Somatic Moves toward Well-being, senior style, Part III

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Thanks for visiting.

This is a continuation of a series of posts. I would suggest you go back (down) and start at least at Part I if not Part Zero.

As I mentioned, I was teaching a group of about 13 seniors techniques to help them relax and let go of stress.

Now it was time for the first exercise. Oh! Sorry to pause right out of the gates here – I must mention that, as with some spiritual practices, Zapchen exercises should be done with a qualified and experienced teacher. I have received transmissions for many of the exercises from Janet Evergreen, a senior teacher in the Zapchen tradition, and from Julie Henderson herself (she is the founder and creator of Zapchen Somatics). Personally, I am neither an expert nor a Zapchen teacher, but I believe Zapchen Somatics to be simple techniques to free ourselves of our habitual patterns of doom and gloom, in a fun, comfortable, playful, easy way.

With that said, it may seem that some of these exercises are “too easy” to work. But when you are with a qualified teacher, similar to other spiritual traditions, the teacher can pass on a transmission of the somato-spiritual state of ease, kindness and potency in their body. If we practice self-care on a regular basis (most humans do or at least want to), then the body can quickly “remember” how to get back to a state of deep, playful relaxation, if it has gone there before. But that is the key – we can only “know” that we have gone down an appropriate path if we are led by an appropriate teacher. If we happen to stumble upon a healthy path, we may forever be full of doubt and uncertainty until we gain confirmation from someone who has been down that path with confidence and clarity.

Having mentioned that you need to receive these teachings from a qualified teacher, I must caution you to not judge these exercises if you try them after reading this, without the presence of a qualified teacher, and they “don’t work.” I know for a fact they work, because in leading this group of seniors, we all dropped into a deeper state of fun openness and I personally moved toward greater inner stillness (internal equanimity), embodied potency and playful awareness. Many of their psychological walls came tumbling down, despite the fact that this was my first time meeting any of them, and the class did not even go for 90 minutes.

With all that said, the first exercise is yawning. There are many incredible health benefits to yawning, but I held off on mentioning these until after we had all yawned five or more times. It took a while to get to five though. Just about everyone was either ashamed to force themselves to yawn, or they could not do it without having it be spontaneous and organic. Well, it seemed I needed to get them started, so I yawned in a rather vocal manner. I have been told that when I yawn like that, that it sounds almost like I am doing warm-ups for voice class. Therefore, even these seniors could not help but hear the yawn.

I should probably mention too, that there is an energetic field around us. One of the participants mentioned that we have auras (I did not want to go here on such an early class) and once it was mentioned by someone else, I ran with that. Hey, if they mention it, obviously there is a reason it is coming up. If I mention it too early though, I could lose people’s attention and possibly their trust! Anyway, I said that I believed that yawning not only has physical effects on us, but as we yawn, we relax parts of our bodies and that this effects the energetic field around us. And I said that by changing (“relaxing”) the energetic field, that is how we “cause” others around us to start yawning. You could argue it is the sight of the yawns doing it, but I would add it is also a change in the field which your body “senses.”

[As an aside, it would be a fascinating experiment to see if you blindfold people and prevent them from hearing anything, and then you have others around them start to yawn, do they do start themselves?  I’m hoping this has already been tried, but if so, I’ve not heard of it yet.]

It was mentioned that several people thought yawning meant you were bored or tired. I knew that might come up, so I talked a little about how I believe that particular cultural mores to be horribly mistaken. When someone who I know yawns around me, I consider it a compliment (they are practicing self-care) or at least I certainly don’t think they are being rude! Yawning opens the throat, palate and TMJ; it produces saliva (helping digestion); yawning lubricates the eyes and has been shown to help with maintaining a healthy balance of serotonin and melatonin, among many other benefits. Therefore we yawned as much as we were able.

Some people covered their mouths as they yawned, as the cultural beliefs tended to be deeply ingrained! But eventually, nearly everyone yawned at least five times. Then we napped. Napping, if you have not figured it out yet, is one of the most important exercises you can possibly do (yes perhaps even more beneficial than yawning). There is evidence that napping, just for five to seven minutes, is very helpful for learning, for better efficiency and brain functioning.

My only regret from this class is that not enough people lay down to nap. And by not laying down, their bodies were still holding a little bit of tension and exerting a little effort to keep them in the seated position. In other words, by not laying down, they were not capable of letting go completely. There were several of us who did lay down, and by doing so, we were not tempted to start whispering. Eventually though, some whispering started among the seated people. The discursive mind can be so distracting – when we are not used to just letting go, we tend to revert back to previous patterns, which in this case were to chat and whisper. I did hear someone start after briefly falling asleep (while seated), and the phrase, “Sweet Jesus!” was muttered several times.

So we did yawning and napping to open the class. Actually, by discussing my ground rules, and then mentioning how it was my intention to rest down just a little bit more, and to practice just a touch more kindness to yourself (and therefore to others), it took 45 minutes to get through the introduction, the yawning and the napping. Therefore, I was not wordy for the next two exercises.

I will continue this stream in the next post. It should be complete within a few days. Thanks for visiting!

Somatic Moves toward Well-being, senior style, part II

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is strictly prohibited. Thanks for reading!  You can visit Kirby’s website at www.mkirbymoore.com to see what he offers in terms of Spiritual Astrology or Resource bodywork.

