C.V. Dreamin' - breath work, meditation

 

What a happy day it was for me, discovering that yoga is more than simply holding body postures.  Although movement (asana) is a core part of yoga, breath work (pranayama) & meditation (dhyana) are two other key aspects.  While my somewhat decrepit body makes even simple yoga poses a struggle to achieve without looking (in contrast to Barbar's family) like a great lumbering elephant, breath work & meditation are well within my abilities.  Well within most people's abilities, including oldsters & even folks like my mother, who started breath work in her late eighties.  

While it is true that it's ideal a full yoga program provides the best results, developing a regular daily workout of breath work and/or meditation can also yield remarkable benefits.  

Why is it that most of the information about older people & yoga focus on the physiological benefits?  Yes, it decreases blood pressure, increases breathing efficiency, decreases pain, increases depth perception.  But - as I discovered with Mom - the most important benefits are typically ignored.  I only discovered them myself by accident, thanks to listening to a radio interview on my way over to my brother's.  Blessed serendipity!

My church is introducing a series on practicing mindfulness, starting next month.  Hopefully, one of the small groups will meet at our local senior residence, then lead to a regular mindfulness support group for my older friends, residents & non-residents alike.  Could be a great start to my ultimate dream of full yoga offerings -  from traditional to chair yoga, breath work to meditation - at C.V.  

Yoga, as an integrated whole or as breath work and/or meditation, offers tremendous benefits to oldsters & the significantly elderly.  When Mom found herself with nothing to do or could feel stress beginning to rise, she'd run through several breath work exercises.  The older she got, the more she spent a lot of time in meditation - it was one of the things that kept her from ever getting bored.  

Meditation seemed to come easily to Mom, who took to breath work as naturally as... well, as breathing.  Wish I could say the same.  I sloughed off doing the simple, basic breath work exercises that stood her in such good stead over her final few years.  As for meditation - have known for years it would benefit me beyond imagination, yet it feels like very cell in my body resists resists resists.

Realizing that the best way to help my dream of C.V. hosted yoga programs is to start incorporating them into my own life.  Sheez, it's so much easier to wish for something rather that taking responsibility to do all I can to help create an environment where it's possible.  Wish I could go back to this morning, back to where it didn't hit home that the best way to realize this particular C.V. dream starts with making the dream real for myself.  Stay tuned!