I had an interview tonight with a doula client for the first time in a while...I had pretty much taken a break from doula-ing with having a baby and being back in school, but this opportunity presented itself so I decided to go for it.
What I discovered is that I (still) love childbirth- talking about birth, labor, coping mechanisms, educating women...it is truly my passion. It also reaffirms my decision to continue working in this field whether as a doula or in a different role as a nurse.
In other news, I am back to attending yoga weekly. I am loving it, feeling stronger each time and almost almost getting up into a headstand. I know yoga is all about the process, but the competitive/impatient side of me just wants to be able to say I can stand on my head....not sure for what purpose, but it would be kind of cool.
Also, it's snowing and freezing out. It has been quite a crazy two weeks weather wise- Happy November!
Showing posts with label yoga. Show all posts
Showing posts with label yoga. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Sunday, May 20, 2012
The Interrupted Life
As a mother, the most precious commodity can sometimes be time. Time to sleep, time to read, go on errands and sometimes even just time to do dishes and laundry without having to stop every ten seconds.
Kids have needs. They have a lot of needs. Food, drinks, diapers, hugs, kisses for boo boos, games they cannot reach, clothes that need to be put on, books that need to be read. And all of it now, now, now.
As children get older, their needs become less immediate. My kids have learned that things do not happen instantly. If they want a drink and I am busy with something, they may have to wait a minute or two.
This obviously does not work well with babies. Their needs are immediate, as in feed me, hold me, change me NOW. It has been a big adjustment for me to get back into the mode of dropping what I am doing because AY needs me, but most of the time I can deal with it.
Every once in a while, though, I do not want to be interrupted. I want to finish writing an email, fold my laundry, cook shabbos on auto-pilot in an hour and a half. I want to study for my final without rocking or holding a baby. I want to sleep uninterrupted for three, maybe even four hours. It does not seem that this is in the cards for me anytime soon, but I did get a little window of time this past week.
Wednesday I was feeling particularly burned out and tired and I decided to go to yoga. Other than 1-2 times of mommy and me yoga I have not been at all in the past six months. I put the older ones to bed, left my husband in charge of the baby and went to class. It was amazing. 90 minutes of uninterrupted time. Watching the sun set and the sky getting dark through the big windows overlooking Broadway. Stretching, moving, breathing in ways at once familiar but also challenging. I left reinvigorated and relaxed with the intention of finding a way to come to yoga more often. Ready to go back to my busy, interrupted life.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Dedication
Although I have been slowing down, one thing I do not want to give up is my weekly yoga practice. I had to miss last week because of succos but in general, I try to squeeze that session in somehow once a week. I feel so much better on so many levels when I go- physically, emotionally, etc.
At the beginning of every class, our teacher Magi asks us to close our eyes and form an intention for this session. While it does feel a bit new-agey to me, recently I have been focusing on really being present in the class without checking my watch at all, meaning, no peaking to see how much longer I need to hold this pose or alternately checking to see how many precious minutes of me-time are left before I head back to reality. Another intention has been to enjoy the class, while listening to my body and not overdoing it and knocking myself out.
Yesterday, Magi said something interesting. She said, we could also form a dedication for this class, meaning dedicate our practice to someone who could benefit from some yoga in their life or somebody who is already benefiting from the fact that we do yoga. I immediately thought of my children. While my primary goal in doing yoga is definitely to make time for myself, my children and husband are the clear beneficiaries of this activity. By taking good care of myself, I am in a better place to then give to them. It's a pretty simple equation. If mom is happy and balanced, she can help her family achieve the same thing.
So, yesterday, as I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply, I smiled and thought to myself, "Kiddos, this one is for you!"
At the beginning of every class, our teacher Magi asks us to close our eyes and form an intention for this session. While it does feel a bit new-agey to me, recently I have been focusing on really being present in the class without checking my watch at all, meaning, no peaking to see how much longer I need to hold this pose or alternately checking to see how many precious minutes of me-time are left before I head back to reality. Another intention has been to enjoy the class, while listening to my body and not overdoing it and knocking myself out.
