Updated 20th March 2020 Unfortunately, we will need to temporarily close our doors at both centres in Huntingdon and Peterborough. However, we have had our first very successful online session with Julie H. this evening. We streamed her 90 minute Forrest Yoga class directly to people's homes. Thank you all who joined. There are two more online sessions available this weekend:
The last in person class with be tomorrow with Janet. After that everything will be offered online. We'd love to see you in our online sessions. Technology, zoom, is easy to use. Once you've booked into a sessions, you'll be sent a link one hour prior to the start of the class. If you've never used zoom before, download the software and then log into the session 10 minutes prior to the start. Just to remind you that we've updated our refund policy, which will be valid with immediate effect until 1st of May and be reviewed again at that point:
It's very easy to get swept up in fear and anxiety. It's therefore essential to get more, centred and to make a commitment to stay in one's body. It's a time to learn how to let go of control. Walk in beauty and with love Sandra Updated 19th March 2020 We wanted to give you a further update about the COVID-19 virus and the additional measures we've put into place. We still feel that Equilibrium both in Peterborough and Huntingdon are spaces where we can get grounded and centred, which is even more essential in these times of fear, anxiety and uncertainty. As much as we should not underestimate the current situation, it's also paramount to stay in our bodies, to breathe, to take one step at a time and to stay out of overwhelm. It's a time to make warrior's choices about one's behaviour and attitudes and there is this incredible opportunity to re-assess our priorities. In addition to what we've already put into place and communicated, here are some additional measures:
Let's all breathe together in these uncertain times, be kind to one another, be in our bodies and trust the process. Let's continue to create community, as it is in the relationship with one another where we can find support. Thank you all for your incredible support and encouraging messages. Walk in beauty and with love Sandra Updated 17th March 2020
We wanted to give everyone an update about the COVID-19 virus, there is a lot of uncertainty at this time but we wanted to assure you we are keeping a close eye on the developments of the Coronavirus and will continue to monitor the information and advice released by the UK Government and the World Health Organisation concerning the spread and containment of COVID-19. At this point in time, we are going ahead with our schedule as normal, as we feel that our centres can provide a space to get grounded, centred and into our bodies when there is so much uncertainty around us. We have compiled a list of points below that we would like students to follow whilst attending classes at Equilibrium, this list is also printed and on display at receptions.
Let's all breathe together in these uncertain times, be kind to one another, be in our bodies and trust the process. Walk in beauty Sandra
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Since I have finished my personal psychotherapy sessions, my relationship to my two supervisors has become increasingly important. Regular supervision helps me to reflect about the work with my clients, but also about my own personal process and how I'm touched by my clients and what they stir up within me and mirror back to me. Unlike common belief that supervision is about the client, it's really about the teacher or therapist and their own process.
A couple of weeks ago, I felt ungrounded, overwhelmed and definitely not in my body. I felt that I was "failing" my clients and that I was not sure about what I was actually doing as a mentor and therapist. I had a session with my supervisor and I was asking him how I can "tackle the problems" some of my clients were experiencing. I was in the space of needing to find another "solution" for the problems that have been reoccurring - and I needed that solution fast. Metaphorically, my supervisor held up a pin and popped the balloon of busyness with a simple question: "So, there is somewhere to get to, Sandra?". In that moment I realised that I had fallen into the trap of needing to get somewhere and especially fast. I completely forgot that we are already here and that the only moment we have available is the present moment. By frantically trying to find a solution, I had also sent the subtle message to my clients that they need to be different to how they are right now. The fact is: they are whole human beings who simply disconnected from whom they truly are. I felt immediately lighter, more at ease and more embodied. I feel that this approach is so beautifully summarised by Beisser (1970) in his article "The Paradoxical Theory of Change": "Change occurs when one becomes what he is, not when he tries to become what he is not. Change does not take place through a coercive attempt by the individual or by another person to change him, but it does take place if one takes the time and effort to be what he is-to be fully invested in his current positions. By rejecting the role of change agent, we make meaningful and orderly change possible". Be who you are fully and have your own back. Walk in beauty. The title "Under Construction" has been inspired by one of the people I work with.
One emerging theme I have been observing - within myself and my clients - has been the one of things being constructed, deconstructed and reconstructed at foundation level. In other words the process of being under construction has surfaced. This in turn has created a feeling of being uprooted, not fully grounded, and shaken up. Within that, there has been a sense of persistency, a feeling that everything has been intensified or in the words of one of my clients "magnified". Emotions are heightened and interactions are at times explosive. Relationships, communities and organisations have been tested, destroyed, solidified, re-defined and re-evaluated. Physical building structures and objects have been broken, deconstructed, rebuild, replaced and repaired. Even though my personal intent is to stay present with at times a painful turmoil and an intense phase of structural change, my curiosity and excitement are also with the possibilities and openings that are being created through this foundational shift. In the words of my supervisor: "What needs to be left behind and what needs to be brought forward?" What do we need to let go of and what is worth pursuing and fighting for, so we can bring it with us? Walk in beauty, Sandra Like the previous years, Brian and I went skiing to the same place we always go to. We took a private session with the same instructor we had before. As a side, it made me realise how important a good teacher is for learning, thinking differently and for experiencing joy in the activity.
On multiple occasions the instructor told me to straighten and relax my arms more and to keep them closer to the torso using minimum effort for the turns. He named my rather ungraceful position "The Wrestler". It totally made me laugh and of course it reflects the way I often wrestle with life instead of being at ease and trusting the process. It's fascinating that how we do one thing, we do everything. My personal intent for 2020 is to be more at ease and not to wrestle on my skis or in life. Walk in beauty and with ease Sandra Last weekend I taught a three day continuous education programme for yoga teachers. One of the emerging statements, which had a lot of gravity, was: "the middle is difficult".
