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The Anxiety of High Standards

2022-05-17T23:50:13+00:00

The Anxiety of High Standards It was only six weeks from the time the first strange patch appeared on Melissa Holt’s scalp til she was totally bald. But even that dramatic signal didn’t stop her from pushing to meet sales targets, make money, and please clients. She just put on a wig and false eyelashes and kept going. It took a worldwide lockdown to slow Melissa down enough to examine her lifestyle.  As a successful sales rep of medical equipment, Melissa appeared to be living her dream life. Her need to achieve was a sign of anxiety. And [...]

The Anxiety of High Standards2022-05-17T23:50:13+00:00

How I spend my yoga privilege

2021-09-14T17:04:42+00:00

Depression and anxiety are frequent visitors for me. The trick is to wait them out, not battle them directly. Instead I meditate daily and practice yoga asana - either through my gym membership ($35/month) or online (internet access $80/month). In my yoga teacher training (approximately $3500), I learned to meditate. Practicing regularly reminds me that I’m not my thoughts, especially not the ones that say, “You suck. You’re a horrible person.” This is only depression talking.  Yoga asana reminds me that I am patient and strong enough to wait out this enemy. Physical practice connects my mind to my body and [...]

How I spend my yoga privilege2021-09-14T17:04:42+00:00

How therapists cope with compassion fatigue

2020-09-08T11:02:42+00:00

By Tannis Price, therapist-in-training Have you ever found yourself feeling numb to other people’s problems, or to sad stories on the news? Have you ever screened a call from a friend because you just “didn’t have it in you” to hear them vent?  Everyone feels this way sometimes, but if you’re in a career on the frontlines of treating trauma, that numbness may be a result of “compassion fatigue,” or burnout. Several studies found that 27 to 37 percent of trauma therapists experienced emotional burnout persistently.   As a therapist in training, it’s one of the risks I’m most worried about. Compassion [...]

How therapists cope with compassion fatigue2020-09-08T11:02:42+00:00

Yoga at home for depression and anxiety

2020-04-13T09:30:39+00:00

“Isolation makes any problem bigger,” says Leslie Wilkin, a clinical social worker. Normally, Leslie Wilkin sees her clients at Island Health in Nanaimo face-to-face for depression, anxiety, addictions, and other mental health challenges. Due to Covid-19, in-person therapy has ceased, and her clients have less access to personal supports because of social distancing. Wilkin worries that this disruption to routine could make existing conditions worse. “We look to the people in our network for cues of safety and reassurance. If you can’t get a hold of your counsellor, you can’t go to your group, you’re not meeting friends, and all you’re [...]

Yoga at home for depression and anxiety2020-04-13T09:30:39+00:00

Christmas Mourning

2019-12-11T15:47:45+00:00

Last week I attended our workshop with Alica Forneret on grief. I was really looking forward to digging in and talking about grief, how it can swirl around a drain slowly, and then suddenly burst the pipes when you’re not expecting it.  You might think this is a bit late as a marketing attempt for a workshop. That would be true. But grief doesn’t let you meet your deadlines. Grief has its own interesting timeline.    When my father died December 7th was the one-year anniversary of my father’s death. His death was a surprise, but not unexpected: he was 85. [...]

Christmas Mourning2019-12-11T15:47:45+00:00

How do you know if you’re Spiritually Bypassing?

2019-05-06T11:22:13+00:00

"A yoga studio can be this weird place where you do something together but remain alone, boundaried by a strip of rubber, a Mona-Lisa smile, and a fixed gaze. The premise is that “going inside” is all that’s needed for your life — and all life — to improve. That can be framed in the jargons of self-improvement or spirituality, equally. " -- Matthew Remski, author  Yoga Outreach had the opportunity to interview Matthew Remski, author, yoga-culture critic, and keynote speaker at Exploring Boundaries, Building Bridges: Connecting Yoga, community, and self YO: The term Spiritual Bypassing (SB) is becoming more common [...]

How do you know if you’re Spiritually Bypassing?2019-05-06T11:22:13+00:00

Do grouchy, judgemental smokers belong at yoga? Yes!

2019-03-11T18:49:16+00:00

Q and A with Julie Peters In preparation for Yoga Outreach's first conference (May 25), we asked the scheduled panelists what turns people OFF about yoga. Here's a thoughtful response from Julie Peters, yoga teacher, writer, and owner of Ocean and Crow Yoga studio in East Vancouver. YO: Can you smoke, drink, or eat McDonald’s, and still claim to practise yoga? JP: Food and substances aren’t good or evil; the important thing to consider is why we are consuming them. Lately, I’ve been working a lot with the differences between desire and craving, pleasure and distraction. True desires move us [...]

Do grouchy, judgemental smokers belong at yoga? Yes!2019-03-11T18:49:16+00:00

Chew on this, Blue Monday

2019-01-21T13:48:26+00:00

If Blue Monday is a duvet day, Depression is a bare mattress, a pile of stinking sheets and a coin washer four flights down.   This is not a typical Blue Monday post with five tips for overcoming the most depressing day of the year. Because real depression is NOT a case of the Mondays. It’s a relentless case of the every-days.   Usually - but not always - solutions are a combination of approaches, including medication, diet and/or exercise. But even following your treatment plan to the letter, doesn’t prevent relapses. Some 80% of people with diagnosed depression will experience [...]

Chew on this, Blue Monday2019-01-21T13:48:26+00:00

Honouring our Hero Friends

2018-12-26T12:10:46+00:00

This year I was a hero for someone. I feel okay about saying that, because more than a decade ago, when I lived in Scotland a workmate was a hero for me.   I was living with a boyfriend with a bad temper. He would shout about laundry done incorrectly, wasting energy by baking potatoes in the oven, and milk spilled from a faulty bottle. Literally spilled milk. I used to come to work with what I thought were interesting, amusing tales of his craziness. But my co-worker’s eyes stretched wide open. These stories didn’t sound right to normal people, I [...]

Honouring our Hero Friends2018-12-26T12:10:46+00:00

Girls Only – How trauma changes the brain

2018-12-06T16:00:22+00:00

Girls’ brains react differently than boys’  Girls process trauma differently than boys. Apparently, estrogen prompts a larger area of neurons to fire during adverse events, leading girls to remember traumatic incidents for longer and with more intensity than boys.   You might remember Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s recent testimony that the reason she could remember the faces and laughter of the two young men who tried to rape her when she was 15 was because of chemicals released by the brain during stress. It’s why those memories haven’t faded or stopped affecting her behaviour 40 years later.     Faced with [...]

Girls Only – How trauma changes the brain2018-12-06T16:00:22+00:00

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