadership development training course. It is shared as a 7 step group process, similar to the N.A./AA models of healing drug and alcohol addictions, with participants encouraged to take personal responsibility to use and customize their CIRCLES for critical self care work for themselves, their families and their communities.
The course offers her wholistic, unique approach to healing the polarizing "divides" around race, diversity and gender using Handy-Kendi's solution-based system of breathing techniques and transformative practices, called O.L.B., which includes her signature techniques, Transcendence Breathwork™ and “Relearn How to Breathe™”. Since 2004, she has trained and certified over 165 Breathologists, giving them the tools to impact everyday life, wellness, growth/development, stress/disease management, trauma/emotional release and conflict resolution. She has further, breathed with millions on the internet, radio, t.v, in print, on stage, in workshops, in private practice and as the author/producer of several breathology books, dvd’s and cd’s.Handy-Kendi affirms that her research lead her to highly effective breath techniques which unlocked the repressed memory of childhood emotional and sexual abuse, which helped heal her adult depression and addictive behavior. Applying her findings, she realized that the key to healing racism and altering un-conscious biases, is to open up and release our earliest stored programing and repressed race-based trauma/stress held in the sub-conscious, cellular memory because “we must breathe to feel to heal”. Through THE CIRCLES, she intends on creating a paradigm shift in diversity work, advancing us beyond the traditional dialogues and exercises, to thoroughly heal the deep wounds of inequality, unpack the toxic waste of race-based trauma, and open the tourniquet for our unconscious biases to shift from their earliest programming into new levels of growth and acceptance of our differences..
Trumps presidential debate shout-out to the “Proud Boys to stand-by” was revealing of his own “white supremacy” incitements, as the world seems to be pulling apart during these reckonings. You can be a “foot soldier” in our 100 Leaders Launch for Breath Circles for Race, Diversity and Gender Healing, to help reconnect us with the one thing we have in common - the breath. Be one of the first to use the "power of the breath" to transform our divisions into unified power.
For information on “THE CIRCLE”, course registrations, presentation/talk bookings or media interviews, contact: Rashida Thomas, publicist for Ayo Handy-Kendi, the Breath Sekou. 202-667-2577, www.PositivEnergyWorks.com
The PositivEnergy Center 1311 Opus Avenue Capitol Heights Md. 20743
www.PositivEnergyWorks.com [email protected] 202-667-2577
COVID - A Time for Reflection and Discernment
by Jennifer Ayana Harrison
Greetings, I trust this message finds you, your family and friends safe and well.
As all of you are aware, the Coronavirus pandemic has undoubtedly caused an unwelcoming interruption in our daily lives. Created worry and overwhelming fear. An unexpected change that will naturally require a new lifestyle afterwards. One which will promptly demand each of us to inevitably assume greater control over the way we typically manage our everyday lives. More importantly, the way we are accustomed to interacting with each other, as well as the things we give too much attention and/or importance will alter significantly.
Needless to say, either way we have a choice for real healing to take place, we must be willing to embrace change from the conscious awareness of intentionally seeking to better understand ourselves, in relationship with All Humanity. Look at what we have in common.
We can instantly change our beliefs and perceptions of what’s really going in the world by honoring the preservation of all people realizing we are not alone. We are all One with the Creator and our Humanity is inextricably linked to Mother Earth, home to all of us. This revelation should provide some understanding of our human and spiritual connection knowing we are not exempt in our struggle to survive threatening viruses such as this one.
For me, this is an urgent call and reminder that self-care, careful management of our overall health and emotional well-being is paramount. As some of you are aware for several years I have advocated "Real Healthcare Begins with Self-Care." The more knowledge we gain individually pertaining not only to health prevention and maintenance, but how miraculously our internal systems operate in defending itself against attacks like these. It is truly a Wonder!
We must look closely at what we can do to control our emotions and support and strengthen the immune system. Do your homework. Be proactive, engage yourself; explore and learn as much as you can about the mind-body-spirit connection in healing. Seek the internet to find meaningful (well informed) information that will guide you through this process of self-realization.
Be Alert, be Safe and Cautious doing this time, but above all have Faith and remain optimistic. Do not be controlled or consumed with Daily News, which can be misrepresented through media- manipulation.
Find time to be still; prayer and meditation will help significantly if your are earnest in your pursuit to find Spiritual Comfort. Reduce the amount of cell phone and wifi usage during the day. Instead read, laugh, dance/exercise and sing. Be thankful for all that you do have.
In the meantime, take good care of yourself and love ones. Reach out to help others when you can. Remain hopeful this situation will soon pass.
I am currently offering personal coaching sessions at a reduced rate of 50% off my regular rate of $90 per hour to $45. If I can be of any assistance, please do not hesitate to give me a call 410-466-5047.
Be well. Be Blessed. With Gratitude and Appreciation, Ayana
BUY NOW
Ayana Wellness Spa and Educational Resources
Email: [email protected]
Ayanawellnessspa.com
Phone 410-466-5047
by Jennifer Ayana Harrison
Greetings, I trust this message finds you, your family and friends safe and well.
As all of you are aware, the Coronavirus pandemic has undoubtedly caused an unwelcoming interruption in our daily lives. Created worry and overwhelming fear. An unexpected change that will naturally require a new lifestyle afterwards. One which will promptly demand each of us to inevitably assume greater control over the way we typically manage our everyday lives. More importantly, the way we are accustomed to interacting with each other, as well as the things we give too much attention and/or importance will alter significantly.
Needless to say, either way we have a choice for real healing to take place, we must be willing to embrace change from the conscious awareness of intentionally seeking to better understand ourselves, in relationship with All Humanity. Look at what we have in common.
