Addicted to Achievement? Use Yoga to Break the Cycle
Ever been burned out, stressed to the limit, or had to deal with a scary diagnosis? There is so much wisdom in the practice of traditional Integral Yoga that can help ease us through our lives. But it does help if we choose friends to help us, choose a teacher to guide, and to make a commitment to ourselves.
Our culture is addicted to pushing and striving as a type of armor against fear. Most of the time we push past our limits because we have deep seated fear of inadequacy, death, or feel shame. Yoga practice gives us a place to examine these stories we tell ourselves, company to help lighten the load, and practices that help us discover our inner wisdom. It is possible to be free to be you.
I sat down last week for a chat with two of my yoga students, Zachary West & Lisa M.. They share their honest stories about addiction to achievement, overwork, cancer, and feelings of inadequacy.
From Zac, development professional and classical clarinetist:
“My journey into yoga has not been roses and sunshine. It’s been hard work but very rewarding. I’ve fallen off the horse and gotten back on the horse many times. And now I realize that is essential to help me find my own nature and what works for me. There is so much noise in the world and within ourselves. And the one thing yoga does is that it turns down the static a little bit. These profound and hard-earned small shifts have set me on new paths. I’m learning to trust myself.
Yoga is a lifetime practice. It takes a lot of work and you might drift to and from your practice. That’s natural and normal. Just keep trying. Over time you’ll see that these microscopic shifts yield enormous results. We’re all in this together and we’re all just trying to be more in tune with ourselves. “
From Lisa, mom to two young adults, wife, and teacher
“I am genetically disposed to cancer, but I’m pretty convinced that the craziness of my professional life brought me to my cancer diagnosis. But thanks to the yoga I had learned with Gita, I knew that I could let go of trying to live the way society thought I should live. I found peace in my internal deliberation. I know I would do what I could to deal with cancer; but I wasn’t weighed down by the effort.
It was so incredible to feel so free; I could just be. And now I am looking forward to the next part of my life.”
Burnout and stress will not take you to your highest potential; ease & peace are your birthright. Claim them and become free to be you!
All love and peace Gita
Learn more about Zachary West and his beautiful clarinet performance here