Feeling a little tense, stressed or fatigued? I know the perfect remedy…cover your eyes with an eye pillow and take a little break. The benefits of using an eye pillow are SIMPLY amazing.
Yep, simple as that! Simple, but challenging. Challenging because most of us think that just sitting and doing NOTHING is a waste of time and non-productive. When it is actually the best thing we can do. Isn’t it funny that the things that could help us the most we dismiss because it seems too easy? Many of us have these inner beliefs that things have to be difficult, cost a lot of money, or take a lot of time for them to be effective. Well, taking a few minutes to cover your eyes with a soothing eye pillow is easy. It doesn’t cost a lot of money and only takes a few minutes.
I will admit that sitting or lying still for 10-20 minutes thinking about nothing can be challenging. I remember years ago when I attended my first yoga class and the teacher had us get on the floor and lay down in “corpse pose” close our eyes, and just do nothing. My mind went crazy. It took me some time to be able to calm my inner chatter and relax.
But now, in my yoga practice when I start to wind down, my body and nervous system get so excited. It knows it gets to just check out and chill in Savasana for 10 minutes. I tell my students, that Savasana (final relaxation) is the most important part of the yoga practice, and sometimes the most challenging, but not to skip it. If you only have a few minutes, at the end of your practice, or even if you are not practicing yoga, take time to be still. Better yet, cover your eyes.
Why cover your eyes?
- Shields the eyes from light and visual stimulus. Covering the eyes blocks out glaring light, and blocks any visual stimulus that may keep your mind racing.
- Relieves tension and eye strain. Most people think the eye pillow is just to block out the light, but the lightweight of the flax seeds ensures the perfect amount of acupressure to release tension from the forehead, cheekbones, temples, neck, and even the shoulders. Some yoga scholars also claim that the light pressure on the eyes sends a neurological signal to the brain that facilitates whole-body relaxation.
- Calms and rests the mind.
You can add essential oils and herbs to the eye pillows for a little aromatherapy. I love using an eye pillow that is filled with flax and yummy dried lavender blossoms!
Lavender is known to help you relax, calm anxiety, and help you sleep better.
A little eucalyptus is excellent to help relieve sinus headaches and sinus congestion. Better yet, place the eye pillow in a zipped bag and put it in the freezer or refrigerator for a little bit before use. This does wonders for sinus headaches!
For those of you who sew, these eye pillows are a snap to make. All you need is:
- Small piece of muslin for the inner bag
- Small piece of fabric (flannel, cotton, silk, or an upcycled cashmere sweater is nice) for the outer lining. Having an outer covering like this makes it nice so you can wash it!
- You can fill the pillow with rice, buckwheat, or flax seeds. I prefer flax seeds because they have the least smell to them.
- Optional: add some dried lavender flowers or cotton balls infused with the essential oils of your choice.
I sell the pattern in my shop and my Etsy shop. The eye pillow pattern is included in a wonderful therapy bag set. In the set, there are patterns and instructions to make hand warmers, neck & shoulder therapy bags, a foot warmer, and a large therapy bag.
LEARN HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN EYEPILLOW HERE
An eye pillow is a no-brainer accessory for your yoga bag.
So whether you are going to a yoga class, want to take a power nap, want some help relaxing or need some relief from a nagging headache, get out your eye pillow and chill.
Jan Howell
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Jan Howell
Whether it’s a new recipe, a fun craft, or some handy tips for your garden and home, I hope to empower and inspire you with skills that you can use to create joy, improved health, and to do it in a simple way.
