Twenty Twenty-Three – EMPOWERMENT

January 10, 2023 at 3:23 pm (In My Backyard)
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A new year, a full moon, a multitude of challenges (aren’t there always in this life – just different incarnations), and at the same time, a wealth of silver linings (the half-full part of the glass). Lots to face, lots to be grateful for, lots to do, and lots to embrace. A year ending and new year beginning is an opportune time to reflect and reset and restore. But now I feel it’s time to get moving. So as I enter 2023, I commit to unsticking myself from some of the gooey-ness of life. Cultivating faith, trust, hope, joy even in the midst of uncertainty, helplessness, and sadness. How to do this? In the moment, BRFWA – breathe, relax, feel, watch, allow. Then move ahead with a calmer perspective; a positive perspective. Own your missteps and make amends. Find a positive mantra that relates best to your situation and THINK IT, AFFIRM IT, BELIEVE IT…every day and keep setting reminders. Move the body and say the words and walk the walk. Drink the water; eat the veggies; work on the mind; and better sleep will come. ACT, not REACT. Make the time…The checklist may seem long, but I believe one must advocate for oneself first – what is the minimum you can do/think/say for yourself that will empower you to ACT positively? One step at a time.

There is so much out there to help one get out of the gooey-ness – people, books, courses, programs. But ultimately, only YOU can get the ball rolling…so step 1 is show up…take the step, even if it is a baby step. DO IT and BE IT, whatever IT is for you; not just say you are going to do it. Sign up for the course, read the book, get off the couch, make the call, change your mind; and if rest is what you need, then stay on the couch. Do at least the minimum…and that could mean as simple as smiling a big toothy grin each day to stimulate some feel-good hormones while you lie on the couch. If you need help, please reach out to your network…or just one person. It may not be easy…but it is necessary. Patience, perseverance, at times forgiveness, and EMPOWERING YOURSELF to keep at it, giving time and space for transformation to happen. Okay it sounds exhausting…but it doesn’t have to be. The glass is half-full…

There will always be provisos and conditions and circumstances and excuses and justifications for the obstacles on the road…often we think it is time-related or other-person related. If you don’t make the time, how can you move forward? If you are stuck in blame, how can you move forward? I’m not denying there will be raw periods where it is SO HARD to move forward, full of trial and error, roadblocks and challenges, but forward we must go believing in goodness, contributing to that goodness, and trusting in the goodness…step by step and again with patience. The coming out of the dark into the light; resetting and recalibrating, again and again.

The tradition of yoga suggests a Sankalpa or “a resolve” in order to stay on track. A short statement made in real-time of how you want to BE. I have been guided by the same Sankalpa for a long time…it’s a four-part positive guideline to follow (“Joyful energetic body, loving compassionate heart, reflective alert mind, lightness of Being” – thanks to the Chopra Centre for this one). Every day, and throughout the day, I ask myself if what I am doing/thinking/saying is contributing to this resolve or going against it. Sometimes I ignore it, sometimes I challenge it, and sometimes I forget it…but my Sankalpa always resurfaces and quietly reminds me that it’s okay – just reset. For me, and maybe you, too, such is the power of the practice of yoga, over and over.

If you would like to move forward with me, try out one of my guided meditations or videos (see a newly uploaded Yin and Gentle Yoga video!); join my online classes; or simply send me an email and share with me how YOU are moving forward. And for a wider network, check out the Canadian government’s initiative for mental health – Wellness Together Canada.

And if staying put is the right thing for you at the moment, try this: 36 breaths lying on your left side, 36 breaths lying on your right side, and 36 breaths lying on your back propped up a bit. Total = 108 breaths.

Namaste and here’s to 2023.

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Yin Yoga At Home

September 17, 2020 at 2:28 pm (In My Backyard)
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The very first line of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras says, “Atha Yoga Anushasanam” – NOW, the practice of yoga begins. In this moment, under these circumstances and conditions, and within one’s body/mind…this is where the experiencing is, where the self-discovery begins, and where the lessons are. For the last 6 months in this COVID-19 world, we’ve been asked to stay at home, take care of ourselves and our families, be mindful of how we interact with others, and be with what is HERE RIGHT NOW. How are you feeling? What are you feeling? In what ways have you been managing all the challenges? Rather than seeking the external, this has been a prime opportunity to deal with the internal.

