Unedited Transcript Podcast with Yvonne Hernandez – Peace from within – January 2021
Cris
Peace. It’s a noun. Freedom from disturbance, having tranquility and welcome to this week’s episode of grounding journey. Peace from within. I’m excited to have my guest Yvonne Hernandez here to discuss the word peace. And as better it’s because I’m trying to read instead of just flow with the conversation. So let me introduce our wonderful guest today. We met through another podcasting group. And what I thought was so fun is that Yvonne does meditations. She has three kids, they’re bilingual. And she started her podcast to sat beside balance, because she was introducing meditation to your kids classrooms. So instead of giving a formal introduction, I just want to have you jump in and introduce yourself and tell our guests a little bit about you. So thanks for being here, Yvonne.
Yvonne
Thank you so much, Chris. such a wonderful opportunity to talk to you. And it’s so cool how we met, you know, through our podcasting pod hive group, and I’ve learned so much and met so many amazing people like you, and it’s like, wow, like finding someone else that aligns with what you’re doing. And you know, the lifestyle in your way of thinking. It’s like, wow, you attract those that, you know, you want to be like, right? And this path that we’re going through, it’s like, you know, these people keep coming into my life. And you’re one of them. It’s like, wow, we have so many things to talk about, after listening to you to so many different episodes of yours. And like, so many amazing guests. So thank you so much for this opportunity to share. So, so I’m a mom of three. And so yeah, I started this podcasting journey, because I wanted to teach meditation in my kids classrooms. My son, at the time was in third grade, and they were going through a construction phase. And so I noticed, you know, just his whole attitude change, you know, it was, you know, he was down, he was stressed, he was, you know, like, he wasn’t himself, right. And so I reached out to a friend, and I said, Hey, you know, is there something that I can do? Because I was already in this natural healing space, right? where, like, there’s so many things that we can do without medication, right, this alternative medicine, you know, type of space. And so, she, she recommended to do a meditation. And I said, Well, okay, so where do I get the recording? And or the script, she’s like, Oh, no, you make it up, you know, take them to the beach. You know, just imagine everything the feeling, I’m like, oh, okay, well, that’s easy. And so I reached out to his teacher, she was so awesome. And she said, Yes, of course. And so I jumped on board. And I started going every Friday morning, because and then Friday worked out that it was test day. And so you it was just so beautiful to see at the beginning. They’re all fidgeting and giggling and looking around whatever, like what are you doing, lady? Right. And then by December, right before Christmas break, it’s like, wow, like everyone was pretty much fully participating. You know, some of them were still kind of like wandering around. But you know, it’s okay. They respected everyone’s, you know, space and the time that we had together. And even at that day, the last day of school right before Christmas break or winter break. One of the parents asked me if I was a mom who was doing the meditation in school, and I said, Yes. And she said, Thank you so much. My daughter suffers from test anxiety. And I was like, oh, my goodness, I that hadn’t even occurred to me, right? That kids go through this right? She said, ever since you’ve been coming, it’s really helped her and she’s able to get through Fridays, which was much better because she struggled, right? And it was just such, like confirmation, right? I’m like, wow, I’m doing something bigger than just helping them with these little emotions that I thought it was just like, the stress of adjusting to a new environment, because they were used to this giant classroom, down to what it seemed to them like a closet, right? And so it was a big difference, you know, for them. And, but it was more than that. I mean, it was anxiety, right? And then whatever issues, you know, or they’re going through, because of home or whatever, right? And so it just turned to something bigger, and then getting the parents feedback as well was so beautiful, because they even started listening at work, because, you know, they’re stressed out, and it’s only five minutes. So I made my podcast, you know, five minutes. Oh, well, let me back up. So then, I started doing this, and I started posting, hey, I’m doing this meditation, I had a friend, friend reach out to me and say, What is this meditation thing you’re doing? You no longer believe in God? Yes. Agreed. I’m like, no, it has nothing to do with that. This is just a tool to help these kids. Right. But at the same time, I was so glad she asked me that because it really made me think that well, what if other parents are thinking the same thing? I don’t want them to call the school and say, Hey, I don’t want my kids changing religion. What we’re doing right, but I mean, it. Those are, you know, actual thoughts that people could have, right? And they do because someone asked me this, right. So because of that, that actually made me think well, I need to be transparent. I want parents to know and hear what I’m saying. So instead of writing it down, I figured I’ll just start recording everything that I’m doing, and make it into a podcast which anyone can hear anytime, anywhere you know from your phone or your computer. So even if they don’t have a computer, they can still listen on the cell phone. Right. And so that’s kind of how it started. And I started doing that. And
Yvonne
it doesn’t, you know, basically, you know, receive so much wonderful feedback from parents and their support and from the teachers. And it was just so nice to have that support. Right. And it’s needed. And so I made it bilingual, excuse me, because my kids go to dual immersion school. So they’re learning Spanish at the same time as they’re learning English. And so I figured, well, why not make the podcast bilingual? And then I started looking around, well, maybe there are other, you know, meditation, you know, YouTube channels that are translating as you’re going. But I really, I couldn’t find any I could find English meditations and Spanish meditations for kids. And, but nothing that was translating as you were going right, as you’re going through everything. And so I figured, okay, well, let me just try it and see how this works. And if people like it, and so many people, even if they don’t speak Spanish, they really enjoyed it. Because whatever chitter chatter was going on in their brain, they were focusing on my translation, that they will they were able to relax, and just think about like, Oh, so that’s how you say, you know that it is in English or in Spanish, right? And so it helps them to, to stop that chitter chatter, relax, and be present for those five minutes. And that’s, that’s the goal. I wanted to give people a reason not to have an excuse, you know, to that they can’t meditate. Because I hear that a lot. I don’t have, I don’t have, I am so busy. You know, my kids my work, but did it right. But we need to take that pause, it’s so important, because we live