Exchanges...

Full day yesterday.

Went to Zumba and from there headed to a new age store to see if they had rain sticks. There was one left and I listened to it for a good 10 minutes but couldn't decided on whether I really wanted it. From there headed to Talbots -- a store I usually only visit at the end of a season. I was surprised by how much pink stuff they had.

Pink is the new winter color???

Took a brief rest then went to this gathering. This woman, Pati,returned from Nepal with a plethora of singing bowls and while I have a nice set, I felt compelled to go and I'm glad that I did.

Pati has been in the healing arts for about 25 years and she had me cracking up when she said Am I crazy? I'm going half way around the world...

Made a pit stop at home then went to give a sound session. I love to hear what people think of the session afterwards. People have had interesting experiences. The person that I gave the session to yesterday called it an energy session. Hadn't really thought of that way but I guess most exchanges, massage etc., are an exchange of energy.

Saturday was a good day but I found myself craving more stillness.

Saw a couple of Cardinals this morning but I was too far away to focus well.

Happy

Sitting Ice Meditation

So, yeah...

Consulted Dr. Google, continued to use RICE, soaked the foot in Epsom salt (with eucalyptus essential oil) and also used Epsom salt lotion but my ankle was still swollen yesterday. My mother, a retired nurse, said she didn't like the look of it.

I had other input as well and my gut instinct was that I didn't have a break but I had listened to a The Moth podcast on Wednesday about this guy who had run into a deer while on a motorcycle, thought his finger was dislocated -- yadda, yadda, yadda and ended up having surgery on it because it healed improperly. Plus, all I was doing was sitting in the house with my leg on pillows so I grabbed Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, snacks, earbuds and headed to an urgent care that half of the Google reviewers were happy with.

Even though I had a cane and was struggling to walk, the nurse wanted me to hop on the scale which, in the long run is good, because I need another wake-up call about the weight that I've gained back and, of course, it's not lost on me that I will not be moving much in the coming weeks. Still, I'm ecstatic, that nothing is broken. The doctor said that usually when you have a sprain in the area that I sprained, it requires surgery. Huge, freakin' sigh of relief.

Walgreens was conveniently down the street so I got a prescrip for pain meds filled. I slept so well last night and the ProCare brace, although lightweight, makes my foot feel stable.

So, yeah, no errands this week.

No Zumbathon for Chris Sanna.

No zumba with Alisha.

No yoga class tomorrow.

I asked the doctor if it would be okay to swim and he looked at me silently and thoughtfully then asked if I was an aggressive swimmer.

Answer: heck no.

He did tell me that I might not be able to kick as much, to be careful because my balance is not the same and that if it hurts, stop, and it's a similar story for yoga. With the getting up and down, I don't plan to try a yoga class for at least a week, sad face...

The 'Fugee visited last night and did energy work for me. Whether you believe in energy work or not, I know that someone just touching you on the back, for just a short moment, can be transformational and healing.

On a final note, I have a whole new appreciation for walking around effortlessly -- chunky or not.

Careful

Be careful what you asked for...

Might have lost my photos to a restore but Patti took some as well and, so, there was photographic proof of just how much I've chunked up.

I just make myself work harder now. No one wonder I had tender biceps from trying to haul myself upwards. At any rate, I still appreciate all the things that my body can do.

Patti Dangling Above Me

Even The Big Kids Got One

Walked to work this morning and thought I'd try a new podcast but switched gears about six minutes into Not Too Deep with Grace Helbig. I'll give it a try later on down the line. Instead, I listened to How Does a Mediator Work?, from Slate's Working lineup. A giant thumbs up from me. I enjoyed listening to the mediator/shamanic healer. Energy work fascinates me.

Liked what Clemants had to say about people with heavy energy -- how they walk into a room and make you want to move away. Clemants said they haven't done the work to get rid of that heavy energy...

On another note, one of my coworkers said that she had a very realistic dream about me. I was upset about work apparently.

For One Thing

No swimming yesterday.

No climbing today.

Not sure how I made it through the afternoon at work. I've set a record for colds in the last couple of months.

Came home and crawled into bed but stayed awake long enough to drop tears over the Nadia Lopez story on the evening news. Lopez was on the verge of quitting until she saw one of her students featured on the Humans of New York blog. Everything after that is a blur until 7:30 p.m.

Hit acupressure points last night in order to get relief from congestion. It worked. Placebo?

According to the world wide web, I missed the window of opportunity for zinc.

At any rate, hope this situation runs its course soon because, for one thing, my nose is sore.

'Fugee, thanks for doing energy work...

Back to the green tea.

Will Climb For Pride

Went to visit the 'Fugee last night and, after we ate dinner, she jokingly did drive-by energy work. No, no, no, I said. Finish what you started.

The 'Fugee is a gifted energy worker and I received an unexpected and very nice Friday night gift. If I didn't say it, 'Fugee, thank you.

The 'Fugee and I watched 42 which I was not in a hurry to watch. I don't really like going down segregated memory lane but, within those stories, are also ones of triumph. Still don't know if that's enough to make me pick up The Help again and I'm not sure why I'm reading this situation...

I loved it when Branch Rickey told Jackie Robinson why he selected him to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers and then said You made me love baseball again. Thanks...

Went climbing. It's been so long since I've seen Patti that she's gone Paleo but nothing has changed about her climbing; she's still a beast.  

Like a football team that's behind by 28 points, I climbed a lot for pride. There's nothing like the feeling, though, when you're on a route, it's kicking your ass, sweating is pouring and you (meaning I) want to stop but you keep contorting your body, grabbing, repositioning and exclaiming until you make your way to the top.

Rx for The Chronically Tense

I don't even remember where I got this flyer from and waffled about whether or not I wanted to go but I'm so glad that I went.

Pressure Point Defined:

Pressure = Stress
Point = Position Location

The workshop was in Dr. Dusty's office and there were about eight folks there, including four who were already clients of Dr. Dusty. Can you tell that I like to write -- Dr. Dusty?

Dr. Dusty had a little slide show situation, told us who discovered pressure points, that soda is bad news and how western medicine treats sickness instead of concentrating on preventive care etc. etc.

From there, it was a hands-on workshop and I have to say that there is a new 'Drea because I would not have been comfortable before touching a stranger's body and being touched by someone else that I didn't know. We broke off into the proverbial pairs to try our hands at pressure points and were shown points for low energy, headaches, sinus/congestion and carpal tunnel issues.

I think my favorite pressure points where for headache and neck tension where you put pressure one inch to either side of the spine. You hold the pressure for about 10 to 15 seconds. The pressure on the neck felt incredibly good. And do I really need to say anything about the attention to the back? I almost melted...

I don't remember all of the finer points so I ordered a few books from the library but even without books, I've practiced on a few folks and one said that she felt relief from her headache.

With carpal tunnel symptoms, you can easily treat yourself but Dr. Dusty said that it's better if you have someone else do it for you which echoes what Healing Touch practitioners Kimberly Gray and Vicky Slater said in their podcast: Hands in motion (energy work) is more powerful when you have someone else do it.

Oh yeah, Dr. Dusty demonstrated on me at one point.

Dr. Dusty: Oh, you're tight.
Me: Yes, I know. Even when I'm not tightly wound, I'm tightly wound.

Ever had acupressure before? What's your Rx for stress?


P.S. To Dr. Dusty et al., when you tell someone that their tension is "unprecedented," that doesn't foster a relaxed state. Just saying...Also, to use a Phoebe Buffay phrase, Dr. Dusty is freakishly strong. Hands of steel, I tell ya.