Yoga Therapy - Principles

I was just reading the December 2010 issue of The International Association of Yoga Therapist's (IAYT) "Yoga Therapy Today."   This journal presents research and ideas for practicing Yoga therapists.   A common theme of recent issues is definitive standards for Yoga Therapy especially as it continues to emerge as an accepted practice in our Western culture.

I can affirm that Yoga as Therapy works.  Large binders filled with detailed notes on my private students are the formal documentation of postures, movement, and breath.   Yet, heartfelt moments witnessing another person understand, accept, and emerge is something that I can never quite fully articulate.   It's one of life's "you gotta be there moments" to understand -- goose bump moments that are deeply humbling when I recognize that the Divine is connected to this work.

It's been an honor to work with a wide range of students from athletes to individuals living with conditions including - multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, post-stroke,  Parkinson's, fibromyalgia, chronic pain (back, neck, hip, leg), migraines, dystonia... the list of conditions is long and the students I work with are a spectrum.   And these students' stories don't scare me - thanks to extensive Therapy Training with Jenny Otto's Body Balance Yoga, Anusara Yoga's Universal Principles of Alignment & Philosophy, and Pilates continuing education as well as teachers from many other lineages and disciplines that I study with each year.

I look forward to 2011 and who shows up in my life - both students and teachers.   They will arrive when I am ready to receive what they have to teach me.

Thinking of receiving, I receive a lot of invitations to study more.   One group that direct markets heavily is Duke Integrative Medicine's Therapeutic Yoga for Seniors Professional Training Program.  This month's IAYT's "Yoga Therapy Today" listed Carson-Crucoff Principles of Practice.   Carson and Crucoff are the two Yoga teachers who lead the Duke program.    Read an abstract of their work here.   I like their Principles, a lot.   Here they are...

1.   First, Do No Harm.   Join with our physician colleagues in making this our primary intention.
2.  Create a Safe Environment.   Cultivate ahimsa (non-harming) by encouraging students to honor their own personal journey and explore their full potential, with compassion and integrity.
3.  Encourage Yogic Balance.  Sthra sukham asanam - A yoga pose is, by Patanjali's definition, stable and comfortable.   Invite students to challenge themselves, but never strain.
4.  Meet People Where They Are.  Honor individual abilities and limitations by offering accessible and appropriate modifications that reflect the intention and function of traditional postures.
5.  Emphasize Feeling Over Form.   Let go of ideas of how a pose should look.   Focus instead on how a pose feels.   Teach students to discriminate between discomfort, which may be welcomed as an inherent  part of the growth process, and pain, which is to be avoided.
6.  Honor the Inner Teacher.  Don't assume you know what's going on with someone, even if you've asked.  Consider yourself a guide, helping students to explore what works best for them.
7.  Encourage Gratitude and Joy.   Create an environment that celebrates what students can do.
8.  Emphasize Fluidity.   The Tao's teaching that "those who are soft and supple are disciples of life" is particularly important as the body becomes rigid with age.   Minimize static "holdings."
9.  Use Skillful Language.  Encourage and invite rather than direct and demand.
10.  Respect Our Scope of Practice.  Recognize what we do as Yoga teachers is only part of the integrative health landscape.   Do only what we are trained to do and refer to other practitioners when necessary.
11.   Be a Guardian of Safety.   Get CPR/AED training and keep your certification current.
12.   Teach People, Not Poses or Conditions.   While acknowledging the inevitable changes inherent in life, it is essential to recognize the unchanging spirit at the heart of all beings.

May we remember.

Relaxtion Response

"Tools in the toolbox" is one of my favorite sayings.   Our team of medical & wellness providers are a big part of our team - and they wield the best tools to keep us on the ground on our own two feet.   We also are fully responsible for our own bodies.   The more we actively participate in the process of our well-being (rather than depending on someone else to do it for us), the better we feel.

This is what mind/body forms of movement - such as Yoga - provide all of us!   An amazing gift to participate in our well-being, Yoga meets us where we are on our path.

With my legs literally going out from under me this week, I've been reminded of the importance of the Relaxation Response both for us as teachers and for our students.   The Relaxation Response is the opposite of the body's "fight or flight" response mechanism.  Due to the nature of our lives, most of us live in constant "fight or flight."   We call it stress.   Modern pharmaceuticals advertise to us to help alleviate this condition.

An important thing to know is that you can discharge this response - and we must discharge.   Every time I see our dog do a full body shake -- I know she is discharging the fight or flight response from her body.   We may all look crazy shaking like a dog after bad news or an interaction with another person -- but what if we could do it privately?    I learned something from a senior Gyrotonic teacher called the "7 Shakes."

