What do the Enneagram, movement, and your mental health all have in common? (Besides three things I geek out on… ;) 

 They are all invitations and processes for growth—for truth.

 The Enneagram invites us into greater self-understanding and compassion.  Physical exercise and movement invite us into a powerful connection with our bodies in the present moment.  Mental health invites us into greater emotional wholeness and wellbeing.  

Essentially, the Enneagram, movement, and your mental health are invitations home to the truth of who you are.  

They are also the building blocks of a fail-proof formula: The enneagram + movement (practice) = excellent mental health.  

About a year into creating content for the Practice, my Enneagram-based self-care membership program, I added something very special to the mix: YOGA.  As movement is such an important part of mental health and self-care, and a huge part of my healing journey, I knew we were missing out on the huge benefit if we didn’t offer it in the mix.  Make no mistake, I am no yogi.  I am not even a trained yoga instructor, however, I have reaped the benefits of practicing it over the years and love the connection between it and the Enneagram.  

Let’s go deeper.

The Enneagram is a psycho-spiritual tool meant to be put into practice. The work of the Enneagram begins with figuring out your type, or how you present to the world, where your attention goes, especially when life quiets down around you, as well as what triggers you, motivates you, and scares you. It reveals negative patterns that keep you stuck as well as deep wounds ingrained early on. I could go on…

Yoga presents us with prime training ground to explore nuances of our Enneagram type in greater detail—all the ways we are out of balance in heart, mind, and body.  

“It’s an incredible companion [to yoga] that covers territory yoga doesn’t address,” says Michael Cohen, founder of the Kirtan Leader Institute and a certified Enneagram practitioner. “Yoga talks in broad terms about how to transcend our limitations; the Enneagram gives incredible detail about what that means.”

Each Enneagram type has a corresponding somatic profile, or way of showing up in the body.  This often includes a certain build up of energy or contraction in some specific place in the body. For example, 5s, 6s, and 7s are head types and experience a build up of energy from the neck up.  Yoga poses that are grounding and shift the focus of attention and weight to the legs and feet are incredibly powerful for them.  

You can also use the Enneagram to highlight the challenges and opportunities of each type and bring even more transformation by physically moving into poses that represent them. Basically, the sky’s the limit, friend.  

Practice is so crucial because it truly transforms.  When you tell me something in order to teach me, one third of my brain responds, when you show me, two-thirds, but you invite me to experience something, and my whole brain comes online and engages.  That’s persuasive math!

If you’re in the market for greater Enneagram understanding and coaching, all kinds of yoga, and a way to stay on top of your mental health, join me in the Practice, a community focused on using the Enneagram for personal and relational transformation, mind, heart, and body.

I can’t wait to journey with you…