We can instantly change our beliefs and perceptions of what’s really going in the world by honoring the preservation of all people realizing we are not alone. We are all One with the Creator and our Humanity is inextricably linked to Mother Earth, home to all of us. This revelation should provide some understanding of our human and spiritual connection knowing we are not exempt in our struggle to survive threatening viruses such as this one.
For me, this is an urgent call and reminder that self-care, careful management of our overall health and emotional well-being is paramount. As some of you are aware for several years I have advocated "Real Healthcare Begins with Self-Care." The more knowledge we gain individually pertaining not only to health prevention and maintenance, but how miraculously our internal systems operate in defending itself against attacks like these. It is truly a Wonder!
We must look closely at what we can do to control our emotions and support and strengthen the immune system. Do your homework. Be proactive, engage yourself; explore and learn as much as you can about the mind-body-spirit connection in healing. Seek the internet to find meaningful (well informed) information that will guide you through this process of self-realization.
Be Alert, be Safe and Cautious doing this time, but above all have Faith and remain optimistic. Do not be controlled or consumed with Daily News, which can be misrepresented through media- manipulation.
Find time to be still; prayer and meditation will help significantly if your are earnest in your pursuit to find Spiritual Comfort. Reduce the amount of cell phone and wifi usage during the day. Instead read, laugh, dance/exercise and sing. Be thankful for all that you do have.
In the meantime, take good care of yourself and love ones. Reach out to help others when you can. Remain hopeful this situation will soon pass.
I am currently offering personal coaching sessions at a reduced rate of 50% off my regular rate of $90 per hour to $45. If I can be of any assistance, please do not hesitate to give me a call 410-466-5047.
Be well. Be Blessed. With Gratitude and Appreciation, Ayana
BUY NOW
Ayana Wellness Spa and Educational Resources
Email: [email protected]
Ayanawellnessspa.com
Phone 410-466-5047
Black women of the suffrage movement (National Endowment for the Humanities via National Women's History Museum)
. HOW COVID-19 CAN BE SPREAD
Presention Concepts from Dr. Kamau Kokayi
James Robb, Pathologist
Presention Concepts from Dr. Kamau Kokayi
James Robb, Pathologist
| corona_virus_2020_and_beyond_1_.01.pdf |
Ayo and John, pouring Libations and drumming at the beginning of the Black History in Motion program for the 3rd year in the 6th year history of this Prince Georges County Parks and Recreation annual event.
Black Love: A Complementary and
Species-Compelling Need
Dr. Maulana Karenga
This is a reminder and reinforcement for Black Lover’s Day this month and each day all year round. It is not an exaggeration to state that there is no issue of greater importance, urgency or enduring impact in terms of the foundation, functioning and future of us as a community and a people than the quality of male/female relationships. Indeed, this speaks not only to the health and wholeness of our people, but also of each member of the community and to how we imagine and either forge or forfeit a good future for our children. So, the issue of quality relationships between men and women and boys and girls is not just about coupling, cuddling and masterful moves. Nor is it about sexual seduction and consumer things about which they think they will die if they don’t get. And it is not just about the increase in desperate and hope-to-die claims that they will never love, be hurt or hassled, trust or try to build a relationship again. Indeed, the intensity of the denial only demonstrates how deep and enduring the need to love and be loved is.
Surely, then, it is about something deeper, more ancient and indispensable, something our ancient sacred texts tell us is inherent in the conception, creation and functioning of the world - the complementary and species-compelling need for male and female love, presence and cooperative practice in the world. For the Husia and Odu Ifa speak to the need we have not only for each other in spiritual, natural and social ways, but also the need of our togetherness to create and sustain the good in family, society and the world. And it is within this ancient and ongoing African understanding that we must conceive, build, sustain and make flourish our relationships and teach our children likewise by the most careful instruction and self-conscious example.
There are so many things that block the road toward realization of the togetherness in love we long and live for. There is racism that degrades and devalues, sexism that teaches submission and domination, and materialism that makes things and money the measure and meaning of everything. There is also unemployment and vulgar individualism, Eurocentric drama, drugs and unrealizable dreams, the prison system and broken promises, the media and the mean and merciless streets and a long history of Holocaust, horror and other forms of oppression at the hands of our oppressor. So, the wonder is not that we have problems, but that so many of us have survived and solved them and went on to build rock-strong, stable and loving relations worthy of the highest praise and promise. Indeed, the point is not that we have problems - for that’s only human; the issue is how we solve them in the most gentle, loving and effective ways.
Love is the heartbeat and hope of any real, reciprocal and enduring relationship, and we must understand it not simply as an emotion, but also as a practice. For at its best, love is ultimate appreciation, attentiveness and consideration that expresses itself in the mutual investment in each other’s happiness, well-being and development. It is ultimately a reciprocal, deeply rewarding and awesome giving of ourselves and receiving the same from another as a sacred exchange.
Here it is important to make a distinction between pleasure and happiness. For pleasure is satisfaction of the senses, but happiness is satisfaction of the heart and mind. Pleasure is a time and space limited satisfaction of desires by external events and experiences, but happiness is an enduring inner satisfaction. And love, as mutual giving, engenders such an enduring inner satisfaction, enhances our sense of well-being and enriches our development as persons and human beings.
At the heart of the practice of love is active commitment to an Afrocentric value system which teaches and reinforces our essential identity as bearers of divinity and dignity, and requires us to approach and treat each other and our relationships as sacred and worthy of the highest respect, care and consideration. Since the Sixties, I’ve taught that the Nguzo Saba is that African-centered value system and that we can use it to build our relationships and community and enrich our lives.
