Ultradian Healing Response: Creating Moments of Escape at Home

Over the last few months, many of us have aCrowdmore time at home, mostly with family or partners, learning how to share space and enjoy each other's company. While we were together and building stronger, closer relationships, this was probably the tonic we needed to live a life of separation and fleeting human interaction. There comes a time when we need a littleSpace.All familial, romantic or Plutonic relationships benefit from space and time, balanced with closeness and connection. Creating moments of escape at home can not only benefit our relationships, but also gives the mind and body time to rejuvenate and rejuvenate. Sprinkling moments of escape throughout the day is what researchers call the “ultradian healing response.” the idea that after about 90 minutes of physical or mental activity, we benefit enormously from a 20-minute break. Read on and get inspired on how to create your own moments of escape at home!

Flow condition

As an active state of meditative consciousness, the “flow state” can be accessed when we participate in activities that we enjoy, that require concentration, and that we become “immersed in.” Activities such as painting, exercise, running, yoga, cooking or writing all have the ability to bring our minds into this deeply immersed and present state of being. You can use Flow State to create a moment of escape at home by choosing an activity and immersing yourself in it for a specific period of time. Maybe you can bake or jog, whatever it is, set a stopwatch or an alarm so you don't have to worry about time and immerse yourself in the experience.

Restorative yoga

Restorative yoga is a wonderful way to shift the nervous system from the sympathetically stressed state to the parasympathetic, calm and relaxed state. During a busy day, we spend a large portion of time with cortisol (a stress hormone) circulating throughout the body. This not only leads to emotional stress, but also physical stress in the form of digestive disorders, sleep disorders, mood swings, increased amounts of sugar circulating in the bloodstream, anxiety, brain fog and generalnotbe good company! Practicing restorative yoga with the body supported by bolsters and pillows, blankets and blocks is a great way to send the message to the nervous system that it's okay to relax and let go, greatly reducing the stress we feel and giving the body and care a much-needed moment of escape.

read

Have you ever been so engrossed in a story that you completely lost track of time? Reading – especially fiction – is a very effective way to create a moment of escape. When we read a fictional book, the mind can detach from the day and enter a world of imagination. In this imaginary world with characters and stories, research shows that we improve our ability to see the world from a new perspective, feel empathy, improve memory, and just six minutes of reading can reduce stress by 60%!

Listen to music and sound frequencies

When we listen to music, different parts of the brain are activated, which are related to reduced stress, increased happiness, better physical performance and improvement in brain function. With apps and methods likebinaural beats,Music is paired with specific frequencies that produce different brainwave states. Theta frequencies have stress-relieving properties and can make us more creative, while alpha frequencies can increase productivity, increase resilience and improve pain tolerance. There are a plethora of different frequencies to choose from depending on what state of mind you want to create, but whether you're playing your favorite pop song or intentionally plugging inbinaural beats,Listening to music is key when it comes to creating a moment of escape in your day. Think of it like soundtracking your day – if you want to improve the mood, change the music!

Yoga Nidra

Opting for a yoga nidra session is an excellent way to allow your mind, body and nervous system to have a moment of peace and escape. Studies show that the benefits of yoga nidra include improved relaxation and therefore reduced stress, improved hormonal health, nervous system balance, and cellular repair and regeneration. Similar to the benefits of sleep, yoga nidra is a deeply restorative practice, but because you are awake—somewhere between wakefulness and a hypnogogic state of being—and repeating a sankalpa, or affirmation, throughout the session, it can rewire the brain as well. Grab your most comfortable clothing, a soft cushion, and a smooth blanket and create a moment of escape as you cultivate new neural pathways with a yoga nidra practice.

Write a diary

Journaling can be incredibly therapeutic and, along with talking to someone you trust or getting advice, it is one of the most cathartic practices there is. If you find yourself thinking and worrying about the same topics over and over again, try thiswrite it down.It may sound strange at first, and to be completely honest I was very resistant to journaling for a long time, but the effect and the weight that feels lifted off my shoulders after a journaling session is worth it. When we keep fear and worry in our minds, it has nowhere to go and the negative feelings just swirl around, creating more fear and worry. Journaling - even for just a few minutes in the morning - can really help you objectively see what you've been worrying about. Very often, writing down thoughts is enough to relive the worry, and by reading the words out loud you can understand why those thoughts may be there in the first place. Create a moment of escape by grabbing a notebook and pen, setting a timer for five minutes, and starting aStream of consciousnessJournaling session by simply writing down what comes to mind. Trust me, you probably willFeelingthe weight of worry lifting from your shoulders!

Connection to nature

Especially if much of your day is spent indoors or on a laptop, creating a moment of escape when it comes to nature can be even more beneficial. Spending time in green spaces or on forest walks is a therapy in itself – known asShinrin Yoku –“Forest bath” or “nature therapy” and can help reduce stress while improving states of relaxation, peace and happiness. The philosopher, poet and essayist Henry David Thoreau (known for his two-year experiment in “simple living” in which he went into the forest, built a house, lived as close to nature as possible and wrote about it in his bookWalden), said of walking in nature;“I went for a walk in the forest and came out taller than the trees,”Reference to the mood-enhancing and perspective-changing power of nature. To create a moment of escape, take a walk in your local park or forest or simply spend some time in your garden or tend to your houseplants!