Hello, it’s Zakiya here. I hope your first week of January is going ok. I know that the start of the year can feel overwhelming for many, including me. There’s lots of talk of resolutions, intentions, vision boards and themes for the year ahead, and all under the backdrop of really challenging global and national events. I know that my anxiety levels have felt higher this week. So if you have felt uneasy, I feel you.
I’m currently reading The Light We Carry by Michelle Obama, and I’ve just finished a chapter where she shares her experience of anxiety during the covid lockdowns. Michelle took up knitting to help calm her mind. The small mindful act of knitting helped her to find a sense of balance and control amongst all the fear and uncertainty.
Reading this chapter was a reminder about why we do the “small” mindful acts, the rituals, yoga, and meditation, because all these small acts of mindfulness help us to find balance. The balance we need to be with the big stuff. The big stuff isn’t going anywhere, but the small mindful acts might help us to navigate it with a sense of optimism and hope. I said might. We are human after all, so any emotions you might be feeling are all valid. The mindful small acts might help you just to be them.
With this in mind, we invite you to top up your small mindful acts, maybe a cup of tea, journaling, and of course, we have some lovely new practices to help you find ease, including a new 18-min Yoga Nidra by Karen, my favourite practice for helping me relax into bedtime mode, a new 12-min seated shoulder releasing flow from me and lots more including our Livestream classes from this week. Paula's nourishing Restorative Yoga class was deeply restful and really helped me to get a good night's sleep on Tuesday.
And if you’re like me and you experience anxiety symptoms like racing thoughts and feeling overwhelmed, I highly recommend Coherent Breathing. This 12-min practice has an intro and guide into the practice.
Whatever you choose to do, I hope you find something that nourishes you and meets you where you are.
Make the most of our VOD App
I'm sure you've probably downloaded it by now! But just in case, here are the links again - Apple and Google.
Use the search functionality to seek our practices that suit your mood, the time of day or the body part you might want to focus on. Plus, create offline lists so you can practice anytime.
Did you know you can change the App from dark mode to light mode? Head to the setting tab to update this.
As we build our library of well-being practices, if there is anything you want more of, please always get in touch and share with us. Making a platform that works for us all is our priority.
