TaskHuman Coach, Angeline Ng, Shares Her “Heart Journey”

In a recent episode of the podcast TaskHuman Talks, coach and host Jamie Carroll talked with Angeline Ng, a wellness and yoga coach about her own wellness journey.

A core belief for Angeline is “There is no fear when you have faith, hope, and love.” She also believes that being grounded is the first step toward wellness in any situation.

Here are some of the highlights of the conversation:

1. TaskHuman Allows for Different Levels of Connection

In her work on the TaskHuman app, Angeline recognizes that consumers want and need different things. Some people might come in for stretching or yoga, while others might be seeking help with their mental wellness through mindfulness and meditation practices.

“Some people want a little assistance on the mental level,” she says. 

For her, the app is a platform that allows for both, no matter what your background is. The tools she shares with her students stem from mindfulness. She helps them learn how to meditate, how meditation can help them, and how to eliminate stress, especially work-related stress.

2. She Uses Her Own Tools

Angeline knows her tools work because she uses them herself. Nine years ago, doctors found she had a serious heart condition. The “wait and see” strategy eventually ended when she needed major surgery to repair a bulging valve near her aorta.

She had been practicing yoga, but not consistently. After her 7-hour surgery that required new physical restrictions, yoga was the only exercise she could do.

“It help[ed] me in my healing because it allow[ed] me to move,” she says.

As she moved, she realized that her body wasn’t ruined. She was not the same person, but she was still a whole person. Angeline explains that yoga builds self-compassion and acceptance.

“The body really is such an intelligent machine,” she says, “because despite what I have, I could see that the body is working for me and with me towards healing, and that gives me a lot of hope in my journey to recover.”

3. Her Journey Helps Her Help Others

Angeline recognizes that emotions and struggles come up for her students during class. Her own journey in acceptance gives her the insight she needs to support her students through their work.

She knows because of her heart condition, there are some yoga positions she will never be able to do again. The same may be true for her students.

“There is really nothing wrong with it,” she says. “That’s the way it is. While there are things that we can’t do, there are still so many things we CAN do.”

Instead of becoming closed and despondent, Angeline advocates for becoming open to the possibilities that exist.

To do that, you need to practice trusting your own body. You can find something that you can do that feels good and supports your wellness journey. Don’t give up until you find it, but make sure you’re releasing expectations and your ego.

4. It All Stems from Mindfulness

When we’re practicing mindfulness, we are able to be present. We are not living in what was, or what should be. We just are.

“While it is simple,” Angeline says, “it is not easy.” 

Helping her students work on their mindfulness practice is one of her passions, and she has seen how it benefits them. Some of her students are children with special needs. Often children in this population have difficulties focusing on the present. Angeline explains that when they practice mindfulness, they can do it.

It takes practice, but it gets easier, and that is the whole point. It’s not to always be mindful, but to know when you’re not and to keep coming back to it.

Setting an intention can make the process smoother.

5. Intention Setting is Important

For Angeline, setting intentions can lead to better grounding. It gives you a point of reference, or an “anchor,” as she says.

“An intention is like a stone,” she says, “to pull you down to really feel the body and breath.” 

She believes that most people move through their day not even feeling their bodies. The disconnection means you’re not anchored to anything.

“If you are not grounded, you will be like a balloon flying away,” Angeline explains.

To improve your mindfulness practice, she says you can try many techniques, including: mindful eating, mindful walking, or mindful parenting. But the easiest to choose will be mindful breathing because your breath is always available to you.

6. Make Friends With Your Fear

Living with a heart condition, and then learning she has a secondary heart condition was difficult for Angeline to process. She admits that her heart journey continues, but this time she is better able to recognize her fears.

She is “able to accept things as they are,” she says, “and not what I think it should be.”

By accepting her situation, she is better able to live a rich, full life.

“I have really made friends with my fear at this point,” she says.

It wasn’t always easy. At times, her physical response to her fear was so strong, she couldn’t leave her bed for days. Now that she is familiar with her fear, and she names it, it has less power over her.

“Seeing fear for what it is, it disappears after that,” she says.

In order to recognize fear as an emotion, not as a situation, you need to be mindful, she explains. The emotion’s strength comes from our resistance to feeling it. In naming and accepting the emotion, you reduce its intensity.

7. “Normal” Living Is Different for Everyone

Our personal perspectives on life make what we picture as “normal living” different. Angeline believes we should embrace those differences, but that they should also come from our true selves.

For her, it’s “living from the heart.” She works to be as authentic as possible in all her relationships. If she has done that, then she knows she has done her best.

By living authentically, we do not allow our circumstances, especially our negative ones, to change us as people.

“There is no fear when you have faith, hope, and love,” she says. 

To hold faith, hope, and love, Angeline explains we need to seek our inner goodness, which she believes everyone has. We need to trust that we will be ok and the people we love will be too.

Trusting our own personal wisdom is also important, as well as understanding that we are all capable of love.

“Very often we search outside for love,” she says, “for pleasure, for happiness.” 

We don’t have to do that, she explains. These ideas are within us, we just need to see them.

“We are able to recognize it if we are quiet enough to go within and be really mindful of all the things the body is telling you, or the soul is telling you,” she says.

8. Self-Care Is Personal

In her own self-care, Angeline recognizes there is room for improvement, but she accepts those parts of herself with love.

She tries to eat healthy meals, but it’s hard for her.

“I love to eat, and I eat a lot,” she explains.

While she may think she needs to improve her eating habits, she also is very disciplined about other parts of her self-care. She makes sure she goes to bed and wakes up at the same time every day, including weekends. For her, this routine is critical to how she feels.

She also makes sure she has time alone each day. She uses this time to quiet her mind, come back to her intention, and reflect on where she is. She often asks herself questions like, “How do I show up tomorrow?” and “How do I do better?”

The reflection helps her stay in the present with love and practice “being instead of doing.”

Watch the full podcast here. Then, if you’re ready to work with Angeline to start your own heart journey, contact her through the TaskHuman app for a LIVE 1:1 video call today.