Honesty & Shoulder Stand

Like most people, I dislike conflict. I don't even like to tell people that they're wrong. I will go along with some fake truth that somebody else believes until I have myself so far down the wrong path that I have no idea how to continue. In 7th grade, somehow my biology teacher got the idea that my mom grew up on a Danish farm. I promise you that I never told her this. My mom is of Danish descent and lived on a hobby farm for a short time as an adult, but this is far from what the teacher imagined. She asked me if I grew up speaking Danish, had I visited my mother's homeland, did she speak English well, tell her about the farm. I really didn't want to tell my teacher that she had the wrong impression, so I went along with it. I let her believe something 100% untrue just so that she wouldn't feel stupid for a millisecond, if at all, had I corrected her immediately. This isn't uncommon for me. Up until recently, I'd go along with anything somebody believed to save them the embarrassment of being wrong. I only let my husband be wrong ;)

These lies are all white, nobody got hurt, and most likely they didn't effect anybody's lives other than having a few incorrect facts. This still holds me back from speaking my truth and being 100% authentic. One of the eight limbs of yoga is the Yamas and Niyamas. Put simply, these are rules on how to live and not to live. One of the yamas is "satya", or truth. We should live our lives being true to who we are, honest about our thoughts and actions, and forthright with our intentions.

This can be hard, sometimes its hard to discover exactly how to feel or which path you really want to take. You've spent so much time conforming your opinions, hiding your authentic personality, and stifling your urges that its hard to let that guard down. It can be scary to soften your heart and let people know exactly who you are. It can be even scarier to be honest with yourself about who you really are. So many people try to be a shiny, pretty version or an alternative, rebellious version of themselves. They put up the act for so long that they begin to believe it. They can't figure out why they're so unhappy; its because they aren't being honest with themselves about who they truly are. As a 20-something, I'm at the turning point of figuring out who I am or stifling it and living an unhappy adulthood. I see a lot of people who don't figure out who they really are until they're 50 or 60 or never. Sometimes you meet a 15 year old who's already figured it out. Stop living unhappily because you haven't started living the life you love. Start letting your guard down today. Follow your impulses, speak what is true, stand up for what you believe in, and have some FUN. Find joy throughout your day because you are being yourself.

For today's tutorial we have shoulder stand, which activates your Ajna or third eye chakra and vishuddha or throat chakra. Both are essential to truthfulness. A balanced ajna chakra keeps you calm and focused, able to follow your path. A balanced vishuddha chakra allows proper intuition and communication, you can speak your truth.

Shoulder Stand / Sarvangasana

Begin lying on your back, arms at your sides and palms face down. Lift your legs perpendicular to the ground. Engage your core and press your hands into the floor to lift your hips off the ground and place your hands on your low back to urge your whole upper body perpendicular. Walk your elbows close to one another for stability. Lengthen your neck to allow space in your throat for breathing. The ideal is for your feet to stack over your hips, hips stacking over your shoulders. Breath deeply through the nose in this pose for as long as you can hold it. Recommended is 3-5 minutes, advanced is 15 minutes.

Supported Shoulder Stand

Lay on the floor with your legs resting against the wall. Bend your knees, placing the soles of your feet into the wall and press through your feet to lift your hips. Take your hands to your low back, elbows in close for stability. Either stay here or try taking one or both feet off the wall, straightening your legs and stacking feet over hips, hips over shoulders. Hold for as long as feels good.

This is a great way to end your practice before entering savasana. Its a more accessible inversion for those of you who see no need or are not ready for headstand quite yet.