After a prescription to do yoga before a knee surgery my freshman year of high school, I unknowingly continued down a path that has expanded into my soul’s calling. I now hold two certificates in Reiki, over 10 years of experience as a certified yoga and meditation guide, a certification as a Somatic Energy Practitioner, and I’m a trained Psilocybin guide and wellness coach. Through the collection of my learnings and experience, I offer you this:
In a world where rest and slowness are not only rare opportunities but a danger for some, take refuge here. Offer permission to yourself to feel sheltered by the words on this page. Sink into safety from the outside world’s judgment and urgency that has been forced upon you and absorbed within you. As you read and digest, you’re invited to pause, to feel, and to reflect on what you’re experiencing in your body. Allow yourself to rest heavy against the seat, knowing that your time is well spent here, reading - slowly.
Take a deep breath in through your nose. Exhale it out through your mouth.
I invite you to sit with two truths. The first, that a regular mindfulness practice can enhance the overall health of an individual. The second, that the BIPOC community experiences the highest levels of stress-related health disparities in the United States. It’s unlikely that either of these statements are new to you or shocking. However, what is shockingly “new” is a widely accepted understanding that a regular practice of meditation, breathwork, journaling, yoga, and other somatic and mindful practices can greatly enhance one’s overall health; and that BIPOC are less likely to access mental health resources and practices due to societal pressure and a lack of acceptance rooted in historical trauma.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
As a mixed race cis-woman who grew up and gave in to the societal brainwashing of going fast, achieving high, and being utterly heartbroken but stoic in the face of personal and systemic racism, I finally hit a turning point. When chronic depression due to a hormone disorder and physical alignments continued to be ignored or brushed off at the hand of medical professionals, I realized I had to heal myself. Through an imperfect practice of yin yoga, meditation, journaling, ancestral and energy work, and therapy, space within me opened. I came to see that despite what history has tried to condition me into believing, I too am worthy of unconditional love and healing. Access to holistic and high quality mental, physical, and spiritual health is my right.
I landed on the deep knowing that living my life in direct opposition to the societal forces placed upon me and those who share a melanated experience with me is where my power resides. So, let us do it - in groups, in private, but in community nonetheless, let us heal. If we stand powerful in the pain we carry, just imagine the power we hold in liberation. It is my greatest rebellion in this fabricated culture to rest, to express, to be liberated in my vulnerability. It is a gift to the next generation that we meditate, journal, cry, talk about our failures, our dreams, our confusion, our anger, our joy, our pride, to be fully imperfect in our perfect wholeness.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
It is our right to go slow and be soft. May we continue to flourish in a society that tries to capture us in its harshness. And may we rebel with the power of breath, with presence, and with rest.
One Minute Wellness Invitation:
- Breathwork:
- Place both hands over the heart, close the eyes or lower the gaze and take three to five full breath cycles (in through the nose, out through the mouth).
- Reflection/ Journal/ Draw:
- What sensations, emotions, reactions, memories, colors, etc.. came to you?
Go slow and with love,
jasmine kazuko
hello@kazukowellness.com