Eight years ago I was an emotionally frayed Social Worker looking for healing. My job as a crisis counselor was taking its toll in all areas of my life.  In the midst of emotional breakdown, I searched for something that would bring relief, support and strength. As fate would have it, I soon found myself in a Kundalini Yoga class. During my second Kundalini Yoga class I committed to a 40-day practice and began experiencing powerful changes including the physical and emotional healing I desperately needed. While my story is not extraordinary, the transformation I experienced, with daily practice and regular class attendance, was.

Last week, I was honored to share that story and the practice of Kundalini Yoga & Meditation with my fellow Social Workers at our Statewide NASW Conference.  My story simply illustrated how using Kundalini Yoga & Meditation in my self care practice alleviated symptoms of Compassion Fatigue and relieved physical & emotional pain.  While my story demonstrates what is possible, the power is in the practice.  Together, we practiced the various ways to focus the mind using mantra, mudra, movement, drishti (eye focus) and breath.  I taught my colleagues Yogic breathing and how breathing slowly & consciously releases tension & stress, thus increasing vitality.  They experienced the shift in vibration that occurs when we chant mantra.  Most importantly, they were equipped with the tools to create their own 40-day self care practice. 

Soon after my own Kundalini Yoga & Meditation practice began, I knew I wanted to teach and share this powerful technology with others.  Teaching in my community of Social Workers is truly a gift and honor.  We can all benefit from a self care practice.  Give it a try!!  Just 3 minutes a day for 40 days and let us know what shifts you experience.  

Note: This presentation was inspiring, engaging and practical, and it gave an excellent synopsis on the work of kundalini yoga and meditation as a highly effective and beneficial self-care practice.... with emphasis on SELF care. 
If you are interested in this or similar presentation for your group, contact Urban Yoga Chicago.

hydrates and nourishes and the other dehydrates and takes from our bodies (like calcium), depleting us in the long run. The boost that comes from adding sustainable energy will offer us more consistency in our actions, affecting our external world in a way that will feed our spirit.

4. Know your spiritual hungers and get them met. Spiritual hungers are hungers that we all have as human beings, regardless of race, gender, creed, economic or social status. Examples of spiritual hungers are hunger to be loved, touched, understood and heard. It is not hunger to be understood by_____. Simply hunger to be understood. Tune your mind to the difference.    ​  We might not be able to make a specific person understand us, but we can find someone (and most likely many someones) to understand, including ourselves. Which can lead to an interesting question: we want others to understand us, but do we understand us?      Identify what you hunger for and get them met. It could be as simple as asking a friend for a hug when you hunger to be touched. The more open you are about this, the less burden you put on specific others to have them met. The less burden you put on specific others, the less resistance specific others have around giving it to you.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Wash the exterior of the squash well.
Cut squash in half-- remember to breathe and infuse loving energy into your effort!
Spoon out the seeds and fiber from the center of the squash.
Drizzle a generous amount of olive oil and maple syrup and massage them into the squash.
Cover face down into foil lined with parchment paper and wrap.
Bake for 45 minutes or until soft.
*Kabocha exterior is edible!!

Optional: cut squash into wedges and place in a casserole dish, mixing olive oil and maple syrup. Cover and bake. This takes less time--from 25-40 minutes.

I read a blog recently from a well-respected writer who does not meditate. He personally thinks it’s boring. And because meditation zealots reacted 'incredulously' to his response, he set out to find out why people meditate. The answers were: to reduce stress and to become more mindful. To which, he argues, there are other ways to do that. Including “drugs, exercise and other behavioral therapies.” 
He is right. ​

I used to do 60-75 minutes of daily cardio plus another hour of weight training 3-4 days a week, and it totally helped my calm. I was prone to depression, and exercise kept it in check. While it didn’t help with my anxiety, I had 4 months of Prozac and weekly therapy for that (I was in my early 20s).  

Also in his defense, I do want to say that meditators ought to leave non-meditators alone if it’s not their cup of tea. It’s not for everyone. Having said that, as a meditation instructor and and devoted practitioner, I am a mixed bag about meditation floating out there as an effective way to reduce stress and to become mindful. It’s marketed that way because those are easy benefits to point to that people understand. Stress points directly to their pain, and mindfulness is a great way to reduce it. 

What it doesn’t point to is that who you know matters, and that person is you. ​