Emotional Release in Yoga: Why Emotions Come Up on the Mat with Byron and Michael

0:00 Today we're going to be talking about why emotions show up or come up or experienced in yoga. Welcome to the going pro. Yoga podcast, nugget series. My name is Michael Henry and I'm Byron de Marseille and he's short 15 minute episodes.

0:16 We're going to be answering some of the most common questions in the yoga industry so that you can walk away with the answers in a short period of time. That's right. Michael with each topic, that we choose will be discussing it from two different perspectives, the teacher, and the student.

0:30 And I'll be approaching these questions as a physiotherapist or physical therapist with over 10 years experience, treating some of the most common and complex injuries. In my guidance will be from the perspective of having taught 7000 classes, roughly 10,000 hours over 10 years.

0:44 Welcome to our podcast. Welcome back to the going pro yoga podcast. Today. We're going to be talking about why emotions show up or come up, or experienced in yoga? Whether it be in your own yoga practice, maybe in a teacher training.

1:00 I mean there's different ways that we can approach this topic, but emotions in yoga, they're correlated and we're going to kind of deconstruct this over the next 15 minutes for you. Come at it from different perspectives.

1:10 Share what we've seen in our last teacher training that we basically just finished up about a week and a half ago. So we feel like this is fresh in our mind and we wanted to deconstruct this topic. So as usual, we have Byron across from me here, and we're going to break down this topic.

1:25 So Byron, how do you think we should start this off? Hmm. Well, I'll start by saying that I'm on day, two of the detox and my energy levels are not as high as they, you know, usually are. But I'm doing it because evidently they get a lot higher. I'm a like day 6.

1:43 So I'm gonna let you lead this one, even though I have a lot that I probably will say, okay, fair enough. So for me, when it comes to emotions in yoga. And from what I've seen, particularly in this training and how I talk about it from an anatomical perspective is that we our bodies actually hold onto emotions or they can actually can be stored particularly in the fossa is probably more of a common way of that. It's talked about but also I think in the muscles and just in kind of any parts of the, the

2:15 soft tissue of the body and to probably break this down in the simplest way that I can think of is that, you know, As humans, we experience emotions throughout an entire life from the moment that we are basically conceived, right?

2:31 Were in the womb. We're going to start to feel things. But because the way that our bodies are developed slowly over time and, you know, our brains develop slowly over time and it takes, you know, years and years and years for us to become an adult and actually be able to put words together, like, I'm currently doing right now.

2:48 We don't necessarily have the same intellect. When were younger, but we can still experience the same emotions. When were younger. So for small, and we're experiencing these emotions and we can't make sense of them, whether it be some fear, maybe some worry, some anxiety, some concerns, something like this.

3:05 We're going to be experiencing these emotions and not actually be able to make sense of them. Which means as a young person, we're going to store them in our body or we're going to cry and we're going to lash out and we're going to, you know, do all the things that kids do. In sometimes those can turn into these traumatic moments and stuff like that for us as young people, or childhood traumas. And, you know, all this stuff, that's probably pretty familiar with with in this yoga industry,

3:31 talking about that type of stuff. And I think part of yoga is because there's so many elements that are involved with the physical aspect, but then there's also the vulnerability aspect opening the heart and, you know, basically allowing ourselves to tap in inwardly.

3:48 That there's we're creating these channels or we're creating these opportunities for these emotions to come through. So I think there's been moments that you've seen where people will literally just start crying in the middle of a class or maybe in like a cool down or something like that.

4:03 If they're opening up their hips or something along those lines or at least. I've heard a lot about that happening. I haven't actually seen it myself or actually experienced it myself, but I do know that it happens and to me that's just opportunities for the body to release these. That weren't experienced in the way that they needed to be experienced when we were younger, because we couldn't actually make sense of them.

4:25 So it's actually healthy to kind of allow these emotions to come through. But yeah, can you speak to maybe some moments or some times where that's kind of come up for you? A lot of them, a lot of mine, a lot of thoughts are swirling around right now, and I'm just I was going to ask you your experience. So I'm glad you shared that.

4:42 As far as you haven't had that emotional Outburst in class. I have I wouldn't call it an outburst. First, but I've had a definitely a storm of emotions experienced and I would credit pigeon pose a hip opener for a lot of that, but I'm gonna, but that getting to off track of what I'm thinking of the most right now is acceptance, and how being seen? And being heard is something so many people in this world lack and we might fluctuate from lacking it, not lacking it. But even back to being like, a

5:19 child lack of acceptance. Is the number one thing that happens when we come into this world Goochie Goochie. Goo little baby, you know, thank you for coming into the world. You know, like we acknowledge you. We see you. And some children.

5:33 Got that some children did not. So how somebody speaks to you. Is being seen and for yoga class. It's like for some people it's the only hour plus of their day where they actually shut the fuck up and they listen, they don't give people the opportunity to see them.

