Leaning into discomfort with
mindful movement and mindful breath. On the mat moment captured by Mothwing Photography .
***
“Lean into the
awkwardness with forgiveness,” she writes. “Discomfort comes with new growth.”
My friend’s words
of wisdom provide a sense of comfort within this intensely uncomfortable period
of my life and invite me to shift my perspective on discomfort.
Leaning into
discomfort is new terrain. Typically, I react to discomfort by fleeing from the
awkwardness. I reroute in the hopes of bypassing experiencing the layers of
uncomfortable emotion and lessons dwelling within the discomfort. I redirect
through distractions and busyness: I respond to all my emails, delete old
photos from my phone, clean my room, turn up the music, listen TED
Talks…all of which is externally productive and counterproductive to my own
personal growth.
The discomfort
arising in my professional, personal and spiritual life calls for my full
attention. The invitation is to step into the feeling, to listen to the
lessons, to be present in the change. And the invitation to be present in
discomfort emerges every time I step on the yoga mat – to teach and to
practice:
The discomfort of
practicing a challenging pose.
The discomfort of
connecting and focusing completely on the breath when my thoughts are whirling
and jumping for my attention.
The discomfort of
being still and greeting whatever is present with me in that moment with no
judgment.
Rewriting my
response to discomfort begins with carrying lessons learned from mat to
everyday life. Practicing presence in uncomfortable experiences is an integral
part of the yoga practice.
In yoga classes,
teachers often refer to finding “an edge” in the pose. The “edge” exists on the
border between challenge and comfort. The discomfort signals a gradual change
in the pose – a muscle illuminated and awakened through a stretch and a
strengthening. Mindfully moving into poses allows us to discern sensation – if
there’s pain, release and modify.
If there’s
discomfort, meaning sensation could be intense and the breath is still accessible
and full, then recommit to the breath, slow and steady, and settle into the
pose. The deepening of the pose happens gradually; forcing and pushing results
in injury, so compassionate acceptance for where we are in that particular
journey for that pose frees us from any mental resistance and invites us to be deeply
present. Always know that the moment there is pain, and the breath is no longer
fully accessible, this is the moment to leave.
For me, there can
be discomfort in leaving. On the mat, I feel more at ease leaving a pose if
it’s not aligning to serving my current needs, but off the mat, the discomfort
I’m currently experiencing is the discomfort of leaving behind old patterns and
stretching into new ways of perceiving, living, being.
I feel discomfort
advocating for myself, and know that fiercely committing to be my own advocate
is absolutely vital for my own emotional health. I’ve been conditioned to put
others’ needs beyond my own, to ensure other people feel comfort and ease at
the expense of my own well-being, to over-assume responsibility and as a result
become a target for other people’s discharged discomfort. I feel uncomfortable
establishing and adhering to those boundaries, but the discomfort is minor to
the pain I felt in the past of being overly burdened by the demands and needs
of others, and being targeted as a scapegoat for things out of my control.
I feel discomfort
in the fear that people may not like me because of these boundaries set as acts
of self-love. The discomfort signals my people-pleasing tendency and that I’m
actively, tentatively moving out of this conditioned behavior.
I feel awkward stretching
out of my comfort zone professionally and personally, and know that in order to
gain experience, I need to identify the edge, reach out from there, and be
openhearted to what unfolds.
Leaning into discomfort,
I realize that the appearance of discomfort is not a sign of inadequacy, but an
awakening to a change illuminating the grander possibility for expansion,
personal growth, evolution.
***
Leaning Into
Discomfort - A Playlist to Provide Comfort in the Discomfort:
*Green
Mountain State – Trevor Hall
*Show Me
Love – Hundred Waters, Skrillex Remix
*Pain
Told Love – Tribe Society
*Water –
Ra Ra Riot
*Outer
Space – G, Genevieve
*From
Eden – Hozier
*Selah –
Ms. Laruyn Hill
*Slow
Down – Scott Orr
*It’s
Alright – The Fractures
***
On The Mat Muse: Forward Folds are excellent opportunities to explore finding the edge of the pose. Taking slow and steady breaths, feel and honor sensation to settle and establish an equally challenging and rewarding stretch. As a feisty and fun yoga teacher once told me, remember that touching your toes doesn’t mean you’ve reached enlightenment. As in all poses, practice radical self-acceptance about where you are in that journey with that particular pose. Namaste, Loves.
