Release from stress and connect to your goodness

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High Line Zoo

Ahhh….so let’s face it – stress is part of our lives. Triggered by our kids, family, job, friends, media or relationships – our attention can become consumed by a challenging situation, and result in a snowball effect of growing insecurity and frustration. The Amygdala – two small organs in the brain the size of a small almond – becomes overstimulated as we continue to feed into the stressful situation. We may feel for that moment, or maybe longer, that our primary modus operandus is fear….anger…..anxiety. Sometimes, it begins to feel…almost normal?..to be driven by stress.

Harshada Wagner, a meditation teacher based in New York, led a class that made me question this idea of being dictated by stress. Centering on a translation from the Bhagavad Gita (6.23):  Yoga is the severance of our union of pain, he discussed how we can become “addicted to” or “crave” pain, and our actions become motivated by these feelings, overshadowing the feelings of happiness and joy that lies within each of us.

The pain he referred to was not that of a physical, or gross pain. It is a pain that presents a challenge.  Something that rubs us the wrong way, and becomes the main thrust of our attention, pushing other thoughts, actions and ideas aside.

When we are honest with ourselves, we can observe this pain.  For example: You heard that someone said something bad about you, and your attention is ignited, and this negative idea dwells in you. Although it may have only been said once,  sometimes we may repeat it, latch onto it and it grows at a furious rate inside our heads, for that moment, or maybe even for years.   It completely erases the fuzzy warm moment we recently felt, or dissipates from our mind the nice thing just said about us in the same conversation.

Take this situation – someone said that I was rude. There are plenty of ways to work with this – I can agree, apologize, and let it go.   I can re-examine the situation and think perhaps they were having a bad day, let it go, and move on with my day. Or, I can dwell on it. I was rude? No, they were. How dare they say I was rude? How dare they say that out loud in front of all these people? What a jerk! Next time…. I think you get the picture.

Yoga is the severance of our union with pain.

The Bhagavad Gita speaks to our union with pain, and how we value it.  There is an understanding that part of our life is pain, part pleasure and part all the things in between. This is all part of life. But how do you nurture your value with pain? What do you do?

Each time we have a feeling of pain or sensation that we are not comfortable with, a chemical is being released in your body. The Amygdala is feeding off of these chemicals, and mixing up the balance within our bodies.  Our bodies adjust to this balance.  As our bodies come to balance with this new mix, is it something that we want? Or is this an “addiction” to a pain? Ask yourself, do you want to be cut off from that particular addiction? Or do you want to move to a more positive way of nurturing ourselves? Think of how you feel when you take a walk, go fishing, read a book, or simply savor a perfect moment. When we move to nurture ourselves, we can infuse more of a pleasurable experience in our body to lead our actions.

Harshada led a meditation – at first recognizing where our pain was, and secondly breathing through this pain and clearing it out of our system. Find a comfortable seat and breath into your body, softly, feeling the sensation of grounding down into the earth through your seat. Let your body soften. With your eyes closed…

Scan through your life – your work, friends, last thing that you did, your relationships with others, your family…and begin to notice the places that are painful.  Notice the places that rubbed you the wrong way, ones that made you unhappy. 

As you notice them, recognize where in your body this pain originates…Each of these spots are “addicted” to this pain, or challenge that we have acknowledged…On the inner level, just notice how these things make you feel.  Look at these spots and see what you notice things that you can and can’t change. There are some things we need to accept, but other parts that we are able to change. Again, notice how these things feel.

Our very nature is free, blissful, and powerful. There are things that can help us resonate with that goodness within us, instead of falling to the addiction to pain. Focus on the more pleasurable moments within us…

Make your breath be more robust, and your exhalations will move deeply through your entire body, from your head all the way to your seat. Repeat this breath a few times. Now, bring this attention right into the middle of your body.

