Yoga with Jen
Source: The Yoga of Helping Others | Psychology Today
As a teacher, I always close out a yoga class with a call for gratitude. I invite students to first thank themselves for showing up...for themselves. Next, I ask for gratitude for the space where we gather, and finally I offer my gratitude for my students, who choose my class, who trust me to guide them, and who make me a better teacher. It's this last part that brings me the most joy, not as a yoga teacher, but as a human being. My goal when I teach is to fill the cups of others, but I find that over and over again, my own cup is filled when I lead a class.
I know we're stretched thin, right now. I feel it. Just the idea of helping one more person, supporting one more cause, listening to one more plea for help can be incredibly overwhelming. But if done with mindfulness and an awareness of our own limits, can caring for others also nourish us?
An article posted by Psychology Today (linked above) introduces research that shows how helping others can reduce depression, increase calm, and improve health (and even lifespan).
"...Mental Health America points out, in research indicating that “those who consistently help other people experience less depression, greater calm, fewer pains and better health. They may even live longer.”" The Yoga of Helping Others | Psychology Today
The "helpers high" that the article mentions refers to this magical chemical reaction in the brain. Even just THINKING about helping someone can release a flood of endorphins in the brain.
Now here's where the balance of yoga comes in. Service to others has to come from a place of grounded-ness in you. When we overextend, we truly have nothing to give to others. Yoga teaches us to give from a place of fullness, not exhaustion.
Three Short Self Practices to Support Service
Grounding Breath: Three full inhales with longer exhales before offering support.
Presence Practice: Notice what's happening in your own body before responding.
Inner dialogue / mantras to support, such as "May I serve from steadiness" or "I support others without abandoning myself."
Service to others can be so rewarding when it's rooted in presence and boundaries you set for yourself. This month, notice one moment when helping someone else nourishes you, too.
Self-care is community care.