This is a continuation of a series of posts on a recent visit to some senior apartments in Nelson County, where I taught some simple exercises for well-being. By the way, I am simply describing what occurred in the most objective way possible. I do not intend to be demeaning or to make fun of anyone’s suffering. Because good Lord, we all know that there is too much of that to go around without adding to it! With that in mind, please enjoy.

So Beth was sitting opposite me in the circle of chairs. I decided to go with a circle. I believe that is Montessori style (is that right?), in that there is no way for any individual to hide. Even if they want to (or need to). Also, that way, we are all equals in a sense. There is no position known as “teacher” which has everyone else’s attention focused on it. By sitting in a “round table” form, we all can have an equal say, hopefully.

Beth was chatting with her neighbor and I was barely following her conversation, considering I was checking in with my body, attempting to relax and trying to rest in equanimity as best as I could. I should mention for the record that I learned, quite rapidly, that Beth’s condition of hearing loss was advanced.

So Beth’s neighbor, a cute little, older black woman says, holding a can of unopened Mountain Dew, “I need to hide my soda so Barbara doesn’t take it away from me.”

And of course Beth chimes in with, “Oh you hurt your shoulder? I’m sorry…”

Beth’s neighbor corrected her and Beth noticed me watching this and she blurts out, looking at me, “Just wait til you get old Cody!” It was really the tone of voice she used. So confident and direct and lacking any care about what others might think about it. I had rarely encountered it before, not in other hearing-impaired friends or really anywhere else. What was that mysterious trait about that tone? Anger? Indifference? Bitterness? It made me chuckle though as I appreciated the directness.

I zoned out for a while, at least from their conversation, as I was meeting newcomers. Soon though, Beth looks at me and makes my brain start sizzling as she produces, “Older women are so much more fun than younger women Cody! You should spend more time with older women.” Uhhhh… What did I miss?

“My name is Kirby.”

“What?” Her neighbor explained what my name was. Writing it down helped.

I was told to start, despite the fact that there would be several people arriving late. So I get started, using the skillful beginning of, “Before we get started…” to delay any tension arising. I told them all to take a deep breath and to let go of any physical tension, any emotional stress.

Then I decided to do a little warm up exercise where we would each say our name and one thing we were grateful for. This was to be one of the first of many lessons for me. I said my name and said that I was grateful for all the spring flowers blooming, in particular the forsythia. Then, nearly everyone else around the circle proceeded to thank god for having one more day to live… or for having given them breath that morning. Wow! It was like I was the ignorant leader of a powerful church.

I learned that one woman had an extremely green thumb – she said she could heal any plant. She was actually full of healing wisdom as I would find out throughout the afternoon.

Then I mentioned my guidelines. I said that it was my intention for us all to be just a little more kind to ourselves and that way, we could be a little more kind to others as a result. This would actually be a theme throughout the day.

Several people arrived late. One person, who tried to sit outside the circle but I directed her to the only chair available, right next to me, said, “I’m late.” Okay… I introduced myself and told her my only guidelines for the class – that you only do exercises that are comfortable / easy for you and that you try to have fun doing them. I said if something is uncomfortable, don’t do it, and at least object or raise your hand before forcing yourself to do something that you don’t want to. I suspected that this was a new paradigm as these seniors were kind of at the whim of their apartment manager.

Oh, Barbara introduced me, saying that I did Craniosacral Therapy and that I recently got my BA from UVa. Good… Someone asked me about Craniosacral work and for some reason, I went in the direction of the this-is-actually-a-church-meeting and answered her with, “Craniosacral work is unique in that it believes the individual has the power and the ability to heal themselves.” (So I was actually talking about Craniosacral Biodynamics here.) I continued with, “As a Craniosacral practitioner, I try to get in touch with that natural, innate healing ability of individuals, which we call the Christ-Light or the Breath of Life (which are both terms from Christianity). I try to balance that energy and make sure that it is flowing smoothly and as fully as possible. Sometimes if we get injured, or hit our heads, or due to conditioning from when we were young, or other traumatic events, we can lose touch with the Breath of Life. So I simply try to get my client back in touch with their potential to heal themselves.” Wow! Pat yourself on the back Kirby – these God-fearing seniors drank it up, although I think they did not expect it.

When someone in the audience tried to reflect back what I had just said, he did a good job. But that is when I realized I had not mentioned any of the actual scientific research and information about CST. So after he reflected about the energy coming from his heart and his spirit getting involved, which was great, I continued, “Also, in addition to everything I just mentioned about Craniosacral Therapy, if I were to take out any religious terms from my description, I could also say that Craniosacral works with the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and that science has actually shown that practitioners can palpate this subtle fluid and feel where it is stuck or where it is flowing smoothly. The CSF nourishes and lubricates the central nervous system and brain and if it is not flowing well, then issues can arise. So as a practitioner, I also work with balancing the CSF.” That may have been a bit long winded but it was good to explain it in those terms…

See my next post (Part III) for the next installment of this fantastic afternoon. Thanks for reading!

Somatic moves toward well-being, senior style Part I

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is strictly prohibited. Thanks!

By the way, everything I mention in here is meant in a spirit of fun, objective observership. I do not intend to demean anyone or speak ill of them. I am just describing a dynamic and entertaining afternoon.