Remember a moment of tremendous bliss that you had in the past.  Breath into this moment fully, deeply. Feel the sweet, inner glow it creates inside of you, right at the center.  Just as you can remember painful moments, use this same power to remember the moments that are nurturing, blissful, happy, all are part of our being. Let the breath take that joyful memory and breathe it throughout your entire body. Let it touch every part of your body – your heart, your head, your ears, arms, legs, hands… feel it in through your senses – of taste, touch, sound, sight, smell, and hearing. Feel this full, happy deep feeling. Let this be what you are united with. Let this be what you gravitate towards. Let your attention be excited about these feelings, these memories.

Yoga is the severance of our union with pain.

I thank Harshada for reminding me why I practice. To be more able to serve, to love, be happier and be our very best and bring out the best in others.

Namaste

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga  teaches family and kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook‘s laughing hearts yoga page.

Last Family Yoga class on June 10th!  Pre-registration required www.laughingheartsyoga.com

Outside Yoga at Spring arts Market

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On Sunday at Croton’s Spring Arts Market, Cindy Wager and I led a yoga class dedicated to celebrate the earth, all its living beings, and the gift of the sun. Teaching a class outdoors, in the midst of a thriving artists market, bestowed many gifts upon us: artistic creative energy, an awareness of being outside – the warm sun, soft grass under our feet, all rewarding us with a true connection with our earth.

Kids and adults kicked off their shoes and stepped onto the red yoga mats.   We rooted our feet into the earth, creating our foundations, and extended our arms and bodies gloriously up to the sky.  Great beauty and playfulness ensued as we honored some of the earth’s creatures through yoga  – dogs, cats, cows, birds and even jellyfish!

Our awareness of the diverse environments of the earth was practiced in Virksasana – tree pose.  As we imagined ourselves as trees from around the world – cacti, palm, oak and cherry trees – we learned a profound lesson from nature – how to quiet and still the mind. Our bodies became stronger as we breathed in the fresh oxygen from the majestic trees of Vassello park – one of which is the oldest in Croton – connecting our bodies and minds to the rhythm of nature around us.  The birds chirping, butterflies flying by, and a soft wind rustling the green leaves as we created a new ring of trees under a clear blue sky.  Our  power and strength shone as we continued to establish our connection with the earth in Tadasana, mountain pose.

It was a perfect day for an arts market and yoga.  I and many others, hope this tradition will continue in Croton, as we can all revel and celebrate the many gifts that our hometown has to offer.

Namaste

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga  teaches family and kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Don’t miss Family Yoga class on May 6th at 4pm Register by visiting www.laughingheartsyoga.com or emailing info@laughingheartsyoga.com – preregistration required!

Friend laughing hearts yoga on Facebook thank you!

 

 

 

Celebrate Earth Day

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On Sunday, April 29 at 12:30, I am teaching my first outdoor class of the season at the Spring Arts Market in Vassallo Park, Croton. There will be artsy vendors, live music, and outdoor yoga – a wonderful welcoming to spring!

The organizer was pushing for a connection to the buzz of events around Earth Day, recognized on April 22nd.  My first thoughts – this is a marketing strategy.  And yet, so much more.

It is so easy to forget all the gifts we receive daily from the earth – blue skies, trees, grassy meadows, mountains, rivers and oceans – especially when we get caught up in our work, kids, families and daily lives. Each day we are racing from one task to the next, staying up until all hours to get things done.  Do we ever take a moment to thank the earth for giving us a place to do all that we do?

Sunday’s yoga class and event will be a time to celebrate the bounty of the Earth,  the gifts it yields through artisans, and unite our community. During this month of heightened awareness of the Earth, we recognize the current state of the environment – ice caps melting, extreme changes of weather, and water tables drying up.  Yet, we also are made aware of the inspiring, compassionate outpour of innovative people around the world using their creative energy to motivate us to make a better world.  New earth conscious businesses and organizations are being developed, to help us re-think of how we live, and resourcefully working towards efforts to create a world we want to live in.

