Cumulative Practice

Banksy Image.

My legs have been giving me issue lately.
It's easy to get caught up in feeling good then...
It's hard for me, living with MS,
to not wait for it.

Things are great but
the progression is there.
When.
How.
Each time I catch myself thinking this way.
I have to abort immediately-
Make. No. Judgment.
Bring it back to my breath.
Over & Over.
Repeat.

I get grumpy when I feel crappy-
I sincerely try not to but hell
my body's yelling at me and
my cultivated patience & compassion
seem to nosedive...
Until
I abort it immediately-
Make. No. Judgment.
Bring it back to my breath.
Over & Over.
Repeat.

A yoga practice is cumulative.
I consider it a fighting balance, if you will,
my adamantium to Wolverine (yoga)
alongside my kryptonite to Superman (MS).
MS is a companion-
sometimes leading the way,
sometimes hidden,
always there.
Practicing Yoga tends to bring it into focus,
create clarity mentally & physically while
empowering my body to do Good
for myself
rather than lurk in sinister corners
waiting to strike again.

I hurt. I'm grumpy.
MS is ruining my plans.
Until
I abort it immediately-
Make. No. Judgment.
Bring it back to my breath.
Over & Over.
Repeat.

Inhale- Rub your hands together
creating some warmth.
Exhale- Cup your hands,
place them over your eyes
(not touching the eyelids)
and say silently to
yourself
aaaaaHHhhhh!!!
3X

Make. No. Judgment.
Bring it back to your breath.
Over & Over.
Repeat.
aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!

Please leave comments.
Rock Your Practice!
^o^
Suz

Self Study: And the Beat Goes On...

I just went to my first
Yoga conference training thing
for a long weekend
in San Francisco with
about 10 friends from
my teacher training
community.
I think I was more curious about
what
I would learn from this.
To me-
Either I got it
or
I'm blowin smoke
and
rethinking things....

Not only did I take
care of myself like never before
by honoring my body-

resting when I needed to,
stopping when I needed to
and
not worrying about all the
teachings I was missing
after traveling all this way,
shelling out all this dough
& having to have subs
in my classes-
even canceling one.
(FYI-
I hate missing a teaching gig-
It's just my thing.
My students know this about me.
I'm very rarely not there when
they expect me to be!)-

but
I was taken care of
and
supported by my friends.
They even carried my yoga mat bag
for me, without even asking at
one point.
They are awesome!
I continued to adapt my
practice to fit how I
felt each moment to bring myself
to a greater place of balance
as I needed it
throughout the trip.
(Air travel breathing exercises= key!)


I came back without much zazz to report.
Except that...

Every day since I've returned-
I've felt my Suzness
bubbling,
laughing,
gleaming
and singing
from
my toe nails...

I love practicing yoga.
I love teaching yoga.
I make my practice suit me-
the Practitioner.
There's a lot of kick ass practices
involved in yoga as a whole.
I practice.
I teach.
Bring the Noise!
^o^
Suz

Where to Start & How to Use this Site

Some people wanna open the box
their computer came in, plug it in & use it.
Some people wanna read the manual before logging on.
Some people fall somewhere in between.
We are all different- yet the same.
Everyone's learning style is different.

In the use of this site- Use it how you use it.
Honoring making this work for You!
You can start by reading about Yoga & what it is,
how Yoga can help with MS,
or about the power of breathing.
You can roll out your mat and practice with a video.
You can sit in your chair and practice breathing.
You can print out the articles & read them
in bed before you go to sleep.
Everyone has a different learning style.
What's yours?!

First things first-
Where are you & are you ready to begin
a Yoga practice?
Seriously. Ask yourself.
Anyone can do Yoga-
as long as you can breathe
You Can Do Yoga!

But... with that said not every pose,
sequence of poses or breathing exercises
are right for everyone.
Any question please ask your doctor,
physical therapist or me-
if I don't know I'll tell you.
The point is to ask & be sure about
your own safety in honor
of honoring your body!

