Working well

Black women talk creating balance, feeling joy and following your excitement When she found herself passed out on the bedroom floor, Dr. River Sturdivant realized something needed to change. She had been juggling multiple work obligations, consulting contracts and caring for her family. While she was constantly pushing herself to work more and care for others, she was ignoring her own feelings. “You can’t continuously grind yourself into the ground if you actually pay attention to how you feel,” Sturdivant said. River Sturdivant (Photo/Auset Images Photography) In her yoga practice, she learned the concept of ahimsa, which means to do no violence. She said it’s like a form of torture to starve somebody, deprive them of sleep and dehydrate them, but that is something people do to themselves all the time. For Black women especially, she said, the concept of the “Strong Black Woman” has been wired into the DNA, but living up to that idea takes a psychological toll. “None of the aspects of over-caring (or) putting yourself last can happen if we are tapped in and tuned in to how we feel,” Sturdivant said. “It all lives on the fact that we suppress and repress our emotions.” Her...