Throughout this week I have been feeling that this is so true for many people including myself. It's easy to move one way or another. The middle ground is so much more difficult, since it requires feeling into the body a lot more. Going to one extreme or another does not require sensing into the body; these responses are often more habitual and guided by our head and ultimately seeking some sense of control. Being German I like things to be neat, black and white and generally I enjoy order. It's however in the less defined areas, in the grey ones where we can find the most growth and a lot of creativity - and most importantly a sense of contentment and equilibrium. Hang out in the beautiful middle! Sandra I have been away in South Africa and one thing that has struck me is the amount of space in that country. The nature is stunningly beautiful and vast. During the retreat I taught there the themes were grounding, centring and boundaries resulting in a lot more physical, mental and emotional space - within the participants, but also within myself.
The interesting thing is what happened after the retreat. I had created so much space inside of myself, but then had a really hard time not to fill it again through films, food, work, shopping, etc. I have become so much more apt at creating space within myself, but I still struggle to tolerate the space when it is there. My challenge is about feeling into the emptiness and the vastness without needing to fill it, because that space is a fertile ground for integration, growth, creativity and newness. I encourage you and myself to create space and then have the courage to not fill it again. Be in the empty space in beauty Sandra I've been observing over the past two to three weeks what's been moving within me and also within the people I've been working with and the theme of being in "limbo" has emerged. It's the strange "in-between" state where we leave the old behind and are about to embark on the new, but have not quite taken the steps yet for whatever reason. Someone else described it as "being on the edge" with the sense of uncertainty around where we are heading and whether we'd like to move forward or not. Often previously dealt with patterns come up strongly and try to call us back. Very old challenges might surface and there is a sense that we've taken multiple steps backwards. Frequently it is in the moment we feel the most lost that we are about to enter the new and a huge shift is going to happen.
My personal challenge has been to hang out in the state of limbo trusting the process and knowing that something big is going to move. Walk in beauty Sandra As we are transitioning into autumn with the weather starting to change and the nights drawing in, I feel it's a good time to reflect on what we can let go of. In the four directions, a ceremony we do in Forrest Yoga, autumn is placed in the West. It's the location of where the sun goes down, where things come to an end and also where death resides. It's the season where the trees shed their leaves and prepare for winter. It's the season of letting go.
I've started to read Marie Kondo's book "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying". The author suggests that the first step in tidying is to "discard" and the criteria to choose whether to discard an item or not is: "Does this spark joy?". It's so simple and yet so profound. She says that if an item sparks joy, keep it, if it doesn't, throw it away. One of the ongoing learnings for me is to make my life simpler and I'm very excited and curious about applying this principle to more areas of my life. What is it in your life that you can let go of? What does not spark joy in your life? Tidy in beauty. Sandra In Ana Forrest's book "Fierce Medicine", she talks in the first chapter about her "fear training", i.e. she would deliberately do things that she was afraid of. She came to the conclusion that even though it was not possible to banish all her fears, she was able to make a choice to not allow them to rule her life.
When I was on holidays last week at the lake in Northern France where we always go, my 65 year old father did a backward somersault into the water. I remembered how I used to do this as a child. So, I decided to get up on the platform, which was about one meter of the water - with my back facing the lake. I could sense the fear; it almost made my head spin. I first just jumped backwards into the water feet first and then did a couple of backward rolls in the water. Then I went back onto the platform and I stood there - very scared. I was feeling the fear in my entire body and there was a sense of paralysis and indecision creeping up on me, which in some respect was a great motivation for me. I completely understand Ana's decision not to allow fear to rule her life, so I connected to my legs and feet, took several deep breaths, pushed off and did a backward somersault. It was not the kind that earns you points at gymnastics. It was definitely not pretty, but it was totally and utterly exhilarating. It was not about being able to do a somersault, which did not alter my life, it was about doing something that I'm very scared of. I felt the fear and did it anyways. In my mind possibilities opened up, I felt empowered. Ana's steps to walking through the "spook zone":
... and do the somersault anyways. Somersault in beauty Sandra As part of my ongoing personal development and process, I have been focusing on my anxiety that can be evoked over seemingly nothing. I get the feeling of losing my ground, of tightness in the chest, of ants in my whole body and a sense of restlessness and the urge to "do" or "fix" something. The cardinal rule for me is to stop and pause creating space versus going into a headless frenzy. And for sure not to write any emails at this point in time or make any major decisions.
I understand in myself that this reaction is not proportional to what is actually going on, but it is a "trigger" - as we call it in Forrest Yoga. When I manage to create the pause, feel into my body, notice the sensation and come back to myself, the situation looks very different and a lot more manageable. In that moment I have created perspective. Ongoingly, to cultivate a sense of calm and groundedness and inner peace I have been working on what author and researcher Brene Brown calls "swimming in your own lane". She talks about how we can be pulled out of our body by comparing ourselves with others; she likens this to swimming in a lane next to somebody else and trying to adopt their rhythm and strokes. At the end we are breathless, out of tune with ourselves and very inefficient. It's about staying in my own lane, focusing on what it is that I'm doing and what is important to me; of course taking inspiration and learnings from the world around me, but essentially staying concentrated on my own values, what has integrity for me and my own priorities. Staying in my own lane also extends to limiting my use of social media: as much as it can be inspiration and creates connection, it also can trigger separation and disconnection within myself. Walk in beauty on your own unique, wonderful and mysterious path! Sandra |
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