Welcome.
This is a trauma-informed yoga class for burnout recovery to honor yourself when you feel like there's a little too much going on for the energy you have.
We'll move slowly,
Stay low to the ground.
And there are no props required.
If you're ready to start,
I invite you to begin in a comfortable seat of your choosing,
Taking all the time you need to arrive.
And as you settle,
I offer a gentle reminder for you to move at your own pace,
Knowing you can take breaks or end early.
And if you like,
You might place your hands anywhere that you choose.
Or you might bring one to your heart,
The other to your belly.
Noticing this connection with yourself.
Maybe you soften into the support holding you.
Softening in your jaw and shoulders.
Maybe elongating in your spine.
And if you like,
You might choose to take a deep breath with me as we inhale.
Filling your belly.
Your lungs.
And exhale,
Releasing everything.
Maybe you take a few more in your own time and pace.
You're welcome to stay here and settle into this practice as much as you like.
Or you might join me as we bring our left ankle in toward our body,
Extending our right leg out long.
Maybe some energy in your right foot.
And finding some length in your spine.
As we inhale,
Arms reach up.
As you exhale,
You might send your hands toward your right foot.
Maybe rounding in your spine.
And can have as much of a bend in your right knee as you need.
Palms might rest up or facing toward the mat.
Maybe you allow the heaviest points of you to connect with the ground holding you.
Each exhale releasing a bit of tension.
Softening a little more.
And a gentle reminder as we move through this class that a deep stretch is not the goal here.
Or just tending to your body.
Moving in a way that feels supportive.
In here for a few moments.
You're welcome to stay here as long as you like.
Or you might gently walk your palms out.
And before switching sides,
You might bring your right hand to your left knee.
Left hand reaches out behind for a gentle twist.
As we inhale,
Lengthen.
And exhale and twist.
Soft shoulders,
Soft jaw.
Gently unwinding when you're ready.
And finding this on the other side.
So you might bring your right ankle in toward your body,
Left leg extends out long.
Taking a moment to find what feels comfortable in this seated posture.
Before we inhale,
Rise our arms up.
And exhale,
Fold to your level of comfort.
Resting here a few moments,
Option to always take another pose that better supports you,
Or to fidget as much as you need.
And as you're ready,
Walking your palms up.
Sitting upright.
Finding our twist on the other side,
So left hand comes to right knee,
Right arm out behind.
Finding length on the inhale.
And exhale twisting.
Honoring your body's limits.
Slowly coming back to centre.
You have two options here.
You could either extend both of your feet out now for a gentle wide-legged forward fold,
Or you could bring the soles of your feet together,
Allowing your knees to rest open or onto blocks.
And folding forward from here.
Whichever version you've chosen,
Taking a moment to get comfortable.
If you're in this wide-legged version,
You might choose to include a pillow or a bolster to rest on top of for a little more support.
Maybe having some energy in your feet.
And as we rest here,
You might notice a little more space as time passes.
Allowing yourself to soften here.
No need to try and make the stretch look a certain way.
Just noticing how your body feels within this space.
How it feels to allow rest.
Maybe you elongate your inhales and exhales.
And a few moments here.
Wherever you are,
I welcome you to gently walk yourself up.
If you were in this wide-legged version,
You might bring your knees back together.
Taking a comfortable seat.
You might choose to rest your hands anywhere as we dip our chin.
And rock our right ear to our right shoulder.
And then left ear to left shoulder for a few neck rolls.
Moving in your own time and pace.
Maybe you reach your head back if that feels comfortable.
Releasing a bit of held tension in our neck.
Moving forward,
You might return to center and explore a few shoulder rolls,
Drawing your shoulders up to your ears,
Maybe with an inhale.
And exhale,
Releasing everything down.
A few more in your own time and pace,
Maybe moving with your breath if that feels supportive.
And if you were circling one way,
You might reverse direction.
And returning to center.
Might lead with your heart space as you make big circles.
Maybe you inhale as you come forward and exhale as you round back.
