Written By: Katrina Del Espiritu Santo
The COVID-19 Pandemic had pushed some people to start a yoga practice while in home quarantine. It was very lovely to see my friends practicing and finally appreciating what yoga can do for them and experiencing its benefits. I’ve seen countless articles that popped up these past several months saying that yoga is a good way to stay sane during the pandemic, which is probably why a lot of people jumped into the yoga pool!
On the other hand, including myself (unfortunately), some people fell out of touch with their practice. Let’s face it, the pandemic hasn’t been kind to a lot of us. Personally, after the first two months, I started to practice less and less. When we first went into lockdown, we all thought life would be getting back to normal.
As the days, weeks, and months passed us by, we realized that things aren’t improving and in fact, they seem to be worsening. I started to feel the impact most of all to my mental wellbeing. It’s no secret to some friends of mine that I do suffer from many mental health issues that stem from way back into my childhood. Yoga and meditation have helped me find balance in order to deal with life and everything it brings me. I cannot even imagine what my life would be like if I never decided to take that first yoga class or if decided not to attend that second yoga class.
There is no need for me to reiterate what everyone keeps saying: yoga and meditation can help you cope and deal with whatever is weighing you down, in terms of your mental health, be it anxiety or depression or both.
But I know how difficult it is to push yourself sometimes. The secret is this: be kind to yourself. It’s important to not pressure yourself or beat yourself up about missing that yoga class or not being able to push through more than 15 minutes of practicing, or not being able to sit still for more than 5 minutes to meditate before finding yourself scrolling through your social media feed. These things happen to everyone – including seasoned practitioners.
Every attempt, regardless of where you stopped, it counts and it’s valid. Someday, you’ll get there and someday, you’ll get through it. Just remember: be kind to yourself.