Need help figuring out adoption relationships? Schedule a complimentary consultation with Lori Holden, M.A.

Because I just got taller

I had a biennial physical this week. Everything was great and one vital statistic was better than great: I am a half-inch taller than I used to be.

I attribute it to yoga. A steady yoga practice can put space into one’s spine to counter the compression that comes over time. I began practicing yoga more than 5 years ago and now I’m aiming for 6’2″ before I die, so that’s a lot of yoga (and a lot of years! I’m clever like that).

In honor of this half-inch, I share with you today a guest post by mom and yogini Kim Shand, a yoga teacher who writes about finding the calm within the storm that is parenting. Her grown-up secret? Balasana — the pose of the child.

~~~~~

Rethink yogaI’ve been a mother for 23 years. My husband and I have raised two children to the point to adulthood, if not complete independence. We navigated pee-wee soccer, teen acne, and way too many prom nights. We survived the transition when they left for college. We endured the roller coaster ride toward degrees. We are now waist deep in the ”kids are back home” adventure.

When your children are babies you feel the excitement and the trepidation of not knowing what’s ahead of you. Having conquered the unknown, I had a perception of myself as an experienced parent. Now, with two 20-somethings in the house full-time, I am once again facing down the ravine of unknown territory. As I enter this new phase of post-parenting parenting, I find myself once again leaning heavily on the lessons of my yoga practice to find the calm within the storm.

Child’s pose is always an option. It used to be that time outs were a useful tool for the children, giving them time to calm down and choose a better course of action. Now they are an appropriate tool for me. ON the mat child’s pose is an opportunity to pull back from the intensity of the practice and check in. OFF the mat, a mental child’s pose steps you back and take a few deep breaths.

My husband and I had taken a long weekend away to reconnect and recharge, leaving our house in the hands of our children who needed to remain on their work schedules. Although I love to travel, I always have a sense of joy in returning home to my own kitchen, my own bed and everything familiar. Walking through the door of our home on a Tuesday afternoon, I fully expected the comfort of the familiar. I was greeted with something I’d never seen before.

yoga child's poseThe kitchen sink was piled with dirty dishes. The smell of rotting food pervaded. The family room had piles of laundry.  For some reason I couldn’t possibly fathom, a soaking wet towel was lying on the wood floor of the kitchen.

It was time for child’s pose.

Maintain a beginner’s (child’s) mind. No matter how long you’ve been practicing, your body is different every time you step onto the mat, and what you need is different. Approaching each yoga pose as though it is your first allows you to stay open to new possibilities without predetermined ideas of what works and what your limits are.

My child’s pose allowed me to call my son at his office and and resist the temptation to launch an assault. I asked what had happened in the house. He explained that there had been a power outage leaving them without electricity for 3 days. They couldn’t run the dishwasher. The ice in the freezer had started to melt, so each morning they put a towel in front of it before leaving for work. They were showering at friends’ houses at night and then changing into work clothes in the family room because it had the most windows and natural light at dawn.

Release your attachment to the outcome: Each time you try a yoga pose you get stronger. Mentally and physically you create change by putting out effort without your ego demanding a specific outcome. It makes no difference if you stick the pose perfectly or struggle and fall. The benefits are always there.

Could my grown children have emptied the ice from the freezer to avoid the flood? Maybe used a bigger towel (or several)? Would I have washed the dishes by hand in the same situation? Was it feasible to neatly fold the clothes they walked out of before putting clean clothes on? It’s all possible.

On the other hand, their effort created a benefit. My vision of an outcome was not their vision. My kids have very distinct personalities all their own, and (hard to believe) not everything about them is a reflection, or indictment, of me. The dishes got washed. The clothes found the laundry room. The wooden floor dried out. Two young adults didn’t end up feeling like they came up short.

Relax with what is: This is simultaneously the most difficult and the most useful single lesson a yoga practice can offer.

Kim Shand is the founder of Rethink Yoga. She travels nationally on a mission to inspire people to take control of their health, how they think, and how they age, through yoga. Kim brings a lighthearted, honest approach that stays relevant to students’ experiences. She motivates her students to find their power, their joy and to be “All In. All the Time.” Follow Kim on Facebook, on Twitter, and on YouTube.

16 Responses

  1. Congratulations on the extra half inch!

    Of all the yoga poses I’ve tried, child’s pose is my favorite, and the only one I can do easily. 🙂

  2. Remember Mimi Rogers, the very first Mrs. Tom Cruise? She got taller, too, from practicing yoga. Kinda puts you in a whole new league, doesn’t it? Course, we who know you, think you’re in a league all of your own making, with people clamoring to join.

    Pick me! Pick me!

  3. that was a great job to add half inch, you need to keep practicing and never back to old behaviours otherwise you will lose it again

  4. Dude, if it might make me even a half an inch taller, I’d start yoga 🙂

    Yoga is on my to-do list for when the manuscript is done. I think I’m going to do a drop-in class with some friends so I actually commit to it. I didn’t have much luck trying to get started with the Wii yoga at home.

  5. You are very welcome Caitlin. I truly appreciate Lori’s writing, the joy she shares, and subsequently, her audience. It was my pleasure to share what I love.

  6. This is great Lori! I’ve never been flexible and have struggled with yoga feeling I’m remedial. I have recently rediscovered it and have a really good teacher. I can feel my strength and flexibility increase. I’m feeling great and really loving it. I love Child’s Pose and find it to allow me to “step back and take a few deep breaths.” I need to try it next time I find a bunch of dirty dishes in the sink. Drop right to the floor.

  7. Congratulations on the extra height! I really enjoy yoga – however, I’ve never been able to sustain a regular practice. I’ve been doing a children’s yoga program at home with my kids and they really love it.

  8. My favorite yoga pose is Child’s Pose…It’s so calm and quiet. Your sort of enveloped in yourself and it’s all about you, not your surroundings for just those few moments. You’re reminding me I need to get back into yoga, hoping a grow a few inches too!

  9. Maybe my comment is Too late for this post but can anyone explain this to me that how to Do this yoga how often??? i am 28years old my height is Short 😢😢

    1. A regular practice of strengthening and lengthening the structures of the body can help with its tensegrity (tension integrity). This is when we mindfully pull everything in and up as we breathe. In other words, the connective tissue brings a little more space between joints and vertebrae to help a spine reach a bit higher.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *