Yoga for pregnancy

For the past couple of days, I've woken up feeling somewhat more normal.  The soreness in my boobs has subsided and I didn't have to get up in the middle of the night to pee!  That's where my life is, I'm celebrating being able sleep uninterrupted.  But that's because I know that I won't be able to again for a good seven or eight years -- but I digress.

Since I've been feeling so good, I decided that I would go to a yoga class.  I used to have a very consistent practice and I practically lived in a yoga studio when I worked, taught and would take class.  Life was awesome.  I've practiced for almost ten years now and I've developed a really strong, positive body awareness.  We've got a good thing going, my body and me.  Now, I'm not as fluid or as flexible as some other practitioners, but over the years it's brought me a great sense of accomplishment to recognize and honor my body's strength and flexibility.  I've become able to bend and twist and balance with some of the best of them.

I went to Amy's class last night - I've known Amy for a few years and she has a very strong practice and she's a great teacher.  Plus, she's just super nice and you can tell that she's dedicated to her students and isn't just up there to show off how strong she is and how flexible you're not.  I knew it would be a great class and I wasn't disappointed.  Exactly.

The first thing they tell you regarding yoga when you're pregnant is no overheating, and no deep twists.  Your belly is now somebody's house and you can't go compressing and wringing out that house like a dishtowel.  Even though her class wasn't a prenatal one, I knew enough to know which poses to modify and which ones to sit out.  Instead, I simply would breathe and practice acceptance, realize that temporarily I can't push myself to my limits, twist a millimeter deeper, hold that lunge until I'm shaking and dripping sweat. 

What I didn't expect is how I would feel about that.  Dropping my knee where I would usually lunge deep, using a smaller range of motion where I would see how far I could reach or how big my movements could be.  I couldn't twist at all and I felt really left out when the rest of the class went over to the wall to practice headstands.  I love headstands and I've gotten quite good at them, but turning my whole body upside down is just not the business.  Towards the end of class, doing a down dog was giving me a head rush.

That's a down dog for my non-yoga peeps.  It's a great pose with lots of great benefits, it's just that with my body beginning to produce more blood, bodily fluids as well as my insides shifting all around, hanging out upside-down is just kind of uncomfortable.  I had to come out of the pose so slowly so I wouldn't freakin pass out.

Class was wonderful and I'm so glad that I went.  I will join a prenatal yoga class in the coming weeks and I really want to keep up my practice throughout my pregnancy.  Not only will this journey be physical, but the mental aspect of it is massive as well.  As last night has shown me, I will need to dedicate more effort to practicing acceptance and releasing control.  This bond that I have with my body will need to be expanded to include this life inside me and I welcome these changes.

It will not be easy or smooth and likely I will encounter more challenges as my physical limitations increase.  One day soon, I'm not going to be able to see my feet!  I totally can't get my head around that right now. 

That's the great thing about yoga -- it's a mental practice and if your mind is as jumbled and jacked-up as mine, there's always somewhere you can go.  Peace and cookies y'all!