  • Andy Keller , yogi and activist, created the bag monster to raise awareness of needless and harmful plastic bag waste.  He took 500 plastic bags, the average amount of bags an American discards a year, and created a floppy costume that appears at city council meetings, schools and viral videos.
  • Richardsville Elementary School in Bowling Green Kentucky created the country’s first net-zero-energy school- by designing classrooms that wrap around the gym and cafeteria to insulate these rooms that usually suck up most of the energy budget
  • More businesses are looking at collaborative consumption-using online networks to borrow or barter things you need – members on neighborgoods.net lend or rent items needed like lawnmowers; i-ella.com and swapstyle.com to borrow, trade stylish clothing and accessories; and thredup.com where parents can trade outgrown kids clothes for the next size

(Read more in the May issue of Yoga Journal)

How does this connect to yoga? When we practice ways to love ourselves through loving kindness meditations – or a metta practice -we nurture empathy, a compassion to ourselves and those around us.  Learning to love ourselves, and not be resistant to touch upon the gifts that we are all able to bring to our daily lives and to others, helps others to tap into the desire to do the same.  Taking our metta practice to the communal level transforms itself to a powerful force that can be used in a positive manner – by sustaining the earth.

The metta practice begins by taking a quiet few moments from you day to set aside. Perhaps in the morning before everyone else wakes up, or after everyone else is asleep. Begin by focusing on someone you love, and repeat these phrases:

May you find happiness

May you find peace

May you live in love and compassion

Do this for 3 days, same time every day if you can.  For the next 3 days, say the same three phrases, but add in someone that was trustworthy from your childhood to your focus.  On the 9th day, add someone that you feel neutral about to your focus along with the others and repeat these lines.  As you reach the 12th day, add someone who challenges you to your circle of loving kindness.  Repeat these phrases and breath in the happiness, acceptance, and compassion for all those around you.

Simply put, when we are good to ourselves, it shows in our actions to others.  When we begin to take care of ourselves, we take care of our surroundings, helping make them more comforting and welcoming to others, our community, and our Earth

Hope to see you at Vassello Park on Sunday, April 29 at 12:30 !

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga  teaches family, mommy and me, kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook‘s laughing hearts yoga page.

Join her for family yoga at Pilates on Hudson  May 6th Register at info@laughingheartsyoga.com – preregistration required!

 

Circus Yoga

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As I exited the New York subway, I was bemused to see a statue of an elephant balancing on its trunk. Ah – the perfect entry point to welcome a weekend of Circus Yoga.

Circus Yoga is communal, creative, expansive. It is a beautiful blend of the conscousiness of yoga with the communal ceremony and expression of circus. To commence our journey, one of founders, Erin Maile O’Keefe, immersed us into a dreamlike tour of yoga – full of discovery and play.

Circus Yoga is a like a treasure chest -full of flying yoga, games, dancing, thai massage – that we got to peek into this weekend, and has so much more to see. Erin immersed our entire bodies into a learning experience – re-awakening its muscle memory, luring our bodies to soak it all in.  Then, the biggest step for me this weekend, was to rely and trust that my body would soak up and retain the gifts Erin generously and effortless flowed upon us.

Throughout the weekend, I battled with my mind each time a morsel of information eloquently came form Erin’s mouth “write that down,” my mind hissed, “you’re going to forget it!”  I would ignore it, knowing that it was wrong and trust my body, but at times, I just would give in. I would reach for my trusty notebook, and W.T., a co-leader, would turn his soft blue eyes towards me and give the why-don’t-you-try-it-without-notes look.  I was so glad for W.T.   I would go through most of the day without taking notes.  I had forgotten how my body, if given the chance, has the ability to hold, create and move, without the interruption of thinking.

I feel confident that I can continue the celebration and circle of Circus Yoga, with the ability to offer these gifts to others.  Come and play and see what the next family class will bring!

Namaste

 

 

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga  teaches family, mommy and me, kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook‘s laughing hearts yoga page.


 

 

Yoga Garden!

