[Beth]

I practice in the evenings during the weekdays and in the mid-morning on weekends. This has been my routine for several years, and when I take classes outside of my home practice, they are usually at the same times. Taking an early class, before the work hours on weekdays was very difficult for me mentally. I will meditate in the mornings before work, I’ve had that habit off and on for a few years, helps reduce my stress. But lately my job isn’t as emotionally draining and I don’t feel as stressed.

I think when teaching, it will be very difficult for me in my 30s and 40s to teach early classes, as my work schedule will always keep me from having a lot of AM availability. I think my mind becomes locked on the work day and it’s hard to switch gears into a teaching mentality for yoga in the AM. I could see myself taking a class before work, but not teaching. I feed off the energy of others and can influence a group with my own energy, but I find that this is easier for me after 5PM. I think it makes sense to practice and teach yoga at the times that normally fit for you. If I wasn’t working full-time, I can see my times expanding. I would be willing to teach at different times on the weekends as well, but I really prefer the calming energy that comes from yoga practiced in the early evening. I find this is the gift I want to share with others.

I have been trying to observe energy levels in a yoga class as a student, and I am eager to see how my Karma teaching at OSU Newark gives me perspective on actually teaching at my ideal times.

[Beth]

I think music has always been something I’ve enjoyed in yoga class, but now that I’m becoming a teacher I find it hard to imagine cuing with music going. I am considering playing soft sounds, like a creek flowing or other nature sounds or maybe softer, instrumental music. I feel like at first music with lyrics will be distracting but I am going to try several options during my free classes at OSU and get feedback from my coworkers.

I personally love music but the deeper I have gone in my yoga practice and the more meditation I do, I find I am listening to music less and less. I think initially music helped me quiet the worries on my mind, but my mind managed to replace worries with other thoughts. I realized that I could quiet my mind without music, but I know my home practice does not need to be the same as my teaching. I think music helped make yoga accessible to me when I first started out and I intend to try different playlists with my students. I like a range of music and it will be a journey for me as well as my students to discover how music can influence the practice.

In savasana, when first introducing students to a meditative state, I think music can be very comforting. I intend at the least to provide music to new yogis during this pose and during the centering pose at the beginning of class. I may try a Spotify playlist the first time teaching. I think nature sounds can be just as centering and provide some calm guidance or peace during a practice.

[Beth]

I have had very positive experiences with assists in my yoga classes where this was offered. Usually I was in child’s pose or savasana, not typically adjusting my pose, but rather helping me get deeper into the pose. I am slightly wary of offering my own assists, even though I really enjoy them, particularly in savasana. I suppose I feel uncertain about touching other people but I am looking forward to learning more about how to offer safely. I think the power of touch can be used in a way that enhances a student’s overall yoga experience and help keep them safe. Where I don’t like assists is in classes where the vibe in the studio is competitive or judgmental and assists are used to “correct” a posture. I think touching another human being is to be taken very seriously and as a female, I feel that we are keenly aware of touch. I believe that in savasana, I am more likely to be emotionally open to an assist and it can make me feel even more connected.

[Beth]

I really enjoyed the handouts Laurie gave us that related to finding our voices as yoga instructors. I felt I already had a pretty good idea of what brought me into yoga, which is the mystic side of my personality. I was drawn to instructors who brought a sense of passion for the spiritual side of yoga and I was seeking a sort of replacement for my Christianity. I know that I’m also very interested in anatomy and in the physical workings of yoga because of my scoliosis pain and alignment issues that surround my migraines. In this sense, yoga is deeply personal to me in both physical and spiritual ways. I was an athlete in high school and somewhat in college, but the work-out or flexibility issues were never what brought me to yoga or really what I enjoy about it.

I knew as a yoga teacher, I would be drawn to the meditative, restorative and gentle flow classes, because these speak to me the strongest. I knew that leading these classes would bring out my strength and empower me to overcome one of my weaknesses. I struggle to manage stress and tend to carry it in my muscles, but going to a yoga class which slows me down and allows me to focus on my breathing, drastically reduces my stress. In this sense, I will be a stronger instructor because I’m bringing what I consider to be a great gift to others and to myself at the same time. I enjoy speaking in front of others and even if I don’t do everything the way I planned, I’m used to changing things last minute working with youth. I know it doesn’t have to be perfect to make an impact. I also believe that when things seem to be going wrong, or not according to plan, can sometimes be the most meaningful. I know that I will not always know what sort of an impact I’m having on others and I’ve made peace with this teaching and leading programming.