in this world of zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom, right, and our body starts stressing out. And that’s what causes a lot of diseases and illnesses and anxiety, stress, right? Because our body is no longer at ease. And so your body’s trying to tell you, hey, chill, slow down, take a pause. If you’re not listening to me, I’m going to express it in a way that you will listen to me that stuff, right, and it’s so huge that a lot of people don’t understand. So you can prevent a lot of illnesses and diseases and all that stuff. If you take that pause, if you start with five minutes, even one minute. Take a big deep breath in. Inhale, imagine you’re smelling a beautiful flower. And then exhale, like you’re blowing out your birthday candles. And that’s how we start with the kids. Imagine you’re holding a flower. Inhale, smell it. It’s so so good. And you want to take all that in, right all that oxygen in, and then you exhale, and you blow all those candles, not one candle, but all your birthday candles, right? And they’re like, yeah, and so it’s, it’s as simple as that, if you can take a few breaths like that, you know, you know, five breaths like that, to like really get that oxygen, that toxic oxygen that’s been stagnant in your body, get that out. I mean, it makes such a big difference. I mean, it’s like an instant, you know, change in your body. It’s like, wow, I feel so much better. I have more oxygen in my body now because I was able to breathe deep from my diaphragm. And I tell them, you know, imagine, you know, it’s all the way to your tummy, inflate your tummy. And that’s how you’re supposed to breathe, you know, even sleep. I mean, you inhale, you know, using your diaphragm and or imagine your tummy, right? If you see your tummy rise, and you are inhaling properly. So I mean, that’s a that’s a easy way to get started and, and that’s how the podcast started. And you know, we’re here. We you said a couple things that I definitely
Cris
want to circle back to, because I’m just like, through the whole thing, trying not to shake my head and make too much noise while I’m agreeing with you. I think that this do you can you still believe in God? Question is such a question people get, I know that I’ve gotten it. I actually did a YouTube video about, yes, you can believe in God and everything else. Because I had a really good friend who was talking to me when I was starting my yoga teacher training. And I was talking about meditating and talking about you then. And she said, you know, can you believe in God and believe in everything you do? And I’m like, Yes. Like, I pray multiple times a day to God, not because I don’t you know, like you can. It’s really like what resonates right for you. And I think that’s so important to throw in there. And I love that you brought that up to say yes, like this isn’t because I know when like I love Reiki. I’m a Reiki practitioner.
Cris
I have a cat who was in a serious accident six months ago. And I swear some days he just comes in ask for it like I can tell. And it was so funny. Last week, I’ve been telling my husband I’ve been doing it on him. And you know, my husband’s like, okay, whatever. And so the other night he was asleep on my lap and I did some Reiki on him and he looked Like he was like, four beers in drunk passed out my lap, you know? I mean, he was just so relaxed. It was funny. And my husband looks over the cat, like, Did you just make your cat because I don’t know that I’ve ever seen him look like. I’m like, yeah. But when I started doing Reiki, I had somebody come to me, and they were really concerned, I had joined a cult. And I was like, wow, no, like, it’s the loving light of God that you’re sharing. And so I think it’s really important to say that, you know, you can believe whatever you believe, and believe in your mind. It’s just what resonates for you. And that’s what’s so important to talk about. It’s just, it’s what resonates for you. You can call it God, you can call it higher power. You can call it universe, like, whatever resonates for you.
Yvonne
Yeah, so true. Well, I love that we’ll circle back to that. Because Yeah, it’s so important to, to, to let people know, you know, it’s like, it’s not about religion, it’s about having those tools that can help you in so many ways. Well, and I think,
Cris
to a degree, for some people, anybody, you know, when I talk about meditation, because you like, so I’m a very avid meditator. I love to do yoga, and meditate or meditate, and then do yoga. I, I’m one who does, like 3045 minutes a meditation when I can, and that’s pretty regularly. But what I say to people who are like, Oh, I don’t have the time. I can’t do that. I don’t I don’t know how to meditate. I can’t get quiet. Sorry. It’s just start with them. Do you pray, because prayer is like meditation. But it’s just kind of being open. To hear the responses. We were talking before we started recording and a couple of the quotes I found was, the quieter you become, the more you can hear. So to me, meditation is a form of prayer, by starting with your intention, which is asking, you know, if, if you don’t set an intention, it’s connecting with God. And then just being quiet to hear what your intention answers or what God answers or goddess or universe, whatever. But I think that’s really important to think about it. Yeah.
in prayer is, you know, prayer, is you talking to God having the right and when you meditate, you listen. What is that message? What do I need to hear? What does God have to tell me? What do I need to know? Right? And so because we’re zoomed in doing okay, God, please, please, please do, please. And you’re like, Lou, you’re out the door, right? But you don’t need that time to sit still quiet and listen.
Cris
And then a meditation. No work works in there. Yeah, it’s hard to but once you get I know, for me, because I when I started meditating, like, I mean, meditation has been a 20 year journey for me. But in this latest incarnation that it has taken, I had a friend who went to Joe dispenza, week long seven day retreat. And then she came back. And she made a challenge for like, I think there were 16 of us to do six months, five days a week meditation. And it was neat, because we held that container for each other. And there was definitely some days that I’m like, I don’t want to go like I just, I don’t feel like it. I’m in a bad place, blah, blah, blah. But I knew there was that container that I was a part of, and that I was holding space for. So I got up and I did a 20 minute meditation instead of a 45 minute meditation, but I showed up for that container. And what I received as my gift was that piece, which brings us back to the word that was just so much tranquility. For me, it really, it just, it was where I quieted, and even though an hour later, I’d be at my desk. For that time, my nervous system, I calmed, my, just everything my thoughts had calmed. I was able to see clearly what I wanted out of my day. Instead of zoom, zooming, as you say, through the start of my day, and never knowing what I wanted out of
my day.
Cris
I thought it was really neat to get to go through that. And, you know, my lifestyle supports that I can do a 30 minute meditation in the morning. But I think once you really start meditating regularly, you crave it. It’s like sugar or carbs. You start to crave it after a while.
