Posted by Tonight I choose to go to a yoga class in order to help with stress and anxiety.
Before Yoga:
I have been beyond stressed and anxious for the past few weeks. I’ve felt constantly rushed and overwhelmed. I’ve been feeling physically ill due to my anxiety levels. I’ve felt I cannot breathe. I am hoping this yoga class will help me go forward with a more positive mindset. I am hoping it allows me to breathe.
Being overly stressed has brought negativity into my relationships and my work. I have not felt the motivation to get out of bed or be productive in anyway. I haven’t been myself. I haven’t been ok. And to some I may seem perfectly fine, but I am tired of lying to those around me. I don’t want to constantly do just enough to get by. I know how to say the right things, show up to enough events and smile at just the right times. But I do not feel truly present in the moment. I know yoga is not a miracle exercise or anything like that. It is a practice. It is meant to be done over time to strengthen your mental and physical health. But I am hoping tonight’s class simply makes me feel better and helps me let go of the negative thoughts and emotions I have been hanging onto. I hope I leave feeling more at peace with a desire to return.
After Yoga:
Yes, it is late. The class was from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. and I arrived home around ten. It can make for a late night, especially when I wake up at 5 a.m. the next morning. However, it was fully worth it. Finding yoga has been a true blessing for me. I honor and love our earth. I feel very connected with animals and nature. As an empathic person, yoga allows me to worship the earth, the sun, and the moon. It always me to further deepen my connection with nature and my compassion for other. While practicing yoga I feel a very awakening peace and calm. It softens, at times even silences, my anxiety. I fully enjoy the opportunity to forget about the outside world and simply be.
My ride home is often filled with reflection. I reflect upon my life and I recognize the change that has occurred in my body and mind through that session of yoga. I am often much calmer. Tonight I recognize a moment of feeling happy. It was beautiful. We should all remember to embrace moments of true happiness, realize what an amazing feeling that is. Embrace it. Honor it. But don’t smother it. Simply observe the moment, reflect upon the feeling and be grateful for it. Happiness will not always be your emotional state and for some the feeling is very rare. It is important to embrace happiness and know that when sadness returns, it is only temporary.
Please share with me your own yoga journeys. OR other methods, practices, or rituals that you use to keep you grounded and to manage your anxiety or depression, or even just to make yourself feel good when you feel a little out of it or have been having a rough week. 🙂
Olivia Bohrer 