I also recognize that while I have teaching and program experience, teaching yoga is very different. I almost feel like I bear more responsibility teaching yoga than any other task I’ve taken on. I am not afraid but I am humbled to the fact that I represent something far greater than myself, while still being myself. I enjoy talking to others and getting to know them, so I feel that making people comfortable is a gift I have already. I know not everyone will like my class and I can handle the rejection or criticism. I believe my pain from migraines and scoliosis will be strengths in my classes because I can empathize with others and inspire them to be free of their pain as much as possible.

Ultimately, I know that my strengths will make me a fun, knowledgeable, humorous, and caring instructor. I know I will pay close attention to my weaknesses, which are organization, my bleeding heart and desire for recognition. I am excited to see where teaching yoga takes me and open to trying new forms, challenging myself and learning from my students. I hope to be a mystic first, a scientist second and throw in a little athleticism last!

[Beth]

I am learning the most from my mentor by attending her class every week and observing her teaching style and how she builds relationships with her students. Her style is focused on her strength, which is science-based and with her background in physical therapy, she is able to speak very knowledgeably about the muscles in the body. I appreciate how she weaves in her knowledge while still bringing a yoga experience, bringing in the breath and setting an intention. She is building strength in our muscles while teaching us about our anatomy, all the while practicing moving prana through our movements.

I am a visual learner and learn best by observation and asking questions. I have really enjoyed watching my mentor and chatting with her before and after class. I am also learning a great deal from my fellow YTT members, each of you has so much experience to draw from and share. I want to find ways to incorporate my strengths into my teaching until I become more comfortable with areas that are new to me. I really enjoy seated postures and my mentor is leading a series on the body, much of which are in seated or supine postures. I also want to bring awareness to others about the spine and help those suffering from chronic headaches or upper back pain. This is what I have experienced most of my life and I therefore cue better in poses which I find have really helped me.

I learn best by watching and doing, and I’ve realized how much easier it is to cue poses which I love and which I find as part of my daily routine. I am also eager to get out of my comfort zone and be challenged by standing poses and even some back-bending. Typically these are very hard for me with my scoliosis, but I want to help others with spinal dysfunction find comfort in different postures. I also struggle with inversion poses because blood rushing to my head is not something that is welcome about half of the days of any given month. With headaches blood circulation can be a challenge, but it is so healthy to do inversions, I want to find ways to work them in and modify them when the time isn’t right.

I find modifications empowering because it is a way for all to participate depending on how they arrive on the mat that day. I use modifications more confidently in classes now, because I know my body. There is power in that choice and in that awareness. I have no problem getting into a pose one day and then modifying it the next class because I know I won’t be comfortable afterwards. I think modeling this for our students and encouraging them to do what is right in their own bodies is liberating. I think finding your confidence in cuing, teaching to your strengths and embracing humbleness in your practice while in front of your students on your mat are the key points I hope all students get from their mentors.

When I become a mentor to a student taking the YTT classes, I think maintaining a social line during their teacher training is key. As much as I love the women who are serving as mentors, I think during the six to eight months of teacher training, should be kept professional. In this sense, going to yoga classes together, coffee and observing the mentor teaching are all great ways to get engaged. On the other hand, spending time outside of yoga, not talking about yoga-related topics can begin to blur the lines. Each person needs to decide this for themselves, but as a mentor someday, I would try to keep things socially separate and focus entirely on yoga-related conversations or events would be best until teacher training has ended. At this point, the student is now a member of the teaching community and it isn’t an issue.

[Beth]

First of all, the Yoga Sutras have been the most powerful part of the YTT to me. While I do not consider yoga a religion, this text is particularly dear to me and I’ve only just been introduced. Personally, having had experience in therapy, specifically Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), feel the Sutras are following a very similar path. I have studied the brain in terms of resilience and emotional processing, as well as Zen and Buddhist teachings, and feel the Sutras are the distilled versions of the knowledge I’ve collected. The Sutras combine all of these aspects I find true that it is a relief to discover them. This means that many of the Sutras spoke to me and choosing one to talk about was difficult. I chose one which spoke to me the most at this time in my life.