Yvonne
Yeah, I agree. That was hard to start for some people. And I mean, it was for me too. When I started because I wanted to get some rest. I was so tired. You know, being a mom and my youngest was a baby at the time and I was so exhausted, I needed to get dressed. So I would just put on my earbuds, put some YouTube meditation video to help me go to sleep, and I’d pass out but I would wake up so refreshed. I’m like, this is amazing. Like I actually got some rest, you know, because I’m always on alert. Like I have deep sleep, you know, restful sleep. I’m just kind of like napping, right? Like, who knows? Something or someone has a bathroom, oh, someone’s crying or whatever, right. But once I started doing that, I’m like, Oh, I need to do this more regularly, regularly. And then learning different types of meditation to, you know, of course, there’s with music, there’s guided or silence. You know, there’s so many different kinds. And so, learning, but that’s how I started, I needed something to guide me to put me at ease music to kind of, okay, wind down.
Unknown Speaker 25:27
And I think that’s such a,
Unknown Speaker 25:28
I appreciate that you
Unknown Speaker 25:29
brought up the different
Cris 25:29
types of yoga, I mean, not yoga, sorry, meditation. Because when I said like, my latest incarnation has been about 18 months. But before that, I did self guided meditation, I would draw a card, I would read the meditation on it. And I could go to that place for five or 10 minutes in the morning. And I liked that. But I couldn’t stay there for long. You know, like, I couldn’t sit in the silence, because after I kind of went through the visualization, it just felt complete, and then something would distract me. So now I love listening to a full on guided meditation. But every once in a while, I go back to the just like, Okay, let me see this visualization and see where it opens up. And one of my favorites, kind of guided meditation is when they kind of walk you through. And then they, there’s just the silence of the music for a little bit. And then they come back and walk you a little bit farther. So they’re not walking the whole time with you. But they give you that space to kind of expand and explore, and then get back with you. So there are so many, that it’s kind of like soda. If you don’t like Coke, try Pepsi. If you don’t like Pepsi, try spray. Like there’s so many different meditations. And there’s so many different meditation people that don’t give up, just keep exploring and figure out what really resonates for you. Because it truly does bring that peace, like my mornings that I start with meditation and you do yours at night, I do mine in the morning, because when I hit the sack
Unknown Speaker 27:04
that morning, morning, I want to do the 30 minutes and 30 minutes. And this is part of my practice right now. Nice. Yeah,
Cris 27:11
I just need time I can’t get to meditation. I know when I wake up at like, 130. And I can’t fall back asleep, I’ll do a meditation. But
Unknown Speaker 27:19
by the time I hit bed,
Cris 27:21
I’m just like, I’m done. Like I don’t, you know, so. So what I would say from that comment is that there’s no right or wrong. Again, do what resonates with you. And just make sure that it really connects and and
Unknown Speaker 27:34
works for you. Yeah, you can do it earlier in the day too. I mean, first thing in the morning, of course, when you get up, you rise, go to the bathroom, you know, kind of wake yourself up, and then you can meditate which is what we’ve been doing or what I’ve been doing. And then in the evening instead of doing it right before bed, because by then your body’s ready to go to sleep maybe like an hour or two before bed, which is what I’ve been doing. And actually I’ve been doing it with my kids because they’re I mean, bedtime is eight o’clock. And for me it’s not to like tense. It’s like, Okay, this new gives me plenty of time, right? So that I’m not exhausted, and I pass out while meditating. And so I’ve been doing so right now. And I’m in the Oprah meditation teaching certification program. And so one of the scripts that we have his you know, it’s an audio insulin listening to it. And so I started listening to them. And my kids started asking, Well, what are you listening to call it as part of my school. And so then they started to listen. So now I just play that every night with them, we go through prayers, we do some breathing exercises to prepare bodies. And then we start the meditation, I just play it. And so you know, he’s guiding us, you know, door it for intentions, and then we, you know, and then it goes into silence. And so during the silence, we have our personal mantra, and for them, I just tell them to say, Uh hum. And we just kind of like a men, which is like the same vibration, right? Okay. But it doesn’t mean anything, there’s no meaning to it, it’s just the vibration to take you into that silence. So that it takes you into that, you know, into that gap, right? Where there’s, like, that happens between your thought in between your thoughts, you know, there’s that gap. And so that’s where we’re trying to get, but for them, it’s helping them to relax and go to sleep, which is long, you know, and that’s how I wanted to sleep. And so I’m using that to help them to go to sleep. But for me, it’s like, okay, I keep playing it. And then, you know, at a certain time, you know, he comes back on and you know, we finished right? And so that’s a different type of meditation to you know, using a mantra and so I have my own mantra. And so it’s just repeating, repeating and it you know, every time that I have a thought, it’s like, okay, gently come back to my mantra, so that it gets me to that silence that I need that we all need, you know, for our bodies.
Cris 29:52
I love that. I love that you do that with your kids when my son My son will be 20 like how Next month, I keep saying that just to get used to the fact that I have a 20 year old because I don’t know that ever happened. But when he was younger, and I love that you do that at bedtime, because when he was younger, I won a CD somehow online. Now remember, this is all like early Facebook, I don’t even know where I got it, it was called Michael. And I would love to find it. I’ve actually looked for it. And I couldn’t find it. But like, that’s all I remember is the name was Michael something. And it was a kid’s guided meditation. And he loved that CD. And you know, I would lay in there with him for 10 minutes, but it was a 30 minute CD. And he would fall asleep at that. And I tell you, once I got that and we play it in his room at night, I didn’t have the mancave water Mom, can I Mom, Mom, you know, so it really is a benefit. And I love that you’re bringing all this to your kids that early ages. Because it really does give them the tools that if they lose connection with it, they come back to it when they’re adults. And that makes it so much easier for them because they’ve got that base of Oh, calmness. I think that’s really neat that you’re giving them that gift.