This is a continuation of a post I wrote earlier, about heading down to Nelson County to lead a group through simple exercises to relax and release stress. Wow! I have been reading Henry Alford’s book, “How to Live,” which is about his search for wisdom in older people. In his book, he mentions one particularly eccentric character (Mr. Eugene Loh), whose chapter full of laughs makes the book worth purchasing alone (seriously!), and Alford is particularly grateful for the opportunity to write about this person, because his eccentricity makes him in Alford’s words, “comedy gold.” Well, in my little excursion into Nelson County, I seem to have come across a similar situation, where I was laughing so hard at times, that the first words to cross my mind upon considering writing about it were, “comedic gold.”

So as I mentioned in my first post, I was nervous this morning, prior to heading down there. And then I was still a little nervous as I drove the 45 minutes into the beautiful rolling hills of the heart of Nelson County Virginia. And then I noticed all the spring foliage that was starting to burst forth. I realized that the trees and flowers, all budding and blossoming must also be nervous. It is only March 20th and we have had spring-like weather for over a month! (Not going to go on a global warming rant, I swear!) So that made me feel better, knowing that Mother Nature may be touched with trepidation.

As I mentioned earlier too, I am not a meditation teacher. I do not have the blessings of any living teachers (nor from the other side as far as I know) to teach more than one individual at a time. So this is what I told the person who invited me down there – she is a nurse. I said, “I’m not a meditation teacher.” She said, “But you are so good! You will do fine.” She has been in a previous class of mine. So I said, “Let me think about it.” That meant, let me ask the I Ching, as I thought it would discourage me. But not to be, the I Ching suggested that going down there would be beneficial. So I hesitantly said yes, on the condition that it would be a small group.

Then early today, she said it might be a group of more than eight, and I began to worry. From what I have learned, primarily from bodywork teachers, is that the most we can comfortably handle at a time, are eight people. Six to eight to be exact – that way we can track the energetic field in the room and see if we notice any red-flags rising for anyone (and therefore pause and take some down time or at least time to express / clear up the subconscious issues). But I was told it might be a group of 12! Oh boy! I asked the woman who invited me, we can call her Barbara, who is a nurse, I asked if she would mind being a form holder (someone who holds energetic space). Although, I knew that she had not had any prior training for this. She said fine. [I will do a separate post about what it means to energetically hold space for someone else.] And I gave her the very expedited version of what it means to hold energetic space. Therefore, I was still nervous!

Anyway, so I am on the road, when I realize, Oh God, I forgot my phone! My phone had the email with the directions… but luckily I have a fairly photographic memory… so I did not actually get lost. Although once I got on the road she mentioned, I passed several extremely dilapidated houses that had brush and vines growing all over them and the road began to narrow, so I thought to myself, “What? There is no way a big school is back here! (Which they have turned into senior apartments)” Luckily I stuck with that road and sure enough, at the end of it, there was the large school-like building.

Also luckily enough, because the building is locked at all times for security, Barbara was right behind me when I pulled in, meaning I would not have to try to “call” her without my phone!

When we walked in, there were two women sitting at a table doing a puzzle. I will call them Beth and Simone. I was introduced to both of them, and I quickly surmised that Simone, who weighs in excess of 200 pounds and therefore who is confined to an electric wheel chair, is someone with an abundance of insecure energy. Meaning, she felt the need to constantly zoom up and down the hallway to check on which people were coming to participate. I decided I had to get the hell out of there! Unfortunately, with most of the doors being locked, I only escaped as far as the lobby, where she occasionally wheeled through on her way to check certain doors. Oh god – was this really happening? Was she really going to be in my class? And yes, what kind of teacher was I to be thinking this way! 🙂 Well, like I said, I’m not a teacher.

So we know a bit about Simone. What about Beth? She was a nice lady, if a bit reserved at first. And in the lobby, I did a quick exercise with myself from Zapchen Somatics (“Patting” to be specific), as that was one of the exercises I was going to lead later, I figured I might as well “self-empower” myself with it. And it supposedly helps with psychological boundaries which I felt I would need if I was to put up with Simone’s invasive words for much longer… Oh – by the way, Beth it would turn out, was the one who delivered on the comedic gold, once she got rolling! See below.

So people started to wander in, not knowing what to expect. They were introduced to me, so I got to know their names. At first, it was all women, which is actually typical with bodywork or somatic processing classes. But I was told that one man would show up, so that was good! It’s always nice to have some yin-yang balance.

See my next post to continue this comedic saga. Thank you for visiting.

Somatic Moves toward Well-being, senior style, Part Zero

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is strictly prohibited (just in case this gobble-dee-gook gets put into a book).

I have been asked to lead a group of seniors through some exercises for relaxation and stress-relief. At first I was asked to teach meditation, which I said “No” to. Then I decided I could work around my recommended limitations.

I just want to start out by stating very vehemently that No, Kirby Moore (the author) is not a meditation teacher!! Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen made that very clear. He said, “you may be the organizer and the facilitator of the C’ville Sangha, but an older wiser person should lead the meditation if possible.” And I was like, “Yep!” (Thinking, Thank god!)

Therefore, when I was recently asked to lead a group of seniors through exercises for relaxing (and easing their apparent stress and tendency-toward-gossip…) Why did I say yes?! I have never met these people before. They probably suffer from a lot of stress and they may be incredibly skeptical that such a young looking man can teach them anything. And yet I asked the I Ching why I might possibly consider doing something like this. And it said, “Go for it!” Right now I dearly hope I did not misinterpret what it said. Maybe it actually said, “Are you crazy? Going for it (will lead to great unbearable troubles…)” Ugh!