Yesterday, Magi said something interesting. She said, we could also form a dedication for this class, meaning dedicate our practice to someone who could benefit from some yoga in their life or somebody who is already benefiting from the fact that we do yoga. I immediately thought of my children. While my primary goal in doing yoga is definitely to make time for myself, my children and husband are the clear beneficiaries of this activity. By taking good care of myself, I am in a better place to then give to them. It's a pretty simple equation. If mom is happy and balanced, she can help her family achieve the same thing.
So, yesterday, as I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply, I smiled and thought to myself, "Kiddos, this one is for you!"
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Yoga
The one good thing about my husband being stuck in Los Angeles, was that I started doing yoga again. When I heard that his flight had been canceled yet again, I felt like I needed to get out of the house and needed to DO something. On a whim, I googled yoga studios near our apartment and found one a few blocks away. I found a sitter, went that very afternoon amidst the mayhem of the blizzard, and came home feeling calm and reenergized. And realizing how much I missed practicing yoga. The last time I attended yoga regularly was when I was pregnant with M, which was over 2 years ago!
In general, I feel that I should probably excercize more. Although I do a lot of walking living in Manhattan and also spend a lot of time running after or picking up after the kids, it's not a formal thing. Devoting an hour and a half a week to my health, both physical and emotional/spiritual seems to be a good idea. I love that the studio offers many classes a day and I have been attending a few different ones to get to know different instructors. Every teacher has their own style and while I have enjoyed all the classes, I still haven't found that one person that I click with. I am also trying to find a consistent time slot that I could realistically attend every week. My weekly schedule is pretty erratic and what works one week doesn't necessarily work the next. But all you can do is try.
What I really like about yoga is that you get a good work-out stretching and strengthening different parts of your body but you also have a chance to focus inwardly, to become aware of your breathing and to practice deep relaxation. I am hoping to even incorporate some of these calming techniques into my life. They may come in handy for scenrios like the one I am about to share.
Just a quick funny story, typical of our chaotic household, where there never is a dull moment: This morning, while I was in the bathroom, the boys went into the showerstall of the other bathroom and turned on the water. As soon as the water started spraying, they ran out, but their shirts still got soaked. I quickly turned off the water, so the damage was minimal but they had to get changed again in order to go to shul. When I told a friend this story, she asked me how I reacted. That is when i realized that I had not even gotten angry. I just laughed about it. I mean, how else can you react when you see two boys in fancy dress pants and dress shirts that are so wet they are see through, looking up at you innocently.
Let's just hope I can keep my sense of humor and tolerance level intact amidst all the craziness. What do you have going on this week? Any yoga on your schedule?
In general, I feel that I should probably excercize more. Although I do a lot of walking living in Manhattan and also spend a lot of time running after or picking up after the kids, it's not a formal thing. Devoting an hour and a half a week to my health, both physical and emotional/spiritual seems to be a good idea. I love that the studio offers many classes a day and I have been attending a few different ones to get to know different instructors. Every teacher has their own style and while I have enjoyed all the classes, I still haven't found that one person that I click with. I am also trying to find a consistent time slot that I could realistically attend every week. My weekly schedule is pretty erratic and what works one week doesn't necessarily work the next. But all you can do is try.
What I really like about yoga is that you get a good work-out stretching and strengthening different parts of your body but you also have a chance to focus inwardly, to become aware of your breathing and to practice deep relaxation. I am hoping to even incorporate some of these calming techniques into my life. They may come in handy for scenrios like the one I am about to share.
Just a quick funny story, typical of our chaotic household, where there never is a dull moment: This morning, while I was in the bathroom, the boys went into the showerstall of the other bathroom and turned on the water. As soon as the water started spraying, they ran out, but their shirts still got soaked. I quickly turned off the water, so the damage was minimal but they had to get changed again in order to go to shul. When I told a friend this story, she asked me how I reacted. That is when i realized that I had not even gotten angry. I just laughed about it. I mean, how else can you react when you see two boys in fancy dress pants and dress shirts that are so wet they are see through, looking up at you innocently.
Let's just hope I can keep my sense of humor and tolerance level intact amidst all the craziness. What do you have going on this week? Any yoga on your schedule?
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