Unknown Speaker 31:10
And one of the reasons to like a long time ago, I heard this quote, and I actually have it on my Instagram too, because I really love it. And it’s by the Dalai Lama because it says, If every eight year old in the world is taught meditation, we will eliminate violins from the World Within one generation. That’s my kids age right now I have a six, a NINE and a 10 year old, it’s like, oh, my goodness, like, I mean, no 11 for getting there you just, um, but anyways, it’s within that age range. Right? And it’s, it’s, it’s to think that it is possible to have peace in the world. And it’s so motivating, because we have so much violence, so much negativity, in this world, I mean, in the world, not just within the US,
Cris 32:02
not just election.
Unknown Speaker 32:04
Time, but in the world, right? I mean wars, and just so much stuff, right? And it’s because they don’t have that peace within, they did have that peace within, then they would be able to get peace, because if you if the only thing you know is hurt, you’ve been hurt, then you hurt others, right? hurt people hurt other people. And so once you learn to have this peace within it’s like, have this love for yourself, and you have love for others, and then it just overflows right to your family, to your community, to your nation to the world, right. And so when I learned about the Chopra center, having this meditation teaching certification program, it’s so funny, because I’ve been wanting to look for a school to learn, you know, some sort of like, healing, holistic healing, I was still on this journey. Like, I knew I wanted something, right. And I wanted to find a school. And so then it just kind of seemed in the back of my mind and the night, I the 21 day meditation came into my life, you know, by Deepak Chopra, and in conjunction with Oprah and j balvin. And, and it was a bilingual 21 day meditation. And I thought, Wow, this is awesome. So I had the option to listen to the meditations in English and in Spanish, and they would have mantras that you would repeat, you know, specific ones for each day. And it was just so beautiful. And, and then I and I learned that they had a teaching certification program, and it’s like, oh, my goodness, this is amazing. And this is what I want to do. Right? And then learning they have the school to do this, right. I’m like, perfect. I found my school and, you know, it’s kind of what they say, when the student is ready. The teacher, you know, shows up, right? It’s like, wow, like, I’m ready. Right. And, and I knew I wanted to do something. And I know, I would, I knew I would know when it when it showed up right? by this show, that was just so perfect. And so, deep hawks mission is to have a billion people meditating in the world, and which is only 15% of the world’s population. And it seems like a lot, but that 15% is what we need to make that big change for it to happen. It’s like Wow, so that means I’m helping to plant the seeds of a world peace, basically. Right? You know, and it’s like, and then one of my friends earlier mentioned that we are helping by using our light, we are helping bring the light within other people so that they can shine on to others.
Unknown Speaker 34:42
Mm hmm.
Unknown Speaker 34:43
It’s so beautiful to see that I started crying because it’s like, wow, yes, that’s exactly what I’m doing. I’m using my light and I’m shining my light onto others so that they can shine, brighter and then bring peace to the world. Yes, yes, I am on board, I am on the right path, this is exactly where I need to be in, you know, it just feels right. You know, to be able to do this to be able to share this. And it’s such a beautiful journey right now, learning all of this and being aligned with all these teachings, and it’s like, it’s so perfect right now. It really is,
Cris 35:23
it’s a great time, because, you know, I, I just yesterday, the day before we recorded this finished my 10 month yoga teacher training, and the level of Thank you, it was really big, I stopped to do my practical but we’ve done the final exam, we’ve done the 10 months of classes, it is such a, an eye opening experience, whatever part of your journey you’re going through, like going through a meditation class going through a yoga class, because all of that helps us if you choose to, to connect with that inner guide within you. That piece. I mean, it’s a little challenging, because you’ve got to release a lot of stuff to really get through it. How long is your program that you’re going through? Um, I
Unknown Speaker 36:10
started in July, and I’ll be done in February. So February 16, I’ll be an official, certified chopper certified meditation teacher, I’m so excited. Yeah,
Cris 36:21
I mean, it’s so neat just to go on those journeys, because there is so much that we see within, you know, and that’s it kind of goes back to where you’re talking about shining your light. I know for me, because I was really studying and studying the honors in the yamas, and the practices of those and the principles that it shifted me, which then shifted my response within my family within my home, which then shifted, others in my home. So there’s that difference that you make, also, just because through meditation, through yoga, through whatever your modality is, you shift, which brings shifts in your majors, which brings shifts and other people’s responses to you, and, and you create that shift around you without having to be like, I want you to change, I want you to meditate, you know, Madison’s not gonna meditate, like, but he’s gonna wait for me for breakfast until I’m done with my meditation, you know, and breakfast will be done when I’m out of meditation. But it makes it just so much more peaceful. And there, there’s just that change that has shifted, because I brought that level to the house. And I’m sure that’s the same for you. Especially, I mean, your children are meditating with you, but it’s just it brings a shift of all the energy around you, which is really neat.
Unknown Speaker 37:37
Yeah, it’s been really neat to see the difference. I mean, especially, I mean, when COVID started, of course, it was huge, right? It turned everybody’s worlds upside down. I mean, especially, you know, the children, children everywhere, it’s like, what is happening, you know, and for them to process these emotions was was a little intense, you know, trying to get these emotions out and right. So we we’ve been doing a lot of work, but definitely meditation has been key in helping them feel more at ease. And so they asked for it. And so it’s, it’s, it’s like, the beautiful sound or like my mo We’re ready. Are you ready? You know, to meditate? Okay, let’s go, you know. But yeah, it’s been really key. And so that’s why I’m like, Okay, I’m, I need to help spread some more, because it’s helped my family. So I know, it can help other families as well. Sharing, you know, simple five minute, five minute meditations. I mean, it’s five minutes, like, Okay, everybody has five minutes. Right, you know, children needed. So if you start teaching the children now, instead of them learning that, that stress is normal, that’s teach them to be at ease is normal. I mean, even like, through college, like I heard a while back, I’d like college students think it’s like normal to to be under stress and under pressure and cramming. And, like all this, you know, high stress, right, that it’s normal, but it’s not. I mean, it shouldn’t be that way. But that’s all they know. And that’s what they’ve been taught. So when you don’t know you don’t know, right? And so, but now, you know, so you do better, right? And so, by learning all these different tools, I mean, it makes a big difference. So if we start the children, you know, start teaching the children, these tools, yoga, meditation, breath work. I mean, it’s simple tools, right? That you don’t need physical things to do these things that will help them when they’re adults. I wish I knew all of this when I was a child. I mean, it would have helped me tremendously, right. But I mean, things happen for a reason. And they do when they do right. But to know that I’m able to teach others right now, you know, when they’re young and then teach the parents to teach the kids and teach others right. And it’s how this is huge right now, and we need this so much in the world. Really?