I leave in one hour to drive down to Nelson County to lead this unknown group.

So, I’m nervous! And, I plan to be explicitly clear. Not only Khenchen la, but Julie Henderson, the creator of Zapchen Somatics, mentioned something similar – “You will not call yourself a Zapchen teacher as you do not have my blessing to do so.” Gotcha! That was sharp and nearly-painfully clear! But I do have her blessing to lead individuals through the basic exercises if I have received the transmissions to teach those particular moves.

And yes, I am still nervous! Thankfully I tend to do a good job of pretending or being-charming-on-the-fly (this is a great quality to have as a waiter by the way). Don’t get me wrong – I plan to be honest, explicitly honest, self-deprecatingly honest even. But after that I will be a calm, centered guy who has been studying Somatic Processing and meditation for seven years. And we shall see how it goes. Wish me luck!

And as I was laying down, pondering what to do and say this afternoon, I realized I should probably make an appeal to the wisdom beings (I try to work with Dakas and Dakinis, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, as I am a Buddhist practitioners, but you can substitute the words Angels or Light Beings or whoever wishes happiness toward all sentient beings).

I said, “Wisdom beings, can you please surround me this afternoon? Can you go ahead of me and clear the space wherever I am going to be teaching? Can you make whoever attends be open and may they err on the side of kindness and gentleness? Please!”

Oh, and I also had the thought, as my ego can sometimes grow to gargantuan proportions, “Wisdom beings, can you please support me, lift me up when / where I am weak, and bonk me on the head where I am too strong or prideful?”

I think they listened and honored my request, but I have no way of knowing exactly.

Stay tuned and thanks for reading.

Self Care 102 – Our Pace of Life

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Thanks for reading!

By the way, I am now offering self-care coaching. I have a website which is still under development (but I launched it anyway), so if you visit, pardon the mess! It still needs a lot of work, so I anticipate it being several weeks before it looks moderately solid. On the site you can purchase coaching sessions. It is at http://www.mkirbymoore.com You can also click on the link at the top of the list to the right.

In this post, practicing self care by consciously taking the time to notice what our pace of life actually is. Show of hands: Who works at a fast paced job? I kind of expect most of my few readers’ hands to go up, and just to let you know, my hand would have to go up in answer to that. With that in mind, what is the pace of your life outside of work?

If we have never taken the time to slow down, whether through spending time in nature, gardening, meditating, volunteering with animals or children (this might not seem like going slow, but our egos are forced to slow down to meet these beings where they are), receiving process-oriented bodywork, doing yoga, etc etc… then how could we possibly expect to work at a fast paced job and somehow lead a peaceful, serene life at home? To steal a line from the movie The Princess Bride: “Inconceivable!”

So if you are reading this… yes, you knew this was coming… pause. Right now. Take a deep breath. Notice your body, take another breath. notice your posture, take another pause, are you hydrated or not? All of this takes time and effort and awareness. So just noticing is the beginning of excellent self-care! Now pat yourself on the back for a job well done! And if just this is making your head swim or giving you a funny sensation in your head (like a potential head ache) or something else unusual is happening, then it is a time for a nap. Come back and read the rest of this post later. If after practicing these little suggestions, your head is still clear, then please continue reading.

What are some ways that we can slow down, even if our jobs are demanding and stressful? Well, first, we must make time to do so. Okay, so our jobs are a drag. Well, what are going to do about it? It is what it is. I love how the I Ching tells me that I have two choices when I encounter natural, unavoidable phenomena – I can either sit there, moaning and groaning; or I can put on the music and dance in spite of everything. What do I want to cultivate within myself?

If we have any free time at all, or maybe just five minutes after we get home from whatever stressful activities we are “forced” to partake in, then take a few minutes to take stock of your life. Where are we distracted easily? Where are we really mindful, if at all? Where are we rushing around at a frenetic pace? Where are we numbing out, avoiding all of the above?

If we feel comfortable at home, maybe just this once, we can delay turning on the TV or computer (Facebook is mighty appealing sometimes!), and instead, we can contemplate our day, and contemplate our pace throughout that day. Where could we easily slow down? Where do we need to slow down? No judgment here! Be gentle. Be kind. Simply notice.

Just this noticing will start to create a shift. Just by noticing our breath, we will start to move toward states of relaxed awareness. So if we work at a hectic job, or have to spend time with people who really stress us out, then where is our sanctuary? Where do we really feel comfortable to let go and just relax? If nothing comes to mind, how can we create this space?

In the very least, perhaps we can take three or five minutes after getting home from work and just sit down. Don’t do much else besides consciously slowing down. Maybe brew some relaxing tea (probably non-caffeinated herbal tea would fit this description) or drink some delicious, pure water. I’m not saying you need to meditate. I’m not suggesting that you do anything at all really besides contemplate the pace of life. And then decide what, if anything, needs to change. And try to be as gentle as possible.

