If You Give a Girl a Hot Tub...

For my last birthday, I received a City of Edmonton gift card, usable at most of the city's attractions and facilities. Given that it was the dead of winter, I first used it at a rec centre near by, solely to soak in the hot tub

It was glorious.

And so, I hopped around from rec centre to rec centre, checking out the different hot tubs, and the occasional steam room. Once or twice I took a yoga class. But mostly I just liked sitting in the hot tub. 

I found myself coming back again and again to the leisure centre closest to home. It's smaller, older, and therefore tends to be quieter. I started bringing a book each visit, reading while I soaked.

As the weather started to warm up, I found myself one headed to the leisure centre one evening thinking, "y'know, it might feel refreshing to dip in the pool first, before the hot tub."

Now, let me pause here to clarify that I am not a swimmer. In my educator days, I didn't mind playing in the water with the children I was teaching or caring for, but the sport of swimming has never appealed to me. I failed swimming lessons over and over (and over), mostly due to an imperfect front crawl, and a refusal to dive without plugging my nose. But my mom, having seen me tread water (which I could do like a boss), and feeling confident that I could save myself if I fell off a boat, finally took mercy on me and let me stop lessons.

So, when I say I considered a dip in the pool, I quite literally meant a dip in the pool and nothing more. I grabbed a couple pool noodles, put one under my knees and one under my arms, and floated around on the small waves made by other swimmers.

After a few weeks of this, I figured "y'know, since I'm already in the pool"--and since the novelty of the  new energized version of me was still mesmerizing--"I might as well do some aqua-jogging." And so across and around the pool I went, moving to the beat of whatever playlist the lifeguards had chosen.

Faces around me started becoming familiar; I realized the pool had "regulars," and that I was becoming one of them.

One evening, the pool was unusually crowded, except for the area sectioned off for lane swimming. And I thought, "y'know, since I can do so much aqua-jogging, certainly I could do a length of lane swimming." There aren't many swimming strokes I care for, but I do have a fondness for the backstroke when the situation calls for it.

And so I pushed off from the wall, the water just covering my ears, so that the 80's music around me faded, and all I could hear as I followed the line on the ceiling was my rhythmic breathing; it was nice.

Over time, one length turned into two, two turned into three, three turned into four.

And I thought, "y'know, snorkeling might be kinda fun." Snorkeling definitely draws one's focus to the breath. And I also remembered how, the few times I'd snorkeled on holidays, I'd found the act of swimming to be easier and more enjoyable.

And so I bought a snorkel.

And what started as just a soak in the hot tub has become a mix of self-guided aquacise, lane swimming, and snorkeling. ...Though,
definitely still a soak in the hot tub.

Pura Vida

"Pura Vida...it's Costa Rica's slogan, as well as being a way of life. The direct translation is "pure life" but it's so much more than that. It's living the good life...cherishing simple pleasures...spending time with loved ones...and enjoying a slow, relaxed pace of life." 

- John Michael Arthur

Pura Vida is a phrase I heard or said myself several times daily in the beautiful country of Costa Rica, where I just recently returned from after two weeks' vacation. Costa Rica has been on my “must see” list of places to go for several years. Warm, tropical, known for being eco-conscious, lots of flora and fauna to photograph… It had been over 10 years since my last tropical vacation, and it felt very overdue!

One highlight of this particular holiday was how thoroughly I was able to enjoy it, physically as well as emotionally. I enjoyed the company of good friends, watched the sunset on the beach every evening, ate nearly every meal outside, floated in the pool with a good book, won a card game or two...

Balancing out the gentle, unhurried pace, were also a variety of activities for the senses, including:

• Climbing hills and/or stairs daily
• Navigating a 13-cable zip line course
• Hiking through a wildlife sanctuary
• Swimming in the ocean
• Walking through the neighbourhood
• Walking along the beach
• A 60-min yoga class

As well as the sights, sounds, and smells of a foreign country; all in 30°C+ temperatures; none of which required so much as a nap afterwards.

This would have been a very different trip even a year ago. There would have been resting the full day before and after any activity, and lots of negotiating with myself about which activities might be ‘worth’ that.* I would not have done nearly as much sight-seeing. Just the daily trekking around in the golf cart (our rented mode of transportation) would have been enough of a sensory experience to tire my brain and body for the remainder of the day.

Instead, I was able to enjoy every aspect of my holiday, fully present through it all.

I am SO proud of my nervous system, and I’m proud of myself as well. I’ve done a lot of work to get to this point.

The view from my bedroom balcony
where I did my brain retraining
each day

I continued my brain retraining practices each day in Costa Rica—delighting in the ability to do my 'rounds' entirely outdoors! After 8 months, my rounds have become as routine as many people find the gym.

Now that I’m past the 6-month mark, I’ve been playing with the frequency of my rounds, weaving back in more of the other practices I’m familiar with and have come to enjoy (e.g. yoga, breathing exercises, meditation). At the very least, however, I’m finding my rounds are a nice way to start and end my day.

Especially with palm trees as my backdrop and tropical birds as my soundtrack.

My first spark of hope with my recovery came last summer when, just two weeks into my brain retraining, I realized I hadn’t needed a nap in several days. As I regain the ability to do more and more of the things I love well--like travel--my hope grows. When I have hiccups, I know they’ll pass; and, they are fewer and farther in between.

I was fortunate enough to vacation in the Nosara area, which is on the west coast of the Nicoya Peninsula, one of the world's Blue Zones. Immersed in sunshine, ocean waves, and tropical jungle, it's not hard to see why it's a Blue Zone. This vacation was not just a boost to my nervous system, but a boost to my spirit as well.

Pura vida.

*There is a huge difference between resting because I want to, and resting because I have to.