Not long ago, during a meditation, I finally figured out what had been in the way of having good posture all these years. My shoulders have been pushed and shoved into “proper” posture many times, but it has always felt wrong.

During the meditation, I realized that my heart chakra and solar plexus had been pushed back and were closed. I had shut myself off from who knows what? (I have numerous ideas.)

The idea was not new to me, as a friend of mine had mentioned to me the struggle of keeping the heart chakra open when faced with an argument or a difficult situation. She discovered that consciously keeping it open allowed a healing to occur.

I had pondered this for over a year. It was while I was consciously breathing the three part breath (belly, lower chest, upper chest) that I discovered that shifting my heart forward from the spine and opening my chest, made a huge difference in my posture. It not only opened up my chest, but also opened my heart chakra in a way that shifted my perception of everything miraculously!

I have since noticed what my friend pointed out a year or so ago. It isn’t easy to keep the heart open to all the stimulus the day brings with it. There are so many times that it wants to close down and not feel the discomfort/ pain/fear. That is where consciousness comes in.

Try this when you notice yourself closing down or ego trying to take over:

· Take a breath in and think “Accept.”

· As you exhale, think the work “Release.”

· “Accept”, “Release”.

· As you breath, notice if your heart is open.

· If not, you can consciously open it as you breathe deeply. And if it is open, congratulations! Keep up the good work!