This week, I took a yoga class on youtube from “Yoga With Adriene” called “yoga for vunerability.” She often uses the terms “healing breath” and “healing postures” in her videos. The poses were slow and allowed one to focus on their breathing and moving into their bodies, which is another term I hear often. To me, moving into my body or becoming grounded is bringing full awareness to a movement and focusing on what each muscle feels like during this movement. I usually do not focus on this aspect in my daily life, as I am more focused on my thoughts and getting to the next thing. I think slowing down and focusing on what your body is telling you can be healing in itself.
I can see yoga as a healing practice, as it has helped me mentally appreciate my body and helped me through personal struggles. However, there are many words thrown around about how one should feel during a practice. Sometimes it will be a healing breath, or ‘squeezing the organs to empty all the old blood’ like we were told in Bikram yoga. It is hard to determine if you are feeling what one is telling you, or if you have these feelings on your own. This is why I like practices such as Ashtanga, where I am focused on completing the postures and feeling good after the practice without the teacher telling me what I am feeling.
I also think that physical movement in general is healing. The stretches and poses are good for the body regardless of other benefits. However, I think what separates yoga from any other physical exercise is mentally bringing awareness to oneself. This is something that is not typically done today, as phones, work, stress, and social life take away one’s awareness. I also think that setting intentions and putting emphasis on good energy while meditating is important for physical, spiritual, and mental health.
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