5:53 They're just constantly going. So I started to think about it from that perspective of when I'm speaking to people, how I'm speaking to people and touch is the number. I mean the most honest form of communication nonverbal where you're not speaking, you're Just touching somebody.

6:10 And that seems to be the number one way that at least I've noticed people get emotional is when there's touch but I what I think is that people are just desperately wanting to be seen and accepted and sometimes that's what the trigger is and we might not realize it all we know is that emotion comes up a song comes on, we feel an emotion.

6:35 Hopefully, we feel safe enough to express it and That safeness that safety, that protection that space holding that the yoga teacher is doing is ultimately the skill necessary to allow a student that experience. So that's what came up first.

6:57 Hmm. So I'm hearing that as yoga teachers, the ability for us, or the skill that we are developing or have learned or probably continuing to develop to hold space in a studio. In a classroom for, you know, 23 2016. People is something to hold, as something very valuable to the people in the room, like don't take it for granted. You are, you are a presence that is, and I've heard you say this before that, you know, someone in the room might be looking at you from the perspective as

7:34 being, that father figure that they didn't have or a brother that they, you know, they miss or a sister or a mother or something. No matter what the teacher is, whether it be gender, male or female. There's going to be someone in the class, that's going to see them and perceive them in a certain way, based off of some sort of emotional connection to Maybe their childhood, maybe to their adulthood, who knows, and whatever Trigger, or emotion that might come up based off of something that you say, maybe,

8:06 you know, maybe there's the physical touch involved as well. But I've, I guess what I'm saying or what I'm trying to say is that we have a we have a responsibility or a power, an unknown power of being able to support people with in a class or a studio that has an opportunity for them to be.

8:25 Kind of cracked open or their heart to open up or their vulnerability to come through, maybe some tears to come through. Maybe some emotions that come through. And excuse me. I think it's, yeah, it's something to talk about really is what it is. Like, you know, we're more powerful than we think but not in the sense of like, you know, we're strong and powerful and we have this superhuman power.

8:48 It's just more. So, just like, we have this ability to be able to help heal people in a way without actually trying to heal them. So, just by being ourselves and holding space, and sharing things that come from our heart, sharing things that come from our life experience from our day. And, you know, maybe it lands on some people and maybe a dozen. But if it does land on some people, and they have an amazing experience and they walk out of the out class, feeling fantastic or having these realizations

9:13 about something, you know, that they can reflect on from their life than I think that's just like an amazing thing to have Yes, yes, it is. Absolutely. I mean gosh, emotions are not by Nature intellectual. However, there is an intellectual route to take to tap into some of these emotions, and this is where everyone is so different. I can read positive affirmations, all class long, and you can do it and you're the best and You know, manifest, your desires, and that will have

9:54 a certain amount of people that respond to that positively, that opens them up emotionally, because it brings up inspiration. It brings up, whatever holding space is also quiet and silence, giving space. Like, right now, I'm thinking, I got to talk and fill in the Gap because we don't want this to be a super long episode.

10:15 But if I could demonstrate the pausing that I could say to let things, These land after I'm saying them. Well, that's a that's a nonverbal way of communication that tends to work in over my experience tends to work. A little bit more for everyone. So yeah, it was really interesting to get into holding space because it's something I'm very passionate about. It's not all about us.

10:44 It's not all about you. The teacher, and sometimes we think it is and we're in this performance mode and we have all this stuff. We want to share and we want to make it. But what happens is especially if you don't have the energy to show up that day in that way.

10:58 How do you provide an experience? I get it. The rock star performance. Classes are awesome when you just start on fire with the energy, but what about those days? You're not on. Because it's exhausting to be on fire every day and it's just not possible.

11:12 I experienced this in a class the other day that I was taking from one of our friends. I won't mention his name, but he wasn't on fire and he requires being on fire every class, but he wasn't and everything. He said, just came off of his dull and his normally funny stuff.

11:30 He couldn't be funny and he hadn't developed a skill on how to hold space for others in a quiet way. Which is all I needed to do turn up some music or turn down the music, your choice, and just let them expression of an emotion happen. Naturally.

11:46 You don't need to provoke that emotion. So yeah, switch gears into the yoga teaching mode, because I think that's where I thrive and have a lot of experience and stories, I can share with you guys. When I remember being a student holding pigeon pose and being very uncomfortable, and just being there and, like, trying to identify is this painful, or is this a sensation?

12:11 And when the heck, are we going to get out of this pose and three minutes would go by two minutes felt like ten years. And if I hit a certain point, I mean, that emotion would shift. It went from anxiety. Get me out of here.

12:26 Impatience. And something occasionally would shift into Stillness quietness. Wow. I didn't know this was here and I think by our nature, if we push our edges and our boundaries And I mean, boundaries more in a physical way and eventually that becomes an emotional way it, but it's like running a marathon.

