FREE: Yoga for the Unemployed at Integral Yoga
Being broke can be rough but being unemployed in this city is one of the most stressful and defeating experience a New Yorker can face. There’s a constant needling sense of failure, desperation and fear. Every minute you spend not looking for a job is a guilt-filled one and losing sleep at night doesn’t make the search any easier.
The best thing I found was to set limits on my panicking and worrying. I would force myself to wake up no later than 9 AM, get my ass in a chair and do whatever outreach I could, including sending resumes, making phone calls and researching employment options without a break until 1:30. Then I would get lunch, and use the afternoon to take advantage of whatever cultural opportunities New York could give me for free or for very cheap, before returning to my desk for an hour in the evening to “follow-up” on any responses I had received. In this way I kept the all-consuming “ohmygodineedajob!” panic at bay, while being productive and also taking advantage of the fact that on weekday afternoons I wasn’t stuck in a cubicle somewhere–a thing that I sorely miss these days.
Managing stress is key, and yoga is great way to do it. The beautiful people at Integral Yoga are offering a free Wednesday yoga class to the unemployed at 5:30 each week. Think of it as a time to stretch your body, relax your mind and be in the quiet company of others who are going through the same challenges. Right next door is the Integral Yoga market with delicious organic foods, including some very healthy and affordable prepared meals.
Take care of yourself and stay calm; you’ll be stuck in a cubicle while the sun shines in no time.
Integral Yoga® Institute
227 West 13th Street '¢ New York, NY 10011
(Between 7th and 8th Avenues)