1.9 – Imagination is the comprehension of an object based only on words and expressions, even though the object is absent.

I know in class I mentioned that “I live here”. In fact, I have battled regularly with false understanding as it relates to my memories and my imagination of those memories and their meaning in my life. I have always had a tendency to search for meaning when there is none, or create meaning where there was not. I believed from childhood that everything happened for a reason, and that I was central to these events in my life. My father was a very unpredictable, angry man when we were growing up. He took this anger out on us, not physically, but verbally and emotionally. My true nature became distorted and I was forever trying to please him and spare the others, trying to avoid pain. Many years later, I realize this has given me some strengths in my work but has caused much pain in my relationships. I left home for 10 years in part to find my own life and not feel responsible for my family, but the anxiety never left me and it tainted my experiences while I was away.

This Sutra spoke to me because my therapists, and there were multiple, were always trying to help me see how my memories of situations were not accurate and how my visualizations of my place in the world, with others and in my family were damaging to my self worth. This was so difficult to hear because I had to accept that the two people in my life, most responsible for making me feel safe as a child, did not. I had to accept a different version of events and erase false meanings I had adopted for decades about myself. I could not be martyred and save anyone, nor would everything collapse if I wasn’t there. I couldn’t be angry with anyone because all people are just doing their best with what they have. I had to forgive my parents and I had to forgive myself for misunderstanding all these years. Learning self-care felt contradictory to my imagination of events and I couldn’t give weight to the dreams and feelings I had been misinterpreting. My body and my mind have always been trying to tell me the truth but when you live in a world full of meaning, connotation, dreams and predictions based on memory and past experiences, my life was so upside down.

Learning instead to listen to myself, acknowledge my feelings, validate my emotions and then let them pass, were all ground-breaking ideas. I had so many conversations in my head that never happened with people, or misapprehension about events that had not yet happened, it was impossible to function in the present. Yoga, has helped me live more in the present and begin to accept reality. My reality was not serving me well and I am still on this path. I know the Yoga Sutra 1.11 is also very connected to this experience, but 1.9 spoke to me the most loudly during our class this past week. It was nice though to see it here and read it aloud with all of you, because it validated my experience and let me know I’m not the only one going through it. If many others didn’t suffer from this it would not have made it into Patanjali’s writings. I am encouraged and pleased that it is here in the Sutras because it means I am exactly where I am supposed to be, despite or in spite of everything that’s happened.

[Beth]

I definitely consider yoga practice to be my spiritual practice as well. I include meditation and journaling a part of my practice because it is all of these things which are helping me get closer to myself. I discovered yoga when I was just leaving Christianity. I have always considered spirituality and a practice important to staying in touch with myself and learning more about myself. When I was in church, I enjoyed many aspects of study, self-awareness, giving back and encouraging others. I did not like other aspects, such as the self-denial, judgement, exclusivity, and time expectations. When I began yoga, I was searching for a way back into my spirituality but in some new form that did not carry the same negative aspects of Christianity, particularly judgement of self and exclusivity. I have always had friends from other countries and other religions because this isn’t a factor in friendships to me. I have always been interested in how other people live their lives and find meaning. I was never comfortable with the idea that my religion told me my friends were going to hell. But not having any spirituality or practice left me feeling very disconnected from myself and others.
Yoga and particularly mediation, and self study appealed to me very quickly. In my own life I had and have to do some re-parenting, as well as un-learning bad habit patterns. These habit patterns, as Mary talked about, kept me from understanding relationships and my role in other people’s lives. Yoga and meditation have helped me do some important work within myself which has changed my relationships and work-life balance, both of which were critical to my state of mind. I truly believe yoga teaches us to quiet the mind to hear our true voice and learn about our true nature, helping us repair old wounds, and inspire new understanding.
Yoga does not feel like a religion but it has all the aspects I missed so much from religion. It has everything I was looking for and still challenges my thinking. I feel better with myself and those I love, and those I don’t know, than I have throughout my life. I think yoga has the answers I seek because I have been asking the wrong questions. I am looking forward to having my practice as a part of my life until I’m too old to move, but I can still meditate!

