Bea is anxiously waiting for her friends to show up for her birthday party. Discover how Bea’s thoughts take over and what she does to find calm so she can enjoy her party.
We’ll discuss the rise in anxiety issues in youth, how mindful breathing and visualization can help manage anxiety, and the importance of mindfulness in schools to promote physical and emotional well-being.
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Sometimes we all need a little inspiration to guide our lives, our thoughts, our yoga and meditation practice. I’ve collected inspiring messages and quotes for as long as I can remember, posting them inside my school locker, writing them in my personal journal and using them to direct my yoga classes. I trust you will enjoy this collection. You may also want to check out our Inspiring Words Pinterest Page.
“Our bodies are our gardens—our wills are our gardeners.“ Shakespeare
“He who has health has hope and he who has hope has everything.“ Arabian Proverb
“The gift of learning to meditate is the greatest gift you can give yourself in this lifetime.“ Sogyal Rinpoche
“Just when the caterpillar thought the world was ending, he turned into a butterfly.” Proverb
“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I cam changing myself.” Rumi
“The attitude of gratitude is the highest yoga.” Yogi Bhajan
“The part can never be well unless the whole is well.” Plato
“You can’t lead anyone else further than you have gone yourself.” Gene Mauch
“You only lose what you cling to.” Siddhārtha Gautama Buddha
“The quieter you become the more you are able to hear.” Rumi
“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” Wayne Dyer
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams” Eleanor Roosevelt
“Do not ask for less responsibility to be free and relaxed—ask for more strength!“ Shengyan
“The creation of a thousand forest is in one acorn.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Yoga is the perfect opportunity to be curious about who you are.” Jason Crandell
“We don’t realize that, somewhere within us all, there does exist a supreme self who is eternally at peace.” Eat, Pray, Love
“The most important pieces of equipment you need for doing yoga are your body and your mind.“ RodneyYee
“Your problem isn’t the problem. Your reaction is the problem.” Anonymous
“Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured.” BKS Iyengar
“Yoga is the fountain of youth. You’re only as young as your spine is flexible.” Bob Harper
“The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.” Anonymous
“The beauty is that people often come here for the stretch, and leave with a lot more” Liza Ciano
“Don’t just do something—sit there!” Unknown Yoga Quote
“The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.” Thich Nhat Hanh
“Inhale, and God approaches you. Hold the inhalation, and God remains with you. Exhale, and you approach God. Hold the exhalation, and surrender to God.“ Krishnamacharya
“Don’t waste a good mistake. Learn from it.” Robert Kiyosaki
“Yoga is invigoration in relaxation. Freedom in routine. Confidence through self control. Energy within and energy without.” Ymber Delecto
“Whenever you see a successful person you only see the public glories, never the private sacrifices to reach them.” Vaibhav Shah
“What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise.” Oscar Wilde
“Yoga has a sly, clever way of short circuiting the mental patterns that cause anxiety.” Baxter Bal
“You can do anything, but not everything. Anonymous
“Yoga is the perfect opportunity to be curious about who you are.” Jason Crandell
“Through meditation and by giving full attention to one thing at a time, we can learn to direct attention where we choose.” Eknath Easwaran
“Do not speak unless it improves on silence.” Buddhist proverb
“Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self.” The Bhagavad Gita
“Each morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.” Buddha
“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day-in and day-out.” Robert Collier
“Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Listen hard. Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh. Choose with no regret. Appreciate your friends. Continue to learn. Do what you love. Live as if this is all there is.” Mary Radmacher
“Happiness is a state of inner fulfillment, not the gratification of inexhaustible desires for outward things.” Matthieu Ricard
“Choose to be optimistic, it feels better.” Dalai Lama
“Yoga is like music. The rhythm of the body, the melody of the mind and the harmony of the soul, create the symphony of life.” BKS Iyengar
“Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live. “ Jim Rohn
“The yoga pose that you avoid the most you need the most.” Anonymous
“Take the time to just do nothing. It will open up a completely new world of insight for you.” Scott Shaw
“All progress takes place outside the comfort zone.” Michael John Bobak
“Intelligence comes into being when the mind, the heart and the body are really harmonious.” J Krishnamurti
“In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you.” Deepak Chopra
“Make the driving force in your life love.” Dr. Oz
“Happiness is an inside job.” William Arthur Ward
“Meditation is to be aware of every thought and of every feeling, never to say it is right or wrong, but just to watch it and to move with it.” Krishnamurti
“Happiness is not a state to arrive at, but a manner of traveling.” Margaret Lee Runbeck
“Do not feel lonely, the entire universe is inside you.” Rumi
“Suffering usually relates to wanting things to be different from the way they are.” Allan Lokos
“Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” Jim Ryun
“Fear less, hope more; eat less, chew more; whine less, breathe more; talk less, say more; hate less, love more; and all good things are yours.” Swedish Proverb
“Silence is not silent. Silence speaks. It speaks most eloquently. Silence is not still. Silence leads. It leads most perfectly.” Sri Chinmoy
“The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.” Bruce Lee
“Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.” Gautama Buddha
“Yoga is almost like music in a way; there’s no end to it.” Sting
