Superhero Pose

In a recent post I shared with you how I used fear as a tool during my long battle with Lyme disease. Now, I’d like to share with you a tactic I wasn’t aware of during my journey, but that I think could prove useful to many of you still dukeing it out with your disease: the Superhero Pose. I have since found it useful in the battle I am still fighting against post-traumatic stress disorder.

For the past six months or so I have been unabashedly bingeing Grey’s Anatomy. It’s a fantastically written series with endearing characters. During episode 14 of the 11^th season, Dr. Amelia Shepherd takes the stance of a superhero before performing a particularly complicated and difficult surgery. She stands with her hands on her hips, her chest raised to the sky, eyes and chin upward and her feet in a wide, powerful stance. It’s a particularly moving moment and I love the premise.

At the end of the episode, I found myself researching the superhero pose to see if there was actual science out there to support the claims made by the fictional Dr. Shepherd. I wasn’t at all surprised to discover that there is science to support this concept. I began to reflect on how this simple posture could help me in my continued struggles with PTSD. It could help you too, my readers, as you endure the treatment of Lyme disease.

Take a Powerful Stance Against Lyme Disease

There were days during my long battle with Lyme disease when the weight of my experience felt unbearable. Simple tasks like vacuuming and taking a shower felt like climbing Mt. Everest. Lyme disease erased any confidence I had in my own body. I walked like an old lady, uncertain of my every step. My shoulders were drawn into my chest and my head drooped forward. In my mind’s eye I imagine I looked like a tortoise, walking around on two legs, with a huge burden of armor I carried on my back. For a woman who had been an athlete her whole life, the insecurity was demoralizing. When I think back and picture that person, I wish I had known the superhero pose. Fortunately, I have learned a skill that can allow me to heal that woman who suffered so deeply. I’ll share that with you a little further down.

Maybe, as you’re reading this, you’re having a particularly rough day because you’ve just started a new antibiotic. The herxing has you feeling hopeless and scared. I encourage you, right now, to stand up and assume the superhero pose. Stand in a wide stance, put your hands on your hips and lift your chin in defiance and superiority. See yourself as a warrior against disease. Recognize the strength you carry within yourself. Congratulate yourself for being so determined.

If you are unable to stand up, that’s okay. I have tried this same technique from a seated position and it still works. Wherever you are, curled up in bed or sitting on the couch, put your hands on your hips, stick out your chest and look towards the ceiling with a determined gaze. Hold it for as long as you can muster, one minute, two minutes and feel the strength in the pose.

Meditation

I have recently discovered guided meditations and have found it immensely helpful. The website www.InsightTimer.com offers a slew of free meditations and classes. It is there that I discovered Charles Freligh and participated in a guided meditation called Voice of the Inner Child.  Charles began the meditation by asking us to close our eyes and see ourselves as we are today. He then suggested we imagine ourselves, place ourselves, somewhere we feel completely happy and safe. The one place we would go to if given the chance. Once we could see ourselves in that Eden, we were to stay at a distance and simply observe ourselves before approaching. Eventually, we were to approach ourselves in that place of comfort and have a conversation. Whatever came to my mind. For me, it was a transformative meditation.

I bring this up because I have been working on a similar concept, incorporating the superhero pose. I can’t go back in time and change anything, but I can meditate on those moments. When I do, I imagine that woman, who felt so beaten by the world and hopeless, standing up and assuming the superhero pose. I stand with her, also in the superhero pose,  and remind her of the strength that she possesses and the power of her inner self.  I tell her how proud I am of her. That she beat Lyme disease with grace and composure.

In these moments, I can feel that I am healing myself. I am rewriting the narrative in my mind of the woman who felt so scared and alone. Through meditation and intention, I am able to reassure that person that she doesn’t need to be scared, she survived. Standing there, with our hands on our hips, our chests puffed up and our eyes gazing into the distance with determination, I watch the heavy scales of armor fall from her back. A small smile of satisfaction spreads across her face. There is even a hint of smugness, like she’s thinking, “Ha! You can’t stop me Lyme disease, you may try but I’m stronger than you.”

Give it a try and see if it works for you. You are all warriors and warrioresses in a very real battle. Strap on a cape and stand strong against disease, knowing that one day you’ll look back and be impressed by your superhero powers.