I had a yoga teacher who used to describe that kind of pain as "joy-pain". It's the kind of pain you experience when holding a pose for an extended time and feeling, allowing the muscles, tendons and whatever else to gradually relax. It hurts at first, but the body learns that if you keep it up, the pain will give way to joy. It's a bit different when a massage therapist is causing a similar reaction, when it's 'imposed' by someone else, when you have no, or less, control over the depth and pace at which the muscles are coaxed to relax. Maybe this is a metaphor for something???
Yes, indeed, a profound metaphor! While drafting this piece, I was trying to work that metaphor but I wasn't comfortable with how it was working. Maybe you can take it further! (BTW, when drafting this piece, I was also writing about "good pain," akin to "joy-pain.")
Funnily enough I had read this right before coming here this morning:
“We should not be afraid of suffering. We should be able to hold our suffering and look deeply into it, hold it tenderly, and learn from it.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
While I do not enjoy suffering, I do learn & grow, eventually, lol, during my struggles & for that I am grateful 🙏
I do not enjoy suffering either, but have often wondered if suffering is the ‘best’ way for me to learn and grow...years ago I began to define joy as requiring the recognition and acceptance of pain woven into the love of life...to attempt to erase the reality of the pain lessens the joy...gratitude arising from the acceptance is truly a thought for contemplation. Thank you, Phyllis and Michaele for open sharing.
Ain't it though? One mental part I ALWAYS have to work on is, "Oh, I don't want this massage to be over ... how much is left? ... " (Another version of scarcity thinking!)
I had a yoga teacher who used to describe that kind of pain as "joy-pain". It's the kind of pain you experience when holding a pose for an extended time and feeling, allowing the muscles, tendons and whatever else to gradually relax. It hurts at first, but the body learns that if you keep it up, the pain will give way to joy. It's a bit different when a massage therapist is causing a similar reaction, when it's 'imposed' by someone else, when you have no, or less, control over the depth and pace at which the muscles are coaxed to relax. Maybe this is a metaphor for something???
Yes, indeed, a profound metaphor! While drafting this piece, I was trying to work that metaphor but I wasn't comfortable with how it was working. Maybe you can take it further! (BTW, when drafting this piece, I was also writing about "good pain," akin to "joy-pain.")
Funnily enough I had read this right before coming here this morning:
“We should not be afraid of suffering. We should be able to hold our suffering and look deeply into it, hold it tenderly, and learn from it.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh
While I do not enjoy suffering, I do learn & grow, eventually, lol, during my struggles & for that I am grateful 🙏
I do not enjoy suffering either, but have often wondered if suffering is the ‘best’ way for me to learn and grow...years ago I began to define joy as requiring the recognition and acceptance of pain woven into the love of life...to attempt to erase the reality of the pain lessens the joy...gratitude arising from the acceptance is truly a thought for contemplation. Thank you, Phyllis and Michaele for open sharing.
Thank you for sharing …
Holding your thought in contemplation: “….. gratitude arising from the acceptance is truly a thought for contemplation.” 👍
And, this…..
“ To Live is to Suffer, to Survive is to Find Meaning in Suffering”………
You might find this interesting:
https://atkinsbookshelf.wordpress.com/2018/09/18/to-live-is-to-suffer-to-survive-is-to-find-meaning-in-the-suffering/
Thanks so much, Mish! Happy Thanksgiving week!
Everything you're saying here resonates strongly with me. Thank you!
Thich Nhat Hanh sounds his bell again!
Massage is so much more than physical! Thank you for this reminder.
Ain't it though? One mental part I ALWAYS have to work on is, "Oh, I don't want this massage to be over ... how much is left? ... " (Another version of scarcity thinking!)