[Beth]

This question is interesting to me as I attend more classes in different place and speak to people about their yoga experiences, because I realize that my version of relaxed or calm in a space and environment, may be very different from my students. I like a clean, open space, with soft lighting, soft music or no music, essential oils, slightly warm, but some fresh air flowing into the room, with little outside distractions. I imagine I will want to create a space similar to what I like, but I have to consider the preferences of my students at the same time. I think some things, like soft lighting and open space are ok, but music is a challenge and setting the overall tone of the class is intimidating to me.
I think welcoming people, preferably by name, and making sure everyone has props would be a start. I have been told by my students at the college and in previous jobs that I have a natural skill to make others comfortable, but I find myself questioning my ability in the yoga classroom. I need to trust my natural ability to connect with people and be encouraging, approachable even though I’m teaching something new. The environment or space where I may be teaching could vary or not be how I imagine, so it’s important to stay flexible and find ways in all spaces to make people feel accepted and encouraged in their practice. This to me really means the way in which I speak to my students and acknowledge them when the arrive, when they are doing well, and when they leave class.

The way I would modify the following statements:

• You are not doing this right – “Can I offer a suggestion to you in this pose?” OR “I have an idea about how to adjust this pose for you”
• Don’t forget to breathe – “Remember to breathe” OR “Find your breath in this pose” OR “See if you can return to your breath here”
• Don’t let your knee extend past your toe – “Take a look down at your mat and see if you can see your big toe over top of your knee” OR “Peek down over your knee to see if you can still see your toes and gently ease your knee back until you can”.
• Don’t worry about everyone else. “You can close your eyes if that feels good” OR “Yoga is a personal practice and will look slightly different for each person in each pose”

[Beth]

This concept goes back to my post about my headaches. There is physical pain and mental, emotional pain. I believe they are very connected or united, just as yoga. I believe that my mental and emotional pain comes from struggling against reality and the facts of my life that are out of my control. So much stress is created around wanting things to be different, wanting them to be the way you imagined, or getting what you wanted and now wishing you hadn’t. Pain comes from struggling against others and their words, actions and behaviors. I take things personally and allow my ego to be affected which then causes me pain, perceived pain. In fact, I am healthy and I have an abundance of love in my life. Yet the pain I experience can be avoided by becoming curious about it. My physical pain from my headaches begin far before the pain is felt. In becoming curious about my pain, I’ve discovered that I am imagining it, that I am allowing situations, people and events to affect my mood and disrupt my understanding.

This pain, manifests eventually into a physical pain in my neck, back and head, which is so common for the Vata-Pitta dosha combination, which is what I am. I am a dead split between the two with a little Kapha of course. I realize that pain, as Kimberly said, really is in my head. For me this can be prevented because I don’t have to experience the ups and downs of life as pain, if I continue to try not to struggled against it. I can’t control much of my daily life, but I do control how I internalize everything. In my Bhakti yoga class, we are reading the Aphorisms of Love, which encourages us to reach into ourselves in meditation to discover the undying love, the unconditional love that connects all things. This love is the source love and as drops in the ocean, we are each a separate drop inside a huge sea. We are all one with each other and the ego only exists when we begin to claim things as our own.

As a teacher, I hope to provide metaphors and simple truths to my students during class as they set an intention for their practice. I want to introduce gently, the idea that pain is perceived and can therefore by avoided. I need to continue to practice this in my own life, but sharing it with others is to help all of us stop struggling against that which we do not want.

[Beth]

I was already inspired by what Melanie and Regina have said, I’m so glad you’ve both been learning about yourselves. It helps me so much to hear about other women’s experiences and “aha” moments about themselves, it is really empowering. Of all the yamas and niyamas I think the one I’m applying the most in the past two weeks has been Svadhyaya or self-study. I am meditating daily now, sometimes twice a day and beginning to uncover things about myself. My migraines, I believe, have a root source or cause that goes far back into my past. I visiting an Ayurvedic practitioner recently and he asked me to focus my mediation on my head and neck, wherever there was pain. He asked me to study myself during mediation until the source of my headaches was revealed to me. Now, I was trained as a biologist in college and I am as skeptical as the next person, but I am beginning to see the science behind the mind-body connection. I am beginning to see through studying my physical self, how my pain is connected to my thoughts and how stress manifests in my body.
It is fascinating to study this connection because during meditation in savasana or at home on my cushion, I am beginning to remember back 20 years and having memories before I had migraines. I believe this is part of my journey to learning how my stress over years and my perception of myself and my life has caused my current ailment. I am encouraged by the idea that I can heal myself, or at least undo the damage done to my mind and body over the years. I like to think of this work as mentally “cleaning house”, because it is work and it is overwhelming. My “house” in my head is cluttered, dirty and there are many rooms. I believe once I’ve done the really hard work of “donating” or getting rid of what I don’t need in my head, and cleaning it out, I can then keep it maintained. This may be the key to keeping my headaches at bay and keeping balance in my life.

