This week, I came through a crisis. Something that has been really disruptive for our family and particularly for my two kids. I simultaneously felt sadness, compassion, overwhelm, self-pity and a myriad of other things. And here I am, still standing and on the other side, reasonably intact. Had this particular crisis hit six months ago, I don’t know that I would have been able to disentangle my emotions enough to find my way though it. I had to hold space for mine and my kids’ feelings, acknowledge the difficulty we were in and ultimately find a solution without losing my mind or falling apart completely.

Embodied yoga has been the ultimate gift in learning how to navigate challenging situations.

If you’ve never heard of Embodied Yoga but you’d like to support yourself in hard times, busy times and everything in between, here are some of the tools I have learned that support me.

1.     Breathe

Deep breathing takes us from that anxious state of mind into the space where we can rest and digest. It literally breaks the time between a stressor and a response.

Try taking a deep breath, before you respond, before you answer the phone, before you lose your cool. And then find little triggers to bring your attention to your breath throughout the day like when you boil the kettle, when you’re waiting for your kids or when you sit into the car. I have a little sticker on my laptop that reminds me to take a deep breath before I check my email.

2.     Meditate

I’m not talking about 45 minutes sitting cross legged in serenity. I’m talking about 2 minutes of focusing on the breath, twice a day. I usually do this in the car when I park at work and before I leave work to collect the kids. Studies have shown that meditation can help to reduce stress, improve concentration and support better sleep and just one minute of meditation is enough to get started. This is a daily task that fills my cup so that I don’t end up completely empty when a challenge or a change in circumstances arises.

3.     Take a class

Carving out some time in my week to rest and recharge is my favourite way to support myself. I love retreating from the world knowing that that time belongs only to me. It gives me a chance to feel into what I want to, move my body, shift my energy and find sone stillness in a manic week.

If you’d like to give yourself the opportunity to fill your cup and retreat from the world, try a weekly class. A weekly class in Embodied Yoga is a means of supporting yourself to notice the stress as it enters the body and give you the tools to dismantle it, for more peaceful living. If you haven’t done yoga in years, or you’re a seasoned yogi, a total beginner or anything in between, there is power in claiming your space on the mat.

Katie teaches a Wednesday evening class for busy people who typically do too much. As a recovering perfectionist and a busy mammy to two smallies, she has learned to utilise embodied yoga to support her busy lifestyle and is eager to empower you to find your own set of tools to support yourself.