Category Archives: Stress Reduction

Living With The Unseen

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Editor’s Note: Spirits, ghosts, memories are things veterans and their families live with long after they have been through war. They can be vexing, or comforting, can get someone stuck, or motivate a person to go on. WWI veteran and poet Siegfried Sassoon found healing by writing about the memories of war extensively. From On Scratchbury Camp: 

“Shadows outspread in spacious movement, always you  
Have dappled the downs and valleys at this time of year”

What follows is a story from Charlie’s years as a yoga instructor in the Santa Monica area of Southern California. A vital, active, gifted teacher who comes from a sports background, veterans can also find him teaching online classes at Yogis Anonymous, in person at YogaWorks, and on his blog, Yoga Rap with Charlie Samos.

By Charlie Samos

Yoga can be so amazing. Years ago, I had a mom and a daughter practice with me each weekend. They would arrive, set up side by side, and enjoy the time together. I always felt honored to be part of their relationship in this special way. Both beautiful souls. Then tragedy struck, and the daughter was gone.

I attended the funeral, and knew that this was the worse thing for a parent. I supported as best I could, which was really nothing. The mom and I stay in touch, and she knows I love her.

Fast forward to this weekend. The mom’s twin sister comes into class. She introduces herself, and I tell her we have met twice before, and joke that I have kissed her cheek twice. She hugs me, and takes class both weekend days. On day two, I notice that she lays her mat in the exact spot where her niece use to practice. Both days, crowded room, same spot. I find it interesting, nothing more at first. Then, as I walk around her during class, I realize I can feel an energy. I assume I am just imagining it, and let it go. Finally, we come to Shavasana. I pass by her again, and can feel a presence. I notice her crying, and realize she’s  feeling her niece –with no idea that she’s in the exact spot where her niece once practiced. So I hold her for a bit, then decide that instead of returning to the front of the room to end class, I would sit just near her and embrace this spirit that was finally returning to me.

I began to weep, but knew it was good. I got through the end class and realized that the practice can truly open up our hearts to things unknown, and unseen.

Do not underestimate the healing that yoga can bring. Love will always find the way.

In Panama City: Veterans find community on stand up paddleboards

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By Paul Zipes, US Navy Veteran, Founder of Yoga For Vets , yoga instructor for Stand Up Paddleboard for Vets

Panama City, FL. Saturday, July 21

Today was a great day. Six vets arrived in Panama City, Florida for Standup Paddleboard for Veterans (SUPV) first official class. The 8 hour course took place on the Panama City campus of Florida State University. Led by retired Navy SEAL Ed Naggiar, a group of men and a woman, all active duty learned what it takes to stand down, regroup and find a “new normal.”

Early on, I got to size them up and found that all seemed to be in great shape despite the fact that a few smoked cigarettes while waiting for the classroom to be unlocked. Ed started with a “lean into it” attitude and didn’t stop the whole day. You couldn’t help but feel motivated to try harder when listening to him. I want to say that the highlight was seeing everyone learn to paddleboard with none or very little experience, however, it was not the case. Two situations in particular stand out.

First was when I taught a yoga class on the paddleboards. If you don’t know already, yoga is more than just stretching, it is physically challenging and mentally tough too. As a yoga teacher I saw them try hard and fail to do certain yoga poses. Their failures resulted in a refreshing fall into the water and a quick smile on their faces! No worries! They knew in advance these yoga poses wouldn’t be easy. The second situation that stands out was when we were in the classroom learning about advancing our self goals. We were tasked with creating our own personal mission statements. After each of us spent time creating our mission statements, we shared them with our neighbors.

This turned out to be so much more than a lame self-improvement course. I am proud to be part of SUPV and look forward to teaching many more combat vets in the future as a part of SUPV.  Watch our video to see veterans in resting pose on paddle boards.

Special thanks to Hovie (
http://www.hoviesup.com/
) for the paddleboards.

