Introduction

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        Affirmations, like the ones above, are incorporated into the non-traditional grief process of Yoga for Grief. Rather than sitting at home alone crying or visiting with a grief counsellor once a week, grievers can practice healing by moving through the mind-body connection. Yoga is not a new concept, but many yogis have adopted a yoga practice for various reasons in the Western world. Some use yoga for weight loss, strength training, exercise, and even for detoxifying their body. Some realize that yoga transcends the body as it connects with the internal organs, breathing, and the mind. Traditionally, yoga is a spiritual practice designed to unite the mind and body by releasing karmic suffering and ultimately achieving liberation. (Yogapedia, 2020) One of the goals of yoga is to help raise or shift consciousness through moving the body and breath through specific movements and postures. 

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        Grief and sadness may not only find you through physical losses but they can be experienced through symbolic and secondary losses. A griever does not need to experience death to know how it feels to grieve.

 

Grief Models - Yoga Connection

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        Most grief models explain the disconnection that grief can leave a person feeling, whether they are experiencing shock, numbness, insomnia, or decreased appetite. Colin Murray Parke's phase model describes the first phase of numbness or a blunting of emotions. (Hadad, 2009, p. 63) Grievers may even have an out-of-body experience while going through the motions to get them through the day or losing the ability to cry. John Bowlby describes grief in four phases, numbness, yearning and searching, disorganization and despair, and reorganization. (Hadad, 2009, p. 64) Bowlby’s phases of grief will leave a person feeling numb and unable to comprehend what has happened while feeling a blunting of emotions, anxiety, fear, yearning, confusion, upheaval, sadness, and grief. (Hadad, 2009, p. 64)

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        Some grievers may feel yearning, hopelessness, decreased motivation, social withdrawal, fatigue, shortness of breath, and decreased energy. (Hadad, 2009, p. 60) Therese Rando describes grieving as a person needing to acknowledge and understand how and why the death occurred. (Hadad, 2009, p. 71) They will have to feel the pain, examine, identify, and accept their feelings while identifying secondary losses and letting go of old attachments. (Hadad, 2009, pp. 71-72) A griever must find a new way of living while adapting to their new ways of being, without forgetting the old and reinvesting into a new identity. (Hadad, 2009, p. 73)

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        Grief yoga is a way for a grieving person to reconnect their mind to their body. Poses connect to their nervous system, giving them a space to feel again and even cry. Affirmations provide a space to speak in a way that may seem foreign or unfair. One great thing is that it can be done alone and at home. A griever does not have to get dressed or leave their house, or even have to talk about their feelings to a counsellor. A griever can choose one of the many videos on YouTube to do grief yoga through technology and YouTube.

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Yin-Yoga for Grief

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        Yoga with Kassandra shares a thirty-minute yin yoga sequence to help those experiencing grief and sadness on her YouTube Channel. Kassandra adopted the Traditional Chinese Medicine concept of opening the Lung channel, which is the ruler of the emotions of grief and sadness. (Principle, 2021) Kassandra shares at the start of the session that from experiencing grief and sadness, she has learned that the only way out is through. (Kassandra, 2019) She mentions that the sequence allows people to experience their feelings as they live in the body, rather than using the sequence as a distraction. (Kassandra, 2019) The sequence has nine poses and nine affirmations. With each pose, Kassandra explains and demonstrates the movements and says the affirmation. (Kassandra, 2019)

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        The affirmations, while sounding extremely positive, may not resonate with each person. Rather, Kassandra mentions that the purpose of the affirmation is for the grievers to find the ones that resonate the most so that they can be used during difficult times to provide hope. (Kassandra, 2019) Grievers are encouraged to keep a pen and paper close by to write down or journal any thoughts or feelings, especially if an affirmation resonates with them. Kassandra believes that yin yoga provides a way to break down physical tension while allowing people to break into their emotions and feelings. (Kassandra, 2019) Through grief yoga, people can work through their mind-body connection by releasing their physical and energetic tensions. (Kassandra, 2019)

 

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Yoga with Adriene for Grief

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        Similar to Kassandra's sequence is Yoga with Adriene's yoga for grief sequence through breathing and affirming statements. Kassandra's sequence focuses on movements that open up the lung meridian of the upper body and the heart. The first half of Adriene's sequence focuses on breathing through movements centred around only moving the upper body while staying seated. The second half of the session guides grievers through deep breathing while expanding and contracting or riding the wave through the spine in an all-fours position.

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        Adriene's session is designed to nurture, support, and provide comfort to help guide the griever's heart and mind to the present moment. (Adriene, 2021) The sequence is around twenty minutes and focuses on breathing while feeling comfortable in the body. Adriene mentions that it is okay to bring awareness to the body's tensions while letting go of the things holding us in those tensions. (Adriene, 2021) She encourages grievers to notice how they feel and to do their best as there is no rush or need to do each movement perfectly. (Adriene, 2021)

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        Adrienne mentions that it is common to want to hold the breath or not breathe as deeply when there is grief or sadness, which can increase the tension in the body. (Adriene, 2021) Adriene guides users through gentle movements while permitting them to do their best as they open up their hearts and breath. (Adriene, 2021) Like Kassandra, both sequences end with one hand held on the belly, and one held on the heart. Both Kassandra and Adriene use various comforting statements to guide her session. The following statements or even affirmations can be heard repeated by Adriene.

 

 

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