By Ntathu Allen
If you are morning the loss of a loved one, chances are you feel sad, alone, lost and maybe even depressed. At times, you may feel overwhelmed by the roller coaster of emotions surging through your body.
Many people nowadays see yoga purely as a form of physical exercise. However, yoga has an ancient history and tradition of supporting people through emotional suffering and physical pain. From personal experience, my practice of yoga has helped to ease my pain and sense of loss following the loss of my dear brother and cousin.
The body has an enormous capacity to heal itself. Here are seven ways yoga postures supports you as you grieve.
1. Yoga teaches you to be still and accept your feelings.
When you are in pain, the last thing you want to do is be still. The pain and sense of loss can drive you crazy. To counteract this feeling, many people fill their time with activities and meetings. Anything to block out the pain. The more you practice yoga, the easier it becomes for you to allow your pain to surface and for you to feel strong enough to face your pain.
2. Yoga encourages you to nurture yourself. Yoga postures, like the child pose and seated forward bend, allow your body to rest and your mind to become calm. In this state it is easier for you to take the time to breathe and send loving messages to your heart. The more love you can give to yourself, the easier it is for you to release your sadness and grief and allow love from others into your life.
3. Yoga energises your body. Fatigue and tiredness are symptoms of grief. You lack energy to do anything and it takes a lot of effort to do the simplest of tasks. Yoga poses, for example, the warrior sequence, the camel pose, bow pose or cobra gives a lovely stretch to your spine. This stimulates the flow of spinal fluid, which helps to refresh your brain. These poses help to open and strengthen your heart chakra. This brings in fresh oxygen into your body which makes you feel alive and energised.
4. Yoga increases your sense of self-awareness. The essence of yoga is to become more aware and in tune with the inner workings of your body. This increased awareness empowers you to tap into your sadness and sense of powerless. With time and regular yoga practice your enhanced powers of self-awareness helps you to lessen the effects of sad and unhappy thoughts before they get lodged into your physical body and cause you more pain.
5. Yoga strengthens your connection to your higher self. When you are in pain and locked in sadness, your life energy is blocked. Your connection to life is restricted and in some cases, you lose faith and hope. Gentle yoga stretches and breathing practices encourages you to see beyond your physical pain and emotion. You regain a sense of union and connection with your body. You feel alive and have an enhanced sense of your ability to affect change in your life.
6. Yoga teaches you grace and surrender. Yoga has a rich philosophical history and ethical foundation. As you practice yoga, your understanding of life is deepened. You gain a heighten sense of appreciation of your body's ability to self-heal and support you. The more you practice yoga, you learn to surrender as you hold and go deeper into your poses. For example, try standing still in the mountain pose for 2 - 5 minutes and see what that feels like as you let go of tension and allow your breath to travel through your body.
7. Yoga helps you to manage your feelings. Yoga breathing practices help you to relax, release and breathe through any unpleasant or painful memories you may have as you grieve, for example, when you are feeling nervous and not quite yourself, take a long breathe out and feel your shoulders and abdomen relax or spend a few minutes just focusing on breathing deeply in and out through your nose. You will feel calm and more able to articulate what you feel.
Grief can be scary. The practice of yoga offers you a safe and gentle way to be compassionate and gentle with yourself and others as you heal. Take your time and if you wish, please email me and share.
Ntathu Allen, Yoga and Meditation Teacher works with women who want a richer, more fulfilling life for themselves and their families. She teaches you easy yoga postures, meditation practices and relaxation techniques to help you live a healthier, wealthier and happier stress-free life. To find out more go to: http://www.yogainspires.co.uk/ and sign up for your copy of Ntathu's free monthly yoga Inspires enewsletter. The newsletter contains a goldmine of tips, techniques and strategies you can use to become more peaceful, healthier and happier.
Email: ntathu@yogainspires.co.uk
http://www.yogainspires.co.uk/
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