mind and body – Page 2 – Yoga 4 Healthful Living

Yoga and Grief, Part Three

Elizabeth Advice, Health, Knowledge August 26, 2013February 5, 2021energy, grief, healing, mind and body

Yoga and Grief Yoga is about being present for our experience, whatever it might be – a yoga pose, a conversation with a friend, an emotion. This is not easy. Our minds tend to wander. We often judge our own behaviors and vulnerabilities and seek to escape from our discomfort.

When we are sitting with someone we love who is dying, our emotional discomfort is at its height, and our minds may increase that suffering. “How long will this go on?” “What will happen to the family?” “Why is God letting this happen?”

And, the mind may journey to the past. “Why didn’t I spend more time with him or her?” “How could I have spoken so harshly?” “I would do so many things differently if I had a second chance.”

These projections and ruminations increase our suffering and keep us from experiencing the painful emotions that are a direct part of the loss. Our inability to stay present steals the time we can be with our loved one as we are more in our heads than in the reality of the present.

Being present with the reality of our grief is key to accepting loss. To do this we need to experience a tender, gentle attitude toward ourselves, without criticism.
This allows us to move toward acceptance and healing.

In yoga we are asked to observe the “effects” of our practice. Are there any areas of tension or openness? Is my breath long or short? Is my mind active with thoughts or quiet?

We are training to free ourselves from the judging mind. Without the judging mind, we don’t have to feel bad about what we notice. We don’t have to compare ourselves to others. This freedom can allow us to see and accept our vulnerabilities. It allows us to have compassion for ourselves.

When we begin to be present with our pain, treating ourselves with compassion for our suffering as we would treat a child in pain, we can begin to accept our loss.

Bringing compassion to the brokenness we feel in our grief can help us connect with the love we have for the one we have lost. We can come to recognize the love that bound us that still lives on within us. When we reach this place, we have moved to a deeper healing and sense of peace, and a profound honoring of the one no longer with us.

A five week “Yoga for Life, support for those who are grieving” begins Thursday, September 5^th. For more information, you can read a description of the class. If you or someone you know is grieving and would like to explore the healing potential of yoga, please contact me by noon, Tuesday, September 2^nd at eterryyoga@gmail.com or call 717-645-0067.

Yoga and Grief, Part Two

Elizabeth Advice, Health, Knowledge August 19, 2013February 5, 2021energy, grief, healing, mind and body

Yoga and Grief We know intellectually that all of us at sometime in our lives suffer loss and the trauma that ensues. When this happens, our entire being experiences grief. Our mind and heart, as well as the cells and systems of our body respond to loss. Physical symptoms may include headaches, insomnia, digestive problems, a feeling of heaviness, fatigue, and depletion. Mentally we may have difficulty thinking clearly, making decisions, and remembering things. Emotionally, we may feel anguished, anxious, depressed, powerless, or angry. Spiritually, we may sense a loss of meaning or purpose in our lives.

So how can yoga help us to heal?

Yoga sees healing as “a change in mind, in perception, in attitude” so that “mental, emotional, and physical suffering are alleviated,” and the person’s quality of life improves.¹ One reason yoga is effective in healing is because of its holistic vision of the human system. Everything is interconnected.

Try this experiment. Stand with your hands resting on your heart; slowly open your arms out to the side as you breathe in; slowly bring your hands back to the heart as you breathe out. Do this 4 or 5 times. Then mentally focus on the word “peace” as you breathe in and open your arms; focus on the words “in my body,” as you breathe out and bring your hands back to the heart. Next, mentally focus on the word “peace” as you breathe in and open your arms; focus on the words “in my mind” as you breathe out and bring your hands back to the heart. Finally, focus on “peace” as you breathe in and open the arms; focus on “in my heart,” as you breathe out and bring the hands back to the heart. Repeat this series with your mental focus on the words two more times.

Now sit down in a chair and take a minute or two to notice – without making any judgments – how you feel. Does your body feel more relaxed? Is your breath slower? Is your mind quieter? Do you notice any sense of peace emotionally, even a twinge?

Another way in which yoga encourages healing is in the practice of observation and acceptance. Yoga develops our awareness by requiring us to observe the effects of what we do in our practice, just as you did in the exercise above. Our observation is without judgment. It is a training in learning about ourselves, and accepting where we are at a particular moment in time. This practice of non-judgmental observation and acceptance prepares us to deal with change, and our struggle to accept our loss.

The vision yoga gives us of our human system and the practices it gives us to touch all dimensions of our being with awareness and acceptance empower us to begin our journey from suffering to healing.

If you or someone you know is grieving the loss of a loved one and would like to explore the healing potential of yoga, please contact me. A five week “Yoga for Life, support for those who are grieving” session begins Thursday, September 5^th.

¹ Desikachar, Kausthub. “The Yoga of Healing: Exploring Yoga’s Holistic Model for Health and Well-being.” International Journal of Yoga Therapy. No. 15 (2005) 17.