Wanna get to it and practice?
Try the Beginning Breath Awareness video first-
then try each video &
add what you've learned
to your day.
When you have questions about the practice-
either read back in the articles to see if
there's something in more detail
about that subject or ask me
(I love hearing new questions,
ideas & I want you to ask-
really- it's why I do this!)
See where that takes you...

Wanna read more?
Put on your glasses & grab a cup of tea.
Go to the "Posts About" section
on the right hand side-
there are different subject groupings
for articles & videos.
Wanna learn about breath- click that &
all articles/videos about Breath come up.
Same with How Yoga Can Help MS,
What is Yoga, Add Yoga to Your Day & more.
Also- a couple people have told me
they print out the articles
and read them before going to bed.
That's cool & that totally works.
See where that takes you...

Add Yoga to Your Day-
this series is about different ways you
can take your practice off the mat
and into your daily life.
Little things you can bring your focus on,
things to calm an agitated mind
and how to add these practices to your day.
This is for the seasoned yogi or
someone who's never stood on a mat.
Especially for us- breath is our most
powerful ally in dealing with the ups & downs
of living with MS!

Thing is- this site is for You!
Learning to develop Your Yoga Practice
is really up to You!
I can write articles & film videos
as much as I want-
it's You that has to practice.
This is to help encourage, inspire and
make you Want to practice for You.
Because it makes you feel better,
it makes your mind calmer,
empowers you to help yourself
and whatever reason you find
on Your Yoga Journey!

You can subscribe by email to
receive postings every couple weeks or so.
Just click on the Subscribe by Email Link
on the right side.
I encourage you to leave comments too
so I know you were here!

Rock Your Practice!
Xo- Suz

Recommended Books, DvDs & CDs

These are some of my favorite and
most helpful books & more
I've found along my journey so far.
Feel free to add comments including your
recommended reads and
why you'd recommend them.
Often times I've had a book on my shelf
or one that's been recommended many times
before it made its way into my heart.

See what looks interesting to you.
This list will continue to be updated
so check back often.
Support your local library and
see if they have the books first.
Xo- Suz


Books-

1. The Heart of Yoga by T.K.V. Desikachar
This book was one of my yoga training books.
It quickly became a favorite of mine and
is one I reference often.
I love the chapters about facing challenges
and illness plus other blocks along the way.
What keeps you from practicing-
what keeps you coming back...
I adore this book!

2. Yoga for Wellness by Gary Kraftsow
This book will take you through the physical
part of establishing a personal yoga practice
suited to you- the practitioner!
I often reference this book as I sequence
poses for myself & those I teach.
A great addition (& must-have) for anyone
who wants to begin a practice or
invigorate an established practice.

3. The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron
This book was recommended numerous times
and then one day-
I bought it & it became a bible of sorts for me.
It taught me how to be creative-
not only in art but to own my creativity.
How to look past conditioned beliefs and to
fight for what I wanted in my life.
Accepting me for me
and believing I can be all I can be.

4. Full Catastrophe Living- Jon Kabat Zinn
I did a final report in my yoga training on
Yoga for Pain Management.
Most of my research was found in this book.
Hospitals around the globe use these techniques
in stress management groups.
It's a mouth full of a book and
I found I had to ingest
bits at a time because it was so potent.
Mindfulness never felt so good!

4. The Power of Now- Ekhart Tolle
This book isn't a favorite per say but
it's a great introduction to living in the moment.
It teaches how & why
being in the now, in the present moment
is so transformative.

5. Coffee In My Cereal- Lorna Moorehead
My aunt got me this book
when I was diagnosed with MS.

I'd been reading all kinds of newly diagnosed books
and was up to my ears in information about MS
(super meaty info)
so the timing was perfect.
This book made me laugh and cry
repeat repeat repeat!
I loved it!
Her humor is priceless!

DvDs-

Honest- I'm not to sure here.
I haven't experienced many DvDs for MS
and won't add one I haven't tried
so if you have any suggestions
please add them & why.
What was it about the DvD that
made you want to keep coming back to
practice with it.


