I look forward to teaching the LifeForce Yoga and Addictions program with Dr. Kathy Shafer at Kripalu in Stockbridge, MA on May 18 – 20th, and I’m excited to be teaching at Esalen in Big Sur for the first time in June. Read on for news about new training formats and specialty workshops, as well as reviews of a new award-winning book about natural treatments for ADHD that include yoga by Drs. Richard Brown and Patricia Gerbarg, a new book about mindful living by Angela and Dennis Buttimer, counselor, yoga & meditation teacher team in Atlanta and CDs by the Raja Yoga Duo Michele Hebert and Dr. Mehrad Nazari.

Namasté,

Amy

In This Issue:

• Research: Yoga Meditation Improves Mood and Slows Aging in Caregivers
• Research: Gentle Iyengar Yoga Helps Older Women with Restless Legs Syndrome
• Research:Yoga Out Shines Physical Therapy for Back Pain Patients
• Review: Non-Drug Treatments for ADHD: New Options for Kids, Adults, and Clinicians by Dr. Brown and Dr. Gerbarg Reviewed by Amy Weintraub
• Review: Calm: Choosing to Live Mindfully by Angela Buttimer and Dennis Buttimer Reviewed by Rose Kress
• Media Mention: Michele Herbert & Mehrad Nazari, Ph.D
• News: New Format Option for the LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training
• News: New LifeForce Yoga Training (level 1 & level 2) on the East Coast
• News: First LifeForce Yoga 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training
• News: Drs. Richard Brown and Patricia Gerbarg -Trainings
• News: Interview with Amy in the Huffington Post
• News: New Yoga Blog for Children
• Calendar Highlights

Research: Yoga Meditation Improves Mood and Slows Aging in Caregivers

In two separate recently published studies, researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, and at the University of West Virginia and the University of Virginia found that a yoga meditation called Kirtan Kriya from the Kundalini tradition can help lower depression in caregivers of relatives with dementia and improve their cognitive functioning. The UCLA study, published in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, also found that the 11-minute meditation was associated with a decrease in cellular aging from stress.

This meditation involves hand gestures called mudras and a simple four-syllable mantra that is chanted, whispered and repeated silently while pressing the thumb against each finger.

According to Dr. Helen Lavretsky, the lead investigator of the study at the UCLA, “Our study suggests a simple, low-cost yoga program can enhance coping and quality of life for the caregivers.”

For the UCLA study, the researchers recruited 49 caregivers between ages 45 and 90 who were taking care of a relative with dementia. Thirty-six of them were adult children of the person with dementia, and 13 were the spouses of the person with dementia.

The researchers separated the study participants into two groups: One was taught a 12-minute yoga routine that included a chanting meditation from the Kundalini (called Kirtan Kriya), done every day for eight weeks. The other group relaxed with eyes closed for 12 minutes a day to a relaxation CD with instrumental music.

By the end of the study period, researchers found that in the yoga group, 65 percent of people had a 50 percent better score on a depression scale, and 52 percent had a 50 percent better mental health score. Among people in the relaxation group, on the other hand, 31 percent had a better score on the depression scale and 19 percent had a better score in mental health.

In addition, the researchers found that the yoga group’s telomerase activity had improved by 43 percent, while just 3.7 percent of the relaxation group’s telomerase activity improved. Telomerase activity is important because it slows down the process of cellular aging.

Although the University of West Virginia study was a smaller pilot study, it included the Alzheimer’s patients themselves, as well as their caregivers. Five sets of patients and their caregivers participated in an 8-week meditation program and had significant benefits, leading the study’s authors to conclude that 11-minute practice twice a day may offer an acceptable and effective intervention for reducing perceived stress and improving certain domains of sleep, mood, and memory in adults with cognitive impairment and their caregivers.

Dr. Kim Innes, the lead investigator for the study published in Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine says that the participants showed significant reductions in perceived stress and blood pressure, along with improvements in sleep, mood, and even one domain of memory. “This was especially surprising to us,’ says Dr. Innes, “given the very short duration of this intervention and the very small sample size.” The research group is currently planning a larger trial to further investigate the possible health, cognitive, and psychological benefits of a simple meditation practice for those with cognitive impairment and their caregivers.

Lavretsky H, et. al., “A pilot study of yogic meditation for family dementia caregivers with depressive symptoms: effects on mental health, cognition, and telomerase activity,” International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 2012 Mar 11. doi: 10.1002/gps.3790.

Innes, KE, et.al. “The effects of meditation on perceived stress and related indices of psychological status and sympathetic activation in persons with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers: a pilot study,” Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2012;2012:927509.

Research: Gentle Iyengar Yoga Helps Older Women with Restless Legs Syndrome

In another study published in Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine that compared an 8-week series of twice weekly 90 minute Iyengar yoga classes to an educational film program that met for the same amount of time each week, the yoga group demonstrated significantly greater improvements than controls in sleep quality and mood, and significantly greater reductions in insomnia, anxiety, perceived stress, and blood pressure.

The ten members of the control group met with a wellness educator, had an initial check-in and an integrating period of social interaction after the film. For the same amount of time, the ten members of the yoga group met with a senior Iyengar teacher. The yoga group practiced a gentle series of postures, supported by props, and designed for their age group and their beginning level of experience. Each yoga session began with a ten minute centering and breathing practice and ended with a 15-minute yoga relaxation.

The article, including the Iyengar protocol: Gentle Iyengar Yoga and Restless Leg Syndrome in Older Women

Kim E. Innes, 2 and Terry Kit Selfe, “The Effects of a Gentle Yoga Program on Sleep,Mood,and Blood Pressure in OlderWomen with Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS): A Preliminary Randomized Controlled Trial,” Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Research:Yoga Out Shines Physical Therapy for Back Pain Patients

Researchers at Vivekananda Yoga Research Foundation (SVYASA), in Bangalore, India found that a seven-days intensive residential Yoga program reduces pain, anxiety, and depression, and improves spinal mobility in patients with chronic lower back pain (CLBP) more effectively than physiotherapy exercises. Researchers assigned 80 patients (37 female, 43 male) with CLBP to yoga and physical exercise groups. The Yoga program consisted of specific asanas and pranayamas for back pain, meditation, yogic counseling, and lectures on yoga philosophy. The control group program included physical therapy exercises for back pain, and matching counseling and education sessions. Both groups showed improvement in all measurements, but outcomes were significantly better in the yoga group. For example, while the physical therapy group experienced a 17.5% reduction in pain, the yoga group showed a 49% improvement in this area. The depression scores were also significantly different, with 47% improvement in the yoga group and a 19.9% improvement in controls.

