Oh the stories we tell...ourself

I have been thinking about the inner dialogue. That voice in my head that narratives and interprets the world for me. Everyone is constantly in a inner conversation with theme selves. This is how we make connection with the world and with others. Its the way we interpret reality. The only problem is when this self talk creates our reality.

For example, handstands. Getting your butt over your head, over your shoulders and over your hands can be very scary. Chances are your inner voice has something to say to you about your ability to take that position. In class I see eyes roll when handstands are qued.

I have the wonderful opportunity to work with a few women in private sessions. These are nice because we can dialogue out loud the inner dialogue that is holding them back. When concerning handstand, it often it boils down to "I cant do handstand, because I am not strong enough". I have worked with all these women for a while and know they are strong enough. It's their inner dialogue at this point that is creating their reality and in fact is holding them back from recognizing just how powerful truly they are. I find that if my inner dialogue is telling me I'm not strong enough to do a yoga pose, it is definitely telling me I am weak in other areas of our life. For example, I am to weak to finish school, I am not powerful enough to maintain good relationships in my life, I am not confident enough to draw big numbers of students to my class.

One of the women I have been working with who has been telling me that she isn't strong enough to do handstand for a few weeks was able to push herself up (in handstand "L" variation with feel on wall). After she came down she told me it was a fluke and the should couldn't do it again. That was the voice trying to hold on to that static reality of not being strong. However we have gotten together for multiple times and she has continued to push herself up. The more she gets inverted the more I see that inner dialog shift and she stands up with more confidence. I can see this new confidence show up other poses too. Last time she left our session with a huge smile saying "I feel so strong".

I can relate to this. When I learn a new pose that my inner voice was telling me I was to weak to do I feel a new sense of power on and off my mat. I feel confident I can finish school (and I did!) I feel strong in my relationships, and I feel confident in my teaching abilities.


So my question for you. What is your inner voice telling you? How many areas in your life could that inner self talk be holding you back in?