Eggs, the shape of them, what they represent, how all animals come from them, I can’t get enough of eggs. They remind me of potential and a time when all that we were to become, was nestled in one tiny place.
There’s also something about their shape that brings comfort and safety to mind. I hypothesize that this is why “egg rocking”, a somatic movement I have been experimenting with, is soothing.
Egg rocking is similar to the movement we did two episodes ago- the seastar shimmer- you may remember that one of the reasons it can support the grieving process- is because all the vulnerable organs are protected by being on the ground. When we are able to create a sense of physical safety, it is possible for the nervous system to down-regulate (out of the sympathetic fight/flight/fawn/freeze and into the parasympathetic). This is why we press and hug a pillow into our torso, to hold and protect the most vulnerable part of our body.
Grieving can’t be done to its fullest expression when we are in survival mode, just as digestion can’t occur to its fullest extent in survival mode. Yet again it’s possible to notice how similar grieving and digestion are. Which brings me to why an elecampane infusion is the recommended pairing with Egg Rocking this episode: elecampane is a digestive aid…
… and it’s a grief ally.
Elecampane is also known to be a respiratory supporter, (an expectorant,) and since many people believe that grief builds up in the lungs, you can imagine where this is going. Elecampane can support the lungs both physically and emotionally.
If you’ve attended any of my new moon mourning gatherings you’ll have heard me say that I don’t enjoy prescriptions such as “grief is stored in the lungs”, “anger is held in the liver”, “the shoulders hold the pain of the hips”… this can be true, but every body is different, every grief is unique, thus these correlations or assumptions can become dogmatic and limiting. Even so, elecampane is going to clear things out of the lungs — whether that’s congestion, grief, fear, or anger — and that’s exciting.
Video Credits:
I originally made this video as a bonus resource for my self-guided mourning ritual bundle. Check it out if you’re in need of support processing acute or lingering grief about the death transition of a loved one (human or companion animal), ecological grief, or the death of a circumstance (i.e. relationship, job, home).
Mourning singer FayePatrick Kennedy created the score for this video.
Photo Credits: Wandering egg series by Lana Smithner Greenleaf.
Elecampane Infusion Directions:
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