Why Children Need Yoga more than Adults
When I think about all of the beautiful things that yoga teaches, I reflect on how much I could have benefited from it much earlier on in life.
The calm, clarity and gratitude that yoga has awakened in me, and the rare opportunity it brings for quiet reflection, shedding of negatives, and re-centering is something I have never found elsewhere. The feeling of strength, confidence and motivation that I leave each class with. Learning to conquer my busy mind, the challenge of slowing down, and fostering that golden awareness of the present moment.
What if I had been exposed to all of this in my childhood, during the most influential years of my cognitive development and socialization?
I can think of so many every day challenges and significant events growing up where I could have drawn upon the tools I have since learned to boost my optimism, my feelings of self-worth and my resilience. I wonder what mental battles over the years I could have overcome more efficiently, or even avoided, had I discovered sooner that regret of the past is a useless exercise, and that living for the future is in vain.
What if I knew back then that the present moment is all that truly matters and that, like yoga, life is a journey of constant growth and learning?
And breathing! Would you believe me if I said that I only truly learned to breathe last year? The short, shallow breathing from the chest that most of us survive on is sub-optimal for both mind and body. Only, we’ve never been taught any better; we’ve never been taught to bring our awareness to our breath or to acknowledge how powerful breathing can be in harnessing our emotions.
Why did it take nearly 30 years of my precious life to encounter something so profoundly life changing?
So far removed from the valuable principles found in the roots of yoga, most children in the West are taught to work hard and set goals; to be firm-minded, practical and calculated. They are presented with a plethora of choices and told they can be anything they want to be. And I am all for this, to some extent.
But with this comes the inevitable pressure, the struggle to meet expectations, the competition, the feelings of inadequacy and the fallacy of measuring self-worth on tangible outcomes and achievements. With this comes the developed habituation of always looking forward to what will be, instead of appreciating what is. And with this comes the normalized sacrifice of happiness for the endless pursuit of targets and objectives.
Most significant of all is the fact that children are ill-equipped at dealing with these challenges. Despite spending the majority of their days in educational settings, children are rarely taught to connect with their emotions and their true desires, and seldom given the opportunity to develop a deeper awareness and understanding of themselves and the world around them.
It is not surprising that we see this inability to function under such conditions manifest itself in substance misuse, ill mental health, stress and burnouts, and the tragic disillusion and dissatisfaction with life that we so often see around us.
Suddenly as adults we have no choice but to shift our taught patterns of thinking, to re-evaluate our purpose and change our world views to better cope with our realities.
Now you may say that these concepts are too deep, too complex for children to understand. But childrenare complex beings, and ignoring this fact is not the answer. The romanticized notion of childhood as a time of complete innocence and simplicity is an over-simplified one which unfortunately does not match reality.
So instead of over-emphasising their dependence, and being overbearing in our protective aims, whydon’t we empower children to better deal with their inevitable exposure to the highs and lows of life by introducing these principles to them early enough for them to be an integrated part of how they think, and how they approach the world as they grow?
Things we can do:
Lead by example. Show children how to embrace life with calmness, with compassion, without expectation, and with self-love rather than self-criticism. Speak to your children to introduce them to these ways of thinking. Encourage them to be optimistic and grateful. Inspire them through your own actions and help them learn from your positive behaviours.
Introduce yoga into children’s lives. Yoga inherently gives children the permission and opportunity to be alone with their thoughts, to be reflective, to connect with their minds and bodies, and to practise gratitude. Yoga practise tailored to children can build resilience and equip children with invaluable techniques which they can later use independently to deal with life’s challenges. The mindful exploration of concepts such as patience, kindness and forgiveness through postures, breath work, creative activities and relaxations all aid in the development of healthier minds and bodies, and deeper connections with ourselves and others