Tekur P, Nagarathna R, Chametcha S, Hankey A, Nagendra HR, “A comprehensive yoga programs improves pain, anxiety and depression in chronic low back pain patients more than exercise: An RCT,” Complement Ther Med. 2012 Jun;20(3):107-18.

Review: Non-Drug Treatments for ADHD: New Options for Kids, Adults, and Clinicians by Dr. Brown and Dr. Gerbarg
Reviewed by Amy Weintraub

In this award-winning book, Gerbarg and Brown write as one, in a single and singular voice of compassion and understanding. They understand the frustration of parents, teachers and doctors and the pain of rejection that is common to many children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). And they offer hope in the form of treatments other than stimulant medications. They argue that because there are many causes, no one treatment is a panacea for all who suffer. Each person is unique and may benefit from a combination of approaches. “Treatments must be strategically combined and tailored to the unique needs and sensitivities of each person,” say the authors. Brown and Gerbarg discuss in detail these multiple treatments that include herbs, supplements, exercise, mind-body practices, and neurofeedback. On the way, the provide fascinating stories about the many children and adults who have been able to moderate their symptoms and lead lives of satisfying work and family life.

The book begins with a re-framing of what it means to be a person with ADHD. The authors focus on the qualities that contribute to success –“their thirst for novelty…, tremendous energy…, thinking outside the box, creativity…belief in their own talents…, willingness to take risks, courage, altruism, determination, and commitment to their own ideas and values,” and note that these very qualities can get them into trouble. Rather than tamp down or struggle to control a mind that races with ideas and a body with excess energy, the authors suggest that it be directed towards a passionate interest where increased work productivity counts or to the practice that makes an athlete or musician excel. They list scores of successful entrepreneurs, artists, writers, and politicians who likely could not sit still in class or finish a book or homework assignment. Included in the first chapter are definitions and most useful to families, tools for self-assessment and parental assessment. The chapter discusses the standard medicines and treatments, including behavioral therapy, evaluating effectiveness, limitations and unwanted effects.

The chapter on brain science is clear and accessible to lay readers—“just a taste of the science soup”—but enough to clue the reader to the current research that informs the authors’ approach. In the chapter on herbs, we learn not only what might be effective but for whom each individual herb might be of greatest use. Included is a section on the Indian science of Ayurveda that includes herbal treatments and self-applied pressure point therapy (marma). Here, the authors interview an expert on the subject and include his successful treatment approach for a 14-year-old boy with severe ADHD. Included in this chapter is a section on the benefits and safe administration of the hormone melatonin, important for sleep, the production of which can be disrupted in those with ADHD. Brain function can be enhanced by a class of natural substances called nootropics, and the authors outline these as well. Included in the chapter is a helpful chart that explains use, dosage, effects, side effects and recommended vendors.

The chapter on diet, vitamins and nutrients that can be an effective component of treatment includes foods and additives to avoid that can send a child with ADHD from rambunctious to out of control.

The chapter on mind-body practices shares anecdotal evidence from the authors’ practice and from yoga therapist and LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Joy Bennett’s work of the effectiveness of yoga and yoga breathing in helping children and adults with ADHD focus and relax. The author’s take us through a class Joy leads for boys with severe learning and behavioral problems, in which she uses breath, movement and chakra tones, as well as cues to feel “the sparkle in your hands” and other direct body sensation to help the boys attune to their bodies, increasing interoception (how the mind listens to the body) and self-regulation. This chapter not only suggests specific mind-body practices that have been shown to be helpful, but recommends ways you can introduce yoga into schools that have not in so far been receptive to its inclusion.

Every chapter has a compendium of valuable resources and the last chapter provides doctors, parents, educators and those who suspect they may have ADHD with inspiring tools to manage symptoms and channel that excess energy into the power to achieve their goals. If you know someone with ADHD or someone who lives with him or her, the gift of this book could change their lives. In today’s news: Non-Drug Treatments for ADHD just won the Independent Publishers Gold First Place award in the Psychology/Mental Health category. Congratulations Drs. Gerbarg and Brown!

Order at Amazon

Review: Calm: Choosing to Live Mindfully by Angela Buttimer and Dennis Buttimer
Reviewed by Rose Kress

Life, work, and duty all seem to conspire to call us away from our daily practice, and we often succumb. We easily forget that 5—10—20 minutes every day is better than an hour or two a week. Calm is a wonderful reminder that less can be more. The authors point out in the introduction that they have purposefully left the chapters short so that readers can fit the practices into their hectic lives.

The Buttimers are students of Thich Nhat Hanh, a Buddhist Zen Master who is well known for his accessible teachings on mindfulness. The authors honor their teacher’s legacy with a book filled with accessible daily practices. Each chapter is a teaching in mindfulness that is concise, starts with an inspirational quote, and ends with Self-Reflection questions and a practice. A wonderful example of the simplicity of the practices is the first chapter, “Today is a New Day.” The authors give a short teaching on the opportunity of beginning again, each morning and then move on to illustrate the teaching with several anecdotes. The chapter ends with the practice of waking up and saying to yourself “today is a new day.”

We often work really hard at making things complicated for ourselves, thinking that the more complex something is the better it is. In reality, simplicity can be quite profound and change our lives in big ways. The practice of mindfulness is simple, often difficult in execution, but with guides like the Buttimers’, attaining and sustaining mindfulness accessible.

