Yoga with Oana

Back to my morning routine, squirrel watching in the morning with Laica. 😉🐿️🐿️

Back to teaching at Intuitive Flow Yoga Studio too

Wed 7am Yin Yang Flow
Fri 4pm Restorative Yin & Nidra
Sat 9am Ayur Hatha

See you there!

We live in a society where fast, quick and easy has become the norm. “Luckily” we got COVID 19 to slow us down a bit. Yet….

The amount of choices we are exposed to is overwhelming, so we are basically in constant “lack of time” mindset and forced to choose the fast, quick and the easy in order to cope with everything. We want the most direct and easy way, the pill with all the answers, the one session to solve all our issues.

Online, our attention spam has been reduced drastically. We can’t read posts longer than five paragraphs, we want everything on video in less than 5 minutes or even better on a podcast so we can listen to it while being engaged in other activities. Sure there are advantages to that, but the underline is that they have been created so we can keep going faster, quicker and easier.

This simply doesn’t work in our advantage on a long run and especially when it comes to solving chronic issues, deep seated trauma or when we want to become great at something or fulfil a dream.

Reality is that our “resilience muscle” and the “warrior attitude” have been weakened. There is always a better option promised next door if this one seems a bit too difficult, needs more work or might take a little bit too long. And that is a game of the mind. Unfortunately I find myself caught in it sometimes too….still……

Moreover, reaching results or making things happen by investing daily a certain amount of time seems like a hell of a commitment. Well the truth is it is a commitment! But the only thing you are committing to is YOURSELF and the changes you want to bring into your life. And that is worth all the efforts!

Working on my Ankylosing Spondylitis through a strict diet was not enough. I had to build a daily practice to restore my back at structural level also, after my joints have been affected, build strength to support my back and maintain it. I work on that every day, and still, from time to time I get pain. In those moments I feel like giving up, I feel like everything I do is in vain, yet I know that if I give up, I give up on myself and that is not an option. My life is way better than before I started to pay attention daily to movement and diet.

My daily practice helps me strengthen my back but also that resilience muscle I need during the hard times. We all have that in us, we just forgot about it because of that fast, quick and easy “promise” the society “created” for us.

I wish sometimes things were that easy, but they are not. In most of the cases, we can’t bypass doing the work, day in and day out.

But the good news is that the same force that drives us to live every day, that force that gets our cells what they need to keep functioning can help us rebuild that resilience muscle. It takes practice…..daily practice.

Drop me a message if you want to create or are struggling to maintain a daily yoga practice or join my FB group “Your Daily Practice” to explore this topic together. This group is not just about yoga but about any other area in your life that might matter to you and you decide to pay daily attention to.

From Bali with love,
Oana x

📸Todd Rafalovich Photography

After 2.5 weeks of diving into the 5 elements, moving from the most subtle to the most tangible, we are ready to build up from within energatically by exploring the 7 chackras from rooth to rise.

Join me and Jaiwellness for the next 3.5 weeks in this journey, which will help you undertand better your body at phisical, mental and energetical level and give you practices to balance these energy centers.

Two classes each week:

DAY 1: Establish the seat of the self in the muladhara chakra of earth and root elements.

DAY 2: Water the seeds of your self establishment in the sacral chakra of the womb of creativity.

DAY 3: Fire the seeds that you have planted and watered with the fire element of intention and willpower at the seat of the solar plexus.

DAY 4: Breathe in the light of awarness as you add love, self-connection and attention to the heart center of the air element.

DAY 5: Create space to bloom from the heart as you enter into the throat chakra, hear your inner voice and follow the path of your own wisdom.

DAY 6: Move beyond the elements into the third eye, for the eagle view of working with soul of who you are

DAY 7: Establish the root of your
being into the crown of your existence and the nature of who you are, sitting in the light of your nature.

59usd for the 7 classes live and/or recorded.

These classes are suited live on Zoom for New Zealand, Australia, part of Asia and for Americans
and available also recorded.

DM me for details on times.

Hope tp see you on the mat! 😘

I get it, having a daily practice can be challenging….

