Welcome to February, beautiful friends! Today, Jessica and I share our mutual passion, Yoga for the Special Child®.

Jessica, Sonia Sumar, Gita & Jaylin at Jessica's first Yoga for the Special Child® training in 2010.

From Gita: Jessica and I met back in 2009 when I began teaching her daughter, Jaylin, this fantastic method. Our lives have been enriched beyond our dreams by this practice, our relationship, and our beloved teacher Sonia Sumar. Now it’s our turn to spread the love.

Do you need a little inspiration? Do you ever doubt your ability to make a shift to peace and health? Look no farther than the fabulous Macy, one of my Yoga for the Special Child® students. Check out her video for a massive dose of love and inspiration.

From Jessica:
Want your body to feel better?
Practicing the Yoga for the Special Child® method by Sonia Sumar has given me much needed balance in my life and my body. Being motivated to learn so that I could teach Jaylin, I have been assimilating the benefits alongside her. Since Jaylin has been practicing yoga, she has had fewer sinus infections, better balance and body awareness, and no more constipation! This practice really has worked wonders on her digestive tract. It is amazing to have a tangible benefit of yoga to be able to talk about and show to others.

Need instant stress relief? Keep breathing…
For days when we cannot fit a whole practice in, there is always time for breathing practices, called pranayama. While waiting for the bus, or driving in the car I will say “breathing exercises” and Jaylin will follow along with me, doing a rapid cleansing breath, khabalabati, or deep breathing, deergha swasam. This brings us back into our bodies and into the present when we feel anxious or overwhelmed. It is a quick thing that can be done anywhere!

Do you want some balance?
Our asana,yoga pose, practice is very important too, it keeps our bodies balanced and healthy. Following strictly to the Sonia Sumar method, we are able to keep our physical bodies balanced. Balance is huge in our lives, if you couldn’t already tell! With all that is going on in our home, it is essential to our wellbeing. When we do our asana practice, we do backward bending poses, forward bending poses, lateral bends, balancing poses, inversions, and a deep relaxation. All of these work together to tone every part of our body, and to keep the energy flowing properly. Often times, we would both like to skip the deep relaxation, but we do not because it really ties up the balance to our practice. We cannot say we have a balanced practice if we only do movement, and not rest. It is also a motivator to relax because that is when our bodies absorb the practice and allow for us to have an even better practice the next time.

Use music to soothe yourself!
Chanting comes at the beginning of the yoga practice per the Sonia Sumar method, but is something we do many times during the day. We chant at the beginning of our class to prepare our bodies, but we also do it whenever we choose because it makes us feel good, and instantly bonds us when there is chaos surrounding us.

Be happy, you are a brilliant ‘Work in Progress’!
I know this method has changed Jaylin, and it has also changed me. I know I am a work in progress, fighting many aspects that Jaylin takes to naturally. I have learned to use the breath as a tool, and not an enemy. I have learned that balance is not only for our practice, but for everything that we do, to keep from doing too much or little of something. I use it when I eat; if I eat something unhealthy, I will nourish my body with healthy foods to create a balance. If I buy something, I try to let go of something already in our home. Every day I work to create more balance in my life, the physical things are easier to work on, but the balancing of the “mindstuff” is much more difficult, but will yield the most benefit if achieved.

p.s. know any busy friends who crave health and could use some inspiration? Share this post!

How about you? Have you ever...

been curious about teaching kids yoga?
wanted to start or deepen your own yoga practice?
wished to connect with happy & healthy people?

Do you...

work with individuals with special needs?
have a family member with different abilities?
want to spend a week with a fantastic teacher learning and growing?

Come Join Us!

What: Yoga for the Special Child® Basic Certification Program
Where: South Shore Conservatory, Duxbury, MA
When: July 12-18, 2014
For: Anyone! No yoga experience required!

For more info: Contact G ita, I’ll keep ya in the loop! Or, visit here!