The first principle is Umoja (Unity) which stresses the good and need of togetherness in the most principled and purposeful ways. It teaches us to remove all thoughts, emotions, speech and conduct which undermine our togetherness and pull us apart. At one with each other, we will see ourselves in each other and sense our divinity, reaffirm our dignity and develop an identity meriting a high respect and place among men and women.
Kujichagulia (Self-determination) teaches the right and responsibility to choose, to choose who we will be and it requires that each of us be allowed and encouraged to be who we are in the most positive and progressive sense without crass criticism, hindrance or negative questioning, but always within the framework of the requirements of togetherness and common ground. And it teaches us that the ground of our choosing must always be from within the context of our own culture and its highest values. Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility) teaches us active working, building and struggling together to clear space for our love to grow, to transform ourselves so that we feel and fit right and rightfully together and to take collective responsibility for the good and bad, right and wrong, the beautiful and ugly that strengthen or undermine our relationships.
Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics) teaches us the principle and practice of shared work and shared wealth, that we not make money the measure and central meaning of all things and to reject debilitating disputes and disagreements about it. And it requires us to avoid materialism and consumerism of the dominant society, value each other more and those qualities that reflect strength of character and depth of commitment.
The principle of Nia (Purpose) teaches us that we must live purposeful lives, share goals, aid each other in realizing our different yet interrelated goals and work toward things that strengthen each of us. At the heart of this practice must be the goal of building a friendship defined by our thinking good of each other, wanting and working for the good of each other, doing good to and for each other, and sharing good with each other as a fundamental principle and practice of love and life.
Kuumba (Creativity) urges us to pursue the positive, avoid the negative, to constantly reaffirm the dignity and worth of each other, and our need for each other and to avoid all conversation and acts that degrade and violate the sacredness of each person and the relationship itself. And it means that we, as the ancestors taught in the Husia, must strive always to quickly and eagerly to raise up what is in ruins, repair what is damaged, rejoin what is severed, replenish what is depleted, set right what is wrong, strengthen what is weakened, and make flourish what is insecure and undeveloped in our relationships.
Finally, Imani (Faith) urges us to trust and believe in the good, and in our capacity to create it and share it. It encourages us to produce a new paradigm and practice of Black love and live it as a conscious need and undeniable necessity of life. And this means bringing into being a new man and woman who truly live for and through each other and pass on this lesson and legacy to future generations.
Dr. Maulana Karenga, Professor and Chair of Africana Studies, California State University-Long Beach; Executive Director, African American Cultural Center (Us); Creator of Kwanzaa; and author of Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community and Culture and Essays on Struggle: Position and Analysis, www.AfricanAmericanCulturalCenter-LA.org; www.OfficialKwanzaaWebsite.org; www.MaulanaKarenga.org.
02/10/20
FOLLOW US
International African Arts Festival | PO Box 47-1730, Brooklyn, NY 11247
Species-Compelling Need
Dr. Maulana Karenga
This is a reminder and reinforcement for Black Lover’s Day this month and each day all year round. It is not an exaggeration to state that there is no issue of greater importance, urgency or enduring impact in terms of the foundation, functioning and future of us as a community and a people than the quality of male/female relationships. Indeed, this speaks not only to the health and wholeness of our people, but also of each member of the community and to how we imagine and either forge or forfeit a good future for our children. So, the issue of quality relationships between men and women and boys and girls is not just about coupling, cuddling and masterful moves. Nor is it about sexual seduction and consumer things about which they think they will die if they don’t get. And it is not just about the increase in desperate and hope-to-die claims that they will never love, be hurt or hassled, trust or try to build a relationship again. Indeed, the intensity of the denial only demonstrates how deep and enduring the need to love and be loved is.
Surely, then, it is about something deeper, more ancient and indispensable, something our ancient sacred texts tell us is inherent in the conception, creation and functioning of the world - the complementary and species-compelling need for male and female love, presence and cooperative practice in the world. For the Husia and Odu Ifa speak to the need we have not only for each other in spiritual, natural and social ways, but also the need of our togetherness to create and sustain the good in family, society and the world. And it is within this ancient and ongoing African understanding that we must conceive, build, sustain and make flourish our relationships and teach our children likewise by the most careful instruction and self-conscious example.
There are so many things that block the road toward realization of the togetherness in love we long and live for. There is racism that degrades and devalues, sexism that teaches submission and domination, and materialism that makes things and money the measure and meaning of everything. There is also unemployment and vulgar individualism, Eurocentric drama, drugs and unrealizable dreams, the prison system and broken promises, the media and the mean and merciless streets and a long history of Holocaust, horror and other forms of oppression at the hands of our oppressor. So, the wonder is not that we have problems, but that so many of us have survived and solved them and went on to build rock-strong, stable and loving relations worthy of the highest praise and promise. Indeed, the point is not that we have problems - for that’s only human; the issue is how we solve them in the most gentle, loving and effective ways.
Love is the heartbeat and hope of any real, reciprocal and enduring relationship, and we must understand it not simply as an emotion, but also as a practice. For at its best, love is ultimate appreciation, attentiveness and consideration that expresses itself in the mutual investment in each other’s happiness, well-being and development. It is ultimately a reciprocal, deeply rewarding and awesome giving of ourselves and receiving the same from another as a sacred exchange.
