That’s right, we’re weird because we seem to like pain. We even seek it out. Right now I’m sitting on my futon with my laptop on my lap and a tennis ball wedged along the edge of my right shoulderblade, on this weird muscle knot that hurts all the time. The tennis ball works as an acupressure device. It hurts like crazy, and I can feel the nerve tingling all the way down my right arm. When I take the ball away, the pain is gone. I keep doing this off and on as I sit and write. This is delicious, but clearly insane. I never had masochistic tendencies before I started practicing yoga.

And then there’s the pain we come to accept as a part of practice. During my last couple of practices, I hit upon the idea of attempting to have a 100% pain-free yoga session. I can’t say that I was completely successful, but it was an interesting experience nonetheless.  I became more aware of when I’m trying to push too hard, where I can soften and let go.  I remember in the early years of my practice there was a softness and a relaxation that has gone by the wayside as teachers have advised me to “lift my arches,” “bring energy to my quads,” or “slide the shoulderblades down my back.”  In yoga, there is a constant tango between tension and relaxation.  I think I need to dance on the side of softness for a while.