Not to be a total bummer, but no matter how many hours we’ve put in on the mat, how many “Om”s we sing or how many times we dent the meditation cushion, anyone can regress in times of stress.
We get snarky, we lash out, we turn on the waterworks and display a host of other behaviors better suited to the Terrible Twos than, say, a holiday dinner at the adult table.
“Family, relationships, and stressful situations are triggers that can make anyone want to turn into a 5-year old again,” Dr. Jeffrey Hull, a psychologist.
As conscious people, we learn that wanting to throw a tantrum, and actually doing it, are two choices with entirely different outcomes.
Yoga gives you a special tool against letting these storms deluge your interactions — the art of pausing. So whenever you get the urge to let your inner toddler grab the wheel, don’t regress … progress.
Before you say the first thing that comes to mind or press “send” on that fiery email, take a walk, take a bath or stick in the iPod headphones and try this yoga sequence designed to give you a yoga time out.
It’s a moving meditation you can use to calm your storminess so you can reflect within, and from there figure out WWLD (what would love do)? When you have an answer that comes from this place, then take action, and you’ll emerge cleanly … no mess, no stormy debris to deal with later.
Read more at Gaiam Life