Here it is important to make a distinction between pleasure and happiness. For pleasure is satisfaction of the senses, but happiness is satisfaction of the heart and mind. Pleasure is a time and space limited satisfaction of desires by external events and experiences, but happiness is an enduring inner satisfaction. And love, as mutual giving, engenders such an enduring inner satisfaction, enhances our sense of well-being and enriches our development as persons and human beings.
At the heart of the practice of love is active commitment to an Afrocentric value system which teaches and reinforces our essential identity as bearers of divinity and dignity, and requires us to approach and treat each other and our relationships as sacred and worthy of the highest respect, care and consideration. Since the Sixties, I’ve taught that the Nguzo Saba is that African-centered value system and that we can use it to build our relationships and community and enrich our lives.
The first principle is Umoja (Unity) which stresses the good and need of togetherness in the most principled and purposeful ways. It teaches us to remove all thoughts, emotions, speech and conduct which undermine our togetherness and pull us apart. At one with each other, we will see ourselves in each other and sense our divinity, reaffirm our dignity and develop an identity meriting a high respect and place among men and women.
Kujichagulia (Self-determination) teaches the right and responsibility to choose, to choose who we will be and it requires that each of us be allowed and encouraged to be who we are in the most positive and progressive sense without crass criticism, hindrance or negative questioning, but always within the framework of the requirements of togetherness and common ground. And it teaches us that the ground of our choosing must always be from within the context of our own culture and its highest values. Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility) teaches us active working, building and struggling together to clear space for our love to grow, to transform ourselves so that we feel and fit right and rightfully together and to take collective responsibility for the good and bad, right and wrong, the beautiful and ugly that strengthen or undermine our relationships.
Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics) teaches us the principle and practice of shared work and shared wealth, that we not make money the measure and central meaning of all things and to reject debilitating disputes and disagreements about it. And it requires us to avoid materialism and consumerism of the dominant society, value each other more and those qualities that reflect strength of character and depth of commitment.
The principle of Nia (Purpose) teaches us that we must live purposeful lives, share goals, aid each other in realizing our different yet interrelated goals and work toward things that strengthen each of us. At the heart of this practice must be the goal of building a friendship defined by our thinking good of each other, wanting and working for the good of each other, doing good to and for each other, and sharing good with each other as a fundamental principle and practice of love and life.
Kuumba (Creativity) urges us to pursue the positive, avoid the negative, to constantly reaffirm the dignity and worth of each other, and our need for each other and to avoid all conversation and acts that degrade and violate the sacredness of each person and the relationship itself. And it means that we, as the ancestors taught in the Husia, must strive always to quickly and eagerly to raise up what is in ruins, repair what is damaged, rejoin what is severed, replenish what is depleted, set right what is wrong, strengthen what is weakened, and make flourish what is insecure and undeveloped in our relationships.
Finally, Imani (Faith) urges us to trust and believe in the good, and in our capacity to create it and share it. It encourages us to produce a new paradigm and practice of Black love and live it as a conscious need and undeniable necessity of life. And this means bringing into being a new man and woman who truly live for and through each other and pass on this lesson and legacy to future generations.
Dr. Maulana Karenga, Professor and Chair of Africana Studies, California State University-Long Beach; Executive Director, African American Cultural Center (Us); Creator of Kwanzaa; and author of Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community and Culture and Essays on Struggle: Position and Analysis, www.AfricanAmericanCulturalCenter-LA.org; www.OfficialKwanzaaWebsite.org; www.MaulanaKarenga.org.
02/10/20
FOLLOW US
International African Arts Festival | PO Box 47-1730, Brooklyn, NY 11247
WHAT I HAVE LEARNED ABOUT PEOPLE AND
RELATIONSHIPS . . . .
Anonymous
I've learned that regardless of how hot and steamy
a relationship is at first, the passion fades
and there had better be something else to take its place.
I've learned that heroes are the people who do what has to be
done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.
I've learned that money is a lousy way of keeping score.
I've learned that my best friend and I can do anything
or nothing and have the best time.
I've learned that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when
you're down will be the ones to help you get back up.
I've learned that sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry,
but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.
I've learned that true friendship continues to grow,
even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.
I've learned that just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to
doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.
I've learned that maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and
what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've
celebrated.
I've learned that some members of your family may not always be there for you. It may
seem funny, but people you aren't related to can take care of you better… And love you
and teach you to trust people again. Families aren't biological.
I've learned that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in
a while and you must forgive them for that.
I've learned that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you are to
learn to forgive yourself.
I've learned that no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your
grief.
I've learned that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are,
but we are responsible for who we become.
I've learned that just because two people argue,
it doesn't mean they don't love each other.
And just because they don't argue, it still doesn't mean they do.
I've learned that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.
I've learned that you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret.
It could change your life forever.
I've learned that two people can look at the exact same thing
and see something totally different.
I.ve learned that no matter how you try to protect your children
they will eventually get hurt and you will hurt in the process.
I.ve learned that your life can be changed in a matter of hours,
or even seconds, by people who don.t even know you.
I.ve learned that even when you think you have no more to give,
when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.
I.ve learned that credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.
I've learned that either you control your attitude or it controls you.
I.ve learned that the people you care about the most in life are taken from you too
soon…..always part in love, you might not get another chance.
RELATIONSHIPS . . . .
Anonymous
I've learned that regardless of how hot and steamy
a relationship is at first, the passion fades
and there had better be something else to take its place.
I've learned that heroes are the people who do what has to be
done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.
I've learned that money is a lousy way of keeping score.
I've learned that my best friend and I can do anything
or nothing and have the best time.
I've learned that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when
you're down will be the ones to help you get back up.
I've learned that sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry,
but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.
I've learned that true friendship continues to grow,
even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.
