Transmuting tension into power ⚡
Welcome to November, dear one, and your monthly alchemical attunement.
This is a process of...
✨ Using our own wisdom and evolution as a tuning fork, bringing us into vibration with our highest Self.
✨ Bridging the mystic and the mundane, the esoteric and the practical, spirit and matter, joy and grief.
✨ Transmuting our "base materials" into gold... turning pain into power, wounds into wisdom, and grief into grace.
Today’s alchemy is devoted to transmuting the tension you experience in your mind and body into pure power.
Tension.
Stress.
Resistance.
They all feel like different facets of the same gemstone.
How they show up in our lives and bodies may vary slightly, but we recognize their energetic imprint as being cut from the same cloth.
Let’s take a headache as an example.
By definition, a headache is tension in our head which causes us physical pain. Why the tension gets lodged there is due to any number of reasons, including dehydration, eyestrain, substances affecting us, fatigue, etc etc. We could also say that a headache is a form of stress transpiring inside of our cranium. And we could also say that being in active resistance builds tension and pressure, which can cause a headache, and that when we have a headache our entire being resists the pain we feel, which only adds to the tension and makes it worse.
Can you tell I have a lot of experience with headaches?
Years ago, I recorded a video on the gifts of resistance. I recalled that in Star Wars (shout out Star Wars fans), the “rebels” are also called “the resistance”, aka the good guys, Jedis, and forces of good in the galaxy.
I was also learning a yoga-inspired technique at the time called resistance stretching, built on the principle that in order to truly stretch a muscle, you must first engage it. As a yoga teacher and longtime practitioner, this technique blew my mind. Instead of practicing asana the way so many of us have learned it by simply stretching as far as you can in a relaxed state — which can and has caused a lot of damage to our ligaments and joints — the trick with resistance stretching is to engage your muscles first. In other words, to intentionally apply tension in your body.
To this day, this technique has completely changed the way I practice yoga asana. I’ll never go back.
[Side note: if you want to give it a try, I recommend Luca Cupery or Kaita Mrazek at YogaSoup.com. Both of these ladies have class replays you can access online, and they are both excellent teachers at this game-changing technique.]
All this to say that while resistance can definitely take us down when it comes to our creative and business practices, it can also be a boon. It forces us to learn how to move through and overcome strong forces of opposition.
And what happens when we overcome our resistance?
We get stronger. Fortified. Powerful.
In fact, I would go so far to say that without those forces of opposition, we wouldn’t become nearly as powerful as we are now, because it is the resistance, stress and tension that has opened the door to learning true resilience, fortification and self-trust.
Today’s alchemy is an invitation to first shift your mindset around resistance, stress and tension, and then let your practices follow.
These forces of opposition are often uncomfortable. They bring us nose-to-nose with painful aspects of life and ourselves.
On the other side, we get the opportunity to lean in, to learn how to relax or pivot or use that resistance to grow our physical or proverbial muscles.
Shall we dive deeper?
✨ Alchemical Prompts ✨
Where is resistance showing up in my work + creative life?
What is resistance teaching me?
Where do I notice or feel tension on a recurring basis?
What is that tension teaching me?
✨ Alchemical Mantra ✨
As a Warrior of Light, I release tension and move through resistance.
✨ Alchemical Action ✨
Relax your jax: Internal Mouth Massage
A LOT of people (myself included) hold an absurd amount of tension and stress in the jaw. I’ve been a teeth-grinder and jaw-clencher for as long as I remember, and I have now entered a phase where I am determined to change these unconscious patterns of holding and resisting in my body.
My acupuncturist gave me this practice and it is *changing my life*. I do it first thing in the morning and at night before I fall asleep to help with jaw clenching, teeth grinding, headaches, overall relaxation and stress relief.
With your palm facing away from you, slide your right index finger along your left bottom row of teeth until you reach the very last tooth. From the back edge of your very last molar, trace your fingertip ever so slightly down. You’ll feel a triangular area of dense muscle. Gently massage this area for 60-90 seconds. Breathe deeply, taking an exhale that’s twice as long as the inhale. The pain level should not be more than a 2, so if you’re feeling intense discomfort you’re probably in the wrong spot. You may feel the spot begin to subtly loosen and have more movement as you pulse with your fingertip. When you’re done, remove your finger and take a moment to fully open your mouth— you’ll be amazed at the difference between left and right! Now do the same on the right side of your jaw with your left fingertip. Be sure to keep your finger parallel with your bottom row of teeth so that you know you’re getting the correct spot.
Throughout your day, anytime you notice you’re holding tension in your face or jaw, take a slow inhale of 3-4 seconds, then exhale for twice as long, imagining your jaw dropping down to the floor.
As you change the habituated patterns of holding stress and tension in your face, something miraculous happens: you can see more sharply, think more clearly, and focus more effectively.
You become more powerful, more productive, and more prolific, because all that energy bound up in tension is suddenly freed up and available to be redirected as attention on what matters most.
May these contemplations and practices alchemize your resistance, stress and tension into pure, unbound life-force energy.
We are becoming powerful beyond measure.
Blessed be!
In your corner,
Britta