If you are like me and your mind desires distractions and wants to move at a fast pace all the time, then make the choice of the more calming, the more relaxing of two options. For instance, do I read an informative magazine or check my email (for the 8th time that day)? Should I watch this soccer game or read the Wall Street Journal? Do I watch TV or go for a walk on a nice nature trail? Do I eat one Twinkie or three? 🙂

We have to start somewhere. And it might as well be with ourselves. But above all else, please remember to go slow, to be as gentle as possible with yourself without beating yourself up and to recognize that changing any kind of habit at all takes lots of time.

I hope you have enjoyed this post.

Self Care 101

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Please enjoy your visit and be sure to check out other posts in this category.

Disclaimer: The author of this post is not a licensed medical practitioner. If anything is suggested about changing one’s lifestyle, please do not make any changes yourself until you speak with your doctor, nurse practitioner or registered dietician, etc. This info is presented primarily for entertainment / educational purposes only.

I was speaking with a friend recently, a practitioner of Polarity Therapy (among other modalities) and he articulated what I have been thinking for quite some time now, but I was not sure I had ever said it like that. So, just in case this is a review for some people, I think it might be worth reading again.

In my previous post on Preventing Cold Sores, I mentioned that it would take many words to elaborate on quality self-care, and all its multifaceted levels. So to begin, one little chunk at a time:

My friend said, to paraphrase, “When we offer bodywork to people, we offer them the chance to see what balance [and alignment] looks like. We bring them toward a space of healing and ease. Now, the question however is, what do they do when they get off the table?… People have so many toxic habits – whether their diet, their choice of friends, stress at work, etc. So when they get off the massage table, what are they going back to? And how can they hope to maintain the balance they have just discovered with us if they are going back to toxic habits [and environments]? The answer is that they have got to do the work themselves – the real work begins when they get off the table.”

I appreciate these sentiments and I agree for the most part. Personally I try to be careful about calling myself a healer or saying that I do anything to the client (without them participating completely in their own healing process) – I’d rather have the client empowered from the moment they step through my door – but otherwise, I love this information! And I believe this fits in well with my thoughts on Practicing Quality Self-Care.

So when he mentioned the part about the toxic habits, that is a strong way of putting it – another way of saying it, with less negative connotation, would be to call them “temporary compensations” (from Julie Henderson). Yes, we all have various habits and we make choices each moment. And not all of these choices serve our highest good – which is fine! That’s why they are called choices! If we need to rest somewhere for a while, that is okay. When we are ready to get to work and move on, we will. No use badgering the little guys in the process!

With that said, if you want to improve yourself, to gain a deeper awareness of your health and your body / mind system, then continue reading. If you are happy where you are, and if you will be provoked by my words and react in defensiveness and disapprobation, then you may want to stop reading now. 🙂

I want to emphasize that physical, emotional, mental (psychological) and spiritual well-being are interconnected. I doubt we can say, “this month I’m going to work on my physical health only! I don’t want anything to do with emotions right now.” Sure, we can SAY that… but do we really have that choice? In other words, when we truly start to slow down in order to refine our patterns, at that point, we might begin to confront whatever underlying (subconscious) issues were keeping us moving at that hectic, break-neck pace to begin with. We will then be face-to-face with emotional, psychological and other issues. So when we are ready to take the step toward greater self-awareness and therefore increased self-care, then we should go for it. Get support, get our help and get on with our lives, if we want to, when we are ready.

With that said, just to reiterate, when we start to slow down just to analyze our life, just by asking the question, “what, if anything, needs to change in my life?” we have already begun moving toward quality self-care. Pat yourself on the back baby!

And now we should be aware that this process will go so much smoother if we have good support. We have many many blind-spots. Our egos are so deeply entrenched that they don’t want to change. Therefore, the mind will conceive of many ways to keep us distracted in the long run. That is why it is good to have quality and appropriate support. If we try to fix ourselves without a mirror to look in from time to time, how will we know we are making any actual progress at all? Sometimes, our self-care may simply be inflating our ego! (Ever been in a yoga class where egos are running rampant? I’m just saying…)

So be aware that just consciously slowing down a little is to practice self-care. Sure, there are times when the body / mind does not give us a choice. When we injure ourselves, sprain an ankle or throw out our back, what do we think that means? I guarantee that we will be slowing down no matter what else happens! But let’s prevent such gross pleas for slowing down and get started now.

To wrap up what I am saying in this post is that we cannot divorce physical needs from emotional, mental, psychological or spiritual needs. Ever eat a sugary, caffeinated treat and feel the blood sugar spike? Does that elicit any changes in our mental functioning? Does it elicit any additional emotions? Pay attention next time. I say “yes,” to both. Therefore, as the cliché goes, START WHERE YOU ARE.

I am going to begin the next post with physical self-care, but if you are ready to tackle emotional or psychological issues, then start there. I will get to them soon, wisdom beings willing and the creek don’t rise.

Thanks for reading.

Prevention of Cold Sores (self-care)

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Thanks for visiting!

Disclaimer: The author of this post is not a licensed health care provider, so he does not profess to be able to cure, treat, diagnose or prevent any health issues. If you have a medical question or concern, you should speak with a licensed practitioner. Now enjoy this post! 🙂

Okay, again, good to get that out of the way. So in this post: preventing cold sores and fever blisters before they ever get started. Which of course, prevents any need to treat them if they ain’t ever coming up.

Like I mentioned in the previous post, there are some supplements that help the immune system (Vitamin C, Zinc, Lysine, etc). [Speak to your doctor or a licensed dietician before changing your diet and / or supplement intake.] But again, those are just supplements, it would be ideal if we can practice self-care on a regular basis such that we don’t need many supplements. So how can we prevent cold sores from forming? By practicing self-care. So what is self-care?