I've learned that just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to
doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.
I've learned that maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and
what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've
celebrated.
I've learned that some members of your family may not always be there for you. It may
seem funny, but people you aren't related to can take care of you better… And love you
and teach you to trust people again. Families aren't biological.
I've learned that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in
a while and you must forgive them for that.
I've learned that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you are to
learn to forgive yourself.
I've learned that no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your
grief.
I've learned that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are,
but we are responsible for who we become.
I've learned that just because two people argue,
it doesn't mean they don't love each other.
And just because they don't argue, it still doesn't mean they do.
I've learned that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.
I've learned that you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret.
It could change your life forever.
I've learned that two people can look at the exact same thing
and see something totally different.
I.ve learned that no matter how you try to protect your children
they will eventually get hurt and you will hurt in the process.
I.ve learned that your life can be changed in a matter of hours,
or even seconds, by people who don.t even know you.
I.ve learned that even when you think you have no more to give,
when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.
I.ve learned that credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.
I've learned that either you control your attitude or it controls you.
I.ve learned that the people you care about the most in life are taken from you too
soon…..always part in love, you might not get another chance.
The Japanese Skill Copied by the World -Mindfulness has become trendy around the world in recent years – but in Japan, it’s been ingrained into the culture for centuries.
Even moss is appreciated by the mindful Japanese. Credit: Andrew Whitehead/Alamy.
As the sleek shinkansen bullet train glided noiselessly into the station, I watched a strange ritual begin. During the brief stop, the conductor in the last carriage began talking to himself. He proceeded to perform a series of tasks, commenting aloud on each one and vigorously gesticulating at various bits of the train all the while.
So what was he up to? You could say he’s practicing mindfulness. The Japanese call it shisa kanko (literally ‘checking and calling’), an error-prevention drill that railway employees here have been using for more than 100 years. Conductors point at the things they need to check and then name them out loud as they do them, a dialogue with themselves to ensure nothing gets overlooked.
Japanese train conductors practice shisa kanko, pointing at what they need to check and then naming it out loud. Credit: Trevor Mogg/Alamy.
And it seems to work. A 1994 study by Japan’s Railway Technical Research Institute, cited in The Japan Times, showed that when asked to perform a simple task workers typically make 2.38 mistakes per 100 actions. When using shisa kanko, this number reduced to just 0.38 – a massive 85 percent drop.
Mindfulness is moment-to-moment awareness.
This may seem a long way from mindfulness, which in recent years has become synonymous with what the Japanese call zazen – meditating cross-legged on a cushion. But according to Jon Kabat-Zinn, Professor of Medicine emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, where he founded its renowned Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Clinic in 1979, mindfulness is “not really about sitting in the full lotus… pretending you’re a statue in the British Museum. Simply put, mindfulness is moment-to-moment awareness.”
And this present-moment awareness has been deeply ingrained into the Japanese psyche for centuries. You don’t hear people talk about it, but it manifests itself in myriad ways.
In tea ceremony, participants take time to notice the design of the cup. Credit: Lonely Planet/Getty.
Tea ceremony, haiku and cherry-blossom viewing, for instance, all share a heightened appreciation of the moment. In tea ceremony, participants take time to notice the design of the cup before drinking and appreciate the decoration of the tea room, which reflects the foliage and blooms of the month. But beyond that, the ceremony celebrates the fact that this moment with this person in this place will never happen again.
This moment with this person in this place will never happen again.
Haiku poetry, a Japanese literary tradition dating back to the 17th Century, elevated this celebration of the present moment to a world-renowned art form. Haiku poets attempt to capture the moment’s essence in just 17 syllables, using evocative images from nature to convey a Zen-like sense of sudden enlightenment. The most famous one is Matsuo Basho’s frog haiku, which translated from Japanese reads:
An old pond
a frog jumps
the sound of water
And nowhere is this celebration of the moment more evident than in cherry-blossom viewing, which sweeps the nation like a fever every spring. Why such excitement? Precisely because the blossoms are so fleeting, lasting only a week or so. “Transience forms the Japanese sense of beauty,” said Zen priest and garden designer Shunmyo Masuno.
Transience is celebrated in dozens of lesser-known practices too, such as moon viewing. You can’t help but admire a country that sets aside a special evening in September for contemplating the full moon. Or that holds lavish festivals to give thanks for the work done by inanimate objects, including everything from old kitchen knives to calligraphy brushes and even used sewing needles.
Transience forms the Japanese sense of beauty.
And there are the growing ranks of Moss Girls. Inspired in part by Hisako Fujii’s best-selling book, Mosses, My Dear Friends, moss-viewing has become increasingly trendy, especially with young women, who go on guided tours to Japan’s lush moss-carpeted forests. This goes way beyond just stopping to smell the roses: Moss Girls get down on hands and knees with a loupe to contemplate the lovely growths.
Nowhere is this celebration of the moment more evident than in cherry-blossom viewing. Credit: Angeles Marin Cabello.
And while to the less mindful among us moss may seem insignificantly small, no Zen garden is complete without its moss-covered rock or stone lanterns. It’s the living embodiment of wabi-sabi – the spirit of humble, rustic impermanence that defines Japanese aesthetics.
But there’s more to Japanese mindfulness than gazing at bugs and blooms. Countless practical applications govern virtually every aspect of daily life, all designed to help you ‘be in the now’. At school, days begin and end with a short ceremony, where greetings are exchanged and the day’s events are announced. Before and after each class, students and teacher stand, bow and thank each other. And before starting the lesson, students are asked to close their eyes to focus their concentration.