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As a last minute trip, our family had the opportunity to participate in the White House Egg Roll yesterday in Washington DC.  With lines reminiscent of Disney world, we were led onto the White House lawn by a local school band, and entered a wonderland of activities for all ages – getting fit with celebrities in the Eggtivity center and on the President’s tennis and basketball courts with tennis pros and the Harlem Globetrotters, egg decorating and jump rope making, learning about bees and how to make delicious healthy snacks from celebrity chefs. Most exciting for all, was the celebrated egg roll, set up just a few feet from the backdoor of the White House.

But there was another event on the lawn, just as you enter the space that caught my eye – a YOGA garden! As you entered the White House lawn, yogis greeted you with the invitation to kick off your shoes and join them!  I tried to get a picture of this little piece of history on the Presidents lawn, struggling to get a wide angle view with my iPhone.  In the meantime, both of my kids jumped into their favorite poses – Aliyah in dwi hasta bhujasana (balancing on her hands as she wraps her thighs over her triceps and claps her feet together) and Robbie jumped into balasana. ahh..my little yogis!

Running since 2009, the yoga garden is a burst of sunlight in the Obama’s backyard.  An original idea stemming from the White House, the President made an impressionable statement of the importance of fun, fitness and play to the 30,000 egg-roll participants from across the nation.  The teachers that participated were handpicked by the organizers from around the country for their recognition for doing great things on and off the mat.  They showed all who participated how much fun yoga could be for themselves and their families, and let them experience that feel-good yoga feeling when they left the mat.

I know we did!  Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend!     Namaste!

Family yoga with laughing hearts yoga on April 15th at 4pm! www.laughingheartsyoga.com

 

Elisha Fernandes Simpson, CKYT, RYT organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook‘s laughing hearts yoga page.


 

 

The Paradox of our Age

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We have bigger houses, but smaller families, more convenience, but less time.
We have more degrees, but less sense; more knowledge, but less judgments; more experts, but more problems; more medicines, but less healthiness.
We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor.
We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but have less communication.
We have become long on quantity but short on quality.
These are times of fast foods, but slow digestion; tall man, but short character; steep profits, but shallow relationships.
It is a time when there is much in the window but nothing in the room.

–His Holiness the XIVth Dalai Lama

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga teaches family, mommy and me, kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook’s laughing hearts yoga page.
Next class -family yoga in Peekskill at Pilates on Hudson April 15th at 4pm! See laughingheartsyoga.com to register 

Appreciate the moment

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Breathe deeply and appreciate the moment. Living in the moment could be the meaning of life.

I am so thankful that one day I was smart enough to post this quote in a place that I frequently look at throughout every day. Right in front of my laptop at my desk.  It’s the first thing I see when I sit down, reminding me to practice taking a breath and observing my surroundings as well as how I feel at the present moment.

In the chaos of even an ordinary day, it’s nice to have some type of either visual or auditory reminder to return us to mindfulness and peace. In some of my kids yoga classes, I use bells to remind the students to reconnect to their breath and bring them back to the present moment when the chatter gets going.

We don’t need to go to a yoga class or a retreat to practice mindfulness in our daily lives.  Once you step off your yoga mat, you may not get back to your mat until tomorrow, the next day,  next week or maybe month. But that’s OK. No need to berate yourself.  You can always create a way to bring you back to mindfulness – by using “bells” or sounds and images that you see throughout the day. Use them as markers to remind you to come back to the present. Some ideas are:

  • Red lights or stop signs
  • Waiting for the computer to boot up
  • A staircase
  • Waiting for a pot of coffee to brew, a kettle to boil for tea, the minute to go off on the microwave
  • A subway train pulling into the station
  • Standing in line
  • Waiting a few breaths before checking your next email
  • Folding laundry
  • Washing the dishes

Each time you encounter one of these moments, use it as a “meditation bell.”  Stop, observe what is going on around you, and return to the present moment.  Quiet your mind and body and observe what is happening on the inside of you as well as around you at this time. Take three mindful breaths before you return to the task at hand.

