It hurts... should I still practice yoga?

One thing you discover as you age, is that things ache more. There are more sore bits, injuries take longer to heal and niggles can frustrate our efforts to be pain free.
 
The body simply isn't as resilient as it was, and we need to work harder to maintain stability and mobility. We are all aging, and we can't wait for a pain-free day to do something positive to turn the tide. It takes more effort to hold our ground than it ever has before and waiting will only set us back further. 
 
I had a recent minor skin surgery (thankfully nothing to worry about). It didn't stop me practicing. I had to modify my yoga postures and work around any forward bending so that the stitches could work their magic.
 
My sprained ankle a couple of years back when I slipped into a hole in the park didn't derail my practice. My foot went black and blue and was swollen so cross legged was off the cards, but I simply had to avoid things that hurt, and ensure that I showed up to my practice with extra care and attention.
 
A bit like if I have a sore in my mouth, I don't stop cleaning my teeth. I just brush them more carefully, respect the sore bits, but take care of the rest of my precious teeth and gums in the meantime.
 
If your waiting for the day that nothing aches to get to your mat . . .
 
The Pros - there are lots!
Working with an injury can be brilliantly insightful. You'll discover an easily enhanced focus as the sheer risk of not paying attention is far greater. 
 
It is easy to view injuries as bad. Granted, no-one invites them, we all want to enjoy the freedom that good health affords. But discomfort is such an amazing opportunity for self-enquiry.
 
Instead of fighting against, and getting frustrated by, your ailments and symptoms, treat the sensations of the cold / achey hip / swollen ankle etc., as the body giving you information about what it can and can't do today. Be curious about the patterns in the mind, the way judgement and negative bias creeps in, and the potential for your intentions to be derailed by over-thinking. All patterns worth getting to know. 
 
It is tempting to let movement and meditative practices  drop off the priority list in the face of discomfort, congestion, fear etc. but it can be such an interesting and valuable time to practice. It affords new insights and rewards that are very different than if you were feeling fine. And the yoga still helps, even when it is more gentle than perhaps you would choose. You always feel better, more grounded, relaxed, energised, you'll recover sooner, and it can even adjust your relationship to the ailment to become more positive. 
 
I found Covid completely fascinating. I had new sensations in my body. My smell went completely. And mentally I knew I had 'it' - the dreaded thing that was sweeping across the world. It was in me, right now. If I allowed it, it could feel a bit scarey. But also there was a level of excitement. How interesting?! That thing that everyone is talking about, I get to experience it first hand, before anyone else I know. Was I going to be okay? Who knew. A completely new experience - how curious, a new adventure.
 
I was lucky enough to have it while on holiday and at no point did I feel so ill that I contemplated hospital. There was even something of a relief at getting it. There was no need to avoid getting it any more, at least for a few weeks after I felt bullet proof. A layer of worry that I didn't even realise I had been carrying around had vanished. That was worth discovering - that I didn't even realise I was that worried. I had discovered a lot about what 'worry' in its more subtle guise looks and feels like. Worth knowing. And from there I just had to go with what unfolded next. 
 
My yoga practice was a revelation. My postures and breath felt different. Each practice held a sense of fascination at what it was actually like to be in a body with Covid. The physical sensations, plus the stuff in my mind. The temptation of dramatic narrative and fear of what might happen next, drawing me away from what was actually my direct experience of what was happening. The vividness of experiencing my new body, within the familiar ground of my daily practice, helped deepen my practice and level of attentiveness and meditation. All brilliant insights to carry forwards. 
 
Ultimately life is often out of our hands. We like to think we are in control, we often try to be which can take so much energy. Illness and injury are times when situations are taken out of your hands in a visceral way. And this has great value and benefit.
 
This doesn't necessarily mean showing up to class with a streaming cold, but show up to something. Show up online and take it gently, take a short video, do your own personal practice. There is always something you can do, and it is always worth the effort. 
 
The old adage life is a journey, not a destination, applies at its best here. The journey is possibly the opposite of what you would have chosen, but there is plenty to enjoy anyway, it might just take a shift of mindset.
 
Definitely something worth practicing. ​