Unknown Speaker 39:55
Well. That’s it. Yeah. And let’s talk about breath
Cris 39:59
work for a minute. Because you’ve mentioned that a couple times, and obviously in yoga breath work is such a big deal. And one of the things that you kind of said was, you know, get the air down into your belly. And something I think that people don’t realize is that we do such shallow breathing, that it’s so rare that unless you consciously think about it, you actually change the air and the bottom of your lungs, there’s so much toxicity and bad air and pollution builds up in your lungs. So as you said, the blowing the birthday candles out, that’s a great image for people who are like, this is silly, or I don’t know what to
Unknown Speaker 40:39
do.
Cris 40:40
But there’s so many different types of breath in yoga, too, that really focuses on exhaling and, you know, inhale through your nose and exhale, abruptly through your mouth, and really cleaning that air out. Because it’s so important that we do replenish the air in our bodies. And I think that a lot of times, if you don’t have time to meditate, you’re in a stressful place, you’re walking into a meeting, you’ve been in traffic, just taking three or four calming breaths is just as replenishing as doing a 20 minute meditation, because it brings you back to that calm space and, and connects you
Unknown Speaker 41:20
through your breath work.
Unknown Speaker 41:21
It does I learned that a while ago, too. And my friend, she’s like, Oh, you know, it’s like, let’s do Breath of Fire. Like, what is that? It’s like, Oh, yeah, let’s get all that air out. And, and I just felt so much better after that. And like, Wow, she’s like, you’re not breathing properly. Well, what does that mean? So she showed me She explained, we’re only breathing, you know, just, you know, on the top, you know, of our lungs, right? We’re not using the full capacity of what we’ve should be right? Like, we didn’t know that. It’s like, Yeah, everybody does that. Everybody just breathe, you know, very shallow breath. And it’s, it’s terrible. Like, really, it’s like, oh, my goodness, okay, well, let’s change that. So now I’m more conscious, okay, when I’m breathing, and my taking the full, you know, breath, am I you know, expanding my lungs, you know, to its full capacity, and do I feel my tummy, you know, expand so that I know that I’m getting all that toxic air out. And like, I tell my kids to say, Okay, let’s breathe, you know, get all that toxic air out. And when I teach at the school, too, it’s like, let’s do the same, let’s get all that arrow. We don’t need that old air anymore. Right? I mean, because we
Cris 42:29
all have air purifiers and we want them to we try to get outside but we’re not actually taking in that air. You know, and one of the things I love to do, and I’m a big shocker gap girl, so I anything I can do to touch my heart chakra is to feel them to connect with them. So I love especially when I’m getting ready to drive somewhere to just put my hand on my heart chakra and my hands on my Sacral Chakra Sacral Chakra to say that five times fast. And feel the breath move from my one my top em to my lower hand and then back because that way, you don’t have to take these big dramatic, you know, breath, it’s just making sure that they’re moving fully through you. And really, you know, it can be a peaceful, almost unity symbol is what my first meditation teacher taught me to do the breath. So there was no, you know, and yoga, they’ll have you hold, they’ll have you close the bandages, something like that. But it’s just as simple as visualizing your breath and being the Unity symbol in and out slowly flowing through you so that it clears.
Unknown Speaker 43:37
Yeah, I love that. And when I start the meditations on my podcast, we always start with a breathing exercise. And I always say put one hand on your heart, one hand on your tummy, feel, you know, your tummy rise, you know, so we go through a few breaths like that, and then they start a guided meditation because yeah, it’s so important, like for them to like, be able to feel okay, am I getting the full breath? You know, this is how you do it, you know? And so I figured let’s just start all the meditations that way because, I mean, they’re always been new people. And I never know when what episode they’re going to start in. So I figured, okay, let’s start one hand on your heart, one hand on your tummy. And then we take it from there.
Cris 44:14
When I think it’s such an easy way to really feel it to know because if you you know, for me, the point of breath work is to calm and slow my nervous system. So when you focus so hard on it, sometimes you lose the whole benefit of it. So if it’s just a slow, like, okay, I feel my hands, then you know, it’s working and you’re there. And that’s another place that can bring that peace for you because you are slowing your nervous system and we all run around with such stimulated nervous systems, that just finding a way to slow it down for a few minutes grounds and really helps us kind of connect back to our body and the present moment and that’s where we can find a lot of peace to is just being present.
Unknown Speaker 44:59
Yeah, and There’s a lot of healing to when we find that piece within, as well. So much healing, I mean, not just physically but emotionally, mentally. So I’m going to tell you
Cris 45:12
what, and one of the other things since you brought up healing, like you’re picking up every cue I want you to pick up. To bring it back to the other two, there were three things she said in the beginning, don’t believe in God, oxygen in your lower lungs, and then our bodies will make us listen if we choose not to pause. So you talking about healing brings us back to that spot to you of slowing down, allowing that peace to be in our body. Because it’s simple things as you know, we run around too much, we get indigestion because our body’s like, slow down, eat, you know, enjoy your food nourish our body. Of course, there’s you know, larger degrees of illnesses that can manifest because you don’t sit down and you don’t find peace. One of my favorite personal experiences was I was in the middle This was last year, it was pre COVID. I was in the middle of preparing for a live event out of state. It that’s like the biggest thing I do a year and I had another client here locally who was supposed to meet with I got off a call with another client. And traditionally for me, August, early September, because I have to fly to this live event
Unknown Speaker 46:19
is really
Cris 46:20
a crammed time for me, with clients and everything. And I kept hearing Slow down, slow down, but I was just in that push mode. So I grabbed something, dropped a crystal vase on my foot and broke my foot, you know, and I knew immediately that moment that it was totally the universe saying slow down, I told you to slow down. And so like you can have illness, that’s your body evaluating, I’ve been reading anatomy of the Spirit by Carolyn Miss. And that is such an amazing book. And she’s got so many stories of how people slow down and are able to heal their bodies. But it’s also Little things like you were running and you stubbed your toe because you weren’t paying attention and you weren’t slowing down and allowing that connection to happen. It’s just being present in the moment.