Similarly, construction workers engage in collective stretches to limber up for the day’s work. In the office, a colleague will tell you 'Otsukaresama', (literally ‘you’re tired’), as a way of saying thanks for the work you’ve done. At meetings, hand someone your meishi (business card) and they'll examine it carefully and make a comment, never dreaming of just sticking it in their pocket.
These practices are a way of what Kabat-Zinn calls ‘purposefully paying attention to things we ordinarily never give a moment’s thought to’. They help keep you conscious of where you are and what you are doing throughout the day, rather than stumbling from one hour to the next on autopilot, focused only on going-home time.
Zen gardens embody wabi-sabi, the spirit of humble, rustic impermanence. Credit: Angeles Marin Cabello.
Like so much of Japanese culture, the roots of all these customs lie in Zen. “Mindfulness has been part of the Buddhist tradition for centuries,” said Takafumi Kawakami, priest at Kyoto’s Shunko-in temple. In the Kamakura Era (1185-1333), Zen became popular among the samurai class and had a formative influence on the arts, including tea ceremony, flower-arranging and landscape gardening. In the Edo Era (1603-1868), a time of peace, Zen found its way into the education of common people.
For its practitioners, Zen is an attitude that permeates every action: bathing, cooking, cleaning, working. “Every activity and behaviour in daily life is a practice [of Zen],” said Eriko Kuwagaki of Shinshoji Temple in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture.
A delightful old Zen story, collected in Paul Reps’ 1957 anthology of Zen texts, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones, illustrates this point. After studying to be a Zen teacher for many years, Teno went to visit Nan-in, an old Zen master. It was raining heavily and, as is customary, Teno left his clogs and umbrella in the entrance before entering Nan-in’s house.
Every activity and behaviour in daily life is a practice [of Zen].
After greeting each other, Nan-in asked Teno: “Did you leave your umbrella to the left or right of your clogs?” Unable to answer, Teno realised he was still a long way from attaining Zen, and went away to study for six more years.
For its practitioners, Zen is an attitude that permeates every action. Credit: Shinshoji Zen Museum and Gardens.
Most of us might not want to take things quite so far. Nevertheless, Nan-in’s question remains relevant, as more and more researchers are discovering that present-moment awareness not only boosts stress resilience and well-being, but also lowers levels of anxiety and depression.
Leah Weiss, a senior teacher at Stanford University’s Compassion Cultivation Program, is one of a growing number of experts who advocate ‘mindfulness in action’. This is something to be practiced throughout the day, rather than just for 10 minutes’ meditation. Weiss described it as “becoming mindfully aware of your thoughts, feelings, and surroundings even while you’re engaged in some other activity.”
So how can we put a little more mindfulness into our lives? Start with something simple, like a bit of pointing and calling before you leave home in the morning. Lights off? Check. Windows closed? Check. Money? Check. Phone? Check. You’ll never forget your keys again.
Then maybe you’ll have time to stop and notice the moss.
Correction: A previous version of this article misidentified moss as lichen. We regret the error.
Advertisement
More from BBC 7,174 Saves 2,202 Saves
- Steve John Powell
Even moss is appreciated by the mindful Japanese. Credit: Andrew Whitehead/Alamy.
As the sleek shinkansen bullet train glided noiselessly into the station, I watched a strange ritual begin. During the brief stop, the conductor in the last carriage began talking to himself. He proceeded to perform a series of tasks, commenting aloud on each one and vigorously gesticulating at various bits of the train all the while.
So what was he up to? You could say he’s practicing mindfulness. The Japanese call it shisa kanko (literally ‘checking and calling’), an error-prevention drill that railway employees here have been using for more than 100 years. Conductors point at the things they need to check and then name them out loud as they do them, a dialogue with themselves to ensure nothing gets overlooked.
Japanese train conductors practice shisa kanko, pointing at what they need to check and then naming it out loud. Credit: Trevor Mogg/Alamy.
And it seems to work. A 1994 study by Japan’s Railway Technical Research Institute, cited in The Japan Times, showed that when asked to perform a simple task workers typically make 2.38 mistakes per 100 actions. When using shisa kanko, this number reduced to just 0.38 – a massive 85 percent drop.
Mindfulness is moment-to-moment awareness.
This may seem a long way from mindfulness, which in recent years has become synonymous with what the Japanese call zazen – meditating cross-legged on a cushion. But according to Jon Kabat-Zinn, Professor of Medicine emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, where he founded its renowned Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Clinic in 1979, mindfulness is “not really about sitting in the full lotus… pretending you’re a statue in the British Museum. Simply put, mindfulness is moment-to-moment awareness.”
And this present-moment awareness has been deeply ingrained into the Japanese psyche for centuries. You don’t hear people talk about it, but it manifests itself in myriad ways.
In tea ceremony, participants take time to notice the design of the cup. Credit: Lonely Planet/Getty.
Tea ceremony, haiku and cherry-blossom viewing, for instance, all share a heightened appreciation of the moment. In tea ceremony, participants take time to notice the design of the cup before drinking and appreciate the decoration of the tea room, which reflects the foliage and blooms of the month. But beyond that, the ceremony celebrates the fact that this moment with this person in this place will never happen again.
This moment with this person in this place will never happen again.