To order your copy: allthingsintegrative.com/online-store/calm-mindfulness-book/

Media Mention: Michele Hébert & Mehrad Nazari, Ph.D

Flute Melodies to Open the Heart by William Hébert
Michele Herbert has shared the gift of her father’s simple and soothing flute in this collection. Accompanied by a pianist, this CD includes peaceful songs from Satie, Debussy, Bach and Mozart as well as others. These songs will indeed open your heart.

The Inner Practices of Yoga – Volume 1 by Michele Hébert
This CD begins with an introduction from Michele Herbert and then moves through Relaxation, Alternate Nostril Breath, Meditation and ends with a calming instrumental track. Michele’s instructions are easy to follow and she gives modifications where needed – perfect for beginners.

The Inner Practices of Yoga SELF HEALING – Volume 2 by Michele Hébert

Michele Hébert guides you through a series of Raja Yoga practices to balance the chakras and access the healing intelligence that resides within.

The Inner Practices of Yoga – Volume 3 by Mehrad Nazari, Ph.D

Dr. Nazari begins with an introduction of yoga nidra – a practice of “connecting with our supreme self.“ The first practice is a yoga nidra with subtle and non-distracting music in the background. The other nidra practice is without music. Both practices are a little over 30 minutes long and are both quite soothing.

All four CDs can be order through Hebert and Nazari’s website: rajayogis.net/products/list

News: New Format Option for the LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training

We’ve just introduced a new format for taking the LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training. Three residential retreat style trainings are still available, but the new option includes three sections for certification, the first two of which can be taken independently of certification as an LFYP. The first section is a 5-day experiential retreat in the Bahamas at the Sivananda Ashram, which will be held in February 7 – 11th, 2013, the second section is an on-line long-distance learning component, and the third section is long-distance Mentoring with a LifeForce Yoga Mentor. This format is ideal for international trainees.
yogafordepression.com/practitioner-training/

News: New LifeForce Yoga Training for Anxiety and Depression (level 1 & level 2) on the East Coast

We’ve been listening to your requests and have added both a Level One and a Level Two LFYP residential training on the East Coast. You will now be able to be certified in three different residential locations in the USA: Tucson, Kripalu Center, and at the Satchidananda Ashram at Yogaville in Buckingham, Virginia. If you’re not interested in full certification, consider the shorter 15-hour CEC training at the Cape Cod Institute.

News: First LifeForce Yoga 200-hour Teacher Training

The other big news is that for the first time, senior Kripalu Yoga Teacher Trainer, Rudy Pierce, MA, E-RYT 500, known to many as “the gentle yogi,” and I will be directing a Yoga Alliance approved 200-hour residential LifeForce Yoga Teacher Training in Tucson. We hope to have more details and registration information up on the website by May 15th. Functional Yoga Therapist and Ayurveda Specialist Maria Kali Ma, RN, MS, E-RYT 500, will be a guest teacher in the training, along with LifeForce Yoga Program Manager Rose Kress, RYT 500, LFYP-2, and Kripalu teachers Jami Macarty, MFA, ACE-PT, E-RYT 500, LFYP-2, and Tom Beall, MA, E-RYT 500. The two 12-day residential sessions to complete the 200-hr training will be Nov 30 – Dec 12th, 2013 and Feb 22 – Mar 6, 2014.
yogafordepression.com/200-hour-lfy-yoga-teacher-training/

News: Drs. Richard Brown and Patricia Gerbarg -Trainings

Not have the psychopharmacist/psychiatrist team of Dr. Brown & Dr. Gerbarg authored two new books (one of which is reviewed below) that provide alternatives to medicine for much of what ails us, but they are also offering a their mind Breath~Body~Mind Teacher Training Certificate Course at Kripalu August 19-24. I am honored to have them as guest teachers in the LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training For Anxiety and Depression offered to yoga and health professionals at Kripalu, July 6 – 13th.

News: Interview with Amy in the Huffington Post

Eva Norlyk Smith, PhD, interviewed me about using yoga practices in medical settings.
huffingtonpost.com/eva-norlyk-smith-phd/yoga-depression_b_1412506.html

To order Yoga Skills for Therapists: Effective Tools for Mood Management with a 20% discount, us this code: OAW 1955

News: New Yoga Blog for Children

LifeForce Yoga practitioner Ellen Campbell has created a fun place on the internet for children of all ages. http://youthfulyogis.blogspot.com/ offers kids instruction on poses, plus yoga-related games and general information about the origins of yoga. Encourage your kids to submit their original artwork and Ellen will post it on the blog. Youthful Yogis is actually great for adults as well, since lots of practitioners are looking for ways to share yoga with the children in their lives. And if you teach yoga to children, Youthful Yogis will be a daily source of inspiration.

Calendar Highlights

May 10

Tucson, AZ
Yoga Skills book-signing and Talk
5:30 – 6:45pm, Amy will offer simple yoga practices to manage your mood–no mat required! Free in the Rillito Room of the Tucson Racquet and Fitness Club. 4001 N Country Club Rd. Entrance to Rillito Room is free.

May 16 – May 19

Phoenix (Goodyear), AZ
FACES Conference: The Art & Science of Mindfulness – A Revolution of the Heart
featuring Jack Kornfield, Ph.D. & Bessel van der Kolk, M.D. Amy will offer an all-day pre-conference workshop on May 16th: Yoga Skills for Mood Management (No Mat Required).
http://facesconferences.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=13

May 18 – May 20

Stockbridge, MA
LifeForce Yoga and Addictions
LifeForce Yoga Meets the Hungry Ghost with addictions specialist Dr. Kathy Shafer www.funtherapist.com, 800-741-7353
yogafordepression.com/events/lifeforce-yoga-and-addictions/

Jun 22 – Jun 24

Big Sur, CA
LifeForce Yoga to Manage Your Mood
Esalen, 888-837-2536
LifeForce Yoga® interweaves the power of an ancient discipline with current scientific findings to help you release what’s no longer serving you—without a story attached!
yogafordepression.com/events/lifeforce-yoga-manage-your-mood/

