:: March 2008: Volume 7/Number 2

Travel with Ease

Pack breath, attention and neck stretches for an easy journey.

By Julie Carmen

Traveling can be both a joy ride and source of stress. When traveling by plane we may spend hours or even days racing at high altitudes often landing in unfamiliar environments. This experience alone (not to mention the security checkpoints, processed food, recycled air, noise and vibrations) may be interpreted by the nervous system as an impetus to operate at high alert. Accumulated anxiety about unfinished business, anticipatory fear of the future and immediate physical discomfort may further stimulate the body’s stress response and interfere with our ability to sleep, digest and even remain comfortable in a cramped seat.

Yogic remedies including pranayama (controlling and directing the breath and internal energy), pratyahara (calming and withdrawing the senses) and gently stretching can help balance internal and external stimuli and encourage the presence of our subtler, softer selves.

In any conveyance, start your journey by assessing whether you are feeling safe, soft and present. Scan your senses and body. Bring your attention to your breath: even the simple act of paying attention to your breath can be an important centering technique.

Subtle energy practices, such as pranayama (breath techniques) can affect our vulnerability. It may be problematic to practice them on public transportation, so use the suggested relaxation techniques moderately and carefully.

Getting Cozy in Coach

Some simple props packed in your carry-on can make traveling more comfortable and easier on body, mind and spirit:

• Earplugs or headphones.

• Eye covers.

• Neck pillow.

• Comfy socks.

• Lavender or other soothing essential oil.

• Small blanket, pillow or towel to roll

behind your lumbar spine.

Pranayama: Traveling with Breath

When flying long distances, I practice pranayama (breath awareness and control). First, I notice where my breath is traveling. The tension of the journey often means my breath is stuck around my upper chest. To modify this, I inhale and exhale through the nose, keeping the mouth, lips and tongue relaxed.

I practice observing the four parts of the breath:

• Exhalation (rechaka);

• The pause after exhalation (behya kumbhaka);

• Inhalation (puraka);

• The pause after inhalation (ontara kumbhaka).

When engaged in this practice, begin by merely watching your breath: observe the pause between the inhalation and exhalation. Begin extending each of these very gradually. Imagine your lungs emptying on the exhalation. Mark the space at the bottom like a bass note. Imagine sipping a thin stream of water through a straw, draw air through the nose and notice the moment when the lungs feel full enough. Pause, sustain and suspend the inhalation for a moment.

Pranayama is not a breath-holding contest; it is a treasure hunt leading you through the usually unseen connections of your lungs, heart and mind. Pranayama promotes deeper and quieter self-awareness and a blissful state of calm.

Reduce anxiety by extending the duration of the exhalation as compared to the inhalation. One suggested practice is to first exhale completely. Then inhale with a count of four, pause and then exhale for a count of eight. Pause and then inhale again for a count of four, pause and exhale for a count of eight. Repeat for ten rounds observing the effect.

While observing the pause is a practice suitable for most, actually lengthening the retention and retaining the breath are more advanced practices that should be learned from an experienced teacher and embarked upon with caution. Some contraindications to breath retention include people with heart disease or those who are pregnant. Pranayama should never increase anxiety; if you feel fear rise, you may have progressed too aggressively.

Pratyahara: Withdrawal of the Senses

Pratyahara is the process of drawing in the senses: physically, or by directing the attention inward. In this practice, we consciously decide what type of input to let past the gates of our awareness. On public transportation few will use their hands to physically seal off the two eyes, two nostrils, two ears and mouth in the pratyahara practice of shanmukhi mudra. In my home practice, I notice the benefits, cited by Srivatsa Ramaswami: “You will stay with the breath longer (ekagra) and the frequency of your becoming distracted (vikshepa) will lessen.”

Even without shanmukhi mudra, choosing to limit sensory stimuli helps encourage prolonged internal states of calm. Pratyahara can be practiced on a flight with headphones or even as a passenger in a car, bus, subway or train. Choosing a consciously selected mix of songs as opposed to the radio news in the car is one method. When you choose the metaphorical soundtrack to accompany your journey, trust your street-smarts so as to maintain necessary awareness of your external surroundings to stay safe. The point is to decide not to be reactive to irritating stimuli.

Neck Stretches

I have heard numerous complaints about neck aches after an airplane flight, or long car ride. The neck is a highly complex point of connection in the body; there are vital and delicately intricate pathways to and from the brain which can be obstructed by chronic tightness.

Repeating the pictured neck stretch series is suggested to relieve fatigue and reduce traveler’s tension. Move slowly and softly, returning to neutral between each stretch. With the neck, less is more. Visualize space, height and length while moving and start by holding each stretch for only three to five breaths.

Not all yoga remedies are appropriate for every individual. Please check with your doctor before beginning the enclosed stretching sequence.

Julie Carmen, MA, MFTi, ERYT-500 teaches yoga in Los Angeles and on her instructional audio CD available at: juliecarmenyoga.com.

Spanish Version translated by Laura Elena Ortuno. (Go to Spanish Version)

Photos demonstrating: Extension, Flexion, Lateral extension, Rotation, Extension & Rotation, Flexion & Rotation.

Fótos/Photos: Adam Latham angeladam.com

Modelo/Model: Julie Carmen

Ropa/Clothing: Veronique Manga Bell (verostudio at yahoo.es}

Joyas/Jewelry: Leslie Bixler & Kurt Lampson (lesbix at charter.net)

Pelo y Maquíllaje/Hair and makeup: Erica Ocampo (toobadyrcute at hotmail.com)

 

© Julie Carmen, 2008

 

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