The Yoga Suits Her Blog

I’ve been blogging for 12 years now. At first, I was quite nervous about publishing my thoughts. Because I was shy about writing, my old posts were almost exclusively photos of the view from our bedroom in our Tambourine Bay house.

Remarkably, my original Ville Blog still exists. Does anything on the internet ever go away? It ran from November 05, 2006 to January 12, 2010 and it’s still just where I left it. If you’d like to have a look, the address is http://thevilleblog.blogspot.com.au/.

These days, because there are way too many YSH posts to browse through-over 1200-I’ve put some major themes together in The Vault. I hope this makes it easier to find exactly what you want.

Get a Grip on Your Mind!

May 25, 2014 | Wisdom, Yoga teaching | 2 Comments

I got myself into a scrape last weekend – literally. I want to tell the story because it reminded me of the power of my mind and how easy it is to create negative fantasies. It’s something we all do rather than face unpleasant feelings that lie beneath the surface.
I had just finished leading my ‘Restorative Yoga’ workshop in Port Stephens. I packed up the Prop-mobile with bolsters, belts, blocks and blankets, all ready for the 2.5 hours drive home.
Backing out of the driveway, I neglected to look behind and drove smack into a concrete gate. […]

Do We Need Courage to Relax?

May 19, 2014 | Health, Mindfulness Meditation, Restorative, Yoga practices | 0 Comments

Long ago, American yoga teacher and writer, Judith Hanson Lasater*, carved out a niche in the world of teaching. She created workshops on the theme of ‘Restorative Yoga’ and her approach to relaxation and renewal has spread across the globe. I teach in this style and was honoured to lead a day long workshop for 20 students at YogaSphere.
This restorative style of practising yoga uses props to support the body in relaxing, so physically, emotionally and mentally the student can move to a state of balance. […]

Healing Begins with Telling the Truth

May 12, 2014 | Yoga practices, Yoga teaching | 0 Comments

The Buddha said, ‘There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth – not going all the way, and not starting.’
Some time ago, when my life was going bumpety-bump, I made a commitment to telling the truth – well, as much as I knew how at the time. In other words, ‘going all the way’. It’s not that up until that moment, I was a liar. I guess I was just like most of us. […]

The Art of Adjusting Workshop (led by Eve Grzybowski)

May 10, 2014 | Yoga practices, Yoga teaching | 0 Comments

Workshops on adjusting students in yoga poses are rare and especially when they are taught by an old hand 🙂 If you happen to be in the northern rivers area or Queensland over the Queen’s Birthday weekend, you might want to attend this event. […]

Okay to Be in the Here and Now… Just Now and Then?

May 4, 2014 | Mindfulness Meditation, Yoga practices | 0 Comments

In my mindfulness meditation practice the other morning, I had the experience of being in the moment – for a moment. In that ten minute period of sitting, I might have had three ‘being in the here and now’ moments. […]

Corpse Pose: Needed and Wanted

Apr 27, 2014 | Health, Video, XToolKit | 0 Comments

via pinterest
Every now and then, I fall off the wagon. I recognise that I need to re-incorporate corpse pose into my yoga practice. Writing a post about this pose will inspire me, and you too, if need be.
I first learned about corpse pose (savasana) from one of my yoga teachers, Martyn Jackson. As Martyn explained it, corpse pose isn’t meant to be in any way considered a morbid notion. It defines the ultimate state of letting go.
When we do savasana, we may rise from the pose feeling we’ve slept the sleep of the dead. […]

The Vulnerability Paradox

Apr 21, 2014 | Wisdom | 0 Comments

I’m currently in Byron Bay experiencing incredible music at the annual five day BluesFest Festival. I’ve invited my friend and fellow yogi, Michael Hollingworth, to write a guest post for today on a topic that’s at the heart of yoga for me. I’ll be back next week.
Eve
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For the first time ever, it occurs to me that Winston Churchill may not have been completely right when he urged “Never, never, never give in”, meaning presumably win at all costs. […]

Yoga Teachers as Healers

Apr 14, 2014 | Healing, Mindfulness Meditation, Wisdom, XTeaching, Yoga practices, Yoga teaching | 0 Comments

Oh dear!
As I edited this post, what stood out in the first paragraphs were all the I’s I used to get my thoughts across. I just don’t know how to write without being personal! It’s a style for which I can forgive myself, and hopefully you will, too.
I don’t pretend to be enlightened in any shape or form. Being a yoga teacher doesn’t mean you are immune to any of the frailties and suffering of humankind. In fact, you might just end up like me being even more sensitive to them. […]

Saying Good-bye to My Monday Night Class

Apr 7, 2014 | Wisdom, Yoga practices, Yoga Teacher Training, Yoga teaching | 0 Comments

This week I dropped my Monday night class from my timetable of teaching at The Yoga Shed. I thought long and hard about stopping a class I’d been teaching for 4 years on Mitchells Island. I can scarcely believe that I’ve taught in a Monday night time slot going back to the mid-eighties.
I began teaching this class during a dark, cold winter when there was only one other regular student besides my loyal husband. […]

The Trouble with Insights

Mar 31, 2014 | Mindfulness Meditation | 0 Comments

via Pinterest
Have you ever had an insight so profound that you’re sure your life will be transformed forever afterwards?
Here’s how it happens. You do a yoga workshop and a detail that you’re taught turns your world upside down. For instance, you’d been doing triangle pose one way (the best way, you thought). Then, you learned a point that upends your way of doing, not just triangle but all the standing poses.
Or, you read a book, and a new paradigm presents. It explains why you’ve been having trouble in your intimate relationships. […]

Yoga and Age: Do Yoga Practitioners Get Old?

Am also encouraged by recent findings that the body may cease aging when one is past 91. The study (reported in a 2016 New Scientist) by Michael Rose (a professor of evolutionary biology), says that if you are lucky enough to live that long, you stop ageing. He notes that one’s health may not improve but it certainly does not get any worse. Whilst that advice is far not mainstream, population statistics do show that ageing seems to stop at 93 – and does not speed up again until we get a telegram from Queen Elizabeth (the Last) at 100.
Thus, if one makes it to 99, you are no more likely to die at any given point than someone of 93. (From 110 plus may be a different matter but I’ll let you know). …
The Yoga Approach to Hysterectomy

In the absence of internet information, I decided to create my own holistic way of dealing with my upcoming surgery.
I started talking with my friends to share my journey. The simple fact that I was willing to be open and vulnerable helped eliminate any residual shame.
I started keeping a journal in which I could collect information on hysterectomies, and more importantly, write down questions and feelings as they arose. …