There are several layers of self-care in my opinion: physical, energetic, emotional / psychological / mental, spiritual.

Donation to Kirby’s blogging efforts

Hi dear Readers, Help me buy tea so I can continue blogging. So if you enjoy what you are reading, please make a little donation. Thank you very much!

$10.00

Depending on where we are on our individual (spiritual) paths, each of these levels may be slightly more or slightly less important than the others. And sorry to do this so abruptly, but I just realized that it might take many words to elaborate on these various self-care subjects, so look forward to further posts. In the rest of this post, I will continue on the topic at hand (fever blister prevention).

What is the fastest way to get a cold sore? To allow the immune system to get run down and then have a trigger occur. What does trigger mean in this case? Different triggers are: getting a lot of extra sun (sun burns can do it), having a cold or flu, being shocked by a new situation or circumstance, in other words, stress can do it too. For example, one trigger can be eating extra sugar (cheesecake / cookies / ice cream) – because sugar wears down the immune system, so if we are already taxed or stressed, and we go to a get-together and indulge in the many lovely desserts… well don’t be surprised if, the next morning, there is a little visitor on your lip. Then you want to see my previous post 🙂

How are other ways that we get run down? And this will tie in to my next posts on self-care by the way. One of the fastest ways to run down our immune system is to not listen to messages from our body. In other words, by doing an activity which is depleting, and then continuing in that activity long after it was healthy to do so, will sap the immune system. If we are tired, we should try to rest as soon as possible. Even just a five to ten minute power “nap” can help to restore tissue tonicity and optimal function.

What are some ways that we deplete ourselves? Being on the computer for too many hours – I’m pretty sure (don’t quote me or take my word for it) that being on the computer for many hours on end causes the body to become more acidic (Ph issues). Being more alkaline is healthier, where as being more acidic allows viruses and other “baddies” to grow and thrive. [See my next post on physical self-care techniques] What if we can’t help it? Well break up the computer time – go for a walk once or twice a day in the healthy sunshine, take a short yoga or stretching break, take a five minute pause to sit and just rest the eyes and the body.

Are there other ways that we deplete our selves? Drinking alcohol on occasion can be good for us (apparently). However, drinking on a regular basis depletes the system – the liver (and kidneys) never has time to rest and restore itself if it is constantly stressed by needing to clear toxins from the blood. Another way that we deplete ourselves, if we are in a male body, is by too frequent ejaculation. The definition of “too frequent” here is very subjective and it has to do with age, diet, constitution, etc, but there are definitely times when the body says, “Hey man, we need to rest these gonads!” Ejaculation lowers the kidney jing (that would be the subtle energy of the kidneys from a Chinese medicine perspective). [Again see my next post on physical self-care techniques] So it would be good to determine a healthy balance here, or figure out how to enjoy sex without ejaculating. See books by David Deida or books on Taoist sex secrets, etc for more on this complex and it-will-take-some-effort-and-diligence subject.

We can also deplete ourselves by sticking with a toxic relationship. Yes, there are some people we must be around occasionally – whether at work, in our family, housemates, etc. But take time to establish appropriate boundaries and speak your truth and your needs (psychological self-care). We don’t want to allow ourselves to be sapped. And don’t try to blame the other person either as this just continues the chains of suffering – rather, figure out how we are judging them, or how are we letting them get to us, or how we can relax just a little bit more in their presence, such that they no longer tax us. This can take years, so do be gentle (spiritual / psychological self-care).

1 Hour Coaching Session

Kirby offers a one hour session to discuss, explore and support your healing process. He utilizes information from various wisdom traditions - Spiritual Astrology (including Medical Astrology), holistic bodywork modalities, Birth Process Work and Energy Medicine. Both in person and long distance sessions offered.

$64.00

And of course, there are many many ways in which we allow ourselves to become depleted. And yes, there are circumstances where cannot help it. That is okay! If we are stuck in a toxic job or a long-term situation that is very stressful, then we are stuck! No use spending lots of time wishing things were different when they can’t be. But how can we work to find equanimity even in the midst of stress? Where can we lighten up just a little bit more? How can we introduce more playfulness and humor into our lives?

So, back to the title of this post, how do we prevent cold sores? By attempting to take good care of ourselves. How do we start this process? By determining where in our lives we need to relieve some pressure – where in our life are we allowing ourselves to become depleted? First work to “fix” the grossest levels of self-care violation, and then slowly slowly work to ease in new techniques for all-round self-care.

If I have time, I will elaborate on further levels of self-care. Stay tuned. Thank you for reading.

Alternative Treatment of Cold Sores

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is strictly prohibited. Thank you for visiting.

If you aren’t sure whether or not you have Herpes Symplex-1, you should visit your doctor or medical practitioner. The information in this post is not meant to replace Western allopathic medicine, but rather to supplement it. It is presented primarily for entertainment or educational purposes – consult your doctor before trying any of these home remedies.

