Listen Up

I am often reminded of something within my practice that needs a boost of energy and it’s been good for me over the past couple of weeks to hone in on my listening skills. Since announcing my upcoming lifestyle change in becoming a world nomad, letting go of my yoga studio, and taking a sabbatical, I’ve felt the need to listen to people’s reactions and work on holding the space for whatever experiences may be arising for them. I kind of dropped a bombshell on my beloved yoga community and it’s been interesting to sit in a receptive mode and hear people’s reactions. It’s a big wave of information to process, not only for them, but for me as well...so much change in a significant way.

It’s also been a time of many different emotions which began with my own nervousness about making the big reveal public. The main emotions were that of disappointment and letting a committed community down. I didn’t know what kind of reaction would come back to me and I have to say it’s been overwhelming and filled with gratitude and love. It’s also filled with sadness, grief, and a sense of unknown change. Yet, once I did release the news, a certain relief and calm came over me and it’s been a beautiful experience to navigate these changes with those who’ve reached out.

And perhaps not coincidentally, around the same time, I came across another insightful podcast on the topic of listening on Life Examined with Jonathan Bastian. (You can listen to it by clicking here). There were three takeaways from the episode that we can do to position ourselves to be better at listening: 

1. Turn your phone off
2. Take a drink of water at least every 30 minutes
3. Take three deep breaths before beginning

As I was listening to the above tips, I recognized how much these skills are reflected in our yoga practice by applying mindfulness to listening. Part of being a good listener is to be fully present, remove distractions, and avoid interrupting. Although that sounds easy, it can be challenging in real-time, as we so often want to interject with support, solutions, or comparative stories. This is where I have to really watch myself as these habits are ingrained and shifting them truly takes a greater level of awareness. It’s challenging to not leap frog ahead to how I’m going to answer or interject and hence, presence plays a vital role.

This week, we’ve also been exploring not just how to hold listening space for others but to understand that another type of listening is listening to ourselves. I have always thought it an incomplete and inadequate statement when teachers say, “listen to your body”. Part of me wanted to know “how” and “what does that really mean?” I gained clarity during a presentation by a Canadian physiotherapist who works working with his patients with pain. He offered these three questions instead:

 

1.     Does this feel safe in my body?

2.     Will I be okay tomorrow?

3.     Am I dialing up pain?

As I began to employ this in classes and kept exploring it, I have added in “Am I triggering pain?” reasoning that if we’re paying attention, over time we learn that some movements may not hurt in the moment, but may trigger something afterward (an extension of “Will I be okay tomorrow”).

Personally, it’s overriding my ego in being able to do something in my practice, perhaps something I’ve always done, or used to do, and maybe it looked or felt cool but it’s a pose that now puts too much stress on my body and it’s not worth it. And instead of dialing up or triggering pain, I am now having the experience of empowerment. It feels great to know that I’m being kinder to myself and having less chronic pain as a result.

When we listen to ourselves, we can pose a simple question – What do I need in this moment? What do I need today? Instead of being told from an outside force, we can choose to practice in a way that is in alignment with what serves us and comes from a source of inner knowing and wisdom. Nothing outside of us has greater authority than what lies within us, and that equates with being empowered practitioners.