Therapy

I go to a yoga class a couple times a week at my local rec. center. I heard it was really good (obviously) for stress, anxiety and relaxation. Little did I know it was "traditional" yoga. The class is taught by a man named Tyran who is a computer programmer by day and a yoga teacher by night. :) He wears Indian clothes and has a beard. If I can say so, he is kind of a nerd. I think he is great and has a lot of wisdom.

I come out of class having learned something new about myself everytime. He goes through the yoga movements slowly, there is a lot of meditation involved, a lot of strength training and holding difficult poses. A lot of breathing. It is perfect and even though it is hard to get myself to class sometimes since it is at 8pm and I feel like that is "my time" or time with Koby, I am so grateful I went to yoga. I have so many things I am working with both emotionally, physically and spiritually. Life is so up and down- I guess I was used to the easygoing flatness of life that I had before.

I leave you with a quote he left on a fellow yoga student's blog- he seems to know how I am feeling even though I hardly know him.

Just to summarize the woman's blog post- She was talking about having conflicting emotions at yoga class, having a hard time with some physical problems going on, etc.


[A gentle smile]

"Good! That means it is working."

Most of us carry old hurts and emotion trapped within our bodies and minds. As the mind stills, the old emotion it carries start slipping out. The same happens in the body. The result often is unexplained bodily sensation (aches, heat, cold and other sensation) or unexplained emotion (laughter, crying, sadness, joy).

The price for deeper stillness is freeing up those things held deeper within the body and mind. You experienced this when you first started and, now that you have moved as far as you have, you are repeating that experience but much more deeply. Deeper/stronger emotion with deeper/stronger stillness available on the other side.

The question, which only you can honestly answer, is simple: Is the price worth it?

On the practical side, how do you deal with this welling of emotion? Breathe. Relax. Let go. Just let it go, let it wash over you unfettered and unrestricted. When we stifle emotion, that is when we trap it within our minds and bodies. When we fully accept and live the emotions we are experiencing, then when they end they leave no trace behind.

If the emotion is too strong for you to face alone, don't. It sounds like you have a loving husband, caring friends, a devoted teacher and, ultimately, a loving Father and Brother all of whom are willing to help you live through everything you face.