Emme

There are days we feel behind. Behind the plans, we have made. Behind our own expectations. Behind the life, we wanted to live. For some, it feels like overwhelm, as if we are pulled into dozens of different directions. For others, it feels like emptiness, there is no direction at all, and we keep looking and looking for it.

We feel behind because we don't trust the process. Because we have been taught to take control over our lives and the better we take control; the happier and more successful our life will be. When this concept doesn't' work, we feel the 'dis-comfort", 'dis-balance or "dis-ease."

And this feeling is a stress response and doesn't only live in our head, in our mind. It lives very clearly in our bodies.

It's a feeling that most experience as tightening in our torso. It often manifests in our neck & shoulders, the lower back & hips, the abdomen, or the chest. Most of us can feel it very clearly if we pay attention.

It's our beautiful fine-tuned nervous system giving us NUDGES to pay attention. It's the MIND-BODY-CONNECTION working at its best. And it works FOR us, not AGAINST us.

When I work with my clients and students, I teach them to recognize and identify the 'nudges' in their own marvelous healing system. The answer to feeling tight and tense is not necessarily to pull and stretch on our muscles and joints ( = flexibility) like we are made to believe when we come to 'do yoga exercises.'

There are so many beautiful and complex nuances, which are personal and individual. I teach you to dig a little deeper and learn to regulate your own stress response through yoga-inspired but also other mind-body practices so that on those days when you 'feel behind,' and your body is tensing up to give you a sign, you have a method to help yourself.

Warm wishes for a peaceful weekend, Emme💃🏼

Did you know the shapes or poses we attend to on our yoga mat have a very specific goal:

to discipline or train our body,
to help us develop body-mind awareness and
to quieten our mind by learning how to focus inward

Discipline, awareness, and focus are skills honed by a mindful movement practice and are essential ingredients for a mind-body practice.

Those are also the qualities that I know lead me to better choices in my life.

If I can discipline myself to practice something continuously, I am empowered to take control of my own choices. It’s in nobody else’s hands but mine.

If I have an awareness of knowing what I need in my life to feel strong, resilient, grounded, etc. I can support myself and live life in alignment with my needs.

If I tend to a practice helping me quieten my mind and focus inward, I can better navigate my emotional and mental inner world.

Do you have a mind-body practice that focuses on developing those skills?

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How are you spending your free time after the stress of the Holiday week? What is it filled with? What thoughts, energy, and choices are you choosing? Are you even choosing? Or is it chosen for you? Where can I make space for myself if it is chosen for me because of family, work, or other responsibilities? That is an excellent start in a new direction of yoga practice.

If you usually do not ask yourself these questions as part of your yoga practice, I want to invite you to do this today for 15min. Seriously and deliberately.

It’s the practice of self-reflection and a vital part of a yoga practice that is more than physical exercises. Self-reflection leads to self-care. Self-care is that what helps us balance the stress we might have experienced during the Holidays.

How can I recharge today? What do I need to restore my energy? How can I pause from the demands placed on me either from the outside or internally by myself?

Here is are my rest/recovery choices for this weekend: I sat outside in the cool crisp air and soaked in the warm sun rays. I did about a 10min conscious breathing sequence this morning, which I will repeat when I am sitting outdoors with Lilly, and before I go to bed tonight. I am taking the doggies for a long walk in the forest now, right after writing this. I prioritize sleep a lot more these days, and I will allow myself to rest according to my natural rhythm, especially this weekend. I stay away from the internet and social media as much as I can.

Nothing extraordinarily special or complex, just simple things that I know keep me sane. But, I do them consciously and deliberately. I choose them with my whole heart and gratitude that I can do those things.

And that makes all the difference in the world.

What are your self-care choices for this weekend? Are they part of your deliberate yoga practice? If not, why not?
With so much love, Emme💖

“How to stop the fight or flight response - also knows as stress: Breathe.” Emme💃🏼