Jul 6 – Jul 13

Stockbridge, MA
LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training For Depression & Anxiety – Level 1
Kripalu Center, 800-741-7353. This is a certification training for yoga teachers and health professionals. Joining Amy as faculty are Patricia Gerbarg, MD and Richard Brown, MD, authors of How to Use Herbs, Nutrients and Yoga for Mental Health Care and LifeForce Yoga Practitioners -Level 2, who are highly trained yoga and/or mental health professionals.
kripalu.org/program/view/LFYD-121

Jul 15 – Jul 16

Stoney Creek, ON, Canada
LifeForce Yoga: Effective Practices for Mood Management
Heaven Studio, 888.465.2726
In this inspiring workshop, you will learn and practice breathing exercises, easy postures, guided meditations, and other effective yoga practices not regularly taught in yoga class for managing mood.
heavenstudio.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=54

Jul 20 – Jul 22

Rhinebeck, NY
LifeForce Yoga to Manage Your Mood
Omega Institute, 877-944-2002. In this inspiring workshop, you will learn and practice breathing exercises, easy postures, guided meditations, and other experiential yogic tools for managing your mood.
yogafordepression.com/events/lifeforce-yoga-manage-your-mood/

Jul 22 – Jul 27

Rhinebeck, NY
LifeForce Yoga & Internal Family Systems with Dick Schwartz, Ph.D.
for the first time Internal Family Systems (IFS) creator Dick Schwartz, Ph.D., and Amy who is trained as a Level 2 IFS practitioner are teaming up to offer a week of working with all your parts and yoga for your mood. Omega Institute, 877-944-2002.
yogafordepression.com/events/lifeforce-yoga-meets-your-internal-family-system/

© Yoga for Depression, 2012. | Permalink | No comment

By Eva Norlyk Smith, Ph.D.

New Light on Yoga for Depression and Anxiety

“Maintaining order rather than correcting disorder is the ultimate principle of wisdom.” — Nei Jing, 2nd Cent. B.C.

Do human beings have the capacity to cultivate happiness and emotional equilibrium by learning to fine tune mind and body, much as we can learn to fine tune a rare and refined musical instrument?

The ancient yogis believed so. They believed that the pathway to peace, in part, goes through not just our mind, but our physical body as well. If we know how, the body can be an important gateway for balancing everyday moods, establishing greater emotional resiliency, and for relieving anxiety and depression. Indeed, it is central to any system of natural health, such as Ayurveda and Chinese Medicine, that restoring balance to the body through simple lifestyle changes offers a remarkably powerful approach to healing.

Amy Weintraub, founder of LifeForce Yoga and author of Yoga for Depression, has long been a leading advocate for the use of yoga to restore balance to mind and body and relieve depression. In her newly-released book, Yoga Skills for Therapists: Effective Practices for Mood Management, Weintraub offers up a series of simple mind-body practices targeting therapists working with clients in a psychotherapy setting. Essentially, however, the book is useful for anyone wishing to empower him or herself with tools to establish greater emotional resilience and/or relieve anxiety and depression.

Weintraub’s book comes at a time when an increasing number of Americans are seeking alternative treatments to antidepressant medications with limited effectiveness and disturbing side effects. Indeed, a growing number of studies question the usefulness of the traditional antidepressant medications for treating mild and moderate forms of depression. According to a recent meta-analysis published in JAMA, the benefit of antidepressant drugs may be minimal in patients with mild or moderate depression; in the study, only in the case of severe depression did medications have substantial effects over a simple placebo pill.

In this interview, Weintraub discusses her new book, as well as some of the yoga techniques she has found to be particularly helpful when using yoga to relieve depression and anxiety.

ENS: You have taught your LifeForce Yoga for Depression for more than 10 years now and have trained hundreds of yoga teachers and therapists. What was the main message you wanted to convey in your new book?

AW: Many people shy away from yoga because they think it involves challenging physical postures, which they won’t be able to perform. However, there are many, many yoga techniques that don’t require the ability to get yourself into challenging yoga postures, and which, in fact, don’t even require a yoga mat.

ENS: Many reviewers point out that even though the book targets therapists, it contains a wonderful compilation of simple mind-body practices that really everyone can benefit from. Was that your intention?

AW: Yes, the book really is for anyone wishing to empower themselves with more tools to deal with life’s ups and downs. If you practice yoga, you may already have become aware of the shift in mood that yoga engenders. Yoga helps empower us to be able to manage our own mood in so many ways. For someone who suffers from anxiety, depression or who has a history of trauma, this is crucial. It means they have more control in their lives, which research has shown is a key element in feeling better.
So in the book, I wanted to offer some simple somatic tools gleaned from the timeless teachings of yoga. In Western terms, you could describe them as emotional and biochemical self-regulating strategies. These include powerful techniques, which are not always included in yoga classes, including breathing exercises (pranayama), easy meditations, and hand gestures called mudras that empower one to self-regulate one’s mood and develop increasing feelings of self-efficacy and control.
So they differ from what you might find in an ordinary yoga class in that they don’t require the ability to practice yoga postures. Bu the fact that there is no mat involved doesn’t mean these techniques are less effective. In fact, most of these techniques date back much further than many of the common yoga postures commonly practiced in yoga studios today.

ENS: In your book, you say that “therapeutic yoga approaches the emotions from the doorway of the body, or more precisely from the residue left in the body by past trauma or even the stress of everyday living. It meets the constrictions held in the body and helps the client release them often without words.”
Has it been your experience that the body in some cases can offer a more effective avenue for releasing stress and long-held traumas?

AW: Absolutely. Often, when we have a history of trauma, it may have begun before we had the words to speak it. It may be pre-verbal, and talk therapy can’t get to those pre-verbal places that we have constricted. Even when we’ve been traumatized later in our lives, we may think we’re done with it, but the body remembers.
That is not just yoga talk. There’s a large field of somatic psychotherapy founded on this understanding. A somatic psychotherapist will also tell you that the body holds trauma from the past, even when we no longer necessarily remember it ourselves.

ENS: Do you feel there is a growing acknowledgment in the field of psychotherapy of the importance of the body in releasing trauma and balancing mind and emotions?

