Mindful Practices for Whole-Body Self-Acceptance

We can push and strive against our challenges but my key to moving forward began with deep self-reflection and learning to make friends with life. Though challenging and unsettling, my car accident brought so much growth. What once felt like torture now feels like a gift.


Accepting and embracing my body has been a lifelong journey… the process has continued to be worth every challenge, it’s allowed me to truly make friends with life.

In times of struggle, inspirational quotes replenish my soul. Stephen Hawking penned one of my favorites: “Look up at stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.” Hawking’s words mirror my journey to body acceptance because it took a great deal of curiosity and soul searching to embrace my body after a car accident when I was 19 years old.

I was diagnosed with a spinal cord injury following the accident and was told I wouldn’t ever walk again. The experience was utterly devastating and I was traumatized by the reality that my life was forever changed. Before the accident, I was a skateboarder, lifeguard, athlete, and dancer/choreographer with dreams of being a choreographer on Broadway. After the accident, fear crept in. My inner and outer worlds were out of balance. I didn’t know how to heal. I put up emotional walls for protection, disconnected from my body and ignored my physical challenges. Instead, I focused on external goals like going to college, earning advanced degrees and becoming an editor/journalist. Pushing and striving toward external goals helped me survive, but deep down, my soul knew there was a better way.

I longed to reconnect with my body but didn’t know how to begin. By some miracle–and a year and half of physical therapy–I eventually relearned to walk with foot orthotics but embracing my body and living in wholeness didn’t happen immediately or overnight. Gradually I found the courage to lean into the experience and in the process embrace where my body was at, what it needed and how this shaped my identity.

It took years to learn that I couldn’t simply force or will my body to heal. That’s where my journey to authentically feel my experience radically changed my life and my relationship to self and all there is. What I didn’t know–or wasn’t able to see at the time–was that with every circumstance, health challenge, adversity, or hardship, the Universe was leading me to a higher purpose… leading me to more and more fully embrace my body and embrace my life.

We all experience trauma in our lives but our challenges don’t have to define us. The truth is: we aren’t put here to suffer. We can push and strive against our challenges but my key to moving forward began with deep self-reflection and learning to make friends with life. Though challenging and unsettling, my car accident brought so much growth. What once felt like torture now feels like a gift.

Along the way, I discovered mindful practices that helped me tap into a deeper connection with my body: meditation, journal writing, and inclusive, mindful movement and adaptive/accessible yoga. These practices unearthed whole-body self-acceptance, which led to a desire to share and teach others how to connect internally and find deeper meaning and purpose in their own lives. These mindfulness practices are the core of my transformation and they continue to support me as I continue to navigate this body and this experience of being.

Every day, I set aside time for mindful movement, meditation and mantras, and explorative self-reflective journal writing. Mindful tools help me ground and maintain a sense of balance. Keep in mind, there is no right or wrong way to begin this practice. The first steps involve listening to our bodies and trusting ourselves. It’s a practice. It’s always worth the time, energy and attention.

Our journeys may not lead to the same place but our unique higher purpose may be on the other side if we remain open and curious.

In the end, reconnecting with mind, body and spirit taught me that my body is my home.

Learning to tap into this truth changed my life.

This is my mission, to offer this same life-changing possibility to you.

To get started, here are a couple starter practices in mindful movement and mindful self-reflection.

Mindful Movement

Legs Up the Wall is an excellent way to begin or end the day. This practice can reduce edema, increase circulation and relieve tension in the legs.

Legs Up the Wall

* Lie on a bed or floor with feet against the wall.
* Move as close as you can to the wall as you take your legs up the wall.
* Your body should make an “L” shape.
* Relax legs and feet.
* Release arms out to the sides to form a T shape.
* Lengthen the sides of the neck.
* Relax muscles in the face, throat, and tongue.
* Allow the weight of legs to release into the hips.
* Feel your body let go of the tension.
* Feel all stress release as you passively allow the reverse effect of gravity.
* Do several rounds of deep nostril breathing (breathe in and out of your nose) as you relax and release mind, body and spirit.

Explorative Self-Reflecting Journal Prompt

Write about a challenging experience that turned into a blessing. If you’re unable to think of one, write about a time when you faced adversity and how that experience changed you. What was that experience? What were the lessons or blessings? How do they support you now? How can you continue to use those blessings as you move forward in your body and your life?

NOTE: This post is part of a collaborative media series organized and curated by Omstars and the Yoga & Body Image Coalition intended as a deep dive into yoga & body
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By Mary Higgs

Mary Higgs, MA, is a respected writer, online educator, speaker, mindfulness coach, and disability advocate. Developing a passion for mindfulness and becoming an Adaptive and Accessible Yoga Teacher transformed Mary’s life in unexpected ways. She loves sharing her message that transformation comes from within. She has published pieces in Yoga International, Devata Active, Yoga and Body Image Coalition, and Mind Body Solutions All-Humanity Newsletter. As a RYT, OYI, and certified Yoga for All and Accessible Yoga Teacher, Mary teaches people to explore and trust their inner wisdom, so they can live more authentically. Visit her online at YogiAble.com.

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