Yin Yoga is one of those fitting practices to help deal with the internal. I think one of the biggest skills to come out of this practice is FOCUS. Learning to better focus teaches me to adjust my lens of awareness as required, alternating between stepping back (observing the big picture) or zooming in (looking at the hidden details), so I can better SEE what’s there in my breath, body, and mind. So much can be revealed, including how I am distracted, what is ease and what is discomfort, what really matters, and what does not. While all styles of yoga might offer these insights, Yin Yoga in particular seems to lend itself well to this exploration with its slow, meditative approach that asks the practitioner to be patient, to be still, to lean into the moment, stay there and watch what happens. It’s like a training ground for BEING with all sorts of stuff, gradually widening the window of tolerance and acceptance. Dr. Steven Hayes (psychologist, professor, and author) says, “I will not run from my own experience” in the context of managing difficult emotions and thoughts. I think it can be the same with yoga, being with whatever is there on (or off) the mat – blissful or painful – and choosing NOT to run away.

The three guidelines that pertain to the Yin Yoga practice may very well be an effective strategy to help us live with the challenges of this world right now:

1) Slowly approach your edge – a physical limit, or place of resistance (might be mental or emotional).

2) Soften your body and breathe at this edge with awareness and openness.

3) Stay there for awhile and observe with attention. It’s okay.

And then we could add “proceed with better focus”.

However you are living your own Yoga At Home these days, the key is to simply get on your mat…every day. Just get there, then observe things unfold, with curiosity, compassion, and patience. If you need a little help to inspire you and ground you, see below for a Yin Yoga Video I made. I hope it helps to remind you that NOW, in each and every moment, YOGA begins…and I’m right here in it with you.

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Yin Yoga – The Quiet Practice

February 1, 2016 at 3:31 pm (In My Backyard)
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Yoga has so much to offer in the way of practice – poses for strength and poses for flexibility; sequences that stimulate and flows that calm; breathing techniques that heat you up and those that cool you down; focusing skills that help you concentrate and meditations that allow you to expand…In the span of a week, one can tailor their practice to include all these areas so that by the end of seven days you are well-balanced to start the next week. One great way to finish off your week is with the practice of Yin Yoga (you can practice yin with me on Thursdays and Sundays at 9:15 am!).

Sometimes referred to as “the quiet practice”, Yin Yoga has become a wonderful complement to more active styles of yoga. In the context of yin and yang (contrasting dualities of existence), yin is slow/passive/inward/cool while yang is moving/active/outward/warm. Yin Yoga is done with little movement and no warm-up, and one is guided to passively release into a pose for an extended period of time, bringing their mental focus inward. This is not a restorative practice – it can be challenging and even stimulating to remain still and work with the sensations that come and go in the body. Our goal on a physical level is to gently bring a traction-like stimulation to the joints and deeper connective tissues in order to bring about a release of rigidity, promote better energy flow, and therefore improve mobility. Sometimes the pose will feel like a squeeze or squish as we lean or fold into it; other times the pose will feel like a pull as tissues are gently coaxed apart. Body sensations can become intense and then they subside…and we learn not to over-react or under-react. The goals on energetic and mental levels are to breathe, to stay connected, to stay present. We breathe through the experience with mindful awareness and of course, with wisdom – knowing what you know and feel of your body (your health situation, your injuries, your current mind-state, etc.), you are asked to make skillful decisions in guiding your body to its appropriate edge, not pushing beyond that edge. And you always have the choice not to go there at all if this practice isn’t right for you at the time (recent injury, acute health condition, high anxiety, etc.). So there is a huge component in this practice of mindfulness – being very present at all times as a discerning participant and keen observer.

My experience of Yin Yoga has run the gamut from profound release to frustration (as one of my dear teachers calls it, “from blissed to pissed”…). It reminds me of the ebbs and flows of life…Some days I let go completely and allow the practice to unfold, gently releasing my muscular gripping and feeling into the pull of the tissues. When I’m focused and present, I can direct my awareness to my breath and actually feel a deeper energetic release that sometimes defies explanation. Not just a physical release in the body, but mentally and emotionally letting go. Other times, I am impatient and restless as I resist the “pose I don’t like”. My hips ache, my mind wanders, I need to hurry up to get to my emails, and I can’t wait until it’s over as I fidget and silently complain. On those days, my practice is self-compassion and acceptance…

All yoga is about finding harmony within oneself – balance in body, breath, emotions, mind..and this balance allows us to connect on a deeper level to one another, and to Spirit. Yin Yoga, as a complement to more active, yang-style practices, offers one more way we can return to harmony.

 

yinyang

 

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