Yoga to let that shit GO

Yoga to let that shit GO

I can’t tell you how many times people have told me they don’t practice yoga because they’re not flexible. This is sooo not the point of yoga. Mental flexibility is needed for sure but tight muscles are one of the reasons WHY people should do yoga. It’s just like lifting weights — we do it to GET strong, not BECAUSE we are already strong. 

But on a deeper level, practicing yoga is about more than just the physical postures (asanas) — it is about creating a connection between your body, mind, and spirit. It’s finding the harmony between these three things that leads to the real meaning of yoga: the union of the mind-body-spirit, the realization that you are not just your thoughts, but rather you are the one observing the thoughts and the sensations in the body and you are an extension of Universal energy (the rest of the collective consciousness). And every thing you feel, every energy you exert is reflected back at you by the Universe. Think about it like this: your thoughts are like seeds that become emotions and then manifest into physical things, like pain and blemishes, and they grow into disease when you hold onto those vibes for too long.

This is why it is important then to come back regularly to release those emotions through mind-body awareness practices like yoga. We need to continually release and refresh our energy before those seeds grow into something bigger. Just like not flossing will lead to cavities in your teeth, not clearing out the wayward emotions will turn into bigger ailments. If this resonates and you are dealing with chronic ailments now, check out Louise Hay’s book (or at least this chart [lin]) about the underlying emotions that cause physical issues. 

Now that we know about these connections between energy and the mind-body, how do we release?

1. Intentionally — Energetic release

By becoming more aware of our emotions. Anytime you notice unease, pause to note what it is. Then say aloud “I am feeling anxious because (of the traffic this morning)”, then take out the why and just say “I’m feeling anxious” then take a breath and let it go. It helps to acknowledge that you’re fine — there is physically nothing wrong with you (unless this is not the care, then you take care of that), and that you are just feeling anxious/angry/sad/guilty/hopeless, etc.

2. Emotionally — Tapping

Tapping or EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) is an acupressure technique to release energy blockages. Using your index fingers, you tap on meridian points on the body where energy flows most strongly. These energy points send electrical impulses throughout the body to keep systems working and to store emotions. Some western healthcare professionals even believe that an illness or chronic pain in a specific area of the body is the result of a specific emotional pain stored in that meridian.
But keeping it simple for now, the process is first tuning into old habits and negative emotions like anxiety, guilt, fear and even pain that we want to release, then we make the decision to accept ourselves despite the obstacles, and finally, we shift into how we want to feel. Just a few rounds of tapping will make you feel better if not completely fine. I personally tap every day on anything from feeling anxious about work to manifesting money and my dreams. If you’re interested in seeing my brand of magical tapping live (or at least a recording), join me in the private Facebook community support group Bit by Bit.

3. Physically — Subconscious release

Dance and shake to release emotion held in your body. Do this for at least 5 minutes. It’s stronger to close your eyes and completely forget about what you may look like on the outside. If this still sounds uncomfortable, then you really need to do it. We shouldn’t have to feel any shame for moving our bodies. Not all movement is choreographed. Not all movement is symmetrical. Let yourself free and shake your body to music if it feels good and releases any stagnant energy. After the Rwandan genocides, the US sent a group of therapists into the villages to help the survivors process the horrors. After a few days, the village told the therapists to leave. When asked why they didn’t want their help, they said that the therapists had them locked in dark rooms talking about the terrors to try and heal them. But you can’t heal something by forcing yourself to relive the trauma that created the wounds in the first place. To heal, you need to release. And to release, you need to shake. Another form of shaking is ‘ecstatic dance’. You can google ecstatic dance on youtube to see a ton of videos of other people doing it for inspiration. As well as great music to dance/shake to. Set a timer for 5 minutes and just move. Let me know how you feel :)

4. Physically — Conscious release

This is where yoga as a physical practice comes in. In yoga, we engage in a broader range of movement. The movements and the poses help us practice mobility by moving the body in varied ways. In ways that the modern person doesn’t move in the usual day-to-day (think down dog, low lunge, back twisting, etc), but that are movements that we evolved to do naturally and would’ve done when we were still doing labor just to stay alive (foraging, farming, running away from danger, etc). We take poses to activate every part and target larger muscle groups that bear the brunt of our modern lifestyles of sitting and hunching in front of a computer and in the car. When we sit for long periods of time our tailbone ends up curling underneath us like it does when we and other animals show submission and fear (think of a sad dog with her tail tucked underneath us). This tells the body that we are scared and triggers feelings of fear and anxiety. It’s not surprising that anxiety affects 1/5 adults in the US. So, then back to the solution: do yoga to counter sitting with hip openers like warriors, crescent lunges, lizard, pigeon, etc backbends like cobra, sphinx, camel, bridge, etc and shoulder openers like triangle pose, child’s pose with blocks, eagle, thread the needle, etc. Taking any of these, but especially hip openers may bring up long-held emotions. If this happens, relax into it. Notice the feeling and then let yourself release it, maybe with a good cry or some loud deep breathing. I can’t say enough how much loud breathing facilitates release. Exhale aloud and let that shit GOOOOOO :)