Gyroscopic dyskinesthesia

Yeah, I made up the title. It's not real. Well, except it's how I explain the weird thing that happens to me in the prasaritas and ardha baddha padmottansana. It is climbing-related.

When I was climbing alot, I finally got to the point where I did not orient myself to the ground. When I first started, I was always very aware of where the ground was below me, and I climbed straight up, pretty much, and always kept my feet closest to the ground--even if they were 700 feet off the ground ;-) But as I got better at climbing, I started climbing more complicated rock faces--things that undulated and had outcroppings and ledges and all sorts of features. And the coolest thing started to happen: I would totally lose my sense of where the ground was in relation to my body. In order to reach the next hold, it might not be correct to keep my feet pointing toward the ground. I might need to be sideways, or upside down, or whatever. It was the coolest feeling, to lose my sense of relationship to the ground.

And now that is sometimes happening in the prasaritas and in AB padmottanasana. If I am relaxed and in my breath, all of a sudden I won't understand where "up" and "down" is. At first it happened when Volleyball Guy was adjusting me. Usually in Prasarita C. He'd have me so well-anchored as he adjusted my arms, that I could fully relax upside down, and forget about how gravity was working. Of course, he also makes a point of guiding you back up after a particularly long, deep adjustment. Same deal with AB padmottanasana. The catch now, though, is that when I am in those poses, it is early morning, I am warm, the other folks around me are breathing and practicing, the light is low, my mind is relaxed, everything is soft and fuzzy, until...whoa! suddenly I realize I am upside down all by myself and not paying attention to the physical laws. No, I haven't fallen yet. But the feeling is like falling asleep in the bathtub. It seems like a good idea until you breathe in some water and wake with a start. So we'll see how it goes. Hopefully no flying prasaritas. And yes, I've envisioned the domino effect that would ensue if I flop over. Kinda makes me laugh. Everyone else might be less amused.

Only other thing today was kurmasana. For the past couple of practices, Volleyball Guy has mentioned that my kurmasana is looking good. You have to realize, Volleyball Guy hardly ever says a word about poses or progress, so of course I had the paranoid thought, "Gosh, I wonder if it's so hideous that he feels he has to be encouraging." The Cop set me straight when I shared that thought. He said I was probably just getting better from practicing so much. Okay, fair enough. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised :-)