Unknown Speaker 47:09
Yeah, and it like for me, it was, um, I activated the video, like on my body, I had laser hair removal done. So Lizzie over 18 years ago. And so that’s a form of high stress. And so at the time, I had moved from Texas to California. So got married, started, you know, brand new family make new friends. So that was another stress, but I didn’t realize I was a stress for my body. But with everything combined, I mean, that’s like a big bomb on my body. It’s like, stop, you know, you process all of this, like, you know, you just got married you starting to, you know, you’re no longer you know, with your, you know, family, you know, nearby or your best friends nearby. I mean, this is a new environment, right. So it activated the middle like Oh, so that’s when my dermatologist said that it’s Biddle everybody has like a gene, and eventually by high stress. And so that made sense to me. Because it was the laser which is a stress on your skin on your body than the emotional stress getting married, moving to a different state, making, you know, starting a new family starting new friends. And so it started you know, having spots all over so I don’t have the spots anymore. So much. I have a little bit still I’m on my eyelids, but they’re very faint. But like my elbows are pretty much back to normal. I had like big white spots on my elbows, the back of my neck. Like all of this was quite Wow. It was oh wait, I couldn’t wear a ponytail. I was so embarrassed. I mean, I just went through such like a low negative phase where I just wasn’t myself anymore, right? But once I had that mindset shift of this has to be a blessing in disguise, right? So then meditation came in, oh, well then I became mom. So then that just made it even worse, right? Like, it’s like, Okay, and then I just like surrendered. I’m like I’m done. Like whatever is meant to be, you know, and so once I made that shift, my body was able to relax. And so that my color started coming back. And so like now you can’t tell I have it alive. I mean, I still have some spots on my wrist. You know, I have a few pennants scattered around but not as much I had before and this is all without medication. I mean, this is just my body. I was able to ease I took better care of myself I switched, you know, products from you know, regular cosmetics to natural like 100% you know non toxic, I made sure that they were non toxic because there’s a lot of greenwashing products that say oh yeah, botanicals but then they still have all these chemicals, right? You know, shampoo, you know handwash I mean everything I started switching because all of those chemicals is another form of stress on your body. It’s not just the stress in your mind of the environment, but there’s also products that go into your bloodstream. So then that’s another stress. So by eliminating, eliminating those products, you know, changing my mindset meditating, yoga, breath work, I mean, just so many different changes, right? Like, my body has completely changed. And so, I mean, I can totally see that my body is healing itself. I mean, I have medication, but I’m more conscious of what I’m eating what I’m saying, also, what you say what you think, what do I mean, all these things make such a big difference in our bodies, and so by by making those changes we allow, give our bodies, the space the permission to start its own healing process, because our bodies are very powerful. I mean, even like Joe dispenza says, I mean, like, he’s got that. Sorry, I can’t remember the name right now. But you know, it’s like, you know, be able to heal yourself and even Louise Hay, you know, or body, you know, you know, yeah, because it is true, when you give your body the space and the, the, you know, this Yeah, the space to do so it can.
Cris 51:22
Absolutely, I’m such a fan of that. And I’m such a fan of just natural products and and that that whole thing of you’re stressed that we’re under. And I just say this, because I know when I was out working, because I work from home now. But when I was working in an office, and I had to get my son to school every day, and I know, there’s a lot of pressure for moms who have kids at home now, who think, well, I should say it this way. I know for me, I didn’t think I was stressed because I had been living at that pace for so long, that I didn’t know how stressed I was until it tipped over. But there is that level of everyday stress that we have of just, it’s time to make dinner, it’s time to do this, it’s time to do that. And I think it’s so important for nervous systems, that we take that little bit of time, the breath, five minutes to breathe, five minutes to meditate, five minutes on a yoga mat, whatever your five minutes can be, just to calm your nervous systems so that it, it can function right and properly for you. So if you can’t spend 30 minutes, I know there’s that saying, if you can’t spend 30 minutes, then you need an hour meditating. But it doesn’t have to be that complicated. Because if it’s complicated, you won’t ever do it, and you won’t complete it. And it’s, you know, no benefits for you. So start with five minutes, start with one minute, and then move up. Because you will find that piece that if you’ve done five minutes for a while, then you’re like, wait, I really like that I’m going to do five minutes twice a day or five minutes at lunch and, you know, find what feels comfortable so that you’ll carry through and complete it.
Unknown Speaker 53:05
And you’ll see that difference too. I wanted to circle back how you were saying, you know, you see it in your family? And yeah, and I see that a difference in my family too. Like everyone’s calmer. I mean, just really all around me. It’s like this sense of like tranquility. Yeah, every now and then they do have their tantrums, right. But it’s like, you know, because they’re starving or whatever. They don’t want to go to bed or they want to do homework. I mean, we just normal. Right? But, I mean, in general, it’s like, it’s like a lot less intense. When those things those moments happen. Right, which is like, wow,
Unknown Speaker 53:39
this is huge.
Unknown Speaker 53:41
What is that difference?
