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This site is dedicated to Gayla, Nada, Mike, Richard., and Virginia.

A Cure for the Post-Vacation Blues

After such a relaxing week, it feels great to get back to work!  Planning a Shanti Prana Flow class with a special Yoga Nidra to celebrate the upcoming Summer Solstice.
Here's my schedule for this week 6/18-6/22:

Tuesday

5:30-6:45 p.m.

Yoga for Cancer Survivors, Denton Regional Medical Center,
3535 South Interstate 35; Denton, TX
Open to the public.  $10 donation to Foundation 56. 
FREE for Breast Cancer Survivors
Contact me here for more information.

Wednesday

9-10 a.m.  

Prana Flow at Excite in Highland Village, 

2225 Highland Village Rd., Highland Village, TX

More info here.

Thursday

9-10 a.m.  

Prana Flow Special Class at Excite in Highland Village,
2225 Highland Village Rd., Highland Village, TX
More info here.

Friday

9-10 a.m.

Restorative Yoga at Excite in Highland Village,

2225 Highland Village Rd., Highland Village, TX

More info here.

Yoga to the rescue for allergy sufferers

It's that time of year again!  Sunny days, cool breezes, flowers everywhere, and...sneezing, wheezing, and watering eyes.  How can yoga help?

Yoga is all about being practical, finding balance.  Krishnamacharya, the founder of modern yoga, taught his students to adjust their practice according to the season. So, after the sluggishness of winter, it would make sense for our practice to experience an awakening, an opening to the sun.

One of the best ways to get the blood (and the sinuses) flowing is with a few rounds of Surya Namaskar, Sun Salutations.  Click this link on Yoga Journal for the how-to.  The words "Surya Namaskar" mean "to bow to the sun". 

Energetically, in the springtime, we feel like moving, like getting outdoors.  So our yoga practice should reflect that vitality:  standing poses, warrior poses; anything that opens the heart, such as Standing Anahatasana (Heart-Opening Pose with hands at lower back), Bhujangasana (Cobra), and Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (Upward-Facing Dog).  Inversions, such as Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog) and Prasarita Padottanasana (Standing Straddle Fold)  are also good poses to consider because they encourage the flow of mucous.

One of my favorite poses to help open the chest for deep breathing is a restorative one.  Recline on a bolster (or large cushion), supporting the head with a small towel or blanket.  Arms can also be supported with rolled up towels/blankets.

For more information on yoga for allergies, see this link from Yoga Journal. 

Susan Reeves, E-RYT 500.  I offer yoga classes in Highland Village, Flower Mound, and Lewisville areas. Please sign up in the side-bar (right) for e-mail updates on current classes and workshops.

Restorative Yoga in a Stressful World

“I will let my body flow like water over the gentle cushions.”  Sappho

Feeling stressed, over-worked, and fatigued? Restorative Yoga might be able to help.

Restorative Yoga is a practice that uses a variety of props to completely support the body in gentle, restful positions. It is a healing practice that gives students the opportunity to linger quietly in well-supported poses.  After effects?  You feel calm, peaceful and balanced!

I am a Relax and Renew Yoga Teacher, trained by Judith Lasater.  Much of the information from this post comes from my studies with her.

We live in a stressful world, and it can take a toll on the body and the mind.  According to Judith, we are stressed because of our thoughts about the future and as a result of our samskaras (ingrained patterns) from our past.   All of these thoughts that continually swirl around in our heads leave a residue.  Restorative Yoga helps to clear that away.

Judith points out that most people have a misguided notion about what relaxation really means.  We think we are resting when we sit down in front of the t.v. or when we are reading a book.  In reality, we are “avoiding” rest because, as Judith says, we are “addicted to distraction.”  Our hobbies and other leisure activities, while they are nourishing to our souls, are not the equivalent of rest.

This is where Restorative Yoga can help. It is a technique that actually manipulates the nervous system, inducing the “relaxation response”, a term coined by Herbert Benson, M.D. : "The relaxation response is a physical state of deep rest that changes the physical and emotional responses to stress... and the opposite of the fight or flight response."

There are scientific studies that prove that Restorative Yoga has positive effects on the nervous system.  It does take time.  It is recommended that a person spend at least 20 minutes in most restorative poses, because it takes at least that long for the body to relax.  Beyond that, the parasympathetic nervous system can begin to take over, quieting and soothing the mind and body, bringing about true rest.

The photos in this post were taken in my home and were a part of my research project for my certification in Restorative Yoga with Judith Lasater.  They show an example of a restorative pose called Side-lying  Savasana.  I really snuggled the participant in with this pose.  This was her first experience with Restorative Yoga, and I wanted it to be a good one.  She felt so pampered with the eye pillow in her palm and the cover over her eyes.  She loved this pose so much that one night she ended up sleeping there all night! 

 

Pre-pose set-up



Enjoy!