It took me some time and a lot of resistance to create my daily practice. I have been in an out of it quite a few times for the past 10 years, but now I can fully say we are walking hand in hand.
And that is because I have found out that my daily practice is not just about Yoga, it is about my daily intention to do the things that are important for me and the changes I want to make in my life.

I was talking the other day with one of my friends who also uses daily practices with her clients in her work. We came to recognise some patterns and also admit that while starting a daily practice can be fun and exciting, sustaining it can be hard and challenging. And that applies also to those who already have one for years, including myself.

The reality is that ANYTHING we create in life has its hard and challenging part. The creative process itself has moments of joy and moments of hardness. Creating your daily practice is no different. The Hero’s Journey explains this in a very clear way and I will be talking more about this in another post in the future.

So how can we stay in our practices and work that resilience muscle even in the moments when it is hard? The answer that comes to me is... by finding a deep enough “why” for ourselves.

When the answer to why are we doing something has enough value for ourselves, it becomes important enough, motivating, exciting and inspiring to keep going even through the times when we doubt that these practices have any meaning or will get us anywhere.

This is a question I ask myself every time I am in doubt about doing what I am doing. The work I am doing is in constant transformation and shaping, and a trust that I am on the right path more than ever. I am riding the wave and I love it, even if it is hard at times.

I have become very passionate about empowering people to build their own daily practice so they can live a more meaningful life. I don’t believe we find meaning, I believe we create meaning by putting intention and action into what we do every day.

And so, I have decided to create a group on Facebook called “Your Daily practice” where I will be sharing from my experiences about this topic and I would love to invite you to be part of it. (This is my old "Yoga with Oana" group, so some of you might already be members)

I will be also providing free tools, practices and resources to hopefully inspire you to build your own daily practice. I hope I can challenge you to ask yourself the right questions and I trust it will develop into something that can support your needs. We are in this together and I am looking forward to learn from each other.

ARE YOU IN? :O)

If this speaks to you and you are curious about it join us!
Please find the link to the group in the comment of this post.

Hope to see you inside!

From Bali, with love!

Spring is in the air and that means welcoming something new and fresh into our lives, opening up for new possibilities for new creative projects.

For the next 2.5 weeks I invite you to join me and Jaiwellness in exploring the 5 elements of Ayurveda (Ether, Air, Fire, Water and Earth) through 5 yoga practices meant to cleanse, detoxify and set the base for a new cycle of life.

We will create the space to move and let go of everything that we have accumulated during winter and doesn’t serve us, welcoming new beginnings meant to energise and rejuvenate us into spring and summer.

You can participate live via Zoom...check dates on flyer below

Tue & Thu 6pm NY/ Toronto / 3pm San Francisco
Wed & Fri 9am Melbourne/ 11am Auckland
...or purchase the recordings as package.

Price : 33 EUR / 39 USD for the 5 classes

Purchase this series together with my Gentle Ayurvedic Cleanse and Writing Retreat for 75 EUR / 89 USD. This is a great deal!

Drop me a message for details.
Time to cleanse and get clarity!

When I was 31 I was diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis.

It was very hard for me to accept that, at such an early age in my life. The pain I went through was excruciating, to the point that I would not be able to walk, even after heavy medication. I even fainted a couple of times because of pain.
Looking back now, I was living in the most inviting environment for such a disease to manifest. Long hours of stressful work in a corporation, party every week, late nights, lots of social drinking, dysfunctional relationship and not much attention to what I was eating.
Disease and illness doesn’t just show up over night in the body. Ayurveda talks about 6 stages a disease goes through and how important it is to take action in the first stages before complications appear at cellular level in the later stages. It is believed that chronic diseases start in the digestive track.

1. Initial stage - Accumulation
According to Ayurveda, in this stage one of the 3 energies that govern our body, known as Dosha (Vata, Pitta, Kapha) increases and so doesn’t circulate properly in the body anymore. This way it gets stuck and accumulates in its main seat ( Vata – Colon, Pitta – Small intestine, Kapha – Stomach). This is the stage when we get mild symptoms and might feel something is wrong.