There are other ways to practice mindfulness during your day as well. When driving to work, turn off the radio, shut off the cell phone (come on, we all have it on!) and tune out any other distractions. Listen the sounds around you and observe. Another way to practice is to simply notice something beautiful each day, a color of the spring flowers, the color of the sky over the Hudson river at various points of the day, the texture of your favorite fabric. Make the observation, record it in a journal and share your special moment as an inspiration to others via email, posting on Facebook, or blogging.

There is so much to see when we just breath.

Namaste.

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga  teaches family, mommy and me, kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook‘s laughing hearts yoga page.

FAMILY YOGA on April 15th at 4pm at Pilates on Hudson!  Register here or at www.laughingheartsyoga.com

cultivating self compassion

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May I be at peace

May I be compassionate and loving to myself and others

May I be strong

This mantra, (a thought or prayer repeated with full understanding of its meaning) has had a powerful affect on me lately.  Initially, I began practicing it by just saying it in my mind -  before or after my asana (yoga postures) practice, or sometimes while holding an asana or for an extended period of time.  Then, I began to vocalize this mantra during practice and meditation.

WOW.

Vocalizing these words was harder than I thought it would be.  As I said  “May I be loving and compassionate to myself,” my throat constricted- talk about your body talking back to ya. It surprised me but also opened the path to a new journey- to learn that it is important to take care of myself, just as much as it is to take care of my kids, husband, and others. Although this is something I teach on a regular basis, I didn’t realize I was avoiding it myself.  It made me come face to face with a struggle that I had overlooked. I needed to face this challenge.

The practice of self-compassion is caring, healing, being happy and healthy. It is also knowing that you may have to make a change to achieve this. The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, a seminal text in yoga, has a passage that reminds us that one is able to overcome negative patterns one step at a time. It won’t happen overnight.  But, if you are gentle with yourself and accept setbacks with compassion, you can change your life for the better.

When I am gentle with myself, and accept my setbacks with care and compassion. I find my greatest source of strength to move forward and succeed.  New scientific research is giving this ancient wisdom credence and showing that, when it comes to making a change, self-compassion is your greatest source of strength. Patanjali, the great yoga sage reminds us that everyone suffers and struggles on the path to self-transformation.

This doesn’t mean its ok to berate myself when I lose my patience with my kids or my husband, miss my morning practice or eat a huge bowl of gluten-free brownies and dairy free ice cream (we all have our weaknesses). When I do this, it sets me back even more and makes me less likely to succeed.

Research confirms that mindful self-reflection helps you make a positive change, while beating yourself up often turns a minor setback into a major relapse. For instance- “oh, no, I just used my credit card!  easily and almost instantly spirals into well then, I guess its OK to get these shoes, clothes for the kids, and a little something for Rob…

Believe it or not, its a common pattern – we are not alone!  According to Kelly McGonigal’s article Nurture the New You, this behavioral pattern has been given the deserving name, the: what-the-hell effect. When you falter is not the problem, but the drama that you create after it –buying all the extra clothes and feeling guilty because you are unable to buy groceries for the rest of the week and have to put THAT on the credit card! –You are tempted to turn for comfort to the exact thing you are trying to quit, stop, or give up a goal so you don’t have to feel bad about failing.

When we practice self-compassion, our sense of personal responsibility is increased and we don’t trigger the guilt and self blame when we take a self-critical approach to change. With self compassion we are fueled with strength to care for ourselves despite the temptation to succumb to the old habit.  You don’t have to feel bad about yourself to make a change. And you don’t have to give up.

When you try harder to reach for your goal, you will become naturally more tolerant of your own imperfections. As you work towards this, your mind will become clearer, and your heart more at peace.  These are natural steps towards striving towards your higher Self

There is a passage of compassion in the Yoga Sutra 1.33:

Maitri karuna mudita upeksanam sukha duhkha punya apunya visayanam bhavanatah cittaprasadanam

This sutra advises us to cultivate love for those who are happy, compassion for those who are suffering, joy for those who are virtuous, and equanimity for those who make mistakes. The great sage Patanjali’s advice also applies to how we relate to ourselves -  cultivate self-compassion by including the yoga sutra above or the meditation below in your own practice.

