Moving Through Physical Pain

More precisely – neck pain.

If you've ever had a severe crick in your neck, you know the feeling of immediate helplessness.

The stabbing sensation that shoots out from the simplest neck movement.

And this thing is supposed to protect my head?!

I woke up around 7am, a full hour before my alarm, in tears – mourning for my lost sleep and searing neck. At some point in the night, I was sleeping on my side, and my body decided it didn't like that. (I think I probably need a new pillow.)

Everything in me wanted to stay still. To lie back down and prevent the pain.

But this wasn't my first crick, and I knew that would only make it stiffer and worse.

Quite literally cradling my head, I grabbed a glass of water, popped two Excedrin, and headed outside.

I needed to gently move through the pain.

I walked a large circle in my backyard for about an hour. Slowly tilting my head side to side, up and down, circling clockwise then counterclockwise. I never went too far with my movements, making sure to stop right when the pain hit (which was often at first.)

I felt a little silly but was desperate. Our neighbors can easily see into the backyard.

I kept my thoughts on my breath:

Slowly in 1

Slowly out 1

Slowly in 2

Slowly out 2

I kept my thoughts on gratitude:

What a beautiful morning I get to enjoy now.

The grass feels so fresh under my feet.

This pain really helps me feel present.

Eventually, I could feel the pain ever so slightly subside.

I'm winning!

The next hour I added arm movements, more water, and some sitting. It got even better.

I know the Excedrin helped a lot, but now I'm writing at 4:30pm with only a dull pain – not how my previous cricks have gone.

I'm skipping my workout class tonight, but I'm keeping up the simple movements.

I'm proud of myself for listening to my body and giving it what it needs.