Haiku poetry, a Japanese literary tradition dating back to the 17th Century, elevated this celebration of the present moment to a world-renowned art form. Haiku poets attempt to capture the moment’s essence in just 17 syllables, using evocative images from nature to convey a Zen-like sense of sudden enlightenment. The most famous one is Matsuo Basho’s frog haiku, which translated from Japanese reads:
An old pond
a frog jumps
the sound of water
And nowhere is this celebration of the moment more evident than in cherry-blossom viewing, which sweeps the nation like a fever every spring. Why such excitement? Precisely because the blossoms are so fleeting, lasting only a week or so. “Transience forms the Japanese sense of beauty,” said Zen priest and garden designer Shunmyo Masuno.
Transience is celebrated in dozens of lesser-known practices too, such as moon viewing. You can’t help but admire a country that sets aside a special evening in September for contemplating the full moon. Or that holds lavish festivals to give thanks for the work done by inanimate objects, including everything from old kitchen knives to calligraphy brushes and even used sewing needles.
Transience forms the Japanese sense of beauty.
And there are the growing ranks of Moss Girls. Inspired in part by Hisako Fujii’s best-selling book, Mosses, My Dear Friends, moss-viewing has become increasingly trendy, especially with young women, who go on guided tours to Japan’s lush moss-carpeted forests. This goes way beyond just stopping to smell the roses: Moss Girls get down on hands and knees with a loupe to contemplate the lovely growths.
Nowhere is this celebration of the moment more evident than in cherry-blossom viewing. Credit: Angeles Marin Cabello.
And while to the less mindful among us moss may seem insignificantly small, no Zen garden is complete without its moss-covered rock or stone lanterns. It’s the living embodiment of wabi-sabi – the spirit of humble, rustic impermanence that defines Japanese aesthetics.
But there’s more to Japanese mindfulness than gazing at bugs and blooms. Countless practical applications govern virtually every aspect of daily life, all designed to help you ‘be in the now’. At school, days begin and end with a short ceremony, where greetings are exchanged and the day’s events are announced. Before and after each class, students and teacher stand, bow and thank each other. And before starting the lesson, students are asked to close their eyes to focus their concentration.
Similarly, construction workers engage in collective stretches to limber up for the day’s work. In the office, a colleague will tell you 'Otsukaresama', (literally ‘you’re tired’), as a way of saying thanks for the work you’ve done. At meetings, hand someone your meishi (business card) and they'll examine it carefully and make a comment, never dreaming of just sticking it in their pocket.
These practices are a way of what Kabat-Zinn calls ‘purposefully paying attention to things we ordinarily never give a moment’s thought to’. They help keep you conscious of where you are and what you are doing throughout the day, rather than stumbling from one hour to the next on autopilot, focused only on going-home time.
Zen gardens embody wabi-sabi, the spirit of humble, rustic impermanence. Credit: Angeles Marin Cabello.
Like so much of Japanese culture, the roots of all these customs lie in Zen. “Mindfulness has been part of the Buddhist tradition for centuries,” said Takafumi Kawakami, priest at Kyoto’s Shunko-in temple. In the Kamakura Era (1185-1333), Zen became popular among the samurai class and had a formative influence on the arts, including tea ceremony, flower-arranging and landscape gardening. In the Edo Era (1603-1868), a time of peace, Zen found its way into the education of common people.
For its practitioners, Zen is an attitude that permeates every action: bathing, cooking, cleaning, working. “Every activity and behaviour in daily life is a practice [of Zen],” said Eriko Kuwagaki of Shinshoji Temple in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture.
A delightful old Zen story, collected in Paul Reps’ 1957 anthology of Zen texts, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones, illustrates this point. After studying to be a Zen teacher for many years, Teno went to visit Nan-in, an old Zen master. It was raining heavily and, as is customary, Teno left his clogs and umbrella in the entrance before entering Nan-in’s house.
Every activity and behaviour in daily life is a practice [of Zen].
After greeting each other, Nan-in asked Teno: “Did you leave your umbrella to the left or right of your clogs?” Unable to answer, Teno realised he was still a long way from attaining Zen, and went away to study for six more years.
For its practitioners, Zen is an attitude that permeates every action. Credit: Shinshoji Zen Museum and Gardens.
Most of us might not want to take things quite so far. Nevertheless, Nan-in’s question remains relevant, as more and more researchers are discovering that present-moment awareness not only boosts stress resilience and well-being, but also lowers levels of anxiety and depression.
Leah Weiss, a senior teacher at Stanford University’s Compassion Cultivation Program, is one of a growing number of experts who advocate ‘mindfulness in action’. This is something to be practiced throughout the day, rather than just for 10 minutes’ meditation. Weiss described it as “becoming mindfully aware of your thoughts, feelings, and surroundings even while you’re engaged in some other activity.”
So how can we put a little more mindfulness into our lives? Start with something simple, like a bit of pointing and calling before you leave home in the morning. Lights off? Check. Windows closed? Check. Money? Check. Phone? Check. You’ll never forget your keys again.
Then maybe you’ll have time to stop and notice the moss.
Correction: A previous version of this article misidentified moss as lichen. We regret the error.
Advertisement
More from BBC 7,174 Saves 2,202 Saves
Coping with Post-Holiday Blues
by Madisyn Taylor from the Daily OM
The holiday season may be over but the special feelings and sparkle can live on throughout the year.
For many people, the act of packing away the holiday decorations, opening the last gift, or parting with visiting loved ones evokes feelings of sadness. The busyness associated with the holidays that distracted us from life subsides, and we are left wondering why life seems a bit empty. Yet we need not give ourselves over entirely to the blues we feel when the celebrations end. And this post-holiday period of mellowness should not be viewed as a sign that your festivities were less than fulfilling. To feel a few pangs of gloom as the decorations come down and guests return to their homes is natural. Your physical and mental selves, which existed in a state of arousal as you immerse yourself in the magic of the holiday season, need time to adjust as you settle back into your usual routine. Rest assured that which warmed your heart and fulfilled you in previous days will satisfy you again.
