The exhale

I teach several yoga classes for seniors, including at a memory care unit in a CCRC. Each Thursday morning for 45 minutes, we do a sequence designed for joint mobility, cognitive function and balance development. The goal of the class is to get folks moving and hopefully help them to de-stress a bit. These are folks who are at the end of their lives, they might not be able to eat, get dressed or go to the bathroom without assistance. I see them for just a sliver of the day but my time there always leaves an impact on me. 

At the end of class this week, I asked my yoga students, "what's your favorite yoga pose?" I'm not asking them for the Sanskrit name, I'm just curious if anything we do actually resonates with them. Not what they think in their minds, but what they feel in their bodies. Mind you, 90% of these folks are using mobility assisting devices like wheelchairs or walkers. 

In response to my question, some said they liked twisting the best. This is great for spinal mobility and digestion. One person pointed to their knees and a few others just smiled without giving an answer. 

One woman spoke up and said, "I love the exhale"

And damn that hit me. The exhale represents the letting go, the setting down, the releasing. We inhale and exhale all day long, often without much attention to it. But when we direct our attention to the respiration process we can encourage our parasympathetic nervous system to come online. This is our rest and digest system. And if we're operating in the sympathetic nervous system all day then we aren't getting the necessary "chill" or "zen" that we need. 

I responded by saying, "Yup, we have to exhale so we can inhale again. And that's pretty cool because it keeps us alive." That got a laugh. The laughter in the community is a critical piece of these classes. The laughter is a medicine just like the movement. These students love to joke and laugh about getting old. They aren't embarrassed about their situation because it is what it is. It is an honor to hold space for them in this capacity. 

The exhale though. It's the reminder that we need all parts of the cycle. That in order to rise, we have to root. That in order to create space we must let go. We have to exhale and when we do, it feels so damn good.