Yoga gives us time and space to hear ourselves, to feel our emotions, to connect to who we are apart from the distractions of our world. This isn’t always comfortable. Many times it’s easier to gloss over unwanted thoughts and feelings rather than to connect and process them. The following posts were written by an […]
I struggle with addressing my disliked emotions and energies. I associate words like “anger” and “anxious” with shame, and so I generally avoid recognizing those presences within my body and mind. I choose quick-fix, lazy distractions instead. Gently and kindly observing manifestations within and external is a new practice for me, one that I exercise […]
I experienced profound peace within the first couple of nights of experimentation. On night 2 of the experiment I had this crazy thought: that if I were to not wake up, things would be ok…it wasn’t that I didn’t want to wake up, I’d just be ok with not waking up, too. This thought occurred […]
As time went on, I practiced the evening routine inconsistently, in both occasion and quality. By three weeks’ end, I engaged with the routine with genuine intention about two-thirds of those nights. Sometimes I lazily chose distractions because they seemed momentarily easier. Almost always, I felt the ramifications of evading the practice. I found it […]
I know that one of the most fundamental components of practice is to just-do-it. Regarding this philosophy, I like to think about laws of physics; namely the Law of Inertia, which states that an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion at consistent speed, unless acted upon by […]
In the age of the billion-dollar supplement industry it appears that there is a product for every need. But this is not a new concept; nature has always provided us “products” to help heal our ailments. Ayurveda, the sister science to Yoga, has taught people how to use nature for optimal health for thousands of […]
My Ayurvedic experiment focused upon making my hair thicker and healthier. Background: Shortly after giving birth to my daughter I started to notice hair loss and even developed bald spots on both sides of my forehead. Previous to this course, I had tried taking vitamins that promote hair growth in addition to shampoos recommended by […]
My Experiment: My experimental timeline was 4 weeks, during which time I focused on two main areas: diet/supplements and massaging hair oils. First, it was immediately obvious that eating a properly nutritious diet would be vital. Adding more calcium in the form of dairy foods such as cheeses, milk, and freshly prepared yogurt is beneficial […]
Results: The developments from both diet change and ritually oiling and massaging my head each night have been profound. Not only has my hair begun to look shinier and healthier, but it has begun growing again (and quickly!) Another unexpected benefit of the process has been the deeper sense of relaxation from the ritual at […]
Sometimes it just takes one small change to trigger a series of healthy transitions. This is something Axis Yoga Teacher Training students have the chance to experience first-hand. The following student committed to adding a short Yoga practice to the morning routine and soon experienced the desire to make other healthy changes. This all resulted […]