Amy’s New Year Love Letter
In the spirit of new beginnings, I am excited to continue our commitment to providing you with resources, tips, and inspiration for a healthy and happy life. Whether it’s through affirmations, mindful practices, or moments of self-care, my goal is to be your companion on this wellness journey.
With that being said, I often turn to my friends for advice because I am also on my own wellness journey. I asked my good friend Tara Stiles about how to find more ease in life and would like to share her words with you in case it helps you like it helped me to prepare for the new year.
Tara’s Approach to Finding Ease
It might sound far fetched to bring more ease into your life. Life is busy, full of challenges, a lot are even outside of our control, but it’s so easy to internalize the stress of your life and soak up the stress of the world around you. We easily feel guilty when we’re not taking on the stress of others. It’s all totally relatable and feels inescapable, but there is a better way.
If we want to feel at ease in our lives and use our energy to reach our goals and help others, we need some serious self-care. We need an approach to have all-the-time self care.
When I first started learning about shiatsu, something major about self care and ease clicked for me. I was learning where all the meridians are, where to place my hands, and how much pressure to apply to my partner. The teacher, our Strala Yoga faculty member, Sam Berlind came around and told me I need to take care of myself in order for it to work. I asked if I was doing all the right things. He told me yes, but the right things also include taking care of you. I needed not to try to give ease to someone, but to have it myself.
I took a deep breath, noticed how I felt, relaxed a bit, applied all the same techniques and tried again. This time my partner said, wow, that was awesome. Something feels different. This feels way better. From that moment on, I not only understood finding ease, I knew I needed to do it if I wanted anything to work. Ease isn’t just a nice thing to have, it’s necessary to make all the good things we want to happen.
Tara’s Tips for Finding Ease
- Get Centered.
Whether you are working at the computer, standing in line, or at sundays studio getting a wonderful manicure and pedicure, move yourself in a comfortable position. Shift yourself a bit side to side until you find your center. It’s so easy to sit, stand and walk carrying extra tension. When you are centered, you aren’t taking on extra stress and tension physically or emotionally. - Notice Your Breath.
Once you are centered, your breath naturally becomes more big and full. Notice your inhales lifting and carrying you. Notice your exhales releasing and relaxing you. - Notice how you feel.
Finding ease isn’t all about feeling super good and happy in every moment. When you are centered and noticing your breath you’ll be ready to notice how you feel. Notice anything you are aware of. Any emotion, any physical or internal feeling. Just like listening to a good friend, you don’t have to fix their problem, you just have to give your full attention and listen. Listen to yourself. Notice how you feel. Respond with care.
Most importantly; be good to yourself the best you can. Every breath is an opportunity to feel better, make a good connection with yourself and those around you.
About Tara Stiles
Tara Stiles is the co-founder of Strala Yoga, best-selling author, and well-being expert. Tara revolutionized yoga for millions, transforming a practice so often seen as foreign, dogmatic, and guru-based, into an everyday movement that supports ease and well-being. Strala Yoga is practiced in more than 100 countries, thousands of Guides lead Strala classes around the globe, and Tara shares daily yoga with thousands of people on the Strala Yoga app. She has been profiled by The New York Times, Times of India, The Times (UK), and featured in most major national and international magazines.