May I be at peace

May I be compassionate and loving to myself and others

May I be strong

 

Namaste

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga  teaches family, mommy and me, kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook‘s laughing hearts yoga page.

Mommy and me on Thursdays and family yoga on April 15th in Peekskill at Pilates on Hudson! See laughingheartsyoga.com for more information!

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Nourishing the body

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On Sunday, by the graciousness of my husband- he stayed with the kids and granted the possibility to participate in two yoga classes- one intense class focusing on alignment and dharana (concentration) with Julian Paik, and a second, healing, nurturing class with Lisa Natchigall - yoga for breast cancer.

Both practices were fulfilling, yet so different in their approach.  Despite the struggle Paik had with bringing himself to balance with the time change, his instruction was masterful.  He enabled each student to reach each posture the best way our individual bodies could. Each alignment cue he gave encouraged the ability to open more deeply, become more at ease and fluid with the posture. Each postures defined areas that needed to be nurtured, worked on and re-defined. Needless to say in this class, although we only did a few postures, my areas of re-defining were brilliantly revealed.  Like, when I fell out of tree pose on my right side (ok, I fell out on the left side too, but that was his fault – he made us all laugh!) I was humbled and truly grateful. It was a class that made me slow down and really challenge myself in a new way and cultivate a greater awareness of self. I am looking forward to taking his class again.

When i walked into Lisa’s class, I did not have any intention of taking it.  Yet, I was so grateful to see Lisa’s smiling face and that of the students in the class, I was drawn in to the warm, heartfelt energy and unrolled a mat and joined in.  As I listened to Lisa’s soft, nurturing voice, she gently guided us through chest opening postures and tapped deep into our energy centers by adding the bija (seeds) sounds, deepening the connection to our hearts, bodies, and spirits.  The bija sounds are syllables, ones that correspond to vibratory sound energies that connect with certain regions in our bodies – the chakras or energy systems. Throughout the class, Lisa guided us into various heart opening postures that we connected to our heart’s pulsating energy and courage through chanting “yam” three times, or connecting to our speech and throat through the sound of  “vam.”

Mark Whitall said to make your practice an intimate, energetic occasion.  This is what I witnessed by participating in both classes. By breathing into spaces that are constricted, we are nurturing ourselves by coming completely and entirely part of the present moment.  We turn to focus on ourselves, and accept where we are, right now, at this moment.  The more we breathe into the posture or the moment, the more we can accept ourselves.  Filling the space of our bodies with breath, attentiveness and focusing on the energy center, is one of the most important thing we can do for ourselves.

Elena Brower, yoga teacher and founder of Virayoga in NYC, noted that we can teach people how to treat us, in an interaction when breathing and focusing on the energy on ourselves. When we do this, we are teaching others how to put attention on themselves as well. It’s amazing exchange when you can learn how to take care of yourself at any living moment...turn in and tune in — nourish yourself and take care of yourself

Each practice gave each student a moment to nourish and take care of themselves.  At the end of each class, you could see this as we bowed in gratitude to our bodies and light that was sparked within us during the practice.

In Lisa’s class, it was beautiful to see how each participant, was eternally grateful for having a class structured uniquely for them. One student came to me with watery eyes, and kept saying thank you.  All I could say was to keep coming and keep healing.  Be fully in each moment so you can be a part of it. And the way you can do that is to take care of yourself.  We all need to do this.

Before you step out the door today in the pandemonium of getting the kids to school, being late for work, rushing out to class….Stop. Close your eyes.  Take 3 deep, long, soft breaths. Open your eyes

And then face the rest of the day.