2. Build up stage - Aggravation
If nothing is done, the Dosha keeps accumulating giving more serious symptoms and discomfort. At this point the Dosha is still in its main seat in the digestive area and by building up will start creating toxins.
While we can still function properly and have appetite and good digestive fire, balancing the Dosha in these two stages is very important. In most of the cases we can eliminate the toxins while they are still in the digestive track, by using simple tools and adjusting our lifestyle and diet for a certain period of time. This is where regular cleansing can be of great value.

3. Spreading stage - Dissemination
If nothing was done and balance was not restored, the Dosha keeps growing and will overflow its seat, which means that it will start moving from the digestive track into other places through the blood and plasma. This is a stage where symptoms increase and some will manifest as chronic.

4. Beginning of disease stage - Localization
While toxins start moving, they will eventually localize in the weak places of the body, which are more acid, don’t have enough oxygen flow, or with low immunity. This is when the actual disease starts and is affecting certain organs or more specific areas of the body.
The transition between the 4th and the 5th stage is a time when the body does still have vitality and treatments can be still easy to apply. Specific treatments and deeper detox programs which act at cell level and are done under the supervision of Ayurvedic practitioners, such as Panchakarma programs, can give great results in this stage.

5. Manifestation stage - Clinical
In this stage the disease starts to affect the tissue where it is localized, change its structure so it becomes more difficult to reverse. It becomes more invasive and symptoms are even more clear. This is the stage when traditional medicine can give a diagnose and applies treatment to the symptoms. Treatment is usually addressed locally where the symptoms show, without considering the main cause of the disease. In a lot of cases the cause would be declared unknown, which was also the case with my condition.

When I was diagnosed I was told that this is a life long condition and I will have to take anti-inflammatory pills for the rest of my life. After 10 years of severe pain and pills I have come to learn that treating my gut, where the diseases started in the first place, was essential for containing the disease and return to a normal life.

6. Complication Stage - Chronic
The last stage is when the tissue is so damaged that it will become dysfunctional and it will start affecting the surroundings. Access of proper blood flow and oxygen to these areas becomes more difficult and blockages may appear also in other areas of the body. This is the stage when having problems with one organ may affect other organs and symptoms will indicate complications. A lot of diseases may be impossible to cure at this stage. I was a lucky case!

Only 2 years ago I have finally managed to contain my disease which was in a clear chronic stage for quite some time already. During the 8 years before that, yoga, Ayurveda and Panchakarma programs, a different lifestyle, ALL helped to keep me function pain free most of the time, yet pain was still coming and going in phases. But when I approached my disease at its root, at the digestive level, everything changed.

I’ve experienced all above 6 stages Ayurveda talks about and getting the bull by its horns in the real healing stage 2 years ago was one of the most difficult things I had to go through. I worked with a nutritionist and I was on a very strict diet for a few good months.
I wish I knew what to do when the disease was in the 1st or 2nd stage so I did not have to go through all the other 4 stages. Yet, maybe then I would had not have the chance to learn all I have learned, study yoga and Ayurveda, get interested in nutrition and maybe even live in Bali. Who knows!

Prevention really is the key and we do have access to enough tools and knowledge to not let disease move into more advanced stages, in most of the cases. I think this is the area where Ayurveda has a lot to offer. Regular easy to manage cleanse routines and lifestyle changes can prevent us from needing much deeper detox programs. While deeper detox and diet programs have definitely their place and value, they can be challenging for a lot of us and for some even damaging.

I’ve created a gentle Ayurvedic Cleanse program which you can do from the comfort of your home. I’ve run this program live last year and I’ve seen results. This is an improved format, containing writing exercises which will give it a retreat feeling. Time for you!

It is well structured, easy to follow and can be accessed online at your convenience. I do this program myself a few times a year as a way of prevention.

I have put a lot of work into it and I think it is of great value for a very affordable price, but if you can’t afford it even at this price, drop me a private message and we can talk about it. I know how it is to need something but not afford to buy it during such challenging times.

Thank you for reading this long post and checking it out. Link is is in the comments.

From Bali with love,
Oana

Photo Heather Bonker Photography

Bali’s colours in a bottle...well, 3 bottles 😀
My juice day once a week. Inspired? Stay healthy, stay creative
😉

Excited to be collaborating with JAI Yoga and Ayurveda - Centre for Wellness and Education who is running Yoga and Ayurveda trainings internationally.

