In our bodies, there are 9 emotions that exist. The Sanskrit word for these emotions is Rasas and actually translates to "essence" - the essence or flavor of our energetic Self. Unlike emotions, which we label as good or bad, rasas are simply energy. The energy in our body takes on these 9 qualities.
Read MoreWe are conditioned to figure everything out. Everything needs a reason or a justification. Is this big enough for a good cry? Everything needs a thought or explanation attached. But sometimes, the body simply needs something, and our mind has no place in the matter.
Read MoreStaying still and creating slow transitions used to be painfully challenging for me. When the instructor would guide me to make small movements, I wanted to immediately sit up and check my phone. I wanted to roll up my mat and start putting on my shoes. I had already practiced yoga for over an hour. Why was this last part such a drawn-out process? I had lots of things to get to and get done.
Read MoreThat beat of your heart that tells you to keep going, listen to that. Tell the doubting voice you have everything you need. Tell yourself you are worthy, deserving, and capable. We spend too much time feeding and fearing our own self-doubt. Truthfully, not much can be avoided if we just keep at it.
Read MoreThe immediate reaction to anything painful is to get out. Stop the pain. End the suffering. We can hop out of the pain in several ways. If a person hurts you, you can get into a fight. You can lash out or create drama. You can use alcohol or drugs to numb. You can take naps (nothing against naps). You can shop, eat, or talk to yourself endlessly about all the reasons you are right and they are wrong.
Read MoreMy aunt reminds me there is always overcoming. There is always a path forward, even if it wasn't the path we had planned. Always in the overcoming, there is a BEcoming. A coming into a new Self, if we are brave enough to keep moving forward. If we drop the excuses of age and circumstance, if we simply keep going, more will always be offered to us.
Read MoreMost of the time, we are not victims like we think. Our excuses are not so valid. It is not up to anyone else to make the change for you. Your life is your choice. You can make a small change, take one step, in order to get closer to the life you want. As you move along, more will be revealed and you will discover new possibilities and options along the way.
Read MoreWe are all in this together - helping each other in our lessons, our inspiration, our personal growth, and along our paths. People are like real-life angels to guide us, we just don't know that about ourselves.
Read MoreImagine you have complete trust in yourself. Imagine that when you believe you have made a mistake, it really isn't a mistake at all, but a lesson you need in order to guide you along an alternate route. Imagine you are not afraid to make mistakes. Imagine that any mistakes or setbacks are actually beacons, so there is no reason to be afraid or to feel guilty.
Read MoreThe first time I felt desperate enough to admit I couldn't do something on my own was when my drinking got really bad. I had read all the books and just wanted to know the solution so I could take care of the problem - not bother anyone. Recovery meetings became so much more than a tool to stop drinking. Somehow, by listening to others share their stories, stories that were just like mine, I felt heard and seen for the first time.
Read MoreHow should a mother behave and dress? What should a yoga teacher believe, eat, do with her free time??? Get rid of the labels and roles you are trying to fit into - it’s hard enough to be who you already are. Instead of living from the outside-in, try living from the inside-out. You don’t need to match society’s expectation, you only need to bring out what is already there.
Read MoreYou fear confrontation will make you feel worse. So you shoulder it all, knowing you've done it before, and you can do it again. You know how to deal with you. It's other people that make you nervous, because you don't know what they will do, say, or think. What if they retaliate? What if they're mad? What if they don't like you???
This is conditioning. We are tricked into thinking the outcome will be worse if we express how we really feel. Or if we take action that will benefit us and possibly disappoint others. Or if we leave something unhealthy, abusive, or simply not in our best interest. We fear the consequence of others' responses more than we fear the burden of staying small.
We can spend our entire lives stuck in a Samskara and never know any different. Except we will continue to operate with a false belief about ourself, someone else, or the world. We may feel fearful, agitated, or continually resentful. We may feel unsettled, less confident, anxious, or depressed. All of these can be symptoms of an unhealed Samskara.
Read MoreYoga is called a path. Because when you continually show up, you travel to a different place from where you began. I call yoga a return. Because our practice gives back to us all the parts we have abandoned. The parts we have been ashamed to show up as. The parts that crave our attention.
Read MoreIn yoga, befriending the body means accepting all its parts, forming a healthy relationship, and loving the body you were given. It also means listening to your body when something uncomfortable comes up, or when your intuition tries to get your attention. Befriending the body means learning how to listen, how to trust, and how to compassionately heal.
Read MoreYoga teaches us that all experiences along the path are felt and processed in the body. Resisting an experience, today or in the future, is the same as refusing to let it go. Ignoring an emotion or situation does not make it disappear. The body holds on, whether the mind addresses it or not. A healing yoga practice processes emotions and wounds no matter how old, or how deep.
Read MoreSome life experiences break us open to such a state of vulnerability, our body's natural reaction is to safeguard and protect. Experiences that cause our hearts to expand with love, or break from pain, feel too raw and exposed for our rational mind.
Read MoreWhen I got sober, I had to make many tough choices. My recovery had to come first, and everything else took a back seat for the time being. I attempted to rid myself and my life of all things that caused undo stress. I simplified. I let things go. Life and my addiction forced me to focus on myself. At the same time, I was also getting divorced. I had to relearn my life as a single person, without a spouse, and this took time and practice.
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