Balance: Fighting Zombies

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I was reading Will Gadd’s most excellent blog, where he imparts some wisdom found in his 45 years. He writes about eating right and most of all about moving and breathing. Carving out that time everyday to be physically active. Maybe it’s walking the dogs, running, doing yoga, dancing – it’s up to you. But it’s important to not confuse busyness, or being online with movement and breath.  The very active Gadd uses the example of seeing “a super fat lady” walking the hills early in the morning. She’s his hero because she’s committed to reshape her mornings and walk everyday.

I’m one of those people who annoys my kids because I’ll talk to anyone. It’s my countrified upbringing: I can’t help it. When I see someone super out of shape walking, I’ve been known to roll down my window, shoot a thumbs up out the window and say, “Keep Going! You’re doing great!”  Because what I see is someone who got to a point where they said, “No more. I’ve abused and neglected myself long enough.” And now they walk, breathe, to find a new take on life.

The truth: you just never get those hours back where you blasted someone in Disqus comments for 2  hours. We never have those hours back when we answer emails that could wait, played the latest online game devoted to collecting things that aren’t real. Or the time we went to dinner with our kids and were more interested in the virtual conversation of texting.  Everyone has to get out of this rut and move and breathe. Besides, as we get older, our waistline slips down around our freakin’ hips. At some point people should start seeing that burger and fries, that big bag of salty chips, that extra stuffed and fried burrito as an enemy deserving to be blown to bits with high caliber rounds. Not as something to passively apply to thighs, hips, and arteries, as too many do.

You never have that time back, those lost chances to breathe when you fell pray to instantaneous communications. One of the big downfalls of all of this virtual non-face-to-face chatter is the perception that all of it matters. It doesn’t.

Or that it’s more important that you. It isn’t.

So we have to be ruthless when it comes to taking that 30, 45, or 60 minutes to ourselves, because it’s a struggle for all of us to find balance. Especially if you get yelled out by someone who has had a crappy day, and in turn decides to make yours crappy too. Don’t get involved in their power struggle, their martinet ways because it’s more about them than it is about you. Be a zombie slayer: push them off, and those time snakes away, (do the double tap). Find those precious minutes to suck in fresh air, move and find a rhythm until you’re groovin.’

Whether it’s yoga, bicycling, walking, playing with your dogs, or walking around the backyard at midnight in the heat of the summer watering the garden. Grab that chance to disconnect from the noise and chaos accosting you to move and breathe. Believe it or not, as you do, you’ll find the stillness and peace you’ve been craving.

Watch Will Gadd move and breathe.

Dear Yogis: We Own This War

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“The world belongs to humanity. America belongs to the American people, not the Republican or the Democratic party.” -The Dalai Lama talking to Piers Morgan

This is a true story. The names have been omitted to protect the truly loving and caring.  A group of well-heeled yogis, who have every earthly possession to make their lives comfortable, were given the opportunity to donate a few bucks to support our new community yoga classes for veterans at the VA and a local base. Their response: they didn’t think they should have to donate something that the government should already be providing.

This response isn’t atypical of those who are far removed from the realities of the politics that control the conditions of our veterans and their families. The truth is that funds are stretched, and while one would think that the VA provides yoga teachers at every single hospital, it doesn’t.  We think it should too, and have written about the disparity of funding for yoga and other movement-based therapies in governmental institutions. However, to lounge on principles is akin to driving in a luxury car through a tough neighborhood and pretend to not notice the stress and suffering out the window.

Rob Schware, the Big Poppa of the philanthropic yoga movement and co-founder of the Give Back Yoga Foundation, writes in the Huffington Post, Veterans Trauma and Yoga: Are we moving quickly enough?  He writes: 

Are there enough yoga teachers and therapists to complement the work of other health professionals addressing the growing health crisis those now face who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan, and even Vietnam? 

Rob lists several resources, including our grassroots partner, Yoga For Vets. A civilian, Rob has an interesting professional background, and could easily sit back on the laurels of his career. But thankfully, he doesn’t. 

I think the real issue is whether people are willing to put aside their personal politics, and help those in need.  War is one of the less desirable products of our own humanity, and because we are a part of it, we at WarRetreat accept the consequences (both good and bad) that come from it. We know personally that war brings tragedy and suffering on every level. Driven by our own humanity, we own it. Because of this, we’ve witnessed the fruits of ownership, which is a sense of community, caring, and the creation of ways to address the suffering of others to offer a helping hand.  Without ownership, we might as well lease a big car and drive through life, ignoring our environs.

