February, the month where the supermarkets are littered with love hearts, boxes of heart shaped chocolates & "Lovey-Dovey" greeting cards. Your not alone if it makes you do a quick 360 turn, head to the frozen section, grab yourself a pizza for one & a tub of Ben & Jerry's! We've all been there, failed dates, rejection & an on/off relationship with dating apps, you start to question everything about yourself, build protective boundaries & look to how you can improve every aspect of you & your life for the better.
If this sounds like you, yogis would say your heart chakra is more than likely blocked. If your new to the term "chakra" bear with me, it does make sense. Do you feel:
Lonely
Shy
Like you can't trust anyone fully
Down about yourself
Your still holding onto to past relationships
Like your holding a grudge
Scared to commit to someone
If yes, your heart chakra is blocked!
Don't worry it happens to us all through hurt, trauma & rejection. Simply, the energy system (chakra system) in your body isn't flowing quite as it should. Fears of being hurt & never finding love again cause a block in our heart chakra, which then affects our ability to communicate our feelings & feel good about ourselves.
So if your asking "Well what do i need to do?" The secret is it's probably going to be a daily task, choosing to love yourself, to forgive & let go
of past hurts. If your normal pattern of trying to make yourself feel better means going to get your hair done, hitting the gym more than normal or posting a few extra pictures on Instagram... I hope your doing it because your loving & caring for YOU more but eventually deep down you will have to get to the root of that block!
“The heart chakra is the root of how we love, we serve, we give, and receive.”
Yoga is not going to be your magic wand that can erase all heart break but it can help provide some of that inner work needed to help start your journey to heal your heart chakra. Bit by bit it can help you to re-build the relationship with yourself, slowly take down the boundaries that you've built around your heart & realise that you deserve to be loved!
"She fell in love with her yoga, then she fell in love with herself"
If you do one thing this valentines day, give yourself the love you deserve & try a few of these yoga postures! Light some candles, get your fave Pj's on & roll out your mat. You can also practice to one of my playlists on Spotify to really feel the love!
Yoga Postures To Open Your Heart
1. Thunderbolt Heart Hugs
Take it easy to start with and sit on your shins in thunderbolt pose. Inhale
& gently open your arms as wide as you can, lifting your chest & shining your heart up-to the sky. As you exhale slowly draw your arms in and wrap your arms around your chest giving yourself a big hug, protecting your heart. Repeat this a few times to bring awareness to the heart space & feel the warmth of your own love!
2. Cat & Cow
Come into a table top position, stacking your joints. As you inhale let your belly button dip down to the ground, lifting your chest & lengthen your collarbones. Then exhale and let your spine smoothly curve as the back of your heart lifts towards your ceiling. Smile to yourself as you repeat this a few times, syncing each move to your breath.
3. Melting Heart
From tabletop, keep your hips stacked over your knees and tiptoe your fingertips forward melting your heart down towards the floor. This is a great posture to open the chest and shoulders. Try to surrender into this shape and let the boundaries that you've built around your heart melt down into the ground below.
4. Upward Facing Dog
Ripple forward onto the front of your body so you are lying flat on the ground. Slide your hands back so your finger tips are in line with your breastbone, your elbows draw in and back. Push yourself away from the ground & try to straighten your arms. Let your heart pull through your arms, allow yourself to feel vulnerable but strong here. Show the world & yourself you are ready to receive & give love!
5. Camel
Coming back through tabletop position into kneeling with your knees under your hips & your toes tucked under (This is quite an advanced posture so don't worry if you can't do it today, there are many modifications which i teach in my beginners course) Explore reaching your hands back to find your heels, meanwhile pushing your hips forward & your chest up towards the sky!
Remember all things take time, just like healing your heart, postures like this take practice, so make sure to be kind with yourself & be patient.
Fall back in love with yourself, your imperfectly perfect self! Because you deserve to feel happy & be loved!
“You deserve to be loved. Even now, with all of your flaws. However difficult you think you are, there is someone out there who will love you.They will hold your hand through your anxiety. They will be there for you even on your worst, angriest days. They will allow you to grow and evolve in the way you need. And even when you make mistakes, they will take the time to understand you and forgive you.Love is not a thing that needs to be earned by changing yourself from the person you are.”
-Nikita Gill
Know that theres nothing you need to change & you will be loved again,
lets help each other melt away those boundaries.
Sending you all my love this Valentines Day,
Vanessa
Need to show yourself some love? Join myself & Hannah on the 12th of February for our 'Self Love Yin & Healing Sounds". 2 Hours of Yin Yoga & Sound Healing, we'd love to see you there.