Lasting Wellness

from Rare Living Magazine 02/19 Issue

Yoga Saved My Life

Written By: Alex English

I know, I know. It sounds extreme. How can something as simple as twisting and folding your body around on a foam mat make such a significant difference in someone’s life? Well, during the most challenging, emotional, and hopeless days of my life, I turned to yoga and found salvation. Each time I felt anxious or like my life was spiraling out of control, I took the step to click “reserve spot” at an evening yoga practice near my home, and I am so happy I did. Yoga, I’ve learned, is much more than stretching and powerposes. In fact, it’s not at all about getting aerobic exercise. It's value lies in the way it impacts your mind and soul. Yoga encompasses many trends that are growing in popularity among those who feel overwhelmed by life.

And it’s been doing this for hundreds of years. Yoga is meditation. Yoga is mindfulness. Given a talented and intuitive instructor, yoga can be a form of emotional and spiritual therapy. Yoga also encourages an attitude of gratitude. With a central focus on pharmaceuticals and chemical medicines, our modern culture and times have made us forget that the body and the mind are inextricably tied, one influencing the other and vice versa. In 2017, I was hospitalized with what I thought was a bad flu. In reality, I was allowing stress and negativity to consume me, and it had begun affecting my heart and liver.

Yoga, with its emphasis on being present, open, and aware of one’s core identity and values, affirms in practitioners a knowledge that everything will be okay. Despite the challenges, distressing circumstances, and uncertainties of the world, yoga reminds us that every person is where they’re supposed to be—on a unique journey that cannot be compared to any other—and we’re all in it together. Yoga is physical, but it’s not competitive or judgmental the way other forms of exercise can be. It’s a check-in with every part of the body to say, “how are you feeling today?” Whatever the answer is, so be it. Yoga encourages us to be kind to ourselves, something we often forget to do while we’re busy being kind to others, caring for them first, and putting them ahead of ourselves. There are still days when I feel frustrated and stuck or cranky about someone or something. Those thoughts and feelings are valid and must be processed, but they’re not productive. They don’t foster rational decision making or help clear my path forward.

On those days, yoga brings me back to a peaceful place, reminding me that what truly matters is loving yourself, loving others, and approaching life without predetermination or fear. Perhaps you think this all sounds hokey or fluffy. But maybe that’s exactly what some of us need. In lieu of (or in addition to) religious faith, yoga is a personal spiritual experience that helps add dimension to our existence and interrupt a lifetime of noise and distractions. I may never be great at yoga—I have fairly stiff, inflexible joints and muscles—but the non-physical aspects of yoga have saved me from sickness, helped me remain calm and composed, and given me a sense of togetherness with the world and everyone in it. Yogic principles are applicable to everyone. Maybe if we all did a bit more yoga and a bit less worrying, we’d get along better, be less ill, and be more aware of the beauty and brilliance of simply being alive.

Written By: Alex English Rare Magazine Feb 2019 Issue Creating Lasting Wellness Habits

This article is from:

Rare Living Magazine 02/19 Issue