I’ve just spent a blissful couple of days with my dearest friends in a forest lodge in Burnbake, Dorset. Spending time with them always makes me reflect on what the ingredients for a good life are, as such experiences seem to nourish most of my human needs- cooperation, community, love, laughter, food, drink, meaning, security, belonging. Add that in with being able to 'horizon gaze', put your feet in the sand, watch the sunset over the ocean, breathe in the air created by the autumnal coloured trees and hear the owls late at night and we have it nailed.
It appears one of the main goals of getting our human needs met, beyond mere survival, is to achieve a sense of well-being, fulfilment and a ‘dignified’ existence. At our nervous-system level this means achieving a state of regulated balance, or homeostasis, where the body and mind can respond effectively and in union to life's demands. This ‘state’ of well-being allows for relaxation and optimal functioning of the body’s systems through the parasympathetic nervous system (rest, relax, digest) while also providing the resilience to manage stress when the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) is activated. A disregulated nervous system leads to anxiety, poor stress management, and eventually poor physical and mental health.
So how do I achieve this wondrous state of regulated balance I fall into with great friends in nature’s beautiful spaces, when most of the time I sit with the constant overstimulation of the city, too much digital content and the underlying stress that seems to fuel our current lives?
As I am always considering what Tea offers to my life, it feels important to reflect on the neural correlates of well-being and see what resonates with my daily ‘Breathe and brew’ practice, basically making tea and sitting with it, for I am definitely more balanced because of it.
It turns out that such a practice is doubly effective. First is intentionally sitting still without the usual distractions (I use the word ‘intentionally’ as we know prolonged sitting, brain-busy at a computer, can have negative effects) has been found to offer powerful and long-lasting benefits to the brain. Such a practice reshapes neural pathways, decreases stress and improves focus and emotional regulation.
Then add the chemical impact of the Tea’s calming compounds to this quest for intentional stillness. Its unique trinity of L-Theanine, caffeine and antioxidants affect the brain by increasing alpha brain wave activity, which promotes a state of ‘calm wakefulness’ while also increasing levels of calming neurotransmitters like GABA, serotonin, and dopamine, which can reduce stress and anxiety.
The combination of the chemical and physical impact of combining tea and sitting still makes a 'Breathe and brew' practice highly conducive to focused, quiet reflection. It is mind-body medicine.
For a significant number of people, the thought of sitting still with just themselves for company can feel terrifying, rooted in the discomfort of what might come up when the distractions of daily life are stripped away. But as the old Zen saying goes "You should sit in meditation for 20 minutes a day, unless you are too busy, then you should sit for an hour”
I don’t consider my 20 minutes each day with the tea as meditation, more 'moving between life’s spaces’. I can’t explain it but the stillness of my body allows something else to be going on in my head, whatever that is I’m more whole and more healthy because of it. It encourages me to keep my gaze wider, breathe a little slower, notice life going by-the beautiful changes of autumn, the birdsong at dawn. Basically for those brief 20 minutes, I am just enjoying being for being sake.
So returning to my original thoughts, this is what the Tea offers me every morning. The act itself has become an intentional practice. It’s what gets me up and connects me to that joyful feeling of a regulated nervous system, of spending a delicious weekend with my dearest friends, of connecting to the heart of what makes us human. 20 minutes just pondering life.
Wishing you a wonderful November, fill your home with salt lamps and snuggle into their orange glow (that’s how I navigate the darker months!) and we look forward to talking to you again in December.
Anne and Ric x