There are many ways you can gently smooth the transition between the holidays and the pleasures of everyday existence. In the midst of your yearly celebrations, strive to achieve balance and acknowledge that holidays are special, precisely because they represent a short time of your life. If you minimize the impact the festivities have on your personal and professional schedules, reverting to these timetables will not shock your system. Once the holidays are over, try to keep a small spark of celebration aglow in your heart. Accomplishing this can be as easy as treating yourself well and integrating holiday values such as forgiveness, generosity, and gratitude into your day-to-day existence. Stay in touch with relatives who you traditionally only see once per year, and spread goodwill by volunteering or hosting a post-celebration celebration, just for the fun of it. Even leaving one decoration unpacked and displayed can help you stay cheerful in the days that follow the holidays.
Consider that all of the virtues that touch you deeply as you celebrate the holiday season--charity, togetherness, magic, beauty, etc.--exist year-round. With a little effort, you can carry the celebratory spirit in your heart always. The post-holiday blues will soon pass, leaving you feeling as happy and buoyant as you did just weeks before.
PRINT SAVE DISCUSS
by Madisyn Taylor from the Daily OM
The holiday season may be over but the special feelings and sparkle can live on throughout the year.
For many people, the act of packing away the holiday decorations, opening the last gift, or parting with visiting loved ones evokes feelings of sadness. The busyness associated with the holidays that distracted us from life subsides, and we are left wondering why life seems a bit empty. Yet we need not give ourselves over entirely to the blues we feel when the celebrations end. And this post-holiday period of mellowness should not be viewed as a sign that your festivities were less than fulfilling. To feel a few pangs of gloom as the decorations come down and guests return to their homes is natural. Your physical and mental selves, which existed in a state of arousal as you immerse yourself in the magic of the holiday season, need time to adjust as you settle back into your usual routine. Rest assured that which warmed your heart and fulfilled you in previous days will satisfy you again.
There are many ways you can gently smooth the transition between the holidays and the pleasures of everyday existence. In the midst of your yearly celebrations, strive to achieve balance and acknowledge that holidays are special, precisely because they represent a short time of your life. If you minimize the impact the festivities have on your personal and professional schedules, reverting to these timetables will not shock your system. Once the holidays are over, try to keep a small spark of celebration aglow in your heart. Accomplishing this can be as easy as treating yourself well and integrating holiday values such as forgiveness, generosity, and gratitude into your day-to-day existence. Stay in touch with relatives who you traditionally only see once per year, and spread goodwill by volunteering or hosting a post-celebration celebration, just for the fun of it. Even leaving one decoration unpacked and displayed can help you stay cheerful in the days that follow the holidays.
Consider that all of the virtues that touch you deeply as you celebrate the holiday season--charity, togetherness, magic, beauty, etc.--exist year-round. With a little effort, you can carry the celebratory spirit in your heart always. The post-holiday blues will soon pass, leaving you feeling as happy and buoyant as you did just weeks before.
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My DAILY AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER OF GRATITUDE
FROM AGAPE MINISTERIES
It is in the high vibration of gratitude that I speak this word of recognition of the one power and presence that is God, the one true source; the creative force of this universe. How grateful I am to know that I am wholly one with IT; known and loved by IT. I do know that there is a unified field of awareness that everybody and everything is joined together in a collective field of all things possible, consciousness.
It is from this place that I declare this prayer of realization in faith believing that it is given to me to speak my word; to name and claim and to know that it is done. I do know that everything is working together for my good and for the good of those I hold in prayer. This absolutely includes the manifestation and demonstration of all God qualities; abundance, peace, right action, right thinking, health and wholesness. All that God created me to be expresses in me, through me, as me and around and about me.
I am thankful to know that everything is working together for the highest good of all concerned. How great God is! How thankful I am.
I release this word into the living, loving, lawful nature of the universe knowing that I have set something powerful in motion and everything is working together for my highest and greatest good.
It is done! It is so! And so it is! Amen!
AYO'S ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE NOTE; I give thanks for this ministry and this prayer. I have been blessed to follow these spiritual teaching from Dr. Michael Bernard Beckwith, Founder and Spiritual Director, Agape International spiritual Center. Call 310-348-1270 for Prayer Hotline.
FROM AGAPE MINISTERIES
It is in the high vibration of gratitude that I speak this word of recognition of the one power and presence that is God, the one true source; the creative force of this universe. How grateful I am to know that I am wholly one with IT; known and loved by IT. I do know that there is a unified field of awareness that everybody and everything is joined together in a collective field of all things possible, consciousness.
It is from this place that I declare this prayer of realization in faith believing that it is given to me to speak my word; to name and claim and to know that it is done. I do know that everything is working together for my good and for the good of those I hold in prayer. This absolutely includes the manifestation and demonstration of all God qualities; abundance, peace, right action, right thinking, health and wholesness. All that God created me to be expresses in me, through me, as me and around and about me.
I am thankful to know that everything is working together for the highest good of all concerned. How great God is! How thankful I am.
I release this word into the living, loving, lawful nature of the universe knowing that I have set something powerful in motion and everything is working together for my highest and greatest good.
It is done! It is so! And so it is! Amen!
AYO'S ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE NOTE; I give thanks for this ministry and this prayer. I have been blessed to follow these spiritual teaching from Dr. Michael Bernard Beckwith, Founder and Spiritual Director, Agape International spiritual Center. Call 310-348-1270 for Prayer Hotline.