CDs-

Yoga Nidra for MS
by Inez Stein
I am a huge fan of Yoga Nidra
thanks to Inez Stein.
I lie down daily to rest my body & mind.
Often I don't feel refreshed or I can't focus &
the whole "rest" ends up frustrating me
rather than revitalizing me.
Yoga Nidra is like an extended savasana.
A 20 minute practice
(basically a type of guided meditation)
is equal to 2 hours of restful sleep.
I've been practicing with this CD daily
for almost 2 years now.
It's complete with healing
visualizations for MS.
I miss it when I don't practice.
One of my Must-Haves!!

Breakdown: Mountain Pose (Tadasana)

This pose is for anyone
who wants to learn
how to use yoga to help yourself.

I practice this pose so many times
throughout the day
that it's become a part of my being.
Lifting my heart,
lifting my spirits,
strengthening & stabilizing
my low back & upper back
and then some.
This is my favorite pose.

Quick tip-
If practicing in a chair and
your feet don't reach the floor-
use a prop to bring the floor up
to meet your feet.
You can use a block,
taped up phonebooks
(no slip n slide needed here),
or even a bolster to bring the floor to you.
Be able to plant both feet on "the floor".
You don't need to stand on them.

Practice it.
Practice it for 10 minutes one day.
Make it a game.
See how often you can "lift your heart"
and add yoga breath.
It becomes addictive-
Helping Yourself is Empowering.

Rock Your Practice!
Lemme know how it goes...
Xo- Suz


Many thanks to
Red Square Yoga Studio
in Seattle, Wa.
for donating the space to film for you!

Self Study- What Keeps Me Going?

Someone asked me the other day
why I do this.
What keeps me going.
Not just the blog, but the teaching,
the practicing, the attitude,
the damn she's still here-ness of it I suppose
still fighting
still talking & breathing
but
not giving up.

I've been thinking about it since asked.
I came up with some answer at the time
talking about I have no choice.
It's what I do &
I have this one life,
sure there's a huge part that makes it
more difficult in many ways but
I'm just glad to be here.

Then I started thinking about why I'm glad at all
why am I glad to be here
with all the awful things in this world
with the suffering of MS,
of others, of loved ones,
of entire societies.

I'm glad because this chance is mine.
I know those things are out there
& I know the impact of having MS.
I also know unconditional love & that
there are only some things I can control.
I've heard it said- that birth is a terminal illness.
It's true- if we're born then we must die eventually-
No one gets to contend with that.

So - Why ?

Because
I get an opportunity at a life until it ends.
not just any life- My Life.
There's a ton of things out of my control but
there's a ton of things I can do for myself
to make my ride more enjoyable.
Included but not limited to-
the blog and the teaching,
the practicing, the attitude,
the damn she's still here-ness of it
still fighting
still talking & breathing
but
not giving up.

It's your life-
how do you want to spend it?!
Rock Your Practice!
Xo- Suz

Video- Cooling Breath

YaoW! It's hot!
Here's a breathing technique
you can use to cool your system.

Remember -
NEVER STRAIN THE BREATH!
You can easily cause yourself
a panic attack by pushing to hard.
Find a breath speed that's comfortable for you.
Especially with MS-
we want to soothe your system
not aggravate it!
Smooth Steadiness & Ease.
Please honor your body!

So this technique-
You wanna be cool not look cool :o)

Find your easy seat.
Spine straight and tall,
hands on knees or in your lap.
Roll your tongue or pucker your lips
like you're sipping through a straw.
Inhale- tilt the head slightly looking up
as you breathe in coolness at the lips.
Exhale- tilt the head slightly looking downward
with your tongue at the roof of your mouth
breathing out through the nose.
Gently tilt the chin up & down
not causing any strain.

Practice this technique for 10 breaths
or 5 minutes- whatever you've
got time for - even doing just
a few breaths should help
cool you a bit.

Hope this helps you Stay Cool!
Rock Your Practice!
Xo- Suz


Many thanks to
Red Square Yoga Studio
in Seattle, Wa.
for donating the space to film for you!

Ps- This breathing technique
can be used to
bring coolness to your system,
to calm the nervous system
and to quell hunger or thirst. :0)