sit with discomfort

When you practice Yin Yoga, time is more important than intensity.

The physical sensations you feel when you get into the pose and while you hold the pose does not have to be intense because one key ingredient is the minutes you spend in the pose, not intensity.

As long as you are not experiencing pain, you stay in the pose.

Pain is different from discomfort. Pain is sharp, stabbing, electrical sensations that grips your body to protect you.

If you feel discomfort because of the physical sensations of dull stretch or compression, if you feel restless or bored because of the minutes you have to stay in the pose, if you feel like you want to run away from what you are facing in the moment, you remain in the pose.

Of course that way you can get the physical benefit of putting appropriate stress in your yin tissue, but I believe there is something much more valuable when you practice sitting with the discomfort when you practice your Yin Yoga.

Our first reaction when we sense discomfort is to run away from it or change the situation you are in, but that discomfort might have valuable information to realize something about yourself and there might be insight waiting for you on the other side of that discomfort.

Right now we are all being faced with the realities of racism and now need to talk about it and take action how small or big that action might be. Talking about race and racism is not comfortable for most of us but we need to sit with the discomfort so that we can acknowledge and process how we might contribute to it and then decide how we can make it better.

I know I need to.