I will be teaching a series of 4 online yoga classes during the month of February for one of their trainings and we have decided to open up the class for more people.

These classes are meant to restore and rejuvenate your nervous system and return to ease. They are suited for all levels and will give you the opportunity to experience how yoga works at subtle level through the most accessible poses. Don’t miss out!

The live sessions are as per below and the classes can be also purchased as recordings.
THURSDAY - FEB 4, 11, 18, 25
7pm New York / Washington / Toronto
4pm San Francisco

FRIDAY - FEB 5, 12, 19, 26
7am Singapore / Jakarta
8am Bali / Perth
11am Melbourne/ Sydney
1pm Auckland

Comment here or PM me directly if you are interested to join the live sessions or have access to the recordings.

I had a chat the other day with Mr. 1st of January. He was stressed out! He said there is sooo much pressure on him during this time. Everybody is setting their “new me” goals under his supervision and it’s too much to handle. 😳

I told him to not worry, cos nobody really starts taking them seriously till Monday... or mid Jan....or Feb😁.... or Chinese Year.... or maybe Balinese one😉. He seemed relieved🤩

Wishing for you all to set reasonable wishes rather than goals for this year. Remember, most of us are still recovering from the last one, if not still riding it. In other words, BE KIND TO YOURSELF, practice some AHIMSA this month to start with , have some chocolate and some chai😀. Happy January ya all!

From Bali with love❤️

How colourful is your plate? Ayurveda advices to have a variety of colours in one meal, which means variety in nutrients and also variety in healing and nourishment for the body. While that is one aspect, as a creative, I feel that starting the day with a colourful plate inspires me to live a more vibrant life. Colours do have an important impact on our vibration and therefore energy level. My favourite colors have always been yellow and red. Whenever I wear them or I eat them 😀 I feel more vibrant.
What about you? What are your favourite colors?

Are you feeling a little bit lost, lacking inspiration or feel like something is missing in your life at the moment?

Let’s face it, 2020 has not really been an easy one so far. It appears some of us have taken a well deserved break, some have embarked on a new adventure of self discovery and creation, while others might be feeling stuck and lacking flow in some areas of life.

Whatever your situation or challenges might be right now, it’s a powerful opportunity to gain clarity through asking questions.

🔸What is true and important for you?
🔸What do you want in your life?
🔸What changes are you going to make in order to live most authentically and feel more alive?

Through my own experiences and in guiding others, I have come to learn that creative practices not only connect us to ourselves but also allow us the space that is needed for answering such questions.

The act of creation can ignite our appetite for life, provide meaning, reveal new perspectives and can help us get unstuck.

Join me for 6 weeks of creative exploration from the comfort of your own home. I will be bringing to you my two passions together yoga and creativity in a program full of fun and color.

Through this program we will explore different modalities of painting and writing while using yoga and mindfulness practices to support our creative journey.

Every week we will address a theme such as courage, desire, inspiration, commitment or discipline in the exploration of connecting with our creative self.

At the end of this program, you will have enough confidence and tools to access on your own your creative juices whenever you feel stuck and need more flow into your life.

During the 6 weeks we will meet live on Zoom every Sunday at 9am CET Amsterdam / 10 am Bucharest / 4pm Bali / Singapore
for:

- 45min yoga class to support the theme of the week, followed by a tea break
- 15min discussion on a creative process topic
- 1h15min hands on creative practice (painting or writing)
- 15min Q&A to wrap up the session

This program is for you if :
🌴 you are called to create but you don’t know where to start
🌴 you are lacking inspiration in your life at the moment
🌴 you feel low energy and need a kick for your mind and soul
🌴 you are curious to explore and play

The tools needed for each session will be communicated a week in advance so you will have time to prepare for our meetings on Sunday.

No previous painting/drawing /writing/ yoga experience required. You only need to show up.

Investment: 195 euro

We start on the 8th of November 2020.

Drop me a message if you would like to join.
https://www.oanadeac.com/events/6weeksyogacreativity

6 Week Creative Journey (online) — Oana Deac 6 weeks of online creative practices to help you finish 2020 on a positive note and step into the new year feeling inspired and more alive.

