Frequently Asked Questions

General

  • I do not have a studio. I take yoga on the road, to location, and to YOU! Although I have regular group yoga classes and workshops at various venues in the area, yoga therapy sessions are held at a neutral, agreed-upon location. We establish this during the free consultation.

  • I teach what I call Classical Yoga - a timeless, more traditional approach to Hatha yoga that anyone can “do”. My first training school was Integral Yoga, and anyone who takes my class and is familiar with this school will recognize it as a loose framework. I teach a variety of classes, but my approach and intention is the same: to provide the time and space for each person to explore moving and breathing differently within the specific class. Each has an atmosphere of non-judgment and non-competition.

  • No. Yoga is a science of understanding the mind and body. The pure traditional teachings of yoga do not tell anyone what to believe or not. That is personal.

    Yoga is a very old tradition that originated in India, and it has evolved over thousands of years.

    Anyone of any religion will likely find that yoga brings them closer to their faith, or brings about deeper understanding. Yoga concepts support any belief system.

  • A yoga class is a general class that will include yoga poses and movement, and depending on the class or teacher it will also include relaxation, breathing, and meditation. There are many kinds of classes, ranging from very gentle to vigorous. Yoga classes are usually around 1 hour long. Yoga classes are one-directional: teacher leads and students follow.

    A yoga workshop offers a specific focus or “deeper dive” into a particular aspect of yoga that you might find interesting. It is usually more informal or conversational with time for question and answer, is longer in length or offered as a series. Examples of workshop topics might be breathing, pelvic floor, beginners, meditation, or fine-tuning yoga poses, and they are offered to small or larger groups.

  • I enjoy reading, writing, gardening, hiking, and spending time with family and friends.

Yoga Therapy

  • While the benefits of yoga are therapeutic (meaning aiding in healing and helpful to all systems of the body-mind experience), it is different from Yoga Therapy.

    Yoga is commonly thought of as “just” yoga poses that are practiced as exercise at a local gym in a roomful of people. Yoga in general does offer many potential benefits, like increasing flexibility, strength, mobility, mental clarity, and circulation while reducing fatigue and pain. This short list provides examples of how yoga is therapeutic just by taking a local group class!

    Yoga Therapy, on the other hand, is the specific and personalized application and adaptation of yoga tools to each individual person in a small group or private setting, offered by a person who has trained extensively and is a certified yoga therapist. Sessions are based on each person’s needs and goals.

    The attention and personalization in a yoga therapy session is far greater than what you get in a group yoga class, and includes exploring specific goals you might have, like reducing anxiety, improving sleep patterns, or working with a chronic illness.

  • Yoga Therapy is not currently covered by insurance. Payment is accepted by cash, check, or PayPal.

  • Each session begins with pausing to gather oneself, be present, and refocus on the intention for coming. There may be a grounding or “centering” practice. We will check in verbally with how any home practices are going and what you are learning. From there, whether you have something specific you want to focus on that day or continue with your theme, we will practice some combination of movement, breathing, yoga tools or concepts, awareness building, relaxation, self-inquiry activities, meditation, and looking at how you may be able to create small interventions or lifestyle changes to support your reason for coming to yoga therapy. Everyone is different and there is no “one-size-fits-all” approach. Yoga therapy is a process through which you gain footing in living more intentionally and closer to your values.

  • Packages come in 3, 5, or 10 sessions. It depends on your goal, and while I may have a suggestion, it is up to you. We would discuss this in the free consultation. You will get out of sessions what you put into them! Yoga Therapy sessions are meant to give you the time and space to explore and practice the tools helpful toward your goal, and the time outside of session is when you empower yourself by practicing those tools in real time.

  • At the end of each session, you will have a chance to set a small goal to move toward your goal, or I will suggest a small practice, assessment, or other inquiry. Doing your home practice will leverage progress and help you get the most of our time together! What you get out of yoga therapy depends on what you put into it.

  • Scheduling is done by email, phone, or in person.

    Consultations and sessions are held during regular weekday business hours.

  • You bet! The Zoom platform is used to meet virtually. If you need help setting up Zoom, that is available.

  • Usually, yoga therapy sessions are scheduled every 1-2 weeks so that the time between sessions gives you a chance to practice what you learning and see an arc of progress.

    It could be that sessions start out weekly, and as time progresses, sessions are scheduled farther apart. We can decide this as we go.

  • There are different styles or schools of yoga therapy which have their own approaches. I am trained in Comprehensive Yoga Therapy through YogaLife Institute, an approach that is whole-person and non-prescriptive. You can check www.iayt.org for which schools are accredited.

Other questions? Email Dawn!