I have to be honest.  I am a married women with a beautiful family, but I have fallen in Love again…

This past week I was in San Diego on a week long yoga retreat. I had left my home, my husband and daughter after a pretty hectic couple of weeks at work – a familiar thread as you’ll notice.

Those of you who have read some of my previous articles like “Just let Go” will know that I have also been facing some personal stress too. But as the old cliche goes, Love finds you when you least expect it.

So here I was in San Diego all by myself, minding my own business, my head filled with thoughts, dealing with business queries and rushing last minute phone calls and helping folks on my team that needed last minute help, before I disappeared offline for the week.

All of a sudden here I was in this yoga Retreat. I was excited, but I actually wouldn’t have minded if it was starting a week late as I had so much work to do. You know that feeling when you want to be somewhere but you don’t want to be there.  That was me.

However all that changed over the course of the first day.

Slowly as my mind focused on my yoga, my breathing and meditation, everything began to unravel. I wasn’t even aware I was stressed – I still practice yoga several times a week at home and I always thought I have plenty of me time.

I was wrong. As my thoughts slowed, my body began to respond, my emotions began to respond and I felt alive again. Being in the space with other like minded individuals, in a place of wonderful positive energy allowed me to unconsciously let go of all of the personal stress from home and work. Just being in a safe place connected with people who were so completely different but still were there for the same reason.

Community. Connection. Sharing. Evolution. Raising their vibration. I found myself calming down on the inside, and becoming less reactive on the outside and just enjoying. When I was surrounded by these people I felt at home. I laughed. I cried. I enjoyed myself and I found myself to be a softer, more enjoyable person to be around.

The one profound thing for me was the amazing sense of gratitude I felt. I was suddenly so grateful for my life, for the hardships and stress in my life as they help me evolve and grow, for my family, for my husband who supports me even when we are not getting on well and for being surrounded by such wonderful people.

What I also took from this week apart from the gratitude was responsibility for my own actions, how they affect people, how they may even hurt people when I don’t intend to, and how I would like to remain calm and non reactive. Remember nothing is an emergency and that:

We should be putting marbles into our jar daily rather than taking them out. @hayleyhobson
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I fell in Love with yoga and this life again!

I encourage you to do something similar for yourself and as often as possible. Here are some tips for you:

1. Reconnect with your true Love and Passion – whatever it is go spend some time immersing yourself in your true love. Even though I love yoga and do it three-four times per week, it wasn’t the same as just getting away in a new environment and immersing myself in it for five days. It only took one day to completely unwind and fall in Love again…
2. Make more ME time – you are not a bad parent, spouse, sibling or friend if you need time out and you are a little selfish with your time. No way, you need it and we all need it. Plan a good chunk of ME time in your calendar and stick to it.
3. We all need to rejuvenate and replenish our Mind, Body, Spirit and Emotions. We cannot just focus on one area and neglect the others. In order to find true balance and harmony, we need to work on all those areas. That is when we find our true bliss.
4. Surround yourself with people who are like minded and supportive – relationships are an extremely important part of our daily needs and we should make sure these are nourishing and positive relationships, where we can love and support each other.
5. Be in a state of Gratitude – just being in this state and focusing on everything you are grateful for can change your vibration very quickly. When you feel good your physical, emotional, mental and spiritual energy responds in a positive way and starts a positive wave of energy in your life.

So go back and discover your first love. Immerse yourself in it and fall in Love again. Your Body, Mind and Spirit will thank you for it!

XO

Hayley

Hayley Hobson is an author, speaker, business coach, yogi, Pilates instructor, and holistic nutritional expert based in Boulder, CO. Her unique and intelligent style promotes strengthening while softening—empowering her clients to heal not only their physical bodies but their hearts and minds as well. To learn more about her nutritional courses, events, and custom programs, visit hayleyhobson.com or follow her on Facebook or Twitter.

Image courtesy of CamdiLUV.