Camel pose. It is for the heart.
If you don’t know what camel pose is or what the heck I’m talking about; Click the links at the end, they will direct you to where you can see how to open the heart.
I leaned to Camel Pose through a very intense period of grief and sadness. My heart was broken. I had entered my first relationship after my first relationship of ten years. And this one was different. This one saw me in a way that I had never been seen before. It felt almost unbelievable. But it didn’t stop the cracks from seeping through. I think it’s fair to say that we all search for ‘the one’. The one that understands us, the one who sees us, the one who can hold us in our entirety. When we meet someone, we unconsciously put that expectation on them often without realizing and really asking whether that person can do what you need of them. A lot of the time they can’t, and not because of fault but because we all have our shadows, fears, and doubts that show up for us in relationship. Even when we know that sometimes the person can’t meet us, we look away because we hope or we’re comfortable or we fall into a cycle of ‘when it’s good it’s really friggin good, but when it’s bad, it’s bad’. So we fall in love with an idea, a picture, a hope, a potential. A maybe things will change. But often times they don’t, and it’s because we are met with parts of ourselves that we are not ready to face.
It’s not to say because it didn’t work out it was all wrong, no. I actually loved this period of my life and the experience and lessons that came from it. I feel gratitude for the connection despite the pain and heartache I experienced. But I didn’t feel this at first, and why? Because my heart closed. After pain and hurt you feel it in your chest, most of the time, a tightness or a heaviness. And it sits with you creating a block, a guard, a protection. Because it doesn’t want you to get hurt. It’s usually in this space that our wounds surface - the abandonment story, the I’m not good enough story. So we’re put in a position to challenge this belief we carry. To remind ourselves that we are whole.
On one side we say thank you to the heart for closing, thank you heart for wanting to protect me. But on the other side we ask, if you close how can I feel love again?
We don’t want the heart to close at the expense of pain, because when it closes we shut ourselves off from appreciating the lessons and experiencing that beautiful feeling we all know as Love. And the lessons were needed in order to grow and move closer to what your heart actually calls for.
It was only until I felt the sadness and grief that I could really open my heart again. I needed to grieve a potential, and feel sad for the inner part of me who had to remind herself that she was worthy and lovable. It didn’t work out because the heart felt something wasn’t aligned, that it knew it deserved more.
Knowing the benefits of camel pose can physically, psychologically and spiritually help you for times when the heart is needing attention. Maybe in sadness, grief or pain.
Physically: Opens chest, shoulders, and front body. Strengthens back and glutes. Stretches hip flexors and quadriceps.
Psychologically: Encourages emotional openness and vulnerability. Builds courage and resilience. Promotes deeper breathing.
Spiritual: Opens the heart chakra cultivating love, compassion and connection. Activates the throat chakra encouraging authentic self-expression and openess.
I learned to love by learning to open my heart. Camel pose supports this notion, but over time we see that the heart opens in many ways. In yoga. In dance. In journalling. In music. In sitting with myself. In relationship. In conversation. In vulnerability. In acceptance of pain. In receiving of love. It might start with yoga but it opens in love. It might start with journalling but it opens in expression. Just like… It might start with pain but it opens in acceptance. It was never there to break you; only the parts you needed to rebuild to realise how worthy you are.
Love, WYSEbymonique XX