Yoga with Kaitlin

Trusting myself has been- still is, a journey. I don’t think anyone comes down harder on me than me and while I advise everyone to have grace for themselves it’s hard to take my own advice.

But I got it done yesterday. Over the weekend we went camping. I am a very sleepy person with very high sleep needs and so when I only got 3 hours of broken up sleep on Saturday night because I froze my butt off, I knew I was going to be on the struggle bus if I didn’t act on that quickly.

Monday activities require an early rise and a lot of work and going and doing. Not only am I a very sleepy person but I am also a huge introvert and I can’t remember the last time I was alone or had down time since the soccer season started, and so while I loved my camping trip I was also people-d out since I walked in with already such an empty tank. So, needless to say Monday was hard and then naturally we didn’t feel good and felt under the weather as our bodies forced ourselves to stop. The truth is, you can push all you want but eventually if you don’t listen or rest your body will force you to.

I needed to help my forest school class on Tuesday. The parent helpers were out and they needed me. But my kids weren’t feeling well, I wasn’t feeling well, and even though I felt awful to cancel- I actually felt confident in my choice after I did it. I didn’t feel guilt or doubtful which is really huge for me.

And I’m so glad I did. I ended up sleeping 23 hours between Monday night and this morning. I could still sleep some more but I feel so much better. How would I feel if I didn’t take that time? If I didn’t say no? If I didn’t let my body lead the way?

I would be even more exhausted. I would feel even worse instead of better. I would be too depleted to enjoy the rainy, chilly morning that’s teasing fall. I wouldn’t be writing this. I wouldn’t be about to get on my yoga mat which would add on another layer of feeling bad. I wouldn’t be planning a delicious veggie filled lunch which would make me feel even more groggy.

I would just continue to feed the cycle of feeling awful.

And I think this is what so many of us do. I’ll be the first to admit I am grateful and understand the privilege I have to take the time to have this rest on a random weekday. But even when we have days off, we spend it playing catch up. We spend it doing. The week is so demanding and the exhaustion we feel in our brains and our bodies dictate our choices and keep us in this foggy wheel.

But what happens when we take intentional rest time is actually in better favor of productivity. You can keep the feet on the floor, the hands moving, the work continuing- but what happens is the body will slow, the brain will get resentful, and the nervous system will shut down. Maybe you’ll get some work done, but as we all know you catch more flies with honey than vinegar. So the logic never really stands for me there.

It really frustrates me that the society we live in requires us to be constantly exhausted just to put a roof over our heads and food on the table. And when you look at places of employment they are often resistant to give breaks in favor of production.

But before this turns into a vent fest of the working world- I’ll get to the point of how important it is to rest and listen to your body when you can. Everything you do will be better, happier, brighter. You’ll feed the opposite side of the wheel and you’ll find yourself journeying into the sunny meadow instead of deeper into the foggy, cold bog where everything is heavier.

So if we can’t dismantle the overworked society we live in at the snap of a finger, what are some practical ways we can listen to our bodies and find intentional rest or lean in to our needs?

I’ll start with the obvious, yoga. Yoga allows us to soothe our muscles which in turn melts the tension out of them which in turn naturally relaxes the nervous system. Even if you only go for a minute or 1 pose a day, it’ll add up. Take what you can. I suggest especially looking into restorative yoga but all yoga will give you benefits. The Lazy Genius says in her book her goal was to do 1 downward dog a day.

Then of course there’s meditation and yoga nidra. There we can cultivate desired feelings, walk the body into deep relaxation, and practice the art of slowing down and noticing what’s going on. When we are on the hamster wheel, usually we don’t take the time to notice what we’re feeling or what we need. Meditation allows this.

And so does the breath practice. Did you know the breath practice is the fastest way to access your nervous system and begin to switch over from your fight/flight/freeze/fawn to your rest and digest. That’s why “take a few deep breaths” is always recommended. Try it out.

There’s also Thai chi, forest bathing, qigong, grounding or earthing (walk through some grass barefoot), journaling, massage therapy, traditional therapy, creating art, being outside or in nature, the list can go on. I bet if you sit and think, you can find something truly relaxing. And if not, give something on this list a try!

If you ever need help or guidance with yoga or meditation, don’t hesitate to reach out ❤️ and even if it’s hard to fight the feelings of productivity you may have on your days off or during down times, take some time to intentionally relax. Your production will be better in the long run and so will your contentment.