Yoga and Grief, Part One

Elizabeth Advice, Health, Knowledge August 12, 2013February 5, 2021energy, grief, healing, mind and body

Yoga and Grief Grief is a response to change. And, all changes, whether positive or negative, involve loss, explained Jennilu King. As a grief counselor, Jennilu helps others deal with loss and has her own insights and wisdom on the subject.

“Grief is the heart’s natural healing process,” she told me as we sat at Panera recently talking over breakfast and coffee. “It needs space, time, care, and attention in the same way as when you have open heart surgery. After surgery you come home with support in place, information about diet, and therapy appointments. You rest. All of this is part of the recuperation process that is about healing from physical trauma. Our heart needs these same things to heal from loss.”

Unfortunately, our culture doesn’t give people space and time to heal from loss. Not meaning harm, a concerned friend or relative may tell someone experiencing loss, “you need to get on with YOUR life,” as if there is only a designated time to grieve and then it is time to move on.

Those who are grieving, however, need to take time to nurture, nourish, and accept themselves and their lives. Yoga creates this time and space.

Yoga is about healing from suffering. The purpose of yoga, according to the yoga master TKV Desikachar, is “to reduce disturbance and return an individual to his or her inherent peace and power.” For those suffering loss, the physical postures of yoga help ease the physical effects of grief and improve energy. Breathing techniques support the connection between body and mind and help create a sense of calm. Sound and meditation support focus, healing, and the movement to a space of peace.

In the context of the yoga class to support those who are grieving, the tools of yoga offer techniques to help participants cope with grief, find compassion for the journey they are on, and honor their loss. All of the practices help to create space and balance in the body, breath, mind, and emotions.

Moving Toward Truth

Elizabeth Knowledge, Yoga Terms July 29, 2013February 5, 2021brahmacharya, Desikachar, knowledge, mind and body, yamas, yoga sutra

Brahmacharya is the 4th of the five yamas or attitudes and behaviors the Yoga Sutra recommends for our dealings with others.

In The Heart of Yoga, Desikachar explains “brahmacharya is composed of the root car, which means ‘to move,’ and the word brahma, which means ‘truth’ in terms of the one essential truth.” While brahmacharya is sometimes used to refer to abstinence in sexual relationships, it is really about following those behaviors and creating those relationships that “foster our understanding of the highest truths.” Likewise, Pat Shapiro, in her book Yoga for Midlife and Beyond, tells us that “responsible behavior in moving toward the truth” best describes the practice of brahmacharya. It is really about “moving toward and understanding what’s essential in life.”

Another part of brahmacharya is moderation. Desikachar speaks of moderation as producing “the highest individual vitality. We can all relate to how excessive behavior – whether it’s about sex, emotions, food, work, sport, spending, and so on, is injurious. I keeps us focused on external behaviors which eventually drain our energy and may have us engage in behaviors harmful to others, thus failing to practice the most important Yama – ahimsa or non-violence.

Excessive behaviors keep us from focusing internally. Without this internal focus, we are at a loss to connect with our own truth.
For me, the practice of brahmacharya is a practice of simplicity – living moderately and with care. Like the stones along the edge of a trail, it helps me to find my path.

To practice brahmacharya, you might reflect on and/or journal on the following questions;

Are there behaviors in your life that feel excessive and drain your energy?
Are there behaviors or relationships that feel out of line with your own truths or diminish your sense of peace?
Would you feel greater comfort moving toward what you perceive as most essential in your life?

PTSD and Yoga Therapy

Elizabeth Current Events, Health July 22, 2013February 5, 2021healing, mind and body, stress, trauma

PTSD and Yoga Therapy In my Wednesday night Discovery Yoga class, one of my students told me about a program she had heard on NPR that talked about Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the use of yoga as a therapy in treatment. It turns out that the program was Krista Tippett’s “On Being,” a wonderful show of interviews that can be heard locally on Sunday morning from 7-8 am.

Ms. Tippett was interviewing the psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk on her July 11, 2013 program. Dr. van der Kolk is a professor of psychiatry at Boston University Medical School and Medical Director in a community-based trauma center in Brookline, Massachusetts. He has spent much of his life researching traumatic stress and treating people suffering from PTSD.

In his work and research, Dr. van der Kolk found that people suffering from traumatic stress live with the “images or sounds or physical sensations” of the experience – they don’t go away. As a result, something changes in the brain so that the body in a traumatized state experiences the world as unsafe, frightening, even terrifying, even long after the original trauma.

The person with PTSD experiences these fearful emotions in his body. It is not surprising then to hear that such a person often lives out of touch with what is going on in his body; the strategy becomes a coping mechanism to deal with the emotions he feels. That was exactly what Dr. van der Kolk and his colleagues observed in people coming for treatment for PTSD – they were largely disconnected from their bodies.

Dr. van der Kolk began to see it was critical to help people reconnect to their bodies, “to help people … to feel safe feeling the sensations in their bodies.” That led to yoga programs for people suffering traumatic stress. He found that yoga, which seeks to connect mind and body, was “an important component of an overall healing program.” He went on to say that other activities, such as qigong or martial arts, might have a similar effect. What is needed is “something that engages your body in a very mindful and purposeful way – with a lot of attention to breathing in particular…” This kind of practice seemed to have the effect of resetting “some critical brain areas that get very disturbed by trauma.”