Namaste

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga  teaches family, mommy and me, kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook‘s laughing hearts yoga page.

NEW mommy and me and family classes beginning in Peekskill at Pilates on Hudson!  Visit laughingheartsyoga.com for enrollment/information or contact info@laughingheartsyoga.com

 

Request for healing thoughts…

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Last week, the Lent challenge at my local gym was on my mind. A great blog topic I thought- some of us gathered on Fat Tuesday and weighed in, measured our body fat, and wished each other luck as we gave up a vice (and leavened bread!) to see who could lose the most body fat by Lent.

For me, blogs are spontaneous, and are about what is happening to me right now, on Tuesday morning….

The Lent challenge went awry last week, as I was in Massachusetts at my mother-in law’s, teaching at a local multi-arts camp, where both of my kids where enrolled. Two of my friends’ sons participated in the camp as well, and one of the two boys stayed with us.  The other boy stayed with his mom, closer to the camp.

The camp was the organic, free-flowing type, filled with creativity and inspiration. The kids had a great time. As the second day of camp came to a close, my friend did not show up to pick up her son.  The director of the camp took me aside and told me that she was taken by ambulance to the hospital. There was no diagnosis at the time…

For the next two days, I had three loving, easily excited and energetic boys and my daughter filling every moment of my day at my mother-in law’s sweet home.

After 3 days, a surgery, and a lot of confusion, everything went back to normal. My friend is doing great now.

Also during the week, we met up with dear friends of ours who recently re-located to the states from Bolivia, Latin America for urgent medical attention for their youngest son, who was diagnosed with adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD).

Adrenoleukodystrophy? I could barely say it, and was not familiar with it.  Then my husband said, do you remember the movie Lorenzo’s oil?

Yes, I did. Of the few movies I’ve seen, I could not forget this one. A heart wrenching story of how a father and mother fought for their son Lorenzo’s life.  Lorenzo had ALD, a rare disease that, in the early 1990s, was not understood by many and did not have a cure. The husband and wife tirelessly researched, cared and nursed their son to the best health they could, while seeking out scientists and information to create a method to help slow the progression of ALD. The result was a mixture of oleic acid and erucic acid, now named Lorenzo’s oil.

According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, adrenoleukodystrophy describes several closely related inherited disorders that disrupt the breakdown or metabolism of certain fats, creating very-long-chain fatty acids. This condition results in a build up of very-long chain fatty acids (VLCFA) in the nervous system, adrenal gland and testes, that disrupts normal activity. It causes damage to the myelin sheath, an insulating membrane that surrounds nerve cells in the brain, and the adrenal cortex, because the body is unable to produce the enzyme to break down this fatty acid chain in the normal manner.

ALD is passed down as an X-linked genetic trait, affecting mostly males, since males carry only one X-chromosome and lack the protective effect of carrying two.  Some women who are carriers have mild affects of the disease. ALD affects approximately 1 in 20,000 people in all races.

It is thought that my friend’s son has the childhood cerebral form, which occurs anytime between the ages of 4-10.  We are praying that despite the symptoms he has: seizures, loss of hearing, fatigue, and seeing things that are not there, that he is still able to receive treatment. Treatment with adrenal hormones could be lifesaving. Bone marrow transplants can provide long-term benefits if he is still at the early stages of certain types of ALD, but if it is too far advanced, it could carry the risks of mortality.

Tomorrow, at 3pm is their appointment with a specialist. Please take a moment at that time and send them all the healing energy you can.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Namaste.

Elisha Fernandes Simpson CKYT, RYT, aka laughing hearts yoga  teaches family, mommy and me, kids (ages 7 -18) yoga and organizes free bi-weekly yoga classes for people with breast cancer. Become a friend on Facebook‘s laughing hearts yoga page.

NEW tween, mommy and me and family classes beginning in Peekskill at Pilates on Hudson  March 5th Huge space, 18 foot ceilings and gorgeous views!  Contact info@laughingheartsyoga.com – preregistration required!