With that disclaimer out of the way… here goes nothing: As someone who has gotten the rare cold sore, for the past 35 years, I have a little bit of experience in trying out various treatments. I am going to do something, perhaps backwards, and go directly into the home remedies, although the second part of this post will involve how to Prevent Getting Cold Sores in the first place (which would solve the problem of needing remedies, now wouldn’t it?). 🙂

Donate to Kirby’s blogging efforts

For every $25 you donate, Kirby will write a blog post (article) on the topic of your choosing, within his areas of knowledge. Thank you!

$25.00

What have I heard from different people? 1) ICE a cold sore the moment you feel the tingling, itching or burning sensation starting (before any kind of sore has formed). 2) Use a tiger-balm like ointment or healing salve (I personally use Unker’s Medicated Salve which works wonders). 3) My doctor recommended using Zovirax (an anti-viral ointment which requires a prescription). 4) ETHER – please don’t try this! 5) Taking L-Lysine (amino acid) and Zinc.

[Updated November of 2017: if you are reading other posts, you may have noticed that I (Kirby) had to wrestle with Lyme’s disease for a few years. I finally feel that those symptoms are behind me, fortunately! But you know what I discovered? In the past 8 months, since starting Buhner’s herbal protocol for Lyme’s, I have not gotten a single cold sore – even when I am run down, depleted or exhausted. And I attribute that most likely to Andrographis. See below.]

1) Ice: This works! Icing a cold sore the moment you feel it forming (or if you wake up with a tiny blister having formed, you can still ice it then), will pause the sore in its forming process and they rarely ever get any larger once you ice them. Sometimes they will still form, but they are smaller for certain. This is not always comfortable, but it is pretty easy. You need to have ice on the affected part of your lips for at least five minutes continuously.

2) Tiger-balm: Again, I use Unker’s Medicated Salve, which claims to use prayer as one of its ingredients, so that can’t be a bad thing, right? This works to dry out blisters and have them heal swiftly. It can also be applied when you first feel a blister forming and I think this has two effects: it might slow the virus / sore formation process and it eases any pain associated with it. All good reasons to purchase some Unker’s and with your doctor’s permission, start using it. Note: wash your hands after using Tiger-Balm or Unker’s Medicated Salve – you do not want to accidentally wipe your eyes with this on your finger.

3) Zovirax: This works to quickly dry up and heal blisters. I have not had to use it at all in the past six to eight years though, which I will explain below in the prevention section. And see also below, the Oregano Oil section.

Bodywork Session – in person or distance treatment

One Hour Treatment: I offer immune system boosting professional bodywork - Craniosacral Therapy, Polyvagal work, birth process work. I have been trained to even offer these sessions over distance (Skype sessions). If you are in Virginia, USA, let me know and we can set up an in person session.

$75.00

4) Ether: As in the chemical or solvent. This is not a good idea. I heard it from an old country feller, and once I looked into ether to see what he was talking about, I thought he was crazy for putting that chemical anywhere near his face!!! However, I suspect that if used very very cautiously, this would kill the virus directly and / or dry up the blister quickly. But I highly recommend against this remedy! Do not consume ether! Do not get ether in your eyes! Very dangerous.

5) Take Lysine and Zinc: Taking these immune boosting (and Lysine is supposed to be good for the lips) supplements is just that – a supplement. They do not directly go after the blister, but they might boost your immune system to prevent further blisters from forming.

6) Buhner’s Lyme’s protocol may prevent Cold Sores from forming. As I mentioned above, in working with Andrographis (a powerful immune booster) I believe that not only have I resisted Lyme’s bacteria, but I have also pushed down the Herpes virus. There are several things to note about Andrographis – first, start taking it in very small doses (200 mg max / once or twice / day). About 3% of the population gets a bad skin reaction, a rash, to Andrographis. Make sure you are not one of these people. Then slowly build your dose up. Talk to a professional nutritionist / herbalist / health practitioner for your maximum dosage. But I have heard that Andrographis is a powerful supplement, so only take it for 4-6 weeks at a time, and then take 4-6 weeks off of it. This gives your immune system a time to strengthen on its own, and it gives your healthy bioflora a break in case the Andrographis was weakening it.

7) Other Buhner’s Lyme’s protocol herbs – in case it is not the Andrographis preventing my cold sores, I will mention the other herbs / tinctures I have been taking for the past 8 months: Japanese Knotweed root powder, Cat’s Claw bark powder, Ginseng (Siberian) root tincture and off and on I was taking an anti-inflammatory herbal blend from Botanical Treasures. It is possible that one of these potent immune boosters is responsible for repressing any Herpes viral response to stress.

What have I tried on my own, despite not hearing about it’s effects on cold sores? 1) OREGANO OIL

1) Oregano Oil: I heard that Oregano Oil is very good for dealing with any kind of skin fungus and that it is a natural anti-septic, anti-bacterial, etc. Therefore, one day, I said to myself, if I can put this on my arms or feet, why not try it out on a cold sore? Well, guess what? It works! Disclaimer: Oregano Oil is a VERY strong oil, so do not get it in your eyes! Also, try to find gel caplets of oregano oil and puncture the gel a little to allow some of the gel to come out on your finger and then apply that to your lips. I made the mistake of using Young Living Oregano Oil, which is highly refined and very pure and some of that liquid got in my mouth… Oh My Word! It takes many minutes to wash that horrible taste out of your mouth. I love Young Living Oils and their other products (considering I am a distributor), but I’m just saying that you would want to dilute their oil with a neutral vegetable oil before applying it to your lips.

