Yin & Yang - Is it time to find yours?
Andrea Gaze Oct 2022
‘Find YOUR Yin & Yang’ is the theme of the final 10 week APT term for 2022. You can join this journey ANY time, when it resonates for you and you NEED it. It WILL change your life undoubtedly, for the better!
The beautiful part is - this is totally about YOU
To offer you insight, I will share my story to date. I have few major regrets in my life, as I believe life is one endless learning road. But, a little sooner may have helped me release the relentless pressure I put on myself for far too long. That said, often the information IS right in front of us, we are just not ready to receive or apply it.
Discovering Yin & Yang
Many years ago I was pretty unaware of what Yin & Yang was . . . I was a single Mum, doing her best to juggle parenting, 2 young sons, working 2 or 3 jobs and navigating the maze of modern life. Having been a professional ballet dancer and transitioning into Theatre Production, I was a hard task master on myself.
Needing support & strategies
After my Mum passed away I had no family support, I was struggling emotionally. I needed a safe outlet and someone to help me navigate through mental health issues. I took myself off to a Psychologist. It was at one of these sessions a light bulb moment happened for me. I was feeling overwhelmed with my life load and felt the heaviness of responsibility on my shoulders. My Psychologist said to me; Andrea you have too many arrows out and not enough arrows in. Go away and write down what your arrows out are and then what your arrows in are. It hit me like a truck! I knew I was totally out of kilter and realised I literally had almost no arrows coming in. I didn’t think for one moment I was in any way unique, but I did feel alone. It’s the first time it resonated with me, how much this imbalance was effecting my health in ALL areas. Physical, mental, spiritual and emotional. For me mathematical logic sometimes leads the way and this had that simple analogy.
What is Yin & Yang?
Together they create harmony & balance naturally.
Yang = Masculine, Challenge, strength
Yin = Feminine, Nurturing, release, softness
Yin & Yang cannot exist without the other.
Their definition & form can be ever changing, as the fluid circular symbol flows one into the other and a bit of each in one another. It represents ever changing synergising balance. This imbalance in our lives, within our minds into our body, is what leads to dis-ease.
Education to empowerment
In 2015, I did my BODYART Basic Level 1 Training. It was with Creator Robert Steinbacher and CEO Julia Przybilka from BODYART International. During this extraordinary education, I began to understand the importance of energy balance in movement and in life. An essential and clear way of BE-ing.
I am not saying I have it sorted by any means, I don’t. But the awareness that has grown through applying the Yin & Yang concept has been life changing!
In fact after I did the BODYART L1 training - I realised I was burnt out. I messaged Julia and said I needed to lighten my work load and wasn’t sure I’d be able to complete the many hours practise to become certified. She messaged me back & said, BODYART will always be there for you Andrea, take your time but try to complete it before the end of the year. This allowed me to relax and release my own self pressure immediately.
One step at a time – no set destination – feel not force.
I found myself practising each element because I wanted to, not because I had to. The first of the five elements is Earth - it’s gentle, nurturing and on the ground. Breathe focussed, bringing mobility into the spine and joints naturally. Perfect - it was the Yin energy I absolutely needed!
Every day I practised the first Earth element. Then a week or so later I began practising the second element - Wood. Wood brings the essential 4 pillars of movement into the mind & body - again with breathe focus.
I started to notice a wonderful sense of being fully present when I practised. Plus an alertness, focus and calm I had not experienced. I was coping better with stress and my practise was becoming a habit I looked forward to and did for myself.
I decided to start introducing an element of BODYART into my APT Small Group Classes. After I’d done the Earth & Wood, clients were messaging, saying how amazing they felt - they wanted more! They too were discovering their own Yin & Yang - becoming more aware of the essential balance by moving, breathing & BE-ing.
Earth element - BODYART - APT Small Group
This is not a pitch to buy into anything except the concept of yourself.
In these very tough challenging times, we can feel under pressure most of the time. Our Yang energy is too high, pumping cortisol through our bodies too fast and too often. By evaluating ‘how’ your energy ‘feels’ - there is an opportunity to change it and balance it.
EG. A walk in nature is Yin for me. For someone feeling stressed and walking is painful - it may be very Yang. Sweeping my courtyard is Yin for me, to someone else, it may be a physical chore they feel pressured to do, more Yang. How might you change something simple in your life into a more nurturing Yin? How might you change up something to add some energising challenging Yang?
Arrows out V Arrows in ?
How is your list looking? I encourage you to do this as a practical exercise, write it down. You may be amazed what finds it’s way onto your 2 lists and how much more you have of one than the other.
My YIN & YANG
Personally I have found the joy of mindful movement that offers both Yin and Yang. This allows me the awareness, focus, me time and balancing fluidity of challenge and nurture. I embody BODYART by both teaching it and living it. I feel blessed to have found it. I am very much a work in progress, always will be. But I do love helping & teaching people to learn about themselves, improve their health & lives. Every APT program has the Yin Yang principals built into them. It’s up to the individual to tune into that and interpret it the most beneficial way, tailoring it to themselves.
So what is YIN to you? What is YANG to you?
Is it time you examined your life and decided things need a re-balance? It all starts with not just WHAT you do, but HOW you are approaching and DOING it. Plus are you only DO-ing - perhaps you need to start BE-ing sometimes. After all we are human BE-ings.
If you feel you need some guidance or would like some help with finding YOUR Yin & Yang – Join an APT Program in Term 4 – live online or in a Studio in Richmond. Every program is designed with opportunities and education to discover and create Yin & Yang balance.
More info
FREE BODYART BASIC Class – Sat 15 Oct 11.00am
at Fernwood Fusion (women’s studio) 1/458 Bridge Rd, Richmond
to register your spot – email richmond@fernwoodfusion.com.au