“Even if things don’t unfold the way you expected, don’t be disheartened or give up. One who continues to advance will win in the end.” Daisaku Ikeda
“We are not going in circles, we are going upwards. The path is a spiral; we have already climbed many steps.” Hermann Hesse
“Creating space frees the spirit to bring in what it truly desires.” Deb Reble
“Don’t move the way fear makes you move. Move the way love makes you move. Move the way joy makes you move.” Osho
“She was unstoppable, not because she did not have failures and doubts, but because she continued on despite of them.” Beau Toplin
“Surely there is something in the unruffled calm of nature that overawes our little anxieties and doubts; the sight of the deep blue sky and the clustering stars above seems to impart a quiet tot he mind.” Tryon Edwards
“Therefore, it is good advice to slow down a little, steady the course, and focus on the essentials when experiencing adverse conditions.” Deiter F. Uchtdorf
“Blessed is the influence of one true, loving human soul to another.”George Elliot
“The way to love anything is to realize that it might be lost.” G.K. Chesterton
“Life is meant to be lived. Curiosity must be kept alive. One must never, for whatever reason, turn his back on life.” Eleanor Roosevelt
It can be very difficult for parents to remember what it was like back in the day when they were teens, so if you have a teenager or two in your household, they may seem like aliens from another planet. The biggest problem with teenagers, the problem from which nearly every middle and high school kid issue arise, is their inherent lack of self-confidence. And while self-esteem usually comes with time, it must absolutely be actively built. Here are some easy-to-follow tips to better understand your teenager, and to help her grow into a mature and confident adult.
1. Remind yourself that there is a physiological reason for lack of confidence in teens.
One of the primary problems that causes adults and teens to clash so harshly and so often is that we and our teens are in completely different stages of life, both emotionally and physiologically. Teens so often lack self-confidence because their hormone levels are fluctuating constantly and they are usually going through some physical and psychological growing pains that initiate the proverbial “awkward phase.” As such, it is important to be understanding of this before you try to help your teen build self-confidence.
2. There is a big difference between building self-esteem and over-praising. Do the former.
One big mistake that many parents make is that, in their anxiety to help their teen emotionally develop, they praise every single good deed that their teen accomplishes. While praise is absolutely instrumental in building confidence, when given too much, it completely loses its value. Subsequently, over-praised teens will be the diametrical opposite of self-confident adults. They will never learn to accept criticism, work out their own problems, or deal with failure, all of which are necessary components of healthy self-esteem.
3. Solid diet, hygiene, sleep and exercise habits play a much bigger role in naturally building self-confidence than you think.
If you are a consistent practitioner of yoga, then you probably understand the importance of developing good health-related habits. At the same time, however, teens will often not be as interested in maintaining a good diet, sleeping regularly, and engaging in a consistent exercise routine. As a parent, it is vital that you establish and enforce a daily schedule that emphasizes a holistic and healthy lifestyle. Teens are most able to build their self-confidence when they’ve slept and eaten well. Rigorous exercise is not a must, but engaging in light but, most importantly, consistent exercise, like yoga, swimming, or simply walking, does wonders in regulating mood and performance.
4. A healthy social life is absolutely instrumental. Help your teen build a close-knit network of friends and family.
Especially in modern and developed countries like America, many other things in life take priority over strong social relations. Whether for good or ill, we are an isolated society. Many of the developmental problems that teenagers undergo arise from a sense of isolation. As a parent, you are often charged with the task of guiding your child’s social life. While you can’t necessarily pick your teenagers friends, encourage your child to participate in activities that foster a sense of community and togetherness. Spend quality time with your family, even if your teen doesn’t appreciate it at the moment. They’ll thank you later.
Raising a self-confident teen obviously does not happen overnight. It can be a very exasperating process, but emphasizing the right habits and principles will reap plenty rewards, the dividends of which you will still see once your child becomes a full-fledged adult.
Author of Mindsight and The Whole Brain Child, Dr Dan Siegel is an expert in how the mind, brain and relationships interconnect and influence our lives. He joins us to address the importance of mindful awareness in youth to foster positive mental, physical and relational health and well-being. With the science to prove it works, Dr Siegel shows us how to focus our attention on the internal workings of the mind helping us to acknowldege thoughts & feelings, let go of that which does not serve, and transform our lives leading to greater health and happiness. Learn more about this essential component to emotional and social intelligence and the easy to implementWheel of Awarenessduring this 30 minute interview. Dr. Siegel is the keynote speaker at the International Conference on Mindfulness with Youth held in Banff, Alberta July 15-17, 2011.
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Trauma Informed Parenting with Hala Khouri November 10, 2022
The incredible Hala Khouri is our guest in this episode of the Yoga In My School podcast.Hala brings her extensive expertise in somatic experiencing, psychology, social justice, movement, and mindfulness as we discuss trauma informed parenting. Discover parenting with curiosity and awareness of our own conditioning so we can be more sensitive to the complex […]
