Yoga as Healing

On Thursday morning I took the 9am class with Annie. It was me and an older woman practicing that morning. It was her first time at the studio so Annie asked her if she had any injury limitations and she had quite a few. I was always aware that yoga was healing in nature due to all the medical benefits. But practicing with someone who had several limitations made it more clear than ever.

We began our yoga flow at a steady pace per usual. Every pose we moved into, Annie made sure to give some sort of alteration so the other woman practicing did not further injure herself or put herself in an uncomfortable position. Every pose has a medical benefit that was verbalized to us throughout our practice. Knowing these benefits, such as twisting to the right side of the body is good for digestion, helps me understand how every pose has a purpose. When we held poses, such as triangle, we were able to get back into the breathe. Deepening this breathe and focusing on completely filling my lungs has made a huge impact on my life off my mat. I went for a run outside the other day because the weather was beautiful and instead of focusing on my breath and constantly checking to see if I was still breathing, I was able to enjoy the weather and take in my run in it's entirety. This is something that was not possible before regularly practicing yoga.

I leave every practice with a sense of purpose. The breathing meditation I experience throughout my practice and my intentions I set for the day, leave such a positive impact on my mental health. I leave in a good mood despite how long of a day I may have ahead of me.

When I first started yoga, I thought it was all just stretching and trying to be one with oneself. However, taking classes at yoga nine where the teachers are educated and verbalize the reasoning behind each posture and the importance of having correct form and alignment has opened my mind to this life changing practice.