#Metoo into 42

This couples yoga project has been stewing for a while, but it really got cooking as I have been contemplating the the #Metoo movement. It is a movement that encapsulates a lot of different, nuanced and complex situations involving struggles with a pervasive imbalance of power. So, for a while I was overwhelmed when I considered what my part could be to bring more power balance to our society. Then I realized my contribution was right there all along. I realized that my couples yoga offering has something to contribute to this change, on an interpersonal level. I guess you could say that the political is personal… and interpersonal.

Practicing yoga together as a couple creates a unique opportunity for the couple to experience intimacy between each other and within one’s own body. Yoga is an ancient practice that uses a series of poses (asanas) that allows us to read the subtle messages of our own body. I have found that couples yoga gives us the opportunity to read the subtle messages of our partner’s body and to respond to those messages in a supportive and loving way.

The idea of offering couples yoga sprung up while I was immersed in my yoga teacher training. I jumped into training at a time when our family’s lives were full of demanding jobs, young childcare giving and a gravely ill mother. My capstone assignment was to create a yoga class series that focused on a specialization of our interest. This was one more item on the “to do” list and I could tell that all of these obligations were starting to encroach on my and Ben’s couple time and energy. One day, it dawned on me that my yoga training could, in fact, be a way for us to spend more time together if I focused my project on couples yoga. My ever-supportive Ben was up for practicing with me!

After our couples yoga session, I felt something shift between us. We felt more connected, more deeply connected. Upon reflecting on this session I understand the shift neurobiologically, energetically and spiritually, which is interesting. But what was most valuable is simply what we experienced. I felt fully seen by him. I felt physically and emotionally supported through his touch. I felt the breath of our bodies resonate.

Looking back on this fully embodied experience together and in light of our current cultural context, I believe couples yoga can give us an opportunity to practice being present in our own body first and then being present with our partner’s body. When we are sincerely present with our own and others’ experiencing, we are more likely to make wholesome and compassionate choices.

May Eros Yoga be an offering of shared power for our world. Namaste.