Picture By: Kyson Dana

Let’s face it, anyone living in this modern world knows the daily trials and tribulations of just being. It seems like there is a lot of pressure (sometimes self inflicted) on this generation to be constantly doing, succeeding and achieving at all costs. In the middle of this modern chaos, so many of us have forgotten to take a step back and take care of ourselves emotionally, physically and spiritually. So this article is for all my super busy, super stressed, super humans out there who are doing it all – except balancing their crazy lives with a little bit of calm amidst the proverbial storm. 

Now before I get into the nitty gritty, I want to introduce you to the Traditional Chinese Medicine concept of yin and yang (yang is pronounced “yong” by the way), see you’ve learned something already! Chances are you’ve heard of “yin and yang.” I think most people are familiar with the concept that they are opposite energies which compliment one another, or maybe you are just picturing the quintessential yin yang symbol. Well the Coles notes version is that yin is more a soft, calm, gentle energy, and that yang is a more intense, firey, energetic energy. While these concepts are rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine,  and eastern philosophy, they relate much more to our everyday lives than we might think.

Here’s the reality for most people these days – in the word’s of Rhianna – work, work, work, work, work.

It seems to me that a lot of people these days have stressful, taxing jobs that weigh them down. Engage in exercise programs that are rigorous and challenging. They sit in hours of traffic with other frustrated drivers on their commutes to and from work, and barely have time to eat a healthy balanced diet let alone engage in other self care practices.

What all these things have in common is their “yang” quality.

Many people are living the majority of their lives involved in very yang activities, with very intense and yang attitudes. It’s not wrong – we absolutely need yang in our lives – it’s the thing that lights a fire under us, get’s us going, helps us achieve those big bad goals we have, but in excess and if not balanced out with some yin it can wreak havoc on our health and well-being.

Now, these yang elements in our life, like our stressful job’s, terrible traffic, and cross-fit-esque work out routines aren’t going anywhere. To be honest hey don’t have to, and in fact they shouldn’t! However, what we need to consider is that the more yang aspects in our lives, the more we need to consciously, and purposefully engage in balancing yin activities.

We need a balance of yin and yang in our lives to achieve optimal health. This is critical.

Many alternative health care practitioners will actually prescribe meditation, tai chi, and other yin activities to help their clients achieve optimal health – because optimal health is much more then a healthy diet and an exercise program. Though both those things are a great start.

I am very aware that most people don’t have 2-3 hours a day to meditate, do yoga, take an epsom salt bath, do intense self massage, and journal positive thoughts until the cows come home to combat the stress of their day. So i’m here to show you that incorporating more yin into your life doesn’t have to take 3 hours, an epsom salt bath and and an hour meditation.

So here are 10 simple things you can do to create balance in your life:

1: Sit for 5 minutes and focus on your breath

Starting to sit and meditate for even 5 minutes per day can reduce your stress levels, and increase the yin in your life. Now this meditation doesn’t need to be sitting in lotus position, or chanting Om – it could be at your desk at work, in your car, at home – anywhere you want, taking 5 minutes to focus on your breath. That’s it. Try taking 5 minutes a day to do this, and notice how it impacts your life.

2: Eat your lunch mindfully

This is something we are all guilty of from time to time. It has become commonplace to just eat your lunch in front of your computer, T.V., or while reading a report, or important document. However, the fact that we all need to eat means that this is an opportunity we have every day to incorporate mindfulness, and increase our yin. Intentionally choose for one meal of your day to be eaten in silence, with mindful awareness.

3: Go for a walk in nature

Now when I say go for a walk I don’t mean walk down the street with your cell phone attached to your hand, scrolling Instagram – I mean a mindful walk. Take your partner and have a meaningful conversation to connect, your dog, or simply go by yourself  and practice being alone for as short as 10 minutes at a time. This is such a nourishing practice that will absolutely increase the yin in your life.

4: Mindfully choose to Netflix and chill

This is probably one of the most common ways that we unknowingly up our yin – we Netflix and chill. Sometimes for hours on end! While binge watching your favourite T.V. show for literally hours and hours may not be the healthiest choice, every now and then choosing Netflix in a time of stress can be a powerful way to unwind after a long day. What I want to emphasize about this – and as it says in the title – is that you CHOOSE to Netflix and chill, rather than automatically coming home after a long day and immediately turning on the T.V. Helping T.V. can help us remove ourselves from the stress of the day, by engaging in something other than what we are stressed about.

5: Read a book

We all have that book we’ve been meaning to read. I know that I often get intimidated because books because they’re long, and often take me a while to get through. But interestingly enough, I find that after i’ve read a book for even 10 minutes, my energy shifts and I feel more calm. See if you can dedicate 10 minutes each night before you go to bed to reading that book you’ve always wanted to read. It will definitely increase the yin in your life, and each day you’ll be one step closer to finishing it.

6: Unplug from your electronics

This one is great, and something I have tried incorporating into my life. Now, for some people this may not be possible depending on your job (like if you’re an on-call surgeon… I guess you should keep that pager on right?), but for most people staying glued to their devices is a choice. See if you can spend the hour right before bed electronic free. That way you wont be tempted to look at work emails, mindlessly scroll through Facebook and Instagram comparing your life to the one’s you see online, and create space for you to connect with yourself, and do things which nourish your body, mind and soul.

7: Incorporate yoga into your weekly exercise regime

Sometimes we get so consumed in exercising for the purpose of losing weight, rather than for exercising for the purpose of nourishing and honouring our body. Many typical weight loss and exercise regimes can be very intense and “yang” in nature. See if you can incorporate yoga even once a week into your schedule. If you are unable to attend a class in person, look online for some free yoga classes (they have some great ones on Youtube). Some are even as short as 10 minute which can still have a positive impact and up your yin! There also happens to be a style of yoga called yin, and I would definitely recommend trying this.

8: Use your commute to practice mindfulness

This is where I really used to struggle. My commute was so stressful – in fact most of my job was commuting, going from client to client. I began to use the long commutes as opportunities to focus on my breath, practice mindfulness, notice my thoughts and feelings (yes, even the angry ones), and just allow them to be there! So the next time you are stuck on the free-way, notice yourself getting frustrated, angry, impatient or whatever other emotions come up, and see if you can use this space as an opportunity to practice mindfulness.

9: Pick one daily task and do it with mindful awareness

In the 8-week Mindfulness course that I teach, one of the exercises we give participants is to pick one daily activity and perform these every single day with mindful awareness. So something like brushing your teeth, taking a shower, or washing the dishes and doing so with complete attention and awareness. Typically we rush through things that teeth brushing, or washing dishes, and we spend so much time just trying to get it done that we don’t actually experience that moment at all. That’s the yang in us trying to do, do, do without awareness. The more attention we pay to the things that we do, the more yin we will create in our lives.

10: Journal

This might be the most cliche of all of them – and I really tried to stay away from cliche self-care idea’s for this article I really did – but there is something to powerful about journalling I just had to include it. I used to make this my bed-time habit. There was something magical about being able to let out all my fears, anxieties, hopes and dreams on a piece of paper without judgment. Letting out these emotions, whether it is to a close friend, or your journal creates space and is one of the most yin activities I can think of.

Now you really do not have to do all of these things at once – in fact I would actually recommend that you don’t. Pick on or two and go from there. It’s important to start where you are at, and not try and make too many changes at once or they will likely not stick, but picking one or two per day is a great start!

I hope you enjoyed this article! If you found it helpful, liked it or even if you hated it I would love to hear from you, so feel free to comment below.

Melissa Singh