This isn’t to say that we would dissuade anyone from being politically astute and even active.  However, WarRetreat draws lines when it comes to bringing politics onto the mat –there is a fine line between activism and politics, especially in the U.S. where we live in a highly divided political environment that is both provoking and suffocating.  One thing for sure, talking about politics makes people talk in short, desperate sounding choppy phrases. It tenses people up and closes people off. It seems to be the antithesis of finding stress reduction through yoga. Our goal is to help those who have been through the confusion of war find a bit of peace so that they may live the productive lives they desire. 

We Get Mail: Looking In Savannah

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We’re a blog written by an Army wife, and the GF of a USMC veteran. That is to say, we’re rocking all day long, going from one activity to the next. We work, we volunteer, Jillian teaches and is finishing her degree, and we love Facebook. Sometimes we forget the blog, and at best we could be called Twitter-deficient.  That’s why we’re always surprised when someone writes, reminding us that we have readers. We’ll share our mail here.

Looking in Savannah Writes: We are a therapeutic yoga studio. We have two certified trauma-sensitive yoga teachers  and a Level II irest teacher. We just opened and really want to work with vets. Can’t seem to find a way into the military….any suggestions????

If you want to find a way into the military, visit a recruiter. Just sign the little line and you’ll be on a bus to basic training in no time.

Oh?  That’s not what you mean? Okay, so here’s  the abyss of all these trauma-yoga training programs we’ve witnessed or heard of. They know the yoga, some of them even know the V.A. But what’s missing for most is the meaning of outreach. So first, let’s figure it out. What is it?

Outreach is nothing more than getting to know the community around you, figuring out what people do, and how they are connected.  So that’s your first job. You might start by talking to your students. Do they have relatives in the service? Is one of your quietest students a veteran? Who do they know? What veteran or troop support organizations are within a 5 mile radius of your studio? Does the local university have an ROTC?  Is there a military spouses club listed on Facebook?  What is your local VFW Post doing? Speaking of …what is your yoga studio doing on Memorial Day?  Are you going to the cemetery? Are you helping place flags?  It’s going to pay off if you don’t see yourselves as a stand out, but really work to become part of the functioning group of military and veteran supporters in Savannah.

I know, you want to find a way into the military. And I have this vision of you knocking on the door, and no one listening. It’s an awful scene. But I really think the approach is wrong. Remember, you want them. It’s not that they don’t want you, but they have a zillion other things to do. So do your homework and start having a conversation with those around you. Start a weekly or a monthly program for veterans and spouses. Be tenacious: go meet some of these organizations or groups in person. Invite them to your studio –and if they won’t come to you, go to them.  Go teach in a gym on base next to the exercise machines and weights. Who cares? If you can’t find peace with the grunting of people lifting weights nearby, then your students aren’t going to find it on the battlefield. Stick with whatever you decide. Slowly, you’ll build both credibility and trust.

In Savannah, there are loads of milfolks around you. Hunter Army Airfield is there,  Fort Stewart is an hour away. I’d focus on bringing military vets in from Hunter, as well as their spouses before I went all the way to Ft. Stewart. While building your own program, learn about the structure of the hospital, behavioral health, warrior transition unit, and how they all work together. You can also learn about MWR and the fitness centers. As you do, you’ll be ready for when the times comes to pursue base activities, but remember, focus on where you are at the present and build your program where you are. If you don’t, you’ll waste a lot of time trying to pound on doors before you find the right one. Worry less about “getting into the military,” than building a practice that appeals and is welcoming. The veterans will want to come to you.

Our thanks to Kate at Ganesha’s Place! We wish you all the best, and it looks like you’ve got a FABULOUS start with a terrific crew!

Coast Guard Finds Balance, Fitness Through Yoga

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Kudos to the Coast Guard for including the great article.  Loads to be proud of. -Kanani

“ Our unit is always looking for ways to hone our physical fitness program and improve our ability to interdict narcotics and pirates. Yoga offered something different that could compliment our current exercise regime.”  -L.t. j.g. Shannon Hickey, Pacific Tactical Law Enforcement Team, Assistant Operations Officer

Written by Petty Officer 1st Class Allyson E.T. Conroy and Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Anderson.

