My happy place

Being in the ocean, especially under the surface, is my happy place.

It's like a deprivation of senses, but calling it it deprivation isn't quite right because a coral reef crackles loudly and the sights are completely, out of this world foreign and magical. Under the water in the ocean is the most peaceful kind of quiet that I have ever experienced. No talking, cars or any other human noises interrupt the peace. No distractions.

Diving gives me freedom from gravity for an hour to just float. Ability to move in 360 degrees with ease. I love to adjust my breath deeper to go up or down in the water column, engaging in the scenery and to allow myself to be fully present in the most unique underwater landscapes. Similar to on land, under water landscapes are diverse and all of them are full of weird and wonderful creatures.

I really mean weird and wonderful. Nudibranchs are some of the most brightly coloured creatures on the planet. The colour and texture change of an octopus really needs to be seen in person to appreciate. Goblin sharks throw their jaws forward to catch their prey like some kind of messed up dentures and don’t even look up a cookie cutter shark.

One of my favourite things about diving is that you never know what you'll see. Just below the surface, an entire other world is happening. Magical moments are just waiting. Like the time a baby seal came to play with me, or when we dropped down from the surface into a thousands of bait fish. I could go on, but you get the picture. Anything could happen in the ocean.

Once you're under the water and able to master your buoyancy, the fish and marine life aren't afraid of you. Most just continue on with their lives. It's magical to watch the interactions of these creatures we know so little about and so much can be learned from watching them. Some creatures get curious about us divers and come for a closer inspection.

Yoga, especially vinyasa, has taught me the skill of slow and steady breathing. A vinyasa practice and diving are both a meditation of breath focus. Tuning in to breath tunes out the noise in my head. Tuning in to breath under water helps me to be more fully present to the beauty I'm lucky enough to be witness to.

Sometimes I hear people worry about being anxious while diving. It's a feeling I believe all divers will experience at some point on a dive. There have been times where I have felt a wave of doom hit while in the ocean. At those times I'm so grateful for my yoga practice. Yoga has given me the ability to tune in to the present moment and focus on the sensations in the body. When I do this under water, anxious feelings melt away.

I dive obsessively while on vacation every winter.  Like, the 25ish dives we got in to 7 days in Bonaire last year. Thank goodness Jody is just as obsessed as I am. I am blessed to be able bodied enough to haul my own gear around and I can tell you that my knowledge of targeted strength training helps me to be in diving shape. When I book a trip, I know the strength exercises I want to add to my program to be ready to dive as much as I can. Don't get me wrong, with all the diving I do, I've had my share of scuba pains, and I know my favourite yoga pose stretches to alleviate post-scuba-for-the-first-time-in-a-while body aches.

I've talked up diving to so many people - eek, I'm sorry, here I am doing it again! But seriously, how can I not share about this thing that makes me the happiest version of myself? I know some of my yoga students and friends have mentioned wanting to try it, so I'm stepping up this year to host a diving retreat alongside my yearly yoga retreat. The same Bala retreat vibes, but this year, retreat goers can add on a 5 day dive retreat. Learn to scuba dive (if you aren't already certified) and enjoy the ocean with us as a group, with a side of breathwork, meditation and movement targeted for scuba diving. It's basically going to be two retreats, back to back.

If you've ever thought about diving, I hope you'll come join me in my happy place to learn how similar yoga is to diving.

If you have any diving questions, please drop em in the comments here. I'm happy to share what I know. Check out the retreat page for more info on the retreat.