AW: In my experience, yes. In the book, I quote Bessel Van der Kolk, director of the Trauma Ceter in Brookline, Mass., who has said that he will not work with a trauma survivor who is not practicing yoga. “If you really want to help a traumatized person,” he notes, “you have work with core physiological states, and then the mind will start changing.”
Even cognitive-based therapy (CBT) has a mindfulness component and a body component and scans involving sensing the body. And CBT is probably one of the most researched and evidence-based models of psychotherapy shown to be effective for trauma and other less healthy mind states as well. But many other forms of psychotherapy-dialectic behavioral therapy (DBT), and even EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, a model for working with trauma) engages the body as well.

ENS: In LifeForce Yoga, you particularly emphasize yoga techniques like Pranayama breathing techniques, chanting, and Kriyas (targeted movements with specific actions). Breath and Kriyas are often used to move energy blocks in the body. Do you think that stagnant or blocked energy is a factor in depression?

AW: Most likely. If you’ve noticed people who are depressed or if you’ve been depressed in the past, the posture is usually slumped and the belly is kind of dormant. There’s not much happening in the core of the body. So yoga practices targeting depression can help release blocks in those areas.

People who struggle with depression can use sound, or chanting, to energize and release blocks in the core of the body, which tends to get dormant and sluggish in people with depression. Also, Kapalabhati breath, which involves a vigorous pumping of the belly, is very useful for enlivening this area. What happens is that we’re actually stimulating those areas and releasing blocks of stagnant energy.

Another wonderful practice, just to get your energy moving and get you motivated to practice is Breath of Joy. Breath of joy is a kriya, a targeted movement practice, which is particularly effective in managing mood. It counters the shallow breathing that is so common in people who struggle with depression.

So basically any yoga, whether they’re Yoga Asanas, Pranayama, Kriya, or sounds like Mantras or chanting, have an effect with sustained practice over time. The key is to release whatever is compressed or constricted from those areas of the body. And this can be any kind of blocks — lymphatic, muscular, energetic, or emotional.

© Yoga for Depression, 2012. | Permalink | No comment

There’s new research below on yoga nidra, and an interesting study that compares the effects of therapeutic yoga with mindfulness on stress in the workplace.  It turns out that both interventions work well, far better than doing nothing at all!  LifeForce Yoga practitioner, Sherry Rubin, LICSW, does a beautifully balanced review of the controversial new book The Science of Yoga by William Broad.  Since Broad discusses LifeForce Yoga and my approach to dealing with emotions, I thought it a conflict of interests to review the book myself.  I do review Robin Rothenberg’s new yoga nidra CD, and LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Rose Kress reviews a yoga DVD by Carol Shwidock designed for anyone suffering immobility issues.

By now you’ve heard the news that my new book, Yoga Skills for Therapists: Effective Practices for Mood Management will be available in bookstores on April 9th.  Meanwhile, you can preorder from the publisher and receive a 20 % discount, books.wwnorton.com/books/detail.aspx?ID=24012  Use promo code OAW1958 for your discount.

Later this month, I’ll be at one of my favorite conferences–the 30th! Psychotherapy Networker Symposium, then presenting at Willow Street Yoga in Silver Spring, MD, and then at Kashi Atlanta Center for Yoga. I hope to see you on the path of yoga soon!

Namasté,

Amy

In This Issue:

• Research: Why does Yoga work?
• Research: Yoga Nidra reduces Anxiety in Women with Menstrual Disorders
• Research: MBSR and Yoga work Equally Well in Reducing Work Place Stress
• Research: Yoga Keeps High School Students Emotionally Fit
• Review: The Science of Yoga by William J. Broad Reviewed by Sherry Rubin
• Review: Soothing the Spirit: Yoga Nidra to Reduce Anxiety with Robin Rothenberg, Reviewed by Amy Weintraub
• Review: Bedside Yoga DVD with Carol Shwidock, Reviewed by Rose Kress
• News: Yoga Techniques to Lift Your Mood: Simple Yoga Practices for Depression and Anxiety
• News: LifeForce Yoga for Emotional Healing and Mood Management – New York Area!
• News: Breath~Body~Mind: Live Online Workshop for Trauma
• News: First Kripalu Yoga Teacher Training on the West Coast
• News: Inner Peace Yoga Therapy Training
• Calendar Highlights

Research: Why does Yoga Work?

In this article, still in press, five well-published researchers from different institutions, who independently study the effects of yoga on depression and stress as well as other medical conditions like epilepsy, collaborated on an important paper that theorizes why yoga works to restore optimal balance in the central nervous system. Citing their previous studies, the authors hypothesize that yoga works in several ways. First, yoga corrects under activity of the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), the aspect of the autonomic nervous system that slows the heart beat and increases digestion, resulting in a calming effect to the body mind. Secondly, yoga elevates gamma amino-butyric acid (GABA), which is an inhibitory neurotransmitter with a calming, anti-stress effect that is often low in people with depression, anxiety and PTSD. The heightened PNS response and the elevation of GABA induced by yoga is in part through the stimulation of the vagus nerve, which is the main pathway of the PNS. “According to the proposed theory,” the researchers state, “the decreased PNS and GABAergic activity that underlies stress-related disorders can be corrected by yoga practices resulting in amelioration of disease symptoms. This has far-reaching implications for the integration of yoga-based practices in the treatment of a broad array of disorders exacerbated by stress.”

Streeter CC, Gerbarg PL, Saper RB, Ciraulo DA, Brown RP., “Effects of yoga on the autonomic nervous system, gamma-aminobutyric-acid, and allostasis in epilepsy, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder.” Medical Hypothesis, 2012, in press.
Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22365651

Research: MBSR and Yoga work Equally Well in Reducing Work Place Stress

In a randomized controlled pilot study involving 239 employee volunteers, researchers evaluated both a mindfulness-based and therapeutic yoga based stress-reduction programs. The study also compared two versions of the mindfulness based program, one on-line and one in-person. All three programs were compared to a control group over time on perceived stress, sleep quality, mood, pain levels, work productivity, mindfulness, blood pressure, breathing rate, and heart rate variability (a measure of autonomic balance). Compared with the control group, all three mind-body interventions showed significantly greater improvements on perceived stress, sleep quality, and the heart rhythm coherence ratio of heart rate variability. The two delivery venues for the mindfulness program produced basically equivalent results. The authors conclude that “both the mindfulness-based and therapeutic yoga programs may provide viable and effective interventions to target high stress levels, sleep quality, and autonomic balance in employees.”