The Coast Guard’s Pacific Tactical Law Enforcement Team members scale cargo ships, dig through the holds of fishing vessels and board unsteady go-fasts bobbing in the ocean. They seize narcotics being smuggled into the United States – more than two tons of cocaine already this year – and combat piracy near Somalia.

Tactical law enforcement team members Petty Officer 3rd Class Elliot Felix (foreground) and Lt. Brian Finn (background) perform one in a series of poses. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Allyson E.T. Conroy.

Tactical law enforcement team members Petty Officer 3rd Class Elliot Felix (foreground) and Lt. Brian Finn (background) perform one in a series of poses. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Allyson E.T. Conroy.

To perform these demanding missions – often conducted near the equator where temperatures soar above 100 degrees – the team must be in top physical condition. For the Pacific Tactical Law Enforcement Team that meant employing the use of a powerful tool – the yoga mat.

To read the rest of this exceptional article, please click here to go to the Coast Guard Compass, the official blog of the United States Coast Guard.

In San Francisco: Whitewater Rafting & Women Veterans Retreat

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Honoring The Path of the Warrior is having its Spring Fundraiser, a raffle to fund a 

Whitewater Rafting trip and a retreat for women veterans. Go here to purchase your tickets!  Your support is needed in order to make them happen, as all of the events are offered to OEF, OIF and Gulf War veterans at no charge. The raffle prizes are some of the best I’ve seen: resorts in Mexico and Calistoga, a white water rafting trip, massage, art work. Really, kids. These are serious prizes.

Here’s what one veteran had to say about a past HTPW event:

“Coming to the one-day events with other veterans, I feel like I am coming together with my family.  As vets we kind of walk with the same rhythm.  There is a sense of kinship.  You know that other person understands what is essential.  You’ve lived on what is essential and you know you can be 

fine with that. This is why mindfulness and meditation goes so well with veterans.  It is about getting down to that essential stuff – breathing, walking in silence.  It is like what we learned and were trained in, in order to do our duties. Maybe you are being mindful in a different way, but it is still mindfulness.   I have no desire to meet my fellow vets out at a bar.  It is the place and quality of being held and cared for that makes these days very appealing and healing.”

- Paige Jenkins, U.S. Navy

Facilitated by Dyan Ferguson, a former US Army officer, Honoring the Path of the Warrior is a program that assists post 9/11 and Persian Gulf veterans in making a positive transition from military to civilian life. We provide a pathway of meditation and mindfulness that welcomes, honors, and integrates their service and leadership. 

Their programs combine nature and engaging physical activities; meditation, Sensory Awareness and mindfulness practices. The intent is to provide Veterans with connection, community and tools that support them in using their strengths and experiences to find a meaningful and productive path in civilian life. 

The Gratitude Post: Friends far and then near (and a book giveaway)

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 I write this while seated on the back porch watching the dusk arrive, and the lights streetlights below me turn on. Cars with their lights on, snake down the gently windy road. Everyone is on their way somewhere. Even those of us who work out of our homes, whose choice of profession gives them both the luxury and sometimes boredom of being here 24/7. Well, almost.

Tomorrow I leave for Chicago. Daughter wants to see the city, and I realize it’s been over eighteen years since I last saw Seurat. It’s time to see the Field Museum, walk along Michigan Avenue, and eat good food.

“I thought this was going to be a family vacation,” said the teen age daughter. It’s hard. Sometimes teenagers seem to want nothing to do with family, other times they demand exclusivity. Her complaint was heard, but alas, too late. But I’m sure, Daughter will survive a bit of parental sociability. She forgets: when you work out of your house, sometimes the only thing you talk to is the dog or cat. 

It seems as I get older the chance of me knowing someone somewhere increases, especially since Facebook. So I’m meeting my friends Tin & Phoenix, and I hope Zen Pundit, Blackfive, Steve Baskis and Counterintuitivity for pizza on Friday night. You might want to read the blog Tin & Phoenix, as she (a former Marine) has a book giveaway for a book on Fallujah.