Either taking big circles or going side to side,
Finding any intuitive movement that feels best to you.
If you were doing circles one way,
You might switch direction.
As you're ready,
You might join me as we make our way onto our back,
Taking all the time you need.
And when you arrive,
You might have your left sole of your foot flat to the mat with your knee bent.
Crossing your right ankle over your left knee.
Having a little bit of energy in your right foot.
You might stay here if this feels comfortable,
Or you might take hold behind your thigh or over your shin,
Drawing your left knee to your chest.
Maybe you stay here or you rock side to side.
Gentle hip stretch.
Maybe softening in your shoulders.
If your left leg is lifted,
You might lower it down.
And this time bringing your right sole of your foot flat to the mat.
With your knee bent.
Crossing left ankle over right knee.
Either staying as you are here,
Or taking a gentle home.
Drawing your knee in toward your chest.
Either staying still or rocking side to side.
And gently releasing and unwinding.
And with your knees bent,
You might choose to rock your knees from side to side.
Releasing a bit of tension in your lower body.
You might continue this as long as you like,
Or you could draw your knees into your chest for a gentle self-hug.
Holding your legs however feels comfortable for your abdomen.
Maybe you stay as you are or you rock side to side.
From here you might choose to join me in a Shavasana.
This is a restful pose and rest is personal,
So I welcome you to take any shape you like.
If you're exploring traditional Shavasana,
You might extend your legs out long,
Allowing your feet to rest open.
Arms resting by your sides,
Palms facing up.
Getting comfortable from here,
Knowing you never need to stay in the initial shape you've chosen.
And you can end this practice at any time.
You never need to explore a pose just because it's offered.
But if you are resting here,
Taking a moment to settle in.
Maybe including any props like eye pillows,
Blankets,
Or bolsters.
Using these next few moments to simply be as you are.
There's nothing to achieve.
Nothing to do,
Nowhere to go.
The rest of our day will come soon enough.
So I welcome you to truly embrace these few moments.
Maybe softening into the earth supporting you.
Maybe you join me in a gentle body scan.
As we start by softening in the crown of our head.
Back of our head.
Forehead.
Eyes.
Ciao.
Tongue.
Front of our neck.
Back of our neck.
Shoulders.
Upper arm.
Lower arm.
Hands.
Fingers Chess.
Upper back.
Middle back.
Lower back.
Abdomen.
If you feel comfortable,
Maybe your hip area.
Upper length.
Backs of your upper legs.
Lower legs.
See?
And tones.
And settling here for about a minute and a half.
And I'll be here to guide you out.
You're welcome to stay in your Shavasana as long as you like.
Otherwise,
To awaken your body,
You might wiggle your fingers and toes.
Followed by your wrists and ankles.
You might reach your arms overhead for a big stretch,
Maybe allowing a yawn if it feels natural.
Then rolling to one side of your choosing.
Maybe using your arm as a pillow or an actual pillow.
Continuing to arrive to the space around us.
While still allowing a few moments of rest.
As you're ready,
I welcome you to join me in a comfortable seat of your choosing.
Taking all the time you need to arrive.
And once you do,
Placing your hands anywhere you like.
Or maybe you bring your poems to your heart space.
Taking a moment to honor yourself for arriving today.
Taking time to tend to yourself instead of trying to push through.
Moments like these send a powerful message to your mind and body.
That it's okay to slow down and recover.
Every moment you take for yourself matters.
Your hands can stay as they are.
Maybe you bring them to prayer center to close our class.
If your eyes are closed,
I welcome you to slowly bat them open.
They are open coming back to the room and space around you.
I thank you for joining this gentle yoga class for burnout recovery.
Hopefully you're feeling a little less tense and more well-rested.
I welcome you to continue to go easy on yourself today.
You don't need to have it all figured out in this moment or feel a type of way.
Being here and being kind to yourself is always enough.
I hope you have a wonderful rest of your day.
That we get to practice again soon.
And from my vulnerable heart to yours.
Take care.
