JMH Collaborative

I'm pretty sure in another life I was a suffragist, Rosie the Riveter, and Working Girl.  

Having lived through all of the 80's and 90's career drama of thinking a woman had to "do it all" I can honestly say I am glad I made it long enough to see "The Second Women's Movement" in my lifetime. 

Reading Arianna's response to Sheryl Sandberg’s “Lean In,” I was re-inspired to support men and women in creating the new metric of success  - well-being. Read full article here.

Huffington argues that in order for women to “lean in,” they must also “lean back,” and focus on their health and wellness. She notes that "working women are 40% more likely to develop heart disease and 60% more likely to fall victim to diabetes."  

Lately, it seems like life has been a little "out of control" doesn't it?  This week's tragedies in Boston and closer to home here in Texas have been difficult to watch unfold.  

As a practitioner of iRest® Yoga Nidra these days have been particularly loud "messengers' for me personally.   One of the elements of the practice is to welcome sensations and emotions that are present in the body, without judgement or trying to change anything.

Compassionately accepting the range of feelings in response to this week's seemingly senseless moments has been challenging. Just "being" felt like a total waste of time and energy in light of the circumstances.  Exploring "opposites" and using the mind-body tools of the practice led me to a greater sense of awareness and an invitation to tap into that powerful sense of interconnectedness we have with each other. 

Thankful for this sense of self-awareness....and looking forward to sharing this felt sense with others in early May at the "Be Radically Out of Control" workshop being held at MBS Fitness in Southtown, San Antonio. 

....I had an epiphany.

I had volunteered to deliver a brief overview of iRest® yoga nidra to two separate audiences recently...one, a group of high achieving MBA students at Bainbridge Graduate Institute (BGI) and the other a quarterly employee meeting of a local business (personal services industry).

One experience in particular has stayed with me for several weeks. Preparing for each of these groups, I had no expectations for either the size of the class or the response of the participants to yoga nidra. I was prepared to deliver a brief overview of yoga nidra and a short practice for each audience....what I wasn’t prepared for was what happened.

Hybrid MBA students at BGI attend “Intensives” once a month during a quarter and those three and a half days are definitely intense, by the time Saturday night rolls around, students are generally ready for a break. On the evening I was scheduled to present, students had a choice between me or a “karaoke” party....I wasn’t expecting more than 10 or 12 people to attend.

Seriously.

As the room was being prepared for the presentation to begin, I began my own internal process of centering to deliver my remarks and the practice. When I became present to the moment, I realized that somehow I had been physically placed in the center of the space with about 35 to 40 people surrounding me, ready to listen, ready to practice yoga nidra.

The room was filled with a palpable energy and as I looked down at my notes to begin delivering the practice, I had an “a ha” moment....my several hours of preparation and practice were all for that one moment when I looked around and experienced myself being held in that space.

As a practitioner, I knew what it was like to be a student and to contribute to the energy and learning circle and I had taught the practice several times already. Sure, it was in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Sure, it was with a group of uniquely gifted and intelligent souls, many friends. Yet, there was something unique about that evening.