Yoga For Healing Workshop: Gentle Movement For Health-Challenged Women
Free Spirit Yoga is pleased to present “Yoga For Healing”, a workshop focusing on gentle movement for anyone who has undergone a health challenge—whether it be cancer or other chronic illnesses, depression, PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder), or even loss.
The workshop will be led by Jane Mattson, a massage therapist since 1992 and a practitioner of yoga for over 35 years, and is open to anyone who has been cleared by their doctor to begin to move and strengthen. Jane, a breast cancer survivor, developed this class specifically for women just out of treatment, but the same principles apply for anyone wanting to ease back into exercise after illness. In the 2-hour workshop, Mattson will explore techniques to promote healing with suggestions on how to develop a home practice.
“Since yoga was such an important part of my recovery, I wanted to share my journey and what I’ve learned throughout this process,” Mattson explained. “Survivors of traumatic events, be it an illness, a loss, a deployment or some other trauma have of necessity found it necessary to ‘leave their bodies,’ at least to some extent. Once the danger has passed we are often left with a residue in our beings—a feeling that the danger has not passed. In the case of a chronic illness, that is often an ongoing ordeal; a constant accumulation of stress after stress that can become an illness in itself. The marrying of awareness, movement and breath in a gentle manner allows our fight or flight response (stress response) to quiet down. When that happens the body's healing systems can do their work. Slowly, we come back into our bodies and that shutting down becomes an opening up. We do this with breath, intention, and movement; deeply aware of each part to the best of our ability. In essence, yoga helps us to get out of the way of our healing.
This practice will focus on presence; grounding and breathing with gentle movement in a safe space so that the fight or flight states that trauma creates can be released, allowing a healing to take place where the body/mind can begin to re-integrate.
“This workshop is aimed at showing you ways to come into a deep, healing practice that is right for you each day. We will focus on those aspects of yoga that go deeper than asana for the purpose of allowing the body/mind’s innate healing abilities to come forth. The body knows how to heal, and we, as its stewards, must create the time and space for it to do so. We will create a warm, welcoming environment in which to practice and move through a gentle, breath-centered class focused on opening from within.”
This workshop is located at Free Spirit Yoga, 3910 Atlantic Ave., LB 90807; 562-989-9959; www.freespirityoga.com.
Cost is $20 in advance (payable online or via phone) and $25 at the door. Please note: full payment is required to reserve a space in workshops. Refunds are given for cancellations made 48 hours or more prior to workshop start date. Store credit will be given for cancellations made less than 48 hours prior to workshop start date. No credits or refunds will be given after workshop begins.
About Jane Mattson:
Jane Mattson has been a massage therapist since 1992 and a practitioner of yoga for over 35 years. She did her yoga teacher training with Saul David Raye in 2010, following her second bout of breast cancer. Her teaching is breath- centered and committed to meeting the body wherever it is.
For more information, please visit our website or call (562) 989-9959.