Cris 53:43
Yeah, and not even the fact that it’s not as intense, but it changes your, your base level. You know, instead of having these base levels, top and bottom, you bring it to a middle ground. And that’s where you’re starting from. So it’s so much easier to return to the norm, when the norm is a peaceful place. And instead of being exaggerated one way or another, and, and that just feels easier when you know you can bring it back? Well, I can’t believe that we’ve been talking for almost 45 minutes. And if you have the 10 minutes before, because this conversation has just gone so great. Thank you so much for being here. So what are you going to do with your certificate once you finish in February? Tell us that?
Unknown Speaker 54:28
Have you figured that out?
Unknown Speaker 54:30
Yeah, so I mean, for sure shining my light to help others, you know, shine their light. I will be teaching others to, you know, to meditate and it’s a primordial sound meditation. So they get their own personal mantra, which I’m really excited about. I mean, it’s just this other level of like, healing and really being in tune with yourself, right. So I’ll be teaching that and they’ll have like meditation classes for children, which I really want to focus on. Have you meditation circles, so I’ll have those on my website, which is decide balance calm. So I have an Events tab. So right now I have, you know, for more information, you know, for meditation circle or kids meditation, even Reiki circles, I’m going to be doing Reiki circle. So I Reiki everything, my podcasts, my water, my everything. And you know, Reiki too, so it’s, it’s, it’s I mean, it’s just so beautiful, such a beautiful tool to to know right and to share. And so so so for now, that’s what I want to do. And I want to write a book. And so I have some ideas coming up. And so best way to find me just this decide balance on Instagram on facebook.com, you know, everywhere is decide balance, I purposely made it all the same. So it’s easy to find me. And yeah, and I’ll be uploading interviews as well. So from my podcast, I’m going to start interviews with other meditation teachers, so to help bring a different perspective on how they’re teaching meditation and how it’s helped them and maybe any struggles that they’ve had and how they’re overcoming those. So I’m going to start adding those as bonus episodes on my podcast, and then uploading those as YouTube videos to so that you could see who who the other teachers are as well and other experts as well. So, so yeah, so that’s where that’s where I’m at right now. And that’s kind of where I’m going. And we’ll see we’ll see where this this journey takes me. No, that
Cris 56:27
is super exciting. And I think you’ve got a really exciting next six months, I can’t wait to kind of keep watching you grow and, and all this stuff that you’re going to create and do. So good luck
Unknown Speaker 56:36
with it.
Cris 56:37
Thank you so much for taking the time to be with us today. It was super great. And then we’re gonna have our bonus episode where we’re going to talk about one of your books that you’ve been reading in your meditation class. It was the seven spiritual laws of yoga. So I’m going to jump right in that conversation too. But thanks again, thanks so much for being here. And you can check out the notes. It’ll have links to all the different books, the conversations that we’ll have listed, and then it’ll have all of your social media links. And my full episodes are available at grounding journey. podcast.com. So thanks so much for being here. Thank you.
Unknown Speaker 57:13
Okay, we’ll give it a moment.
Cris 58:22
Hi, and welcome back to the bonus episode with my guests, Yvonne Hernandez, we are talking about the seven spiritual laws of yoga. I’m super excited, I haven’t actually read this book. And I get a little torn between when we have guests who’ve read books that I have or haven’t. So it will get to talk a whole lot about the book, because I haven’t read it yet. So I’m going to turn the mic over. And I would love for you to tell us. So I know that you’ve been reading this as part of your meditation teacher certification. And when we were talking earlier, you said that you were glad you’re reading it kind of farther into the program, because it was making more sense to you now. So tell us some of your favorite takeaways, what you’re really learning from the seven spiritual laws of yoga.
Unknown Speaker 59:05
Yeah, thank you, Chris. And so I feel like this book is kind of like a guideline for your life. I mean, it talks about you know, the different laws, the you know, the meditation, the breathing, the yoga, like how all of this plays in how it’s important in your life. Because it it goes deep into your soul, I mean, it it’s this other level of awareness, I feel and so I didn’t start reading this book until like halfway through my program. And I’m kind of glad that it happened this way because I mean, all of this is new learning about the different branches of yoga. And like all these are Sanskrit words, right? And so these are all foreign to me so like learnings like okay, who is what and what and oh my goodness. It’s all new to me. But now it’s like, okay, so like, this is amazing. I mean, having the soul questions like,
Unknown Speaker 1:00:06
Who am I?
Unknown Speaker 1:00:08
What is my purpose? And, you know, how can I serve? What am I grateful for? I mean, it goes deep. And it’s questions are like, I have thought about that, but I don’t really think about it on a date. I mean, it’s kind of like a random thought. But now it’s through my practice, I, you know, that’s part of meditation, I go through those questions at the beginning. And so, I mean, it just brings this whole new level of awareness for me. So, I mean, just having those questions, and then going through, you know, starting the learning about the different branches of yoga too. And so let’s see, there was one thing that I really liked. in the, in the book, it says, um,
Unknown Speaker 1:01:00
so.
Unknown Speaker 1:01:02
So Mahatma Gandhi championed the principle of non violence in the independence movement of India from Britain. He said, If you express your love in such a manner, that It impresses itself indelibly upon your so called enemy, he must return that love. And that requires far greater courage than delivering of blows. And it’s like, wow, like,
Unknown Speaker 1:01:24
I mean, it’s this. It’s deep.
Unknown Speaker 1:01:28
I think if I would have read it before I would have been it would have just gone over my head. Right. But do you think now like, it makes so much sense since? Yeah, I mean, there’s so much love brings, I mean, love wins, always. Right. And it’s like, no matter what, you do it with love. And when you do things with love, it’s like it, you know, it makes everything else seem like nothing. I mean, it kind of dwindles, you know, fades everything. And, you know, it’s like this, it has this huge power, right? Yeah. Some people think that it’s like, oh, you know, violence and fear and all this negative low vibration stuff. It’s like, no, it’s love. Love is really key right here. And I really, I really love that really, like stood out to me just made a lot of sense.
Unknown Speaker 1:02:18
Excuse me to.
