“Life doesn’t always resemble a clear blue sky.
I practice Yoga for the daily challenges and upheavals.”
But this morning I awoke with a “heavy heart”.
As I rolled out my mat, boiled myself some warm water, I had a sinking feeling that my practice was going to look different to yesterday’s practice.
And it did.
As I reached the end of my practice, I began to settle into a breath, pranayama, practice.
But I didn’t quite make it, instead I just burst into tears.
Sharing our moments of vulnerability can be daunting, yet I share mine today in the hope that it brings you comfort.
Movement practices, including Yoga, have a wonderful way of, quite literally, shifting our emotions. From altering brain chemistry to the pace of our breath, yoga naturally transforms our physical and emotional state. Similar to the sense of connection we feel when we confide in a dear friend, yoga offers a practice that can assist us in developing present moment awareness.
In my case, it was by way of tears, but at other times it can also be far less noticeable. (Thank goodness, I don’t think we would keep returning to our mats otherwise!)
Physician, Doctor and author, Timothy McCall, clearly details other, less noticeable effects of a regular yoga practice [1]
– Relaxes the Nervous System
– Increases Control of Bodily Functions
– Improves Immune Function
– Improves Lung Function
– Increases Oxygenation of Tissues
– Nourishes Intervertebral Disks
– Improves Return of Venous Blood
– Increases Circulation of Lymph
– Improves Proprioception
Back to my teary eyes, I sat with the emotion and allowed it to pass rather than trying to distract myself, our phone can be a distraction we reach for in discomfort. I also didn’t overthink the tears too much, grabbed my journal, wrote and within an hour I felt I had begun to “re-set”.
Each and every one of us has a different path of well-being but remaining curious can really help us to stay grounded, particularly during more challenging seasons of life.
I hope this offers you some inspiration to consider taking mini pockets in your days, mini pockets to explore your own yoga practice, no matter what time of day and how short or long it is. Three minutes is better than nothing.
Our yoga practice can be one of many in our little “tool-boxes” for life.
Reference:
(1) Yoga As Medicine- The Yogic Prescription For Health and Healing, (p31-45)
