Having been a yoga teacher for long enough to weather some pretty lean winters,  it comes as no surprise that things suddenly getting very busy again.

I have noticed there seems to be a yoga take up pattern, in the same way the old school year may have drilled into us a need to learn/do/become something around the same times each year, there are always points when the universe just pushes us to go do something new.

It is with this seasonal push, that I have been running around for the last few weeks trying to get work done on a broken computer, planning workshops, trainings, and so on, and with an amazing amount of my time these days spent social media-ing. It has become necessary to mention the world outside, which as you may have noticed is a little scary at the moment.

Well my story begins a about 3 weeks ago with me thinking I had pulled some stomach muscles with one too many navasanas in one too many classes, then when a few days later I was still unable to breathe properly I was sent protesting to A and E, when it seemed clear to me it was nether Accident or Emergency, but just to be on the safe side they took heart rates, blood tests even X-rays, and yet there was nothing physical that could account for the pressure experienced  over the course of the day when trying to breathe.

As the time when on I began to notice when I was feeling it, was also when I was around the Radio, or reading papers, or passing the TV, which is almost always on the News, (due to Husbands obsession), or even when I was out in transit between classes.

The thing that clearly showed me it was, and is emotional not physical, was that on the mat I could breathe, even in a very strong practice, I was fine.

So was I going mad? No! I just forgot my true nature which is connected to others, and which in this hectic western world is more hard to maintain in a healthy way then ever.

And I know this from past experience, a long time ago I worked in media and got broken, burned out and sick, from watching the world kill, fight and destory it self.

I took an Ayurvedic yoga Therapy course in Montreal, many years ago to try and fix at least a part of the broken head.

It was there that they mentioned that in this yogic science, they believe that one of the root causes of disease was living in contradiction to your nature, be it hanging out with disrespectful people, swearing profusely, watching violence or working in a place that makes you mad.

What we take in though our senses is as powerful as what eat or drink on how we feel. Let’s say you only drink wine and eat crisps for a month. You will not expect things to go so great, by the end of it.

Yet we treat our interactions with other things as if they have no impact, and this is when we get ourselves into trouble, we forget that we are deeply affected by what we see, hear, and say. And this is how to change it to, start with yourselves, remember what you are, amazing potential for change, peace and joy.

And pay attention to what you put into your front of your eyes, what goes into your mind, we are almost more fragile then children, in that we understand what we see and hear and therefore are more affected by the injustices and dramas unfolding in the world.

But this doesn’t mean shut down, don’t care about others, or hide, quite the opposite. We need to take action in productive ways, not just as observers of the world, but as contributors making it a better place, with our actions.

So as I was saying in the beginning, we are heading into another season, phase or period of change, and we may feel that unsettled energy is driving us to move/change/adjust our lives in big or small ways. And as you do this remember your grounding, keep doing what you love, and feeding your soul so that you can sustain yourselves and create a better world one smile at a time.

(And I reminded myself to paint, which has helped the stomach along with some antacids, and a little bit of action)

Check out Nova leading SERENE’s Rise Up rooftop yoga series on September 4th in London. Details here.