Wolever RQ, Bobinet KJ, McCabe K, Mackenzie ER, Fekete E, Kusnick CA, Baime M, Effective and Viable Mind-Body Stress Reduction in the Workplace: A Randomized Controlled Trial.” Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 2012, in press.

Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22352291

Research: Yoga Nidra reduces Anxiety in Women with Menstrual Disorders

In a six-month study that evaluated the effect of Yoga Nidra on anxiety and depressive symptoms in patients with menstrual disorders, 126 women were divided into either an intervention or a control group. The authors conclude that “the patients with mild to moderate anxiety and depressive symptoms improved significantly with ‘Yoga Nidra’ intervention. There is no significant improvement in the patients with severe anxiety and depressive symptoms.”

Comment from AW: I would hypothesize that the instruction to lie down in yoga nidra practice for someone with severe anxiety and depressive symptoms, does not meet the current mood, and could actually exacerbate those symptoms. If someone is highly anxious, it may be best to meet that anxiety with a vigorous physical practice before lying down for the Yoga Nidra intervention.

Rani K, Tiwari S, Singh U, Singh I, Srivastava N., “Yoga Nidra as a complementary treatment of anxiety and depressive symptoms in patients with menstrual disorder,” International Journal of Yoga2012 Jan;5(1):52-6.

Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22346067

Research: Yoga Keeps High School Students Emotionally Fit

A new study looked at the inclusion of yoga in a public high school curriculum in Massachusetts. Physical Education students were randomly divided into regular PE classes or Kripalu Yoga classes and attended 2-3 times a week for ten weeks. Over the course of the semester, the control group who did regular PE showed an increase in negative mood states in all measured categories while the Yoga group maintained baseline scores or improved. The Kripalu Yoga protocol included physical postures, breathing exercises, relaxation, and meditation.

Noggle JJ, Steiner NJ, Minami T, Khalsa SB. “Benefits of Yoga for Psychosocial Well-Being in a US High School Curriculum: A Preliminary Randomized Controlled Trial.” Journal of Developmental Behavioral Pediatrics. 2012, in press.

Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22343481

Book Review: The Science of Yoga: The Risks and the Rewards by William J. Broad
Reviewed by Sherry Rubin

The Science of Yoga was widely and wildly discussed even before the public could purchase the book. In addition to several articles about it and a controversial excerpt in the New York Times, there are more Google references, u-tube reviews, blogs, face book posts and tweets about this book than there are pages in it. This review will attempt to dive beneath the controversy, most of which centers primarily on the chapter on injuries, as well as on the opinions about the International Association of Yoga Therapy, one of its co-founders, and where the science and delivery of yoga for healthcare needs to go.

Author William Broad, a senior science writer at the New York Times, has won impressive awards for his journalism, including the Pulitzer Prize. He has also practiced yoga since 1970 and sets out in this book to, in his words, “…zero in relentlessly on what science tells us about postural yoga….I mean no disrespect to the Hindu religion or spiritual traditions that embrace the big picture. But if this book succeeds, it does so because it limits itself to a poorly known body of reductionist findings.” Many criticisms I have heard and read center around Broad not addressing the “big picture,” but, as he clearly states, that was not his intent.

The book provides an excellent read as Broad carefully tells the history of the development of yoga from its origins and presents research findings that support and debunk various claims. Reading about this history and early efforts to substantiate yoga’s benefits is fascinating. The science and facts he presents are important for everyone involved with yoga. Among his findings, he explains with precision how yoga does not “oxygenate” the blood, nor “rev up metabolism,” both claims long associated with the practice. In fact, many of yoga’s benefits come from slowing down the metabolic rate which means that fewer calories are burned. He does note that body awareness, mindfulness in general and an overall calming effect that yoga cultivates often help to reduce stress eating and bring more awareness to what we choose to eat, both of which help the goal of weight loss for those who are trying. He also presents data that discount the claims that yoga can provide the kind of cardiovascular exercise that qualifies it as a total fitness workout. Although vigorous parts of certain types of yoga (astanga, power and vinyasa) do elevate heart rate, the activity isn’t sustained enough to provide the maximum cardiovascular benefits that other aerobic exercise does.

It seems that the chapter on injuries is what is getting the most discussion as he details scary case histories involving ruptured lungs, stroke and death. He does some number crunching to calculate how many people suffer stroke each year, and in order to arrive there, one must be willing to see correlation as causation, which it is not. There is a provocative tone in this chapter, so if the reader does some ujjayi breathing extending the exhalation, thereby calming the reactivity triggered by the tone and fear response, it is possible to get beyond the descriptions to the message that care and caution must be taken when practicing yoga. Specifically, the warnings from this chapter are: some yoga postures and some types of breathing practiced for long periods of time aren’t safe for everyone; certain postures carry with them more risk than others; the way some yoga is taught and the quality and training of some teachers are all factors that make the practice more or less risky. Erring on the side of safety is paramount.

However, problems and injuries due to mistakes or incompetence occur in every profession as well as in yoga. This is a critically important discussion for teachers and practitioners of yoga to have. Perhaps the provocative flair is helpful in encouraging these important conversations; it will undoubtedly help with book sales—I hope it doesn’t dissuade people from trying or continuing to practice yoga.

