My Yoga Journal Day 23: Be Gentle With Yourself

​“Be gentle with yourself. You have moved through so much. you are healing and releasing that which no longer serves you. This takes time. Honor your process and celebrate your progress. You deserve it.” - Laurel Bleadon-Maffei

​Yoga teaches me to appreciate my progress and be patient with my process. I read this on fellow yoga teacher, Karlie Lemos', facebook wall and am inspired by the message. I think that we can be harder on ourselves than any other person ever could be. I find that I tend to be hard on myself for things beyond my control like a physical limitation or the feelings of someone else.

Last year I switched from attending public kundalini classes for a more gentle, hatha style. This particular style resonated deeply with me because it allowed me to be soft with myself. I tend to be pretty disciplined (it's 10:25 pm and I'm posting my yoga journal like a homework assignment), so in the past I gravitated toward yoga practices that reinforced that discipline like Kundalini and Ashtanga.

But what I really need is the opposite of my natural tendency, a slow, easeful class that allows me to find pleasure and comfort in my breath and movements. It took me going through a stressful personal relationship to try this slower, more relaxed form and I fell in love with it - and myself.

When we're going through stressful situations such as moving into a new home, a new relationship, a fresh break-up, a physical injury, an accident of any type, or caring for a loved one, it's easy to be hard on ourselves to get better, do more, fix things, or put the healing focus on the other.

Often the best thing is to act contrary to the 'do more' ideology. When we are overwhelmed and want to act, it's best to 'do less', rest, and surround ourselves with softness, comfort, and love.