“Don’t you know yet? It’s your light that lights the world”-Rumi

One of those topics which I think can be very personal, while it is always great to hear what others perspective is and get inspired by it.

How do we start practicing yoga by ourselves?

I know, starting your own yoga practice, all by yourself can be intimidating. I’ve been there.

It simply is like any other thing we do for the first time. The unknown creates stress and makes us feel unsafe, so we freeze. 😳

Then the idea of doing this by yourself without the teacher showing you exactly how the hand should be placed and correcting you seems a waste of time. The inner voice whispering “you don’t know enough or don’t have enough experience to do this by yourself, you can injure yourself”, makes it a no go. And I could keep going with more excuses to not start practicing.

But the reality is you can do yoga by yourself, because yoga is not about doing crazy postures, is not about perfect alignment and is not about 2 hours of practice. Yoga is about being with ourselves, connecting with yourself through life, while moving with the breath, while breath moves through you. You can choose to bring this concept through an asana practice, through a dance practice, through a painting practice or while doing the dishes. You can choose how you want to practice yoga. The point is to do it.

Here is a little exercise to help you create that first connection with yourself and start practicing yoga by yourself.

Stop whatever you are doing now and close your eyes. Have a sense of arrival, as if you have been somewhere far away and have just returned back home. Step inside of yourself and close the door after you.

Notice how quiet it is inside and that there is nobody but you. You and your breath. You feel safe. Welcome, you have arrived. You can rest now, there is nothing to worry about.

Connect with your breath and simply notice the breath breathing you….in and out, in and out. Nothing else matters but the breath. Keep noticing the breath as long as you are comfortable.

Step outside whenever you feel you need to. But leave the door open, so you can come back again and again and maybe stay longer and longer each and every time.

With love,
Oana

Yoga and Creativity have been my passions for a long time now and I am happy to finally see them coming together on my new website www.oanadeac.com.

Please take a look at my new offerings and if you feel called to subscribe to my newsletter I would be delighted to have you on my mailing list. My intention is to send free tips related to yoga and creativity which can hopefully enrich your life and inspire you to create more, as well as updates about my programs and my work. Thank you 🙏

Upon your subscription you will receive a Yoga Nidra practice this week, recorded with my voice on it, to help you relax and nourish your nervous system. I know we all need this right now😘

With love,�Oana Deac

“I joined Oana‘s 3 Day Gentle Ayurvedic Cleanse Program for dedicating time and care to myself. Oana has a great understanding of Ayuverda and makes the entire experience fun and gentle. She takes care of everyone‘s needs and always willing to advice. Plus if you do this with a friend is a perfect way of bonding again going through this together. I can recommend this to anyone looking for a heathy break.” -Madalina
Thank you🙏
Join us 25th-27th September

Why should you do an Ayurvedic cleanse?

The truth is our body does have in its programing the process of cleansing regularly. It basically happens all the time and the liver and kidneys are working pretty hard to make this happen.

The cleanse and repair of the cells happens in even more depth during sleep, when the body is in resting mode. This is also a time when we give a break to the digestive system which also gets into cleansing mode. As a result, and a proof, elimination happens first thing in the morning after we wake up. Or at least it should. 😉
Having a natural elimination after you wake up is a sign that your digestive system works properly. The large intestine has a big part in this phase of elimination.

But the reality is, given the lifestyle and the amount of toxins we are exposed to, the natural cleanse of the body is simply not enough. Our body needs extra support.

This is why a regular cleanse is important and can help you avoid more complex detox treatments which can be more challenging to do.

I love Ayurveda because it offers simple tools which can be used at home by anybody. It really empowers you to take action for yourself and prevent illness.

A gentle Ayurvedic cleanse can bring a lot of benefits and most important can give your digestive system a reset. Ayurveda believes that all illness starts in the digestive system. I believe that too and based on the way I do regularly cleanse my body I can tell you it makes a difference.

We don’t need to go extreme and fully stop eating to help the gut reset. We can simply give it certain foods for a certain amount of time so it can slow down and regenerate.

This is partially what we will focus on during the 3 Days Gentle Ayurvedic Cleanse program, 25th-27th of September 2020.

Send me a message if you would like to know more about it.