Over the twenty plus years I have been practicing and teaching yoga, I have learned to be humble. It is a vast practice, and I had no clue what I was getting into when I started. I thought, like many people, that yoga was some weird and impractical activity, unlike weight lifting, cycling, running, and swimming which I did with gusto. A colleague had to trick me into attending my first class, saying it was a "stretch class" which I felt I needed since I didn't stretch much.
I immediately loved my first class since it was physically challenging but left me feeling fantastic. It required many classes, workshops, teacher trainings, and a trip to India to wake me up to the fact that what we call yoga in the U.S. is really asana or posture practice. I learned that the asanas themselves are not much older than the late 1800's, when Great Britain invaded India. Some postures it is true existed long before that, but Yoga in India is viewed as a path to spiritual enlightenment, and asana but a tiny foot step on that path.
Over the years I honed my practice, spent years with highly knowledgeable teachers, exposed myself to classical texts, and went to India. I learned to have a deep and abiding love and respect for the many facets of Yoga. I also began my employment as a caregiver for seniors, and got my degree as an Occupational Therapy Assistant. Thus I started to question what I was teaching in classes, and what was being touted as yoga, and how yoga could be adapted to suit those with special needs.
Yoga Therapy was developed as a practical response to the need to distinguish classes with an emphasis on getting a good workout from practices which emphasize clear seeing and understanding of the body, mind, and spirit. The Yoga Therapy field can be applied in a class setting, but more often it is found in a one-on-one relationship of client/student and teacher/therapist. Since it is holistic, it embraces a full picture of health: from movement function, to diet and behavioral changes (Ayurveda), and spiritual alignment. I am happy to have finally found my seat (one of ways we define asana) in the field of Yoga Therapy. It is a true coming home to my Self.
I immediately loved my first class since it was physically challenging but left me feeling fantastic. It required many classes, workshops, teacher trainings, and a trip to India to wake me up to the fact that what we call yoga in the U.S. is really asana or posture practice. I learned that the asanas themselves are not much older than the late 1800's, when Great Britain invaded India. Some postures it is true existed long before that, but Yoga in India is viewed as a path to spiritual enlightenment, and asana but a tiny foot step on that path.
Over the years I honed my practice, spent years with highly knowledgeable teachers, exposed myself to classical texts, and went to India. I learned to have a deep and abiding love and respect for the many facets of Yoga. I also began my employment as a caregiver for seniors, and got my degree as an Occupational Therapy Assistant. Thus I started to question what I was teaching in classes, and what was being touted as yoga, and how yoga could be adapted to suit those with special needs.
Yoga Therapy was developed as a practical response to the need to distinguish classes with an emphasis on getting a good workout from practices which emphasize clear seeing and understanding of the body, mind, and spirit. The Yoga Therapy field can be applied in a class setting, but more often it is found in a one-on-one relationship of client/student and teacher/therapist. Since it is holistic, it embraces a full picture of health: from movement function, to diet and behavioral changes (Ayurveda), and spiritual alignment. I am happy to have finally found my seat (one of ways we define asana) in the field of Yoga Therapy. It is a true coming home to my Self.