Agency as Self-Care
Reclaiming choice on and off the mat or chair
Self-care is often presented as something we add to our lives—another routine, another habit, another thing to do. But true self-care begins with something quieter and more powerful: agency. Agency is our ability to choose, to listen inwardly, and to respond with intention rather than pressure.
In yoga, agency is not about pushing harder or achieving more or to match others. It’s about remembering that you are the expert of your own body, breath, and experience.
What Agency Means in a Yoga Practice
Agency shows up the moment you arrive on your mat or chair.
It’s the choice to:
Bend your knees more when the pose feels intense
Skip a shape altogether and rest
Stay longer in stillness—or move when stillness feels like too much
A practice rooted in agency honors the truth that every body and every day is different. Yoga becomes less about performing and more about participating—meeting yourself where you are without judgment.
When students are invited to make choices, the practice becomes safer, more accessible, and more empowering. This is self-care not as indulgence, but as respect.
Agency Beyond the Mat or Chair
Off the mat, agency continues as an act of daily self-care.
It might look like:
Saying no without over-explaining
Choosing rest instead of productivity
Adjusting expectations when energy is low
Listening to early signals of stress rather than pushing through
Agency doesn’t require big changes. It lives in small, repeated decisions that say, “I trust myself.”
For many of us—especially caregivers, educators, and helpers—agency can quietly erode over time. We become skilled at meeting others’ needs while disconnecting from our own. Reclaiming agency is a gentle return to self-leadership.
Breath as a Gateway to Choice
The breath is one of the simplest ways to practice agency.
In yoga, we often say “return to the breath,” but what we’re really doing is returning to choice:
You can deepen the inhale—or keep it soft
You can slow the exhale—or let it be natural
You can pause—or keep flowing
The breath reminds us that even when circumstances feel fixed, our response is flexible.
Redefining Self-Care
Self-care rooted in agency doesn’t ask:
“What should I do?”
It asks:
“What do I need right now?”
Sometimes that answer is movement. Sometimes it’s stillness. Sometimes it’s connection. Sometimes it’s space. When we honor agency, self-care becomes sustainable—not another obligation, but a relationship with ourselves.
A Closing Reflection
The practice of yoga is not about taking control—it’s about remembering that we already have it.
Each time you choose a modification, take a rest, or listen inwardly, you are practicing agency. Each time you honor that choice, you are practicing self-care.
Let your mat or chair be a place where choice is welcomed, wisdom is trusted, and care begins from within.
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”
— Mary Oliver
