Car Wrecks and Yoga

On Friday, I was on my way to the Hangzhou International Airport after dropping off "buddy" and Milo is affectionately called, at a friend's house. It had been raining since the morning and I got into a rather old and cruddy cab. The driver was extremely nice as he waiting outside for me to drop off Milo. If not, I would have been waiting for another hour (yes, Milo and I waited for an hour) in the rain for another cab to the airport.

Anyways, on the airport expressway I was playing with my Chinese-English dictionary, looking up words and phrases I didn't know. I look up and there we are slamming on the brakes swerving to miss a car that had stopped in the middle of the highway. The cab driver did the best he could and at the last minute swerved the car when he knew it was too late to stop. We were going approximately 30mph at the point of impact and I went flying into the back of the passenger seat. There are no seat belts in China taxis. I take that back.... on our way back from Beijing we were lucky enough to find a taxi with back passenger seat belts. But really, it's few and far between and there are no seat belt laws in China except for the driver. Within seconds I had my cell phone in my hand calling Chase who was already waiting for me in Beijing.

I remember breathing heavily, tears streaming, trying to hold them back, not being able to breathe, while trying to tell Chase I was ok and that I wasn't going to make my flight. I felt my right cheekbone get really hot, my left knee bruised and my wrist slightly battered. Mostly I was concerned that my cheek wasn't going to start bruising and/or get a black eye and that I wouldn't look good anymore. HA.

I was alright. The cab driver got me into another cab quickly so I wouldn't miss my flight and the two ladies in their did their best to cheer me up by offering me tissues and making light of the situation.... telling me I would make my flight etc.

Long story, short... I didn't make my flight. It was delayed. Got on another flight, but sat on the runway for about 3.5 hours and finally got to Beijing around midnight. It was a long day.

On Saturday my right shoulder began to hurt and the next day my right knee which then caused my right hip to tighten up. It's a trickle down effect and it has been interesting to see how my body has taken the trauma and reacted to it over the last few days. I must have actually crashed into my whole right side when I went flying and just felt my face because of the tolerance of pain that most joints and large body areas have.

Being the good yoga student I am.... er, well, hope to be.... I knew that the best thing for me was a long, slow, therapeutic yoga session. And I knew that it was important for me to USE my shoulder as much as I could... without pain.... in poses that were weight-bearing.... without pain. Weight-bearing poses promote blood flow.... i.e.- prana... and prana is the healing energy. So tonight I did EVERY shoulder, weight-bearing pose I could think of... I mean everything... from handstand (using and focusing on UPAs like a mad woman) to dhanurasana (with variations) to purvottanasana to urdhva dhanurasana to a long session with shoulderstand. I don't know if what I was doing was therapeutic... but it was what my gut was saying to do.... I knew I had to do it.

I kept saying to myself, "Move your shoulder, tell it that it's ok, send healing energy, don't be afraid, side body long, breathe, inner body bright..." yadayadayada... you get the point.

And I'll tell you what... there's nothing like a little injury to set your body straight! Talk about awareness! I was completely present in every movement I took. My practice was awakened and I was aware making sure my movements were precise. I used a lot more muscular energy than I am used to and did so in order to be pain-free.

Injuries are so motivating. Not that I want to have another injury. My hip currently is taking the brunt of the tightness and instability of my shoulder and I am made aware of it every movement I make. So I did practice a lot of hip openers as well and I think they temporarily helped.

In the end, I am thankful for the super therapeutic, mind-blowing, yoga practice I had and am grateful that I do know what I do know in order to help myself heal.