radiate within: a somatic yoga practice for summer solstice (and beyond!)
“To heal is to touch with love that which has been previously touched by fear.”
Each year, the summer solstice offers us the longest stretch of daylight, a sacred moment in the earth's cycle that invites reflection, renewal, and recalibration. It's a time when light is abundant, not just in the sky, but available to be absorbed into our bodies. In this week’s Somatic Flow Series, we explored how to align with this vibrant energy not by doing more, but by receiving more.
This 7-minute sequence draws on gentle, grounded movement to stimulate the lymphatic system, tone the vagus nerve, and support the nervous system’s shift into a parasympathetic (rest and restore) state. It is both a physical and energetic clearing, helping us to process what we no longer need so we can more fully absorb the nourishment around us.
Radiate Through Your Practice:
Lymphatic Self-Massage: Begin with touch, gentle pressure and tapping on six major lymph zones to stimulate detoxification and awaken flow.
Humming Breath: Humming not only extends the exhale and calms the nervous system, it vibrates through the body’s tissues, resonating especially through the face, throat, and chest—areas rich with vagus nerve connections.
Spinal Rolling & Twisting: Movements like supine twists and spinal rocking supported both digestion and energetic release, enhancing circulation through the spine and abdominal organs.
Supported Bridge & Legs Elevated: Restorative postures encouraged lymphatic drainage and heart-opening, while allowing the body to recalibrate under the soft weight of gravity.
As you practice, I invite you to consider what it means to allow energy to flow through us rather than effort our way toward vitality. As Jillian reminded us, "We don’t have to get the light and then learn how to be it. We simply remove what blocks our radiance."
In the light of the solstice, we also tune to what we carry that may feel heavy, not only in the body, but in our heart. Just as the lymph clears physical debris, the breath and hum clear emotional stagnation. The practice is an invitation to make space. To become more porous. To trust that your natural state is luminous.
You can practice this 7-minute flow anytime you need a reset. It's especially powerful:
First thing in the morning
After travel or long periods of sitting
Before bed to support digestion and calming
During seasonal transitions or emotional heaviness
loved this practice and ready to go deeper?
NEW! Somatic Yoga Series:
Stimulate Your Vagus, Clear Your Lymph
This workshop-style practice series offers 9.5 CEUs for yoga teachers and therapists.
Each week, you'll explore vagus-activating and lymph-clearing practices designed to support a balanced nervous system, enhance resilience, and optimize your body’s natural healing systems.
We’ll begin the series with a mini-workshop diving into the science behind the nervous system and lymphatic system, and wrap up with a mini-retreat to help integrate and embody all you've learned.
Join us through membership (it’s included!) or full-series registration.