I smile, because as a child I had many penpals in what seemed like far flung places: Palos Verdes, Virginia, and even ones close to home. I loved receiving letters from them, telling me about their lives. Often, I’m sure I had little to say. I had a dog, lived in a region of farms and rivers, where peat would blow in and make us all sneeze. Nothing seemed very exotic. I remember one time the penpal in Virginia sent me a T-shirt that said, “Virginia is for lovers.” You would have thought it was Gucci. I was all of ten, and wore that shirt everyday. I had no idea what it meant. But it was exotic enough for me.

But now we have Facebook, and the kick of it is, sometimes I save up enough money to meet my friends too. What brings us together?  A sense of humor, persistent good cheer, a sense of irony, a love of words. And for some, the military, but more to the point: the experience of war. It is life changing, and those who have watched loved ones go away, or others who have served and been through the hell of it, take great comfort in knowing the military support community will always be there.  There exists strength and vulnerability, and the friendships between veterans are ones that last a lifetime. Plus, there’s always a parade of new friends coming by. That’s where I’ll be Friday night in Chicago: at a parade meeting new friends.

As the sun finally sets, I reflect: There’s much to be grateful for, especially friends.

In Muir Beach CA: 31 March, Hike and Meditate (no cost event)

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Dyan Ferguson of Honoring The Path of The Warrior has an event coming up. You can read all about it here on this link. WarRereat has made the notations in parenthesis to show how it fits with our mission of movement and breath.

From their flyer: 

  • Come relax and have fun!  (Breathe)
     
  • Hike through the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (Move)
     
  • Visit the Green Gulch Farm Zen Center (Share)
     
  • Learn meditation and mindfulness tools you can use in your daily life (Experience)
Click on the photo below to be take to the registration info.

Sunday Life Advice: “Everything’s Changed, Including Me”

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There comes a point in your life, where you realize nothing has ever gone to plan. Or in my case, any plan I might have had, was always pulled back into line by the hand of God. Once you take the ego out of it, things become so much easier. Sometimes I think stubborness is the work of the devil (though not all resistance is bad).  But that’s a philosophical conversation that ought to be had in a pub, with a drink, and maybe a book of Yeats nearby.

What's on my desk right now.

Some people talk about “keeping their sanity” or staying on “this side of normal.” But what’s normal now, certainly wasn’t even on the horizon of where I thought I would be say –20 years ago. Or how about 30?  40?  50?  Well, yes, I am old enough to have a 50 years ago.  Normal changes.

I’m bringing this up because many are coming home from war. Who they are now, may not have been on the horizon of their consciousness even 2 years ago. And yet they are changed. The challenge set forth is a false one: that they must get back to who they were before war. But in reality, no one really ever gets back to who they were even 2 years ago. Everything changes, and most of all, your experiences have shaped your perspective in ways you will still be discovering 20 years from now.

Families change too. Spouses, children, parents and friends. You’re not alone in feeling the drift, the growth, regret, hope, nostalgia, and even wistfulness. They’re in as much need of counseling and letting go of the myth everything (meaning you, them, or you and them) will revert back to the way things were. Because they know they won’t, and while they accept and soldier on, it doesn’t make it any less painful. One thing for sure: we can never go back in time. (Sorry, but the VA has yet to develop a Tardis). So never think you’re alone, because change is never easy for everyone. But one thing can make it easier: people you meet who will act as guides.

Just let those guides through an open door once in awhile. Who knows –it could be a person, a book, a poem, a song, a movie, an animal, or it could just be a day when you go outside and take in the open sky, noticing the shades of a sunrise. Some will be long term influences, others will just happen in passing. Look for those that have set off a spark within that compels you to take some positive steps to grow.  Growth is change, it happens slowly. And while the mental or physical changes in you might have happened quickly, progress comes one step at a time. It’s not always easy. But just keep going toward the light, and when an open hand comes your way: grasp it.

Side note: Big nod of gratitude to the Nick Vogt Family, whose daily postings about their son’s progress on Facebook have been a window into a family built on unconditional love. We are thankful they share their journey with the public.