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THERESA BRIGGS YOGA
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August is for: celebrating vulnerability. Allowing the soft frontside of the body open up. Moving into uncertainty. And knowing that you have your own back even if when you’re afraid you might fall.
💚💚💚

Part of the practice of yoga is embracing the unknown. Avidya, often translated as ignorance in the yogic texts, can come across as a negative concept in a world where we place such high importance on being right. On always knowing. Which doesn’t leave a lot of room for mistakes and growth.

We practice our yoga by acknowledging (and then reminding ourselves over and over and over again) that the only guarantee is change. That there is no real “knowing.” That much of what we think we know has been conditioned in us. And we work to recognize how holding on to “knowing” can create rigidity and suffering, both for ourselves and the continued suffering of marginalized groups in our communities.

So here we are! Months into a pandemic where no one really knows what comes next. Centuries into a culture soaked in racism and patriarchy. So thank goodness change is our only guarantee.

Keep practicing. Keep scratching under the surface of what you think you know. In moments of pain and fear and anxiety where it’s nearly impossible to access coping tools, the physical yoga practice (#asana) and breath-work (#pranayama) can remind our nervous systems that we are safe. If those practices feel out of reach because the agitation is too high, try jumping jacks, run around the block, or stomp and shake first. Try yelling! Or singing. These can all stimulate the #vagusnerve & help reset to the nervous system neutral so the quieter practices can become an option again.

#yogapractice #yoga #yogaeverydamnday #yogaeveryday #yogaforanxiety #yogainthetimeofcorona #yogaanywhere #polyvagaltheory #vagusnervestimulation #yogafortrauma #yogaforstress

pratyahara

3/8/2020

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Pratyahara. One of the eight limbs of the ashtanga yoga practice as outlined in the Yoga Sutra. Richard Freeman offers this literal translation of “Do not eat, do not consume” in The Mirror of Yoga, and it’s the perfect translation for #selfcaresunday in the midst of the madness of the current time. 🐢How to practice? Think of a turtle drawing into its shell. 🙈🙉Shut off the TV. Stop scrolling. Spend some time not consuming outside information and sit in the quiet. Close your eyes if that feels safe. 🐢This quiet may allow a closer look at your own internal world: the way your mind works, the thoughts you spend time on, how your mind/body system responds to those thoughts. And: the thoughts or patterns you might be subconsciously blocking with outside distraction.
How does your system respond to quiet vs. the constant barrage of bad news? 🐢If you’re very revved up- anxious, fidgety, emotionally overwhelmed- movement can help calm the system enough to be able to sit quietly. This could be a walk, a run, yoga- anything to burn off a little steam before turning inward. 🏃🏻‍♀️ 🧘🏽‍♂️ 🏊🏽‍♂️
🐢Sometimes the absence of all the noise feels like sweet relief. Sometimes it feels challenging or painful. Deep abdominal breathing can help navigate the rough spots.

#pratyahara #yogasutras #quiet#turninward #selfcare #mentalbreak#anxietyawareness #anxietyrelief#widenthewindow #vagusnerve #yoga#yogaeverydamnday #yogaeveryday#yogaforeverybody #pranayama
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    This blog, together with the occasional newsletter, will be an active space to share thoughts about yoga on and off the mat. Please let me know what you like and what you'd like to see more of. And as always, thank you for the gift of teaching!

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