Due to collapsed ankles I can’t do foot alignement, what to do?

[Anonymous]

Although I feel the chi sinking, it sort of puts a heavy burden on my feet.
I have collapsed ankles and other foot problems so aligning them correctly is quiet difficult. Also feel pressure on my knees and hips.
But…good news is: for the first time ever in my life I have been able to stand straight for a while (usually lean against something or wiggle from one foot to another), it’s very meditative and has also benefits on a personality level: feel stronger.

But as mentioned: because my feet are getting very tired and soor I am afraid of harming something…

Who can enligthen my on this subject?

Best regards,

Anja (Netherlands)

[Anonymous]

Hello Anja (best wishes).. I don’t know if I can enlighten, but I’ll try…. I went through noticable shifts in standing over time.. when I started, I did standing on carpet, or even grass, but I found standing upon a wood floor a completely different thing.. (the skin of my soles felt the bones of my feet pressing in).. I was advised to practice on a surface (I found a square piece of slate that I could place on carpet.. and just did smaller exposures.. I found adjustments in the upper-thigh-hip jts area, inside of pelvis.. amongst other areas.. over-time, on its schedule…)

Anyway- both before and after the above, the concept of 70% and being aware/listening-to my body (‘not’ Grin&bear it, let alone just complete the practice, suffer through it.. I’ve decided, etc.. so many layers that hide and conceal that, and we say, Naw I’m not doing that, but still the idea is, it should be fixed… why is my body taking time to adjust? -cuz it does that
-a tricky aspect to standing is adjustments of leaning and dislignment (both tip-tilting at each and every level, turning one-way or the other, as well as too compressed, or dispersing at a level )..
and as at ankle you can lean “just a tiny bit” to the left, then a bit higher (in calf, or perhaps up in knee) lean “just a tiny bit” to the right.. and then a slight rotation left and leaning fwd (almost too little to notice on its own) but above that have a slight rotation ‘the-other-way’ and lean a bit back..
(so each might be too little to recognize, especially as you gain sensitivity, as well as after yrs of “not listening” to your body.. but if as go up, they seem to “sum-up” to even.. each countering.. can hide).

So I don’t know if you are doing the 70% during each session (and noticing as it approaches, at first- learning cycle… – one will feel ok, and then ugh.. it crept up on you.. but you can learn to sense strain setting-in.. and stop 70% before the “very tired” or aching.. (if feet are “very” tired- that is beyond 70%).
-he does mention try and stand 20minutes “in order to” open vascular (but that is reasoning why, not just do it).. also you can break it up.. 5mins -four times (even if you sit, or just walk a few minutes in between).. plus, over time you will awaken and balance and thus stand differently..

(so if you are thinking to stand for X time, or in N manner of standing.. think of that as a goal, learning and developing.. like a weightlifting builds up to a record-lift goal- what if they can’t lift that much? well, body needs to build up.. same as standing.. sounds funny, need develop strength to stand.. but …) If that isn’t what your concern is exactly, and I missed your concern – please refine.. but as you mention some noticable improvement so far (perhaps directly from standing practice? and it has only been a month or so.. so that is good, perhaps it is a Work-in-process)..

but if above brings out add’l concerns, perhaps consider the “tuning-in” scanning-down to use your attention as a way for your “body” to look-through and see/feel more of what is going on.. think of what you sense and feel, as info for your body to adjust, not you.. as well as for it to try-out different ways to adjust your structure..

[Anonymous]

Taokua, Thanks so much for this reply..

I ask my body to give notice when I reach 70% and it does!
I ask my body to ‘tell’ which adjustments I have to make and it does a lot of ‘unwinding’ in hips, knees etc.
I encountered some deep layers of stuck enery like former llive events that suddenly appeared in my consciousness

And I am so grateful for being able to stand for the first time in my life…

but….there is indeed work in progress by making a mentality shift….I easily push myself over 100%, as I did for a whole lifetime..
So I guess there is a lot of tiredness stored in my legs

I love the practice, and today I practiced outside in the early springsun watching the cows in the meadow (of course being Dutch a familiar and relaxing sight)..

So, we probably ‘meet’ more often here….

Best regards,

Anja

[Anonymous]

Hi Anja

I feel even the intention to stand is practice. Signing up for this training circle dealing with what your dealing with is practice to me.
Try visualizing yourself doing the practice. Really feel yourself doing it. Still apply the 70% rule because even this might be tiring. Try doing it before you go to sleep at night or before a nap. This way your body digests it while you rest.
Also, try the practice lying down. Gently, gently with the alignments and sinking.

Cody

[Anonymous]

Cheers to what Cody wrote here.. something i find interesting is the following; its sort of subtle, not done too overly, but its in the background of experiencing this-
-whether visualizing (or perhaps better term it ‘imagining’? as this seems to be an experience matrix-thought, vs ‘viz’ which is often more an overlay supplementing/supplanting part of experience during, anyway), or whether during your practice (or just walking about in rest of life), think/feel (exper even) what it might be like further down this path…

i.e. if you are thinking of this practice leads to greater relaxation, feel that sort of way things would/will change and a taste of what that (perceived) relaxation might be like…
or if you are thinking of this practice leads to say a sense of “grounded-ness”/solid-yet-light rooting etc. then what would/will that feel like…. seeking to ‘taste’ that now.

(as above, just a light-subtle, as the idea is this won’t be definitive… as holding in mind as you practice, or imagine, or feel the settling affects of practice in ‘daily-life’.. subcon can compare/contrast and perhaps say, hmm but I feel it is going differently… after a week, or weeks(months), you may look back and see your progress and realize you’ve changed, but not in the ways you thought- it ends up quite differently (better than you imagined- as wasn’t a possibility you had avail).

(this sort of ponder may be deciding, thinking.. but more so it could be dredging up what is already in your mind- so you’re only making a little-contact with what is in your mind… allowing conscious-surface and subcon-slightly-more-‘depths’ to exchange: getting the con-mind more in the game, so to speak.

============
speaking of cows in the meadows, I don’t have any near me now (living more city, and nearly the opposite side of the globe as Anja mentioned , but I recall in the past seeing them stand so steady, stable (like a mtn, as the zen saying), and yet ready to mobilize.. (not shifting or fidgeting.. as we say constantly adjusting as we seem to feel we need to- and yet they are so much bigger- even a small cow so much heavier, seems they’d need it more, yet their hooves on the soft-shifting grass.. (anyway, too all above to write, yet just samples a quick thought that arose, all at once- if only could have captured that all-at-once, as the above paragraph seems wordy)

cheers- what might it be like, and where are the blindspots (not only in that, but in what we are experiencing now, every moment… -thus a layer under the scan/feel, which can open one to receive an AHA -where it all comes-together, seeing more).

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