Please visit me at BeautyThatMovesYoga.com

Love and Thanks,

Tali

Having experienced depression, alcohol abuse, and disordered eating in my lifetime I always wondered why once in recovery I would hear from friends “Oh good, I’ve been worried about you, I am glad you’re getting help”. This makes me angry and I mean it took all the self-control I had not to scream at these friends and my own father “THEN WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY SOMETHING? WHY DIDN’T YOU TRY TO HELP ME?”

Now I know the answer. They’re not like me.

I am a bit of a Mental Health Geek. Maybe it began when I first read the Bell Jar but I think I always have been drawn to the imbalances we face. Maybe it was my soul’s way of saying “you’re going to go through some shit in this lifetime, better be prepared“. Maybe it’s just how I am wired but for as long as I can remember I have read up on depression, anxiety, addiction, disordered eating, trauma and psychosis. This is subject matter I find fascinating and my path has brought me to delve into how yoga can be used as a part of therapeutics and recovery. Yoga was part of my recovery.

I know now, that not a lot of people are like me. It’s more common to shy away from this subject matter than to seek it out. It’s scary stuff. It’s uncomfortable. There is a stigma about it.

This is why this course is so very necessary for people. For yoga teachers, massage therapists, those in alternative medicine – this course is perfect. The work we do with people can be triggering and provoking and our basic training generally doesn’t equip us to deal with what may come up. In addition to these industries anyone who deals with the public, parents of teenagers, and well, just about anyone could benefit from this knowledge.

The course gives you the ability to

• Identify symptoms of people experiencing episodes of Anxiety, Depression, Psychosis, Trauma, Eating Disorders and Substance/Alcohol Abuse.
• Assess the immediate risk such as possibility of suicide and harm to self and  others.
• Build trust with the person having a mental health episode.
• Know which resources to call for more help and how to do so with complete transparency.
• Communicate honestly and openly with empathy, keeping the person secure so the right support system can be put into place.

The course is not going to turn you into a Mental Health treatment professional in two days. You aren’t giving medications. You aren’t working with the person via cognitive behavioral therapy  You aren’t saying whatever it takes to “talk them down”. You are not expected to heal the world after this course.

I am amazed and how much more confident and adept I feel now. While I was never someone to shy away from someone who I felt could be at risk before it still feels great to have a plan and a ton of resources for referring people to get more help. I love that this program doesn’t ask you to say whatever it takes to stabilize the person who is having an episode. The program recognizes that Mental Health treatment and recovery is usually a longer process than say treating a broken leg and that how the first person to respond behaves can make a big impact on the rest of the process.

I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t benefit from the program and for $25 the investment is well worth it (prices could vary by state). For more information please visit http://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org.

This practice of mudita is not always one that comes with ease. Some have a more organic aptitude to celebrate the success of others where as some of us are more inclined to be envious of others’ joys and achievements. However, it’s something that we can develop through practice. In yoga and meditation we are given ample opportunities. When we first come to these practices it may be hard to not compare ourselves to others. We may be frustrated that everyone else seems to be able to get into a complex asana or perhaps that meditation seems to come so easily.

Through our time on the mat or the meditation cushion we begin to recognize that we are not built the same, we don’t have the same life experiences. If we tap into that awareness we are able to meet ourselves where we are at. And maybe, we emerge from not only recognizing the differences but also celebrating when our friends and fellow students surpass ( for lack of better word) where we’re at with our experience.

This form of mudita was easy for me to embrace. I sometimes have students who have a physical embodiment and capabilities that I don’t. Long, thinner legs, stronger arms, smaller tummy – these attributes and developed skill sometimes allow them full expressions of asana that I just can’t reach, yet.

However, sometimes I find myself not embodying mudita as well as I would like. When I see people getting ahead by lying or abusing power I have a hard time being happy for them. Maybe that’s normal…maybe mudita isn’t warranted then.

In questioning that, I also began to recognize another side of mudita I hadn’t thought about, but have embodied (for the most part) for awhile. I get insanely excited for people when they accomplish things that I am either skilled at our have a natural aptitude for. When I see my friends getting the hang of blogging or students finding alignment in Downward dog that makes it feel easy, these things thrill me! And that’s mudita too. I’ve had great climbing teachers, great yoga teachers that have been such wonderful examples of this side of mudita. That no matter how many times they watch students summit a relatively easy climb or achieve Bakasana they beam with light and love.   They remember what it’s like to be a beginner, to be growing, to be changing, to be challenging yourself. They never make someone feel like their achievement is small or lacking.

I am thankful for the challenges. I am thankful for those who have showed me what it’s like to celebrate others’ triumphs with authentic happiness. I am equally thankful for those who have showed me how to keep a fresh perspective as a teacher and friend, to always carry that vicarious joy for beginnings.

