5-minute somatic practice to Release Tension in your Tongue and Your eyes
Invite a calming effect on your nervous system through gentle somatic movements designed to release tension in the tongue and around the eye.
Dear Friends,
I remember the first time I was asked to stick my tongue out in a yoga class, I thought it was pretty silly. It seemed like one of those quirky yoga things (like a sighing exhale) that we were just supposed to do without asking why. But when I started to get into Lion’s Breath, I could really feel the difference.
Over time, the more I've studied the body, fascia, and the nervous system, the more I've come to appreciate that paying attention to the tongue in our practice can affect the entire body.
Sometimes the smallest parts of us hold the biggest keys to letting go.
Besides helping us speak, eat, and swallow, the tongue is deeply connected to the rest of the body through both fascia and the nervous system. Softening the tongue often invites the jaw to relax, the breath to deepen, and the whole body to feel just a little less effortful. Anatomy expert Thomas Myers describes the tongue as part of the body's “Deep Front Line”—a continuous fascial pathway that connects through the throat, diaphragm, and core all the way to the pelvic floor and into the legs.
The tongue is also packed with sensory receptors, constantly sending information to the brain about tension, balance, and where we are in space. When the tongue is habitually gripping (which many of us do without realizing it) that tension can echo through the jaw, neck, throat, and even influence how freely we breathe. It can also stimulate a deeper tension throughout the whole body. However, consciously stretching, softening, and releasing the excess grip can do the opposite.
Research is beginning to catch up with what many yoga and somatic practitioners have experienced for years. Studies show that improving tongue mobility can enhance oral motor function, swallowing efficiency, and soft tissue flexibility. Researchers are also exploring how reducing tension in the tongue and floor of the mouth may support the vagus nerve, the primary nerve of our "rest and restore" nervous system, helping shift the body from subtle bracing toward a greater sense of ease and safety.
Another surprising area of the body that taps into our nervous system.
There’s another area of the body that we tend not to think about in the context of our movement classes—our eyes. Many of us spend our days looking at a screen, and believe it or not our eyes could use a rest. The optic nerve is directly connected to our nervous system, so releasing tension in our eyes helps support relaxation in our entire body.
If you have just a few minutes, you can invite this calming effect through gentle somatic movements designed to release tension in the tongue and around the eyes. In my latest blog post, I’ve shared a five-minute practice excerpted from a free midsummer meditation I offered this week.
Access the 5-minute practice here.
Enjoy the full 30-minute meditation in my online studio now—for FREE!—at this link.
For a deeper relaxation, you can also treat yourself to my 60-minute Midsummer Mini-Retreat On Demand. This 90-minute practice begins with a meditation designed for ease and relaxation, then shift to a guided body scan relaxation, which will prepare us for light movement and breath, followed by a deep yoga nidra practice. We’ll create a sense of relaxation in the body and then, step-by-step, cultivate more space in the mind.