Although the entire book read well and was of interest to me, as a clinical social worker and LifeForce Yoga® practitioner, the chapter on moods was most compelling. There is an unqualified endorsement based on research data for yoga’s efficacy in working well with moods. There are clear explanations about how yoga effects the neurotransmitter GABA to bring about the positive mood effects. In LifeForce Yoga, attention is paid to balancing moods, bringing energy to lethargic states and calming the agitated ones in the same practice. Broad comments that combining these practices and doing yoga in this way results in “….new abilities to achieve states of inner balance and harmony.” He also details studies that conclude that “yoga showed much promise for treating anxiety and depression….The portrait of yoga that emerges from decades of mood and metabolic studies is of a discipline that succeeds brilliantly at smoothing the ups and down of emotional life.” Broad describes his experience at a Kripalu LifeForce® Yoga to Manage Moods week-end led by Amy Weintraub. In his epilogue, he writes that her “testimony still rings in my ears, giving me hope for better ways of fighting the blues.”

Other good news based on science carefully detailed in this book, is that yoga lowers stress, fosters relaxation, improves aspects of cardiovascular health, keeps the spine healthy, is helpful for osteoporosis, can slow the body’s biological clock, has a positive effect on creativity, and can revitalize sex through surges of sex hormones. Research data on breathing practices show many benefits as well.

Broad believes that to come of age in global healthcare, yoga needs to have professional accreditation, government evaluations and perhaps even be part of the insurance industry with its “dreaded red tape.” I’m not sure how well regulation and participation in the health care system has served mental health practitioners or consumers, but this is a segue into another critically important discussion.

Broad was less than generous in his description of some aspects of the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) and co-founder, Larry Payne. In fact, IAYT has supported research and education since 1989 and publishes an annual, peer-reviewed, PubMed indexed journal, a tri-annual yoga publication for yoga professionals, and they are working on developing educational standards for the training of yoga therapists. It would serve readers well to learn more about what the IAYT is, their mission, and their considerable good work so there can be informed discussions by all who teach, practice and promote yoga. (www.IAYT.org)

For all the criticism that I’ve read and heard from yoga fans about parts of this book, it’s worth quoting Broad again. “Yoga can turn our bodies into customized pharmaceutical plants that churn out tailored hormones and nerve impulses that heal, cure, raise moods, lower cholesterol, induce sleep and do a million other things. Moreover, yoga can do it at an extremely low cost with little or no risk of side effects.” That sounds like an unqualified endorsement that ought to overshadow the critical parts of this book; clearly the benefits far outweigh the risks when knowledge and caution are exercised in practice.

I highly recommend this important, informative, controversial, well written and researched book. Broad is the most provocative in precisely those areas (safety and the future of yoga) where we will benefit the most from learning as much as we can and coming together to dialogue. I hope the stir this book has caused can be usefully channeled into important conversations that will serve yoga and all of its stakeholders.

Order here.

CD Review: Soothing the Spirit: Yoga Nidra to Reduce Anxiety by Robin Rothenberg
Reviewed by Amy Weintraub

Robin Rothenberg, a master yoga teacher trainer, known for her contribution to two definitive National Institute of Health (NIH) studies on yoga for lower back pain and her popular yoga program for low back pain, originally produced this yoga nidra practice for a National Institute of Health and Aging study that looked at yoga for hot flash relief for women in menopause. She collaborated on both the study and this CD with the Grammy-award-winning composer and performer Nancy Rumbel.

Yoga Nidra is a Tantric meditation practice that is usually done in a supine position (savasana). Not only does it support a deep release of muscular, emotional and mental tension, but the state of relaxation that yoga nidra provides can help restructure personality by freeing us from, as Rothenberg describes it in the liner notes, “habitually held beliefs, emotions and thought patterns.”

Although Rothenberg follows the standard yoga nidra model of inviting the listener to create a resolve, which she calls a “heartfelt intention” (sankalpa) and an inner sanctuary, which she calls a “safe house,” and a “personal sanctuary” and moves through each of the proscribed stages, based on the kosha model as outlined in the classic yoga nidra text by Swami Satyananda Saraswati, and in Richard Miller’s iRest protocol, there is nothing standard about this script. It stays true to the kosha model and yet it’s one of the most lyrical and creative yoga nidras available. Her language is vivid, clear and original.

Throughout the rotation of consciousness in the track called “Physical Body” (anamaya kosha), guidance is given to attend to the space within, combining the proven benefits of Open-Focus Meditation for promoting alpha states as developed Les Fermi, PhD, in the 1970’s, along with a visual suggestion of imagining “white gold pulsating light” flowing through the open spaces. Her language is a gentle invitation to experience “hollow spaces” with “lines of energy” flowing through. “Feel the space within the hollows between the fingers filled with radiant healing light,” she says, evoking inner spaciousness and weaving glimpses of expanded awareness (anandamaya kosha) through a traditional body scan that is anything but basic. She invites us to feel “the spaces between the ribs…and around the lungs and heart…the whole circumference of the torso…hollow space filled with light.”

In the “Mental Body” segment (manomaya kosha), Rothenberg creatively explores the opposites of form and space and of density and light.

The exploration of the “Breath Body” (pranamaya kosha) is nearly seven minutes long. Rothenberg keeps the listener’s attention focused on the exhalation, progressively segmenting the out breath into six sections, “pausing,” she says, “like a comma” between each segment of the exhalation, maintaining “equality and symmetry between segments.” When we reach the sixth segment, we are guided to reverse directions. “Unwind the breath incrementally,” she guides, “just as you built it.”  Although focus is enhanced with this practice, a long extended exhalation is generally thought to be most appropriate for the anxious (rajasic) state.  The segmented exhalations may be too stimulating for some people.

In the nearly eight minute “Wisdom Body” (vijnanamaya kosha) track, we are invited first to recall a pleasant experience with all our senses, and then to drop the memory itself and “Immerse yourself,” in the raw experience of “pleasure, joy, delight.” Next, Rothenberg invites us to recall an experience of “pain, alienation, despair.” As we did with our earlier pleasant memory, we are instructed to let the memory go and remain in the raw pain and discomfort. She keeps the listener present and engaged with inquiries—is it sharp or dull, localized or general; where is it in the body? How does it affect the breath? Are there a beliefs about yourself or the world that attach themselves to this feeling, this event? In both the feelings of joy and the feelings of pain, she encourages the listener to observe the “pure unadulterated energy” of the raw emotion, “neither drawing it close, or pushing it away.” The language here creates a witnessing. Over time with practice, this spacious awareness grows to tolerate and accept both pleasure and pain. A full yoga nidra practice that explores the opposites of emotions and beliefs as this one does can also facilitate a dis-identification with negative mood states, fostering a sense that though pain may be present, “I am more than my pain.” As Rothenberg states in her liner notes, “This helps re-train our nervous system to become comfortable with the wide-range of potential responses to life that lie between freaking out and checking out.”

