Be softer with yourself.
Being your worst enemy
while having plenty of
other critics is too much
Be kinder to yourself
You will meet enough unkind
people along your journey
Be nicer to yourself.
You're all you've got
at the end of the day.
-Pierre Jeanty
Theres a particular pattern in my life that pops up since a major event took place a few years back. When this pattern begins to creep up, I tend to get very triggered. It's uncomfortable to feel and I even say to myself, "I don't have time to feel this!"
It becomes very frustrating for me and then my emotions seep through my tear ducts. Goodness! This is a build up of what happens when our container can no longer contain (and we can contain A LOT), and an adamant sign from my body telling me to be kind to myself. It also tells me, if I am not kind to myself, I will be more prone to quickly return to past uncomfortable patterns, emotions, states of mind, or even illness. It's also how life tells me, slow down. How do I know this? I feel it.
Many of us run into particular triggers in life that may feel like getting pulled back to an uncomfortable place. There are a couple of choices here. One choice is to give into past patterns, but then we inevitably have to work on bringing ourselves back. The second choice is to acknowledge where we are, letting ourselves feel, talking about it, and sometimes, letting the tears fall. Here is where we really bring in the softness, kindness and being nice to ourselves.
Being kind to yourself is the most compassionate gift you can give yourself. Sometimes that can mean drawing boundaries to give yourself that space. It can also be taking a nap to recharge, stretching your body with yoga or surrounding yourself with those you know have your back.
Triggers are challenging to avoid altogether. Last week I wrote about consistency in yoga practice. When things like this come into my life, I am reminded why it has become important to me to have a consistent yoga practice. My daily yoga practice fuels and nourishes me. When I contain while life is go-go-go, I can become inconsistent and begin to tell myself, "I don't have time". The reality is that the softest, kindest, nicest thing I can do with myself, is come back to myself through yoga. Whether in prayer, meditation, breath work and/or asana (body movement), all of these beautiful things can bring me back home.
Let's remind ourselves that it's okay to breathe deep, validate and allow yourself to free flow. It's okay to rework things or do the work it takes to come back to your home, you. And it's also okay to let yourself do nothing at all. We all have our own processes and knowing so, let's be softer, kinder and nicer with ourselves. We deserve it. As the poem says, we're all we've got. Let's take care of our vessels that contain so much, we all benefit from the self care.
And so it is....
In gratitude,
Ana
Resident Yoga Teacher & Self Care Doula
TOMORROW
Thursday, May 5th
Join Sandy on WeedSpeek at 4:20 (only on the Relevnt app) as she interviews James Davis.
Then, from 7 pm - 9 pm, join James online or in-person for "Bay Staters Community Action Hour."
We will be sharing stories of hope and organizing to support state legislation to decriminalize psychedelics and to promote peer-to-peer mentoring.
So far, nearly 500 volunteers have contacted their state lawmakers to urge them to oppose half-way measures to fully legalize psychedelic plants, roll back the whole drug war, and unleash a tidal wave of innovation in university research. Learn more about the coalition's bill and take action here: tinyurl.com/legalizetreatment
Google Meet link: meet.google.com/ijk-xvao-nnc
In Person: 63 Washington St, Weymouth Landing
Let's End the War on Drugs!
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