After all, we are always somewhere along the path of beginning, middle, and end. Depending on the day, the time, the activity we are always embodying a space of beginning, the experience of the middle, and the satisfaction of achievement in the end.

I recently made a giant-shift in my life moving away from an unsustainable model of over-scheduling and multi-tasking to a more simple way of life. It wasn’t easy at first. I had to let go of the desire and the determination to do everything at once and ask myself “What do you really want?”

The answer is simple, I want to be happy.

So the question I ask myself daily if not multiple times a day is two-fold, “What will make you happy right now and will that decision make you happy a year from now?”

Ultimately what I discovered is that focus is what makes me happy. I turned email, Facebook, and Twitter notifications off on my phone. I keep a list of the projects I want to do, books I want to read, and people I want to connect with and give those items and people my full attention. I am working really hard to be so intensely attentive to each moment that my depth of each experience has broadened. Not to say I don’t put on movies or audio books while knitting or sewing, I do. However, I have noticed that even the call for background noise is dissipating.

My intention for my life is to be committed to each moment and every day I am working tocultivate my attention to that intention. So this quote from Swami Vivekananda rings so true to me. Last night in our restorative practice we dived into one space of focus at a time. be it the breath, the heartbeat, the vision of someone we love…we stayed there. At the end of the class I asked, what if we could manifest greatness in our life with our ability to focus?

I felt the shift in the room…somehow the gravity of room pulled harder but the desire to blossom and grow was stronger as well. We may not live in a world that allows us to dedicate our whole life to only one dream, one idea, but we can evolve our world to unleash our exquisite attention to our intentions through intense focus. The participants in my class were such a delight as they left. I could feel their enthusiasm and their steadiness. They were ignited!

How can you catch that spark? Can you go inward…can you bring your focus to all that you touch? Can you manifest magic in your life?

Yes. You can.

1/4 Cup Quick Oats

1/2 Cup Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk (or any milk of your choosing  but this keeps it lower in calories and vegan)

1 tsp Chia Seeds (more or less to your liking)

1/2 tsp of Stevia or your preferred sweetner (more or less to your taste)

a Dash of Cinnamon – or about 4 dashes if you’re like me

1/4 of a banana sliced – go crazy here. You can use most fruit and/or nuts to make it your own.

Assemble all ingredients in a half-pint size jar – use a full pint if you’re making a double batch.  Put the lid on and shake it up vigorously. Leave it in the refrigerator overnight and it’s ready in the morning. If you want to make enough for a week just set up your jars in a row and add the ingredients to each jar in an assembly line fashion.

Enjoy!

“I think looking forward will be better than looking back.”

― Erin Morgenstern, The Night Circus

One of my favorite novels is ‘The Night Circus’, it is written in such a way that your mind paints beautiful images to match the author’s words. A glorious tale of magic, love and a circus that only appears at night. The tents of the circus are filled with illusion, emotions, and artistry and one tent is home to the Wish Tree. In the novel the tree has sleek black branches and patrons of the circus make an offering for their wishes in the form of a votive candle, one wish ignites another. This was the first I had heard of a Wish Tree but a little research showed me this was not unique to ‘The Night Circus.’

Many cultures have used candles and trees to send their hopes and dreams out into the Universe (or to a specific deity). People have also offered coins, shoes, Wassail (or other alcoholic beverages) in lieu of candles. Some believe a scrap of clothing from someone ill can be fixed to a special tree and it will heal the ailing.  Another tradition uses ribbon (or a piece of fabric from your clothing) to symbolize the wish and when you tie your ribbon with the ribbon of your love, you wish together for your future.

I love the magical and mystical behind all of these ideas. I truly believe that adding a little something tangible to our wishing process helps us focus and seal in our intentions with clarity. Since this year marks the first Christmas of what I believe will be many with my love. I wanted our tree to be more than just a place to hold presents but also a part of the mindful life that we have created together. So we decorated our tree quite simply with lights and ribbon. Day by day as we get closer to Christmas we are adding these little tags in which we hand write our wishes and intentions for 2013 as well as honoring that which we are grateful for.

If you like this idea it’s not too late to add this practice to your holiday. I found simple and beautiful pre-cut tags at the craft store but you can make your own or simply use ribbon and a fabric marker to write out your intentions.  It’s not necessary to write them out, you can simply tie a ribbon with intent and gratitude in your heart. I like the idea of writing them out so we can put our tags away with our holiday items and then revisit them next year. I like the idea of making this a tradition.

Even if you don’t celebrate Christmas or have a tree you can easily make this practice your own by hanging tags (or ribbons or candles…) outside on a tree or along a banister, on a window, place them on an altar, whatever space speaks to you.

Best Wishes and Happy Holidays!