Any of you who do yoga have most likely observed the calming, balancing effect of a good practice. This research documents the profound and transformational effects possible with the kind of engagement yoga demands. For the Western mind in the 21st century, this kind of research adds credibility to the insights of the ancients who always saw yoga as a tool for healing suffering.

This is just a short summary of this interview. If you would like to know more, the full transcript of this interview and the podcast can be found at OnBeing.org.

Please leave any comments, insights, or thoughts you have on this subject.

Vedic Chant: Sound, Beauty, Healing

Elizabeth Health, Knowledge, Mantras July 8, 2013February 5, 2021chants, knowledge, mind and body

Vedic Chants If you attended my yoga classes, you probably have had the experience of chanting a word or words in Sanskrit. The words I would have chosen for us to chant would have supported the focus for the class. For example, if we were focusing on the concept of “peace,” we would chant the Sanskrit word for peace, “shanti,” and allow that sound to help create a sense of peace in our bodies, our breath, our minds, and our hearts.

Because of my love of chanting and my desire to learn more, I spent ten days in May, 2013 in the 2nd module of a two year training in Santa Fe, New Mexico, focusing on Vedic Chant. The word “Vedic” comes from the noun “Veda,” meaning “knowledge” in the Sanskrit language. The Vedas, which are about 4,000 to 5,000 years old, are a collection of chants, poems, rituals, hymns, and mantras in Sanskrit passed generation to generation through chanting. What we chant from the Vedas is Vedic Chant, learned with attention to rhythm, meter, and pronunciation. The chants are pleasant to hear and chant. The sound of the chants has the potential to influence our entire system. Many of the chants are about Nature, health, and healing and can help bring about positive change for us.

Press to hear an example of a vedic chant.

In our ten days of Vedic Chant training, we chant a lot in small and large groups, receiving instruction and feedback from chanting teachers. We also study the Sanskrit language and the context and meaning of chants. When we finish the ten days, we chant and study on our own, seeking others who might also study Vedic Chant or requesting help from a teacher, often via Skype or phone.

I can’t tell you how many times I am asked why I am studying Vedic Chant or what I want to do with it. The answer to the first question is that I love the sound of the chants. I love the focus on Nature. I love that I am part of a group seeking to assure that Vedic Chant will continue to be passed on. I know the sound of the chants are special: they move energy; they support health; they heal.

The answer to the second question is that I hope to create a community of people who want to learn, experience, enjoy, and benefit from Vedic Chant. As I complete my training next year, I look forward to sharing my love of chant with you.

Letting Go

Elizabeth Advice February 20, 2013February 5, 2021experience, mind and body

I was so moved by the message given in the Ash Wednesday service I attended this year that I had to share it with you. In the past the messages I heard this time of the year were about “giving up” something – like chocolate or coffee shops or sweets or movies – as in letting go of something we enjoyed.

But the message I heard this year was “letting go” – as in letting go of those things that burden us like a heavy stone we carry. I am sure you can begin to see the difference from my earlier understanding. Instead of deprivation, the message I heard this year calls for a time of self-reflection, so we recognize what fails to serve us, what causes suffering in our life. With that awareness, we can begin the process of “letting go.”

You might ask how we know what the real problem is? Why do we seem to be facing the same struggles again and again? And, even if we discover “the real problem,” how do we let go?

The teachings of yoga tell us that we all have patterns of behavior, of thinking, of responding that have become so ingrained that we may be unable to even see them. These are called samskaras. Samskaras may be positive or negative; they may support us or cause us suffering.

All of us receive messages as children from parents, institutions, and our culture that become part of how we look at the world. All of us, as we live our lives, experience events or face situations to which we have responded in ways we later regret. Most of us have had experiences that left emotional scars. We may have feelings of guilt, shame, fear, and anxiety, among other debilitating responses that cause us to continue to suffer.

Our work in yoga is about eliminating our suffering. To do this we develop self-awareness as we work in postures, breathing practices, meditation, chanting, or apply other tools of yoga. Yoga’s message is always svadhyaya – self-study –no matter what our practice. Through the process of self-observation, we can come to see patterns blocking us from living fully. Our relationships offer a huge mirror for us to observe our patterns. Likewise, a trusted teacher can help us to see patterns causing us pain.

When we see the samskaras that burden us, we can start the process of change. We can begin to let go of the power these samskaras have over us as we move to replace them with something positive. The old ones never completely go away, and we may find ourselves letting go of them again and again – but yoga offers tools to keep the old small while growing new positive samskaras.

As we move toward spring, we might keep in mind the image of the March winds. As they blow, we can make an intention to be observant so we can identify the burdens causing our suffering. We can imagine the freedom of allowing them to blow away on the winds. We can visualize making room for something new and special to take root and grow and allow that image support us as we begin the journey of letting go – of healing.