It is pretty safe to say that some of my social media followers, friends, and even family members have rolled their eyes at the inspirational and rose-colored glasses posts, videos, and quotes that I share regularly.
I thought I'd get real for a moment and respond to doubts and criticisms of my yoga-infused personality.
First of all:
I am not optimistic 100% of the time. I do not wake up with a beaming smile on my face every morning, nor do I have birds singing to me outside of my window.
A little background story:
Growing up I was overweight, and I had a lot of anxiety, insecurities, and confusion about why things that others said and did bothered me so much. My feelings were often expressed through anger and I put up walls between me and everyone in my life. I found myself in back-to-back abusive relationships and my health plummeted as my stress levels increased. I struggled every day to find a way to understand myself and the world around me, until the positive ripple effect of a yoga class followed me off of my mat. I was in my early twenties and that was the first time I felt like I could let go of my irrational fears and insecurities. I finally felt like I was worth being loved and treated with respect. When I felt challenged or pushed out of my comfort zone at home or at work, that was when the tools I learned in my yoga class were there to help release me when I felt trapped. Fast forward to a few years later, with more than 300-hours of various yoga trainings, and my life is barely recognizable to the one I lived before yoga. I now teach yoga full-time.
To some of you who are reading this, teaching yoga might seem like a relaxed and easygoing job full of rainbows, butterflies, and naps at the end of class. But, there might be a few things that you have overlooked.
Who I teach:
Every single person who walks into class has experienced or is currently experiencing pain in some way, shape, or form; one person may have a chronic injury or terminal illness, another might have come to class seeking refuge from a sexually abusive relationship, someone else might have severe depression and finds it hard to look at his/herself in the mirror without wanting to change everything they see. No one's life is perfect, everyone has a unique array of battle wounds and scars.
When I am teaching a class:
I am teaching to every single individual who walks into the door. Rarely do people approach me before class and share their pain or stories, most of us are taught throughout life to downplay any injuries or push through the pain. So basically, I am completely blind to what each person is bringing with them onto their mats. Being in a position where I work with the general public, in a number of different communities, every single class has a different mix of people, injuries, and conditions, some familiar, many are new.
Teaching much more than yoga poses:
For me, my role as a yoga teacher is to offer each person the opportunity of 60-minutes of relief from their every day suffering, whatever that might involve. It is to share a combination of postures, breathing, meditation, mindfulness, and positive affirmations which might help them discover things that they never knew were inside of them, like perseverance or balance. It is to remind them that they are worth taking time out of their busy day to focus their attention and energy on themselves. It is to offer a safe, caring, and judgement-free environment for them to possibly feel things in their body, mind, or heart they haven't felt or thought of in years, and to give them space to crumble or weep on their mat, if that is what they need in that moment. It is also my goal as a teacher to share potential tools and options for every person to use in their own way, whenever life throws another curve ball their way.
What it takes:
To some, my personality can be considered a bit "over the top" and yes, I throw out all sorts of new agey hub-bub all the time... and I am aware that some people get annoyed by it, some disbelieve my genuineness behind it, or even get offended by it. But I am living my purpose, as often as I can, with the deepest intention in my heart. There are a lot of people out there who intentionally try to knock you down, stress you out, and want to see you fail in life. Everyone has people like that in their lives, no one is exempt. When I teach, I typically walk into a class full of strangers every day. Although, I don't see any of them as strangers; I see a room full of people who have experienced similar struggles, discouragement, and rejection in their lives, as I have in my own. As soon as I step onto my mat in front of the class, I want it to be conveyed that as their teacher, I am there to empower, fully accept, and support them in any way I can. I have been a yoga student longer than I have been a yoga teacher, and I know what it feels like to walk into class, grasping onto the next 60-minutes as if it was my last chance at finding hope and strength to overcome the stress or pain I have.
In the end: I respect and honor your perspective of my hopeful, inspirational, sometimes obnoxious philosophical approach to life, just as I would the opinion of any student who joins my class. Fortunately, I am confident that the who I am and what I do is making a difference out there, and those who need my help will be grateful for what I have to offer, whenever our paths cross.
Thanks for reading this post!
With gratitude and peace,
Laura
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