Wait... I thought yoga was supposed to help me THROUGH major life transitions?
For some, yes. For others, no. Or maybe the practice is there but we don't realize it. A yoga practice isn't without its own transitions - some of which we carry with more mindfulness than others.
It's been almost a year since writing my last blog post. A year!! At first I was really disappointed that I had let so much time go by; then I realized that I was going through a huge life change, and that I should allow myself time to soak that in. And what was that huge life-changing transition you might ask? I was pregnant with and had a beautiful baby girl!
Before pregnancy and in the in the early stages of pregnancy, I had in my mind that I would have this whole beautiful prenatal yoga practice. I bought books, signed up for prenatal yoga classes, and set an intention to explore how Ayurveda would fit into my pregnancy - all this in addition to finishing up my 500 hour YTT and the school year (from my full time job teaching high school math). And then.... those lovely pregnancy symptoms started to hit hard and I felt like all I could do was get through the day. These seemingly simple ambitions I had about my pregnancy became impossible.
Now, I do want to share the ways in which I am reconnecting to my yoga practice. But I've also learned that I didn't completely lose it like I felt I had. So if you're in that place of feeling like your yoga practice is long gone, take a moment to reflect on the time you feel your practice wasn't in your life... you may be surprised to find that little elements of your practice were still there through that life transition all along because it became a part of who you are.
In any case though, life transitions (big & small) can take up the forefront of our minds. Once we're on the other side of things, we feel ready to reconnect with our yoga practice - maybe in the same ways as before or maybe in completely different ways.
So how do we reconnect to our yoga practice after a major life transition?
No matter what life change we find ourselves on the other side of, it's worth observing and tuning into the fact that there was a calling back to the practice - so it was never really lost, it just changed with us.
But to feel like there's a better handle on your practice, I want to offer these things to begin exploring this new beginning.
Grace yourself with forgiveness
I definitely felt guilty and a little ashamed at "losing" my yoga practice through pregnancy and birth. I mean, I'm a yoga teacher for goodness sake! Shouldn't I know how to live by what I teach? Well, yes and no. Yoga is a journey and even though I may teach asana practices, I am still constantly learning and practicing off the mat.
Throughout my 500 hour YTT, I was learning about and implementing Ayurvedic self care practices. When I started to feel crummy in my pregnancy, I felt like I lost those practices.
On the other side of my amazing life transition, I have found that gracing myself with forgiveness is the best place to start in moving forward and reconnecting. In giving myself this space, I was also able to reflect and realize that I hadn't lost as much of my practice as I FELT like I had. I was still teaching my 3 yoga classes each week (up until 2 weeks before my daughter was born), still tongue scraping, and still using rose water in my skin care routine.
This recognition made me even more excited to reconnect to my yoga practice because I knew I wouldn't be starting from scratch, I'd be ever expanding!
Take it slow
This one is especially hard for me! As soon as I started feeling like myself again, I wanted to jump back into everything full steam! BUT... I literally am not able to because having a newborn is such a wild ride and I'm learning something new every day. My daughter is my top priority, so I am learning how to navigate my own self care and yoga practices back into my life.
On the other side of major life transitions, we may feel like certain aspects of ourselves are back to "normal" and that getting back into our yoga practices will look the same as it had when we first started out. But let's think about the fact that we call these monumental moments 'transitions' for a reason. Maybe many things or one big thing in our life has shifted and whether we feel it immediately or not, we are not the same as we were starting our practices.
Think of this almost as a healing journey. After injuries or surgeries, doctors wouldn't advise you to jump right back into lifting super heavy weights even if that was your norm before. You would need to heal muscles and scars and build back strength.
Reconnecting to your yoga practice should come back in a way similar to this.
Make time & meditate
Everyone always seems to say "find the time to... (insert something that you WANT to do)" - whether it's exercising or meal prepping or exploring creative outlets. But usually when we're 'finding' the time for something, we make excuses and say that we don't have the time. So that's why I'm saying to MAKE THE TIME! If reconnecting with your yoga practice truly is a priority, then you should make the time in your day to introduce those practices back in.
In my opinion, the best place to start in setting aside this time is for meditation. This could look like one minute of breath work, three minutes of journaling, or five minutes of a guided meditation. However you feel called to meditate, set aside the time to do so. It doesn't have to be a long time; in fact, it shouldn't be a long time if you're getting your groove back because you want to be able to stay consistent.
Meditation is also a perfect place to start with reconnecting to your yoga practice because other callings may come forward! Maybe you find, through meditation, that the priorities of your yoga practice have shifted. Be open to change and play on this post transition journey!
Explore your 'why'
Think of this like setting an intention.
When I was in my 200 hour YTT, we started by setting an intention for the training. The prompt was around finding the 'why'. We were also challenged to state our 'why' in four words or less - this allowed us to really hone in on the importance of our intention and to not get caught up in the words themselves.
So I would offer the same challenge in reconnecting with your yoga practice...
Go into your next meditation with an open heart and ask yourself "Why do I want to reconnect with my yoga practice?"
It might not come right away and that's totally okay! It also might change over the course of this exploration and that's also totally okay! I think right now, my 'why' is to balance mind, body, and soul.
I wish you all the best on your journey to reconnect to your yoga practice! I know I'm excited to explore mine own practices.
If you want company on your new path, I'd be happy to join you! So feel free to reach out at info@moreyogaplease.fit or on Instagam using the button below!
~Namaste~
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