12:51 All of a sudden you break the Finish Line, you ball. You said you could drop down on your knees, you ball your eyes out. It's an emotional experience. I was having a conversation with a girl today. Who's into Ashtanga Yoga 27 year old Austin?

13:05 And she's talking about this chest opening. She's doing giving her, she's having emotional experiences, an Ashtanga. And I realized after talking to her that these back bends were happening at the end of practice. I figured they were because that's the way a lot of classes are sequence.

13:21 So after having gone through this storm and kind of a survived a yoga class. She's now opening her heart and she's having an emotional experience. She's accrediting it. The intellectually. She's also a Doctor, by the way, so she's very smart.

13:36 So, she's intellectual. She's crediting to, to the teachers with the teacher is telling and that's basically something about like if you open your chest, you're going to cry and you're going to open your heart and something about the inhale as well. Like you're going to cry more and I just didn't buy into that. Just with my experience.

13:55 I was like, know you survived a really hard experience and you've been very soft and feminine most of your life and now you're being masculine. And from this masculine push. Your emotions are rising and the emotions are coming out in the form of Tears For You. Some people's anger.

14:13 So, yeah, I think I was, that's a valuable share. That could also be applied in a reciprocal, reversible way, where somebody's been pushed pushed pushed their whole life. And now I'm suddenly quiet down and they become you in and that brings up something. So, yeah, it's, it's such an interesting deep talk at I topic.

14:32 I don't think you can just say that, oh, emotions live in our hips and they're going to come out. When you stretch your hips, such a complicated organism this, Human body, combined with The Prana. So, but ultimately, I do just believe opinion.

14:47 Why's that, like, the emotional aspect of yoga is the most powerful and is what leads to the spiritual? Mmm-hmm. Thank you for sharing that in the last one of the last two things that you said. I just want to kind of reiterate because I think it was really important to here and probably relatable to our audience.

15:10 Depending on where they might, sit is. I heard two different types of people. One person who is possibly, that go, go, go type, A personality never really stops and then they have an opportunity to stop in yoga class. And that's slowing down.

15:24 Is what evokes? The emotional release, because they sit in Stillness. Maybe they actually have a time to reflect for a moment. Maybe the yoga teacher says, something says a word or says a phrase that reminds them of something, and now all of a sudden, they're in Stillness reflecting on That and then emotions come through in that way. And then on the contrary we have the person who is typically, okay with the Stillness through, you know, that have a little bit more that feminine energy.

15:50 Maybe not as much as that. Go, go go, but then they go into a power yoga class, and they get pushed beyond what their normal limits are, and they allow themselves to be pushed and they push themselves. And now that masculine energy as you described. It is, allowing these emotions to come through in a different way, as well, like you said in tears, so, You know, there's not one way of it happening.

16:13 It can happen in so many different ways, and I'm just describing to that kind of came up based off of what you were saying, is that it can come from slowing down and it can come from speeding up, possibly or pushing yourself.

16:24 And, you know, for me I'm more of a go, go go. So slowing down for me is really beneficial and possibly, where a lot of my emotions will come through. So yeah. I just wanted to mention that because I thought it was really important point that you, you said very For you, but I wanted to just make sure that it was heard because I think for some people that are listening, they might be able to categorize themselves on like, where do I fit in that? What do I probably need a little

16:49 bit more of? I mean, most people need a lot more Stillness, but also some people need a little bit more of a push, right? Depending on their composition and all that stuff and their General behaviors and conditioning. So and yeah.

17:02 Not too to make this such a long topic because we could probably talk about this for ages. And by no means are we experts when it comes to these emotional conversations? I mean, we all experience emotion. So we all have something to say about it, but I think we touched on a lot of important pieces. And yeah, I'd love to get someone in possibly. Like one of your mentors of Mara, who I think is a very valuable tool to bring on the podcast. And she can share her wisdom and

17:32 kind of take what we're saying and make it a note and make it in such a way that it's digestible more. So for our audience and then they can take a lot more out of it. What do you think about that? Yeah, I think being able to express things in a simple way is is the way to go in a Mara samata.

17:53 My mentor. She is, she's got that down. She has a way of slowing it down, making it. Easy to digest. So I'll talk to her and I'd love to have her on there now. That be cool. Great. Well, is there anything else when it kind of deconstructor shall we?

18:10 Just wrap this up? It's been about 15 minutes. This is usually our time for you short little series. Sure more will come later when we turn this off. But yeah, that sounds good. Yeah, cool. Alright. Well, we'll leave you with this for this week. Just something to contemplate.

18:22 You know, like Byron said, if we say too much, maybe something won't land. So maybe this shorter episode is going to give an opportunity for some things, the land for you and that's it. That's all we really need to say. And then we'll see you next week, and we'll go from there. Right on.

18:37 All right. Thanks so much for listening and have a beautiful beautiful day.