With that said however, I have not found anything which always prevents a blister from forming if it is caught early enough (and if I am practicing self-care which means my immune system is never too frail, allowing for the Oregano Oil to work its magic). When I use this oil (gel) just as I feel a blister starting to form, then it nearly always prevents any further formation from occurring. The exception to this rule is if I am really exhausted and I have done something to really compromise my immune system.

See my next post to see personal tips for Fever Blister prevention. I rarely if ever get cold sores any longer by following several guidelines. See the next post for more.

And again, please consult a licensed medical practitioner before you attempt any of these home remedies! Thank you for reading.

Skillful means in addressing inner resistance

This material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. I hope you enjoy your visit to this blog.

Do you ever have a day where you just feel like balling up in a dim corner somewhere? Preferably a cave or a safe, blanketed section of your bed?

If and when this happens, what are some options? Well, we can submit to those desires for solitude (read isolation) and inner stewing, and continue to lay in a potentially miserable heap. Or… we can move our body, stretching, doing yoga, walking, biking, etc, that may help to move the stagnant energy and pump some warm juice into those frozen tissues. Also, we can speak with a trusted friend, a spiritual friend, someone who is compassionate enough to tell us where we are going wrong in our mental attitudes, if applicable.

Just to be clear, it would be good to check in with your system. Why exactly might you be feeling this sluggishness? Did we have two drinks too many last night? Are we getting sick? Or are we living in alignment with right livelihood, doing our best to work through our psycho-spiritual stuff, and now we have just chipped off a big chunk which may take some time to dissolve and integrate? Therefore, once we determine why we are feeling “blah…” Then we can proceed appropriately. And if it would be good to take some action, what might be best? Above I mentioned we can cover up and hide, or… we can do some yoga, or… we could check in with a valued friend or coach…

Better yet, we can go for a walk with that spiritual friend! What do you think? Then, as you both move your bodies, you can chat about how you are feeling, knowing that it is (hopefully!) safe to tell them anything and that they will give you that compassionate answer that you desperately need. But if they are someone who will hold back and support your mental patterns no matter what you say, then don’t expect wisdom or penetration through your muddled resistance. They must be someone who is strong enough and confident enough to tell you like it is. Then you will have the chance to decide whether what they say is true for you or not (sometimes we don’t want to hear a direct truth!).

This is why I think it is so vital to have someone, or preferably, multiple someones who are spiritual friends. In Eastern jargon, you could call these people “Gurus,” although I hesitate to use that term. This is because an authentic Guru has done ALL his or her personal growth work, they have dissolved the gross layers of their ego and they have stabilized spiritual realization, such that they can consistently be of benefit to you and many people (or they will know their limits and stick within their bounds in skillful, colorful, modest ways).

So, if you find yourself in a personal pickle, know that everything changes. Yes, even this too shall pass. And, if possible, work with someone, here in the West it could be a therapist, a coach, a counselor, a professional advisor, etc, or it could even be a spiritual friend or spiritual teacher (although you should investigate this last category very very thoroughly!), work with someone who can truly be of benefit to you.

We have many blind spots. Even if we are lucky enough to have the awareness of the majority of our inner foibles, our ego may still be strong enough to throw up the occasional smoke screens, meaning, don’t trust your perception entirely – find a wise spiritual friend or mentor and get a second and third opinion. Especially if you find yourself with an inner conflict or confusion or depression. Identify your red flags. Have tried and true techniques and tools available to counter (tools for self-care) those red-flag-raising tendencies. And then structure your life so you are not constantly tempted or urged back into harmful habits (no use confronting the branches of the problem if the problem’s roots and trunk are sturdy and strong!). And most importantly, be gentle, be kind, it takes time, and above all, know that difficulty comes and goes, joy comes and goes, resistance comes and goes, friends come and go. Try to find a balance and rest there, in the middle, in alignment.

And know that this advice is not easy to follow. That is why you should investigate carefully anyone who is dispensing such advice. Yes, that would even include this oft-confused-ordinary-human-being author. Do these words make sense to you? Does anything touch an oochy place in your heart? Sometimes discomfort is a sign that something needs to be worked on. And if so, do you want to do that psycho-spiritual work, knowing it ain’t easy and it ain’t always comfortable! But above all, it will be okay. This stuff takes time. Coming into a comfortable alignment, in your body takes years, decades even. So kindness and a slow pace and lowered (read realistic) expectations are necessary.

And of course, perhaps you saw this coming, the author, Kirby Moore, when he is not talking about himself in the third person, is able to offer such advice, as he offers Spiritual Astrology Interpretations and Coaching within his private practice. If you are willing to lean into support, call him at (434) 465.0603 to schedule an appointment. You can also reach him at kirby [at] mkirbymoore.com

By the way, Kirby is starting a website which you can access at mkirbymoore.com At present, it is still being developed so pardon the one or two unfinished pages. But you can see what he offers, rates and you can purchase coaching / astrology sessions with him from there.

Cleaning House

a little poem arising from dream time

Icky sticky yicky crevices and rails-a-dusty
Water planets, disciplined hedge chopper
Protecting loved ones from bully
Friends empowering, standing up fully
Making house neat and proper
Unpacking baggage, soggy, moldy, uniforms-a-musty
Sparkling, radiant diamond, tea on saucer
Making inner realms into pure schlosser

this material is copyrighted by M. Kirby Moore. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Thanks!