Raise your right arm above your head (or out if you have a shoulder injury) - shake it 7 times.

Raise your left arm above your head - shake it 7 times.

Extend your right leg - shake it 7 times.

Extend your left leg -shake it 7 times.

Keep breathing.

Repeat the sequence.  

Shake each appendage 6 times.

Then 5 times.

Then 4 times.

Until you get to 1shake each.

Stand (or if you did this sitting) - pause and feel the difference.

Feel that you are no longer stuck with your thoughts.  Are probably smiling (mostly because it made you feel silly, eh?).  And now, you can move on!

What's interesting is earlier this week, my husband was watching a science show about stress and hierarchy.   The researchers were studying baboons.   The baboons on the lowest rung of the clan had the most stress.   The head baboon - almost none.   The scientists were comparing their research with the human response.

One of the fantastic things about being human is our minds.   We can change our mind & truly change our world.   So, maybe we aren't the "top dog" or "top baboon" in our universe, but how we respond to what occurs is our choice.

In our Yoga & other mind/body classes, we teach people how to illicit the Relaxation Response.   We help them re-pattern - forming new grooves & pathways in the body/mind.   Yes, we still have our "stuff," but how respond to our stuff is what's different.   We learn to shake it off.   Or we begin to see the patterns.

In 2010 our Advanced Studies program here in Jacksonville, top teachers from many disciplines are coming to town.  These teachers will provide us with "more tools in the toolbox."   Enabling us to self-care better & serve others better.   Please be sure to check out the website & see if any or all of the training may be appropriate for you.   Many elements are open to students, too.   So if you have students who are deeply interested, please feel welcome to refer them!

And, finally - for those who are like my lovable husband - and need a bit  more science to back up claims, I offer the following.    The Relaxation Response is proven to work on pain.   Many controlled trials have proven the value of the Relaxation Response in decreasing both acute & chronic pain.   Studies have shown that the Relaxation Response can predictably be triggered.  The following information comes from an extremely comprehensive 1996 review article published in The Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing.   The review showed that the Relaxation Response has been shown to be the most beneficial in helping all kinds of painful conditions, both acute & chronic.    Here's a sample from the article.

Acute & Chronic Conditions Proved to be Helped by the Relaxation Response

Acute Pain - after gallbladder removal, after hernia repair, after a hemorrhoidectomy, after an abdominal hystorectomy, after the repair of a fractured hip, after an episiotomy.

Chronic Pain - low back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, arm pain, leg pain, facial pain, headaches, chest pain

Let's all learn more!   And together feel better & teach others how to feel better too!   Take advantage of all the amazing senior teachers coming to Jacksonville who will teach us so many great proven techniques.   Join us starting in March for a phenomenal year of training!   www.RYT500.com

On My Knees

I don't think too many of us get through life without some sort of challenge - body, mind, or spirit.   We all have something.  Our Yoga practice provides many tools to face these obstacles.  

I had a recent wake up call on many levels this past week.    I am currently on crutches.   My rare joint disease has re-announced its presence in my right knee.   For over a year, thanks to a team of professionals (bodyworkers, chiropractor, acupuncture/homeopathy) as well as a focused therapeutic approach to both my Yoga & Pilates practices, I have been relatively pain free.   And when I hear stories of others who have this disease, I am awed by our bodies ability to bring us to our knees.

Most of all, I am grateful for my support system.   Family & friends, students & colleagues, wellness providers & my senior teachers have all taught me something.   They have shared with me insights & ideas.   They have listened & pontificated.    Each, in some way, has shown me the way.

Last night, I was able to begin some active Yoga therapy on my body.   I can not even begin to express how grateful I am for John Friend's ability to distill complex ideas into a comprehensible system called Anusara Yoga that allows you to work pain free.   His Universal Principles of Alignment are the foundation of the solution for me.   Combining Anusara's methodology with some of the amazing therapeutic techniques I've learned from Jenny Otto & my Pilates training, I was able to integrate as well as create space & length.    With my Anatomy Trains knowledge (thank you Tom Meyers), I have been able to unlock some of the myofascia as well.

Like many others, managing pain will most likely be a life long process for me.   Pain will knock on my door throughout my life - affecting my body, mind, and spirit.   Being able to be present and breathe with the pain is something I have learned, too, from my practice.   Using my breath to expand the places that need space as well as connecting with my breath as a means to connect with my life force - has also been a powerful practice.

While I may be humbled and literally on bended knee, I am not down.   My gaze is inward and my heart lifts upward.   Thanks to the practice.   Ishvara Pranidhana.