When was the last time you felt content? Can you remember? And what exactly did it feel like? Often, we find ourselves putting off our contentment. ‘I’ll feel content once I’ve got this out of the way’, we might tell ourselves, ‘this’ being whatever is going on for us which is, in some way, bringing […]
Category Archives: Self-care
7 ways to connect with your energy in your yoga practice
Yoga helps us to connect to, and work with our energy in lots of different ways. One of the principles of yoga is Brahmacharya, or ‘right use of energy.’ As Hannah Barrett explains so beautifully in her book Yoga Happy, Brahmacharya can be seen as being about cherishing and respecting all life energy, and that […]
7 reasons why practicing self-caring, self-love and self-compassion matters
Self-caring, self-love and self-compassion can sound a bit fluffy or indulgent, but the science behind them and the power of these practices – and they do take practice – is clear and becoming increasingly spoken about. And when we take time to think about it, it makes sense that these practices can only benefit us. […]
What does it mean to go on retreat?
If you enjoy a regular practice of Yoga, whether self or teacher led, you may be attracted to the idea of a retreat. And certainly, Yoga and meditation and all other manner of retreats are everywhere right now, so there is plenty of choice! But what does it really mean, to go on a retreat? […]
What Mala beads can bring to your meditation practice
Lockdown 2020 and I’m sat in what has become a familiar spot – on my yoga mat in front of my laptop. I hold the Mala beads aloft in my right hand, and feel their cool, calming shape pass across my finger as I guide each one with my thumb, as instructed by our online […]
What we water with our attention grows: cultivating friendliness, compassion and happiness through meditation
Have you ever sat quietly long enough to observe your thoughts, perhaps to meditate, and noticed that many of them are negative? Or maybe when you’ve come to be still for long enough you’ve noticed an inner monologue which might be distinctly unfriendly towards you, perhaps judgemental or critical? Knowing that we might encounter negative […]
Learning to stay out of the water: why I practice mindfulness meditation (+ how you can too)
In his book ‘Man’s Search for Meaning’, Viktor Frankl says ‘between stimulus and response is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response.’ Take a moment to read that again and consider it fully: ‘between stimulus and response is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response.’ […]
Self-care snacks: 7 powerful 5 minute practices to boost your well-being
We all know how great we feel after that long Yoga class – refreshed, relaxed, restored – but how can we get more of that feeling into our everyday lives? Since the arrival of my son at the end of October, there has been little opportunity for long periods of practice on my mat and […]