[Beth]

This passage in the Gita redefines yoga for me as the combination of mind, body and soul. I began yoga for the relaxation techniques I had heard from others, but after 10 years, I realize it has taught me so much about myself. Reading the Yamas and the Niyamas is helping me find words to describe my own path in yoga and how to become closer to myself than I ever been. In my 20’s I found it hard not to be ego-driven, almost as though we are programmed for this during that time in our lives. So much of what I learned over the years in yoga is re-learning or un-learning. I had to re-learn self-care and meditation because I have so frequently abandoned them both. I can do the postures at home but so often lost the breath or the meditative aspects which always provide me benefits.

I also had many things to un-learn as I grew in my yoga practice, particularly my stress response. I have tried to change my diet and lifestyle to help alleviate my migraines and yoga is part of this. I believe that this passage is about all of these things, which makes yoga individual to everyone. I believe that yoga can help us discover our inner-strength and connect us with the power each of us carries. Yoga is the path back to myself through myself, for myself.

[Beth]

I also use insight timer and with headphones, it is wonderful to meditate outside!

[Beth]

My first experience in yoga was in college at OSU 12 years ago. It was in a large open room, all the classroom chairs and desks were pushed to the back and the teacher guided us through basic poses, I can’t remember what type of yoga. I remember doing legs against the wall and giggling because I didn’t know anything about yoga. I felt good afterward and I really enjoyed the positive energy from our teacher. She wore loose clothing in beautiful colors, her hair was unkempt and she was wearing big wooden earrings. She was in her 40s I would guess and the way she spoke was musical, I remember thinking she must be in tune with something completely different than what I had been exposed to growing up. I remember being curious about her spirit and how yoga was connected. At the end of the class, she had us to choose a partner and sit directly across from them on the floor. She lit a small tea light candle in between all of us and had us stare into the flame for as long as we could without blinking. It was so strange and it made my eyes water. We did this for about 5 minutes with music on and then she asked us to spend the next 5 minutes staring into our partner’s eyes with loving-kindness. I will never forget that night and how I felt. As we walked out she offered us vegan cookies, also a new experience. The whole evening was intoxicating and so positive, I have gone back to yoga in all my hard times. I am grateful to have had this as my first experience with yoga.

[Beth]

A good yoga teacher takes care of themselves, allowing them to bring their full energy, attention and care to their students in each class. A good yoga teacher is compassionate, empathetic, imaginative, and innovative. I believe a good yoga teacher embodies the practice and leads by example in their own lives. I think being able to do all the poses is not a concern, nor a particular kind of voice or personality. Variety is the spice of life and I believe there are many personalities, possibly limitless, to a good yoga teacher. I think a good yoga teacher is able to be themselves while also being able to meet people where they are in their practice, bringing encouragement to enhance their experience. Yoga teachers allow others to deepen their practice spiritually and physically, using poses that can target problem areas or finding modifications which help all students feel the benefits of yoga.

Yoga teachers are representing yoga as a practice and a way of life, which makes each of us capable of providing a positive, new experience or renewing a past experience or practice for a returning yogi. Yoga can be enjoyed and beneficial at all levels, therefore, a good yoga teacher isn’t competitive but introduces a sense of humor or a practical application for yoga to help bring yoga into other people’s lives.

A good teacher of any subject is passionate about what they teach and eager to share it with others. A good teacher also believes in what they teach and understands their impact is part of something larger than themselves. A good teacher is humble and inviting, as well as approachable to students. I believe the best teachers challenge their students at the right moments, encourage others when it is needed and can tell the difference between these two situations. Teaching is partly helping others grow which does require the student to be willing to follow the teacher outside of their comfort zone, just enough to expand, but not far enough to cause any pain. A good teacher knows how to navigate the boundary between growth and over-extending students. I think a good teacher knows how to balance a class full of yogis at different levels of skill and find ways to deepen each student’s experience.

[Author]

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