Unknown Speaker 1:02:21
Um, and then there was another another quote that said, the seeds of wisdom are sown when you surrender to the unknown. The known is a path to transformation, healing and creativity flow out of present moment awareness, which means relinquishing, relinquishing goodness, I’m stuck here, your attachment to the past and embracing uncertainty.
Unknown Speaker 1:02:47
That’s so true.
Unknown Speaker 1:02:49
When you let go, and it’s, you know, you don’t have to know everything. And you don’t have to hold on to those things that happen in the past, and you can move forward. And when you surrender like this, this beautiful path, lights up for you. Well, you’re supposed to go. If you surrender,
Cris 1:03:09
you’ll see. Right? Surrender is a tricky word, though, because sometimes you think you’re surrendering and you’re still holding on. But I love that one, you’re gonna have to like go back through the transcripts, since I didn’t write that down and actually add that to the show notes, because that’s beautiful. I like that
Unknown Speaker 1:03:26
because you’re doing a minute
Unknown Speaker 1:03:27
meditation certification,
Cris 1:03:28
that you’re learning so many of the laws of yoga, because when you first told me that it was in your meditation class, I was like, what’s interesting, it didn’t seem like a real connection. But reading the description of the book, and knowing how it brings the spiritual principles of yoga into meditation is so powerful, and and there’s a connection to it.
Unknown Speaker 1:03:53
Mm hmm. And that’s through the second branch of yoga, Miyama.
Unknown Speaker 1:03:57
So that’s
Unknown Speaker 1:03:58
where that that one came, came out. It’s the final neoma Ishwara. Pran Deanna is often translated as faith or surrendering to God.
Cris 1:04:11
I, well, one of my favorite parts of my yoga teacher training was study honest and then yamas. And so we did a month on the yamas in a month on the new yamas. And that’s something I don’t know how I’m going to do it. I want to go back and really spend like a week on each one, because they’re so powerful, and there’s so much, it’s not that they’re powerful, but it’s the meaning and taking those principles into your life. That makes it so meaningful to me and powerful. Just in that, you know, like the first Yama is I’m so afraid to say screen, save the script, but Ashman is myself. I don’t know, h i m s. A, and it’s about non violence. And for me, what I really found This is it wasn’t non violence in the sense of being nice to your neighbor. But it was in the sense of non violence to yourself, like not lying to yourself, feeding yourself what your body needs listening to yourself. Because when we incorporate these kind of principles into our own life, then we’re able to incorporate them into how we interact with other people. And that’s what I love. You know, like, I really do want to read the seven spiritual laws of yoga, because I think, bringing that into it is a spiritual law. Like, if you follow those guidelines, there’s such a deeper connection for you.
Unknown Speaker 1:05:36
It is, yeah, it’s
Unknown Speaker 1:05:36
been a really good read. And I mean, once you get into it, like, it just really, it really makes sense. You know, like, you know, the love Dharma, which is the purpose in life, and it’s just, you know, every day has has its different law. You know, the law of detachment, excuse me, the law of intention, and desire, and what’s the other one, the law of least effort, which is nice, it’s like karma or cause and effect, the law of giving, and receiving. The love pure potentiality. So every day, so Sunday, through Saturday, there’s a different love. And I hate it, when you apply it, I mean, it just, it just makes so much sense. You know, overall, you know, in in your day, and trying to teach these, you know, you know, learning them for yourself, and then teaching them, you know, to others. So, like, for example, today, it’s a love giving, but it also is about receiving today, I will give a gift to anyone I am in contact with, it could be a compliment, a flower, a prayer or a silent blessing. It is my gift to them, I will begin the process of circulating joy, wealth, and influence in the world. Today, I will receive the gifts that life offers me the gifts of nature, sunlight, bird, Song of cool shower, and other forms of gifts. giving and receiving are the same energy and it is important to keep it circulating, I will make a commitment to keep wealth circulating in my life by giving and receiving life’s most precious gifts, caring, affection, appreciation and love. Each time I meet someone, I will silently wish them happiness, joy and laughter. The mantra for today whose vibratory qualities resonate with the law of giving and receiving his own bar dhanam nama, I am the nourisher of the universe. Like oh, my goodness, every day is like so beautiful, you know. And so like these that have a little bit more, this one is through the other book, it’s the seven spiritual laws of success, which is, you know, I guess the next book after this one, and so it gives a little bit more information on the laws. And that’s where that one is from. But it’s so nice when you start reading them every day and you apply and you’re like, like, this is this is so beautiful. Got to share them. Absolutely,
Cris 1:08:06
I will definitely go on and add that to my wish list of books so that I can get that one. I have the seven spiritual laws of success. Because I saw it at a bookstore years ago, and it’s just been on my shelf. I’ve never read it, but just talking to you about this kind of inspires me to be like, I don’t think I’m gonna get that because you said this book was like 212 pages or something really easy read? Mm hmm. Yeah. The
Unknown Speaker 1:08:27
seven spiritual laws is a yoga. It’s not a big book. I mean, it’s less than 200 pages, I guess. Um, and a lot of it, you know, some of them, you know, it goes through the different poses, I mean, a lot of pages. So, you know, I mean, it’s not that big of a read. So, and that’s the seven laws of yoga. Okay. And then the other ones since spiritual laws of success, too. It’s not a big read either. Yeah. Well, I
Cris 1:08:54
thank you so much for sharing with us today. And in case you found this episode, and you have not listened to our full episode, which was peace within where we talked about meditation and connecting, it will make a lot more sense this episode once you listen to the other. So we invite you to check that out at grounding journey, podcast calm. Thank you so much for your time, Yvonne, I was such a great pleasure to have you. And I just thank you for being here with us.
Unknown Speaker 1:09:19
Thank you so much, Chris. Appreciate you. And thank you for for those of you that are listening right now.
Cris 1:09:25
Yeah. And also I forgot to say you can find on at decide balanced comm for podcasts or on Instagram and Facebook. So I’m sure that we’ll get everybody over to check you out and learn more about what’s coming up for you.
Unknown Speaker 1:09:38
Thank you so much. salutely.