We return to the breath body again with a four minute offering of Rapid Imagery that opens the doorway to imagination and perception. Here again, the images are common and yet poetic, lyrical and yet easy to imagine. Most are soothing, but some are startling, increasing our capacity to accept the varieties of life experience with equanimity and ease.

In the final track, we rest in pure awareness (anandamaya kosha), gazing down on the physical body before returning to a felt sense of the body on the floor in the room where we are practicing. As we return to a sensory awareness of our bodies, we are guided to repeat the intention.

In too many cases, music during yoga nidra can be at worst a distraction and at best unobtrusive. The music on Soothing the Spirit not only is an enhancement to the relaxed, liminal state between sleep and wakefulness, deactivating a stressed limbic system, but it is also appropriately nuanced to complement the rotation of consciousness and the attention to shifting mood states through which Rothenberg guides us.

Soothing the Spirit is a welcome addition to the growing cannon of full yoga nidra practices that sustain optimum mental health. I highly recommend this practice for those with a history of trauma and high levels of anxiety. Rothenberg’s script stays true to the ancient practice—there are no journeys of discovery down beaches or through forests—and yet it adds originality and creative expression to the growing body of yoga nidra practices available.

Order here.

DVD Review: Bedside Yoga with Carol Shwidock of Harmony Yoga
Reviewed by Rose Kress

There are times in life when it is impossible to get out of bed to find your way to the yoga mat. Perhaps immobility issues, an illness, an injury, or maybe you are recovering from a surgery. Carol Shwicok’s DVD, Bedside Yoga, is the perfect practice for those times when the bed seems to be your permanent home. Carol shares that this practice is one she came to after donating 60% of her liver to her husband. After practicing yoga for 15 years, she found herself in bed, unable to get up to get to her mat. One night, lying in bed and looking up at the moon, Carol found herself beginning to move slowly and gently. She now shares this practice with the world, through her DVD.

Carol uses the short introduction to share her story, as well as her intention that this DVD be used pre-op, post-op, or simply when you feel you need a gentle yoga practice. She cautions that yoga is never about pain and as such, do what you can, and back off when needed. The practice is Kripalu Yoga and kripalu means “giver of compassion.”

The next chapter of the DVD is Breathing Techniques. Carol begins by leading a gentle sensing of the body and the mind to take a ‘baseline’ before moving into any practices. All of the simple breathing practices, 3-part breath, ujjayi, and a 2:1 count breath, are led lying down on the bed. She ends the breathing practices by reading Danna Faulds’ poem “Breath by Breath.”

Upright Yoga is led seated on the side of the bed with something to support the feet. Carol suggests that this portion can also be done in a wheelchair or a chair next to the bed. The postures are easy to do and breath centered, “breath begins, movement follows,” is repeated often to invite breath awareness. This practice is followed by a supine practice with a strap. Carol leads a flow that includes some very gentle abdominal muscles awakening. There are places where an individual recovering from surgery may find a challenge, but Carol gives plenty of permission to modify as the body allows.

The final practice on this DVD is Restorative Yoga. Carol brings in a student to demonstrate the poses while she gives instructions and modifies. Restorative Yoga at a studio involves blocks, yoga blankets and other props, which are not always readily available at home. However, Carol demonstrates the poses with pillows, hand towels and blankets. During this portion, Carol leads gentle body sensing in the positions, gives encouraging words, and leaves plenty of silence. She gently concludes the practice with Metta Meditation or Loving Kindness Meditation.

Carol does a wonderful job of compiling a practice that is sweet and accessible for almost everyone. It is easy to see that Carol teaches from the personal experience of immobility, the need to rest and heal, coupled with the desire to begin moving in a way that supports the body. She offers subtle challenges, encouraging words, poetry, and most of all a safe container for experiencing the body. I would recommend this DVD to anyone who needs to give the body a little extra TLC – whether recovering from a major illness, suffering from immobility, or just because you had a really bad day.

Order your copy here: harmonyogastudio.com/products/

News: Yoga Techniques to Lift Your Mood: Simple Yoga Practices for Depression and Anxiety

Two-part webinar with Amy Weintraub, Thursday, April 26 and Thursday, May 3, 5:30pm Pacific / 8:30pm Eastern, (access forever)
Learn simple strategies anyone can adopt to balance mood and uplift emotions. Based on her new book, Yoga Skills for Therapists: Effective Practices for Mood Management, Amy will show examples of powerful hand gestures, key calming breathing practices, Yogic Nondual interventions, and meditations with tones that will ground and balance mind and emotions during stressful and challenging times. Free Yoga Nidra Practice with Amy! As a special bonus, all participants will receive a soothing recorded yoga nidra practice designed to induce greater relaxation and stress relief. bit.ly/wbBcGq

News: LifeForce Yoga for Emotional Healing and Mood Management – New York Area!

With: Penni Feiner, ERYT and Certified LFY Practitioner & Deborah Lubetkin, Psy.D., Licensed Psychologist & Certified LFY Practitioner, 5 Wednesdays, beginning April 4, 2012, 6-7:30pm, New York Open Center
Discover the ancient, yet evidence-based practice of LFY to naturally manage imbalances of mood. Participants will be able to develop their own home practice to support individual needs and goals.
www.opencenter.org/lifeforce-yoga-for-emotional-healing-and-mood-management/

News: Breath~Body~Mind: Live Online Workshop for Trauma

with Drs. Richard Brown & Patricia Gebarg, April 14th and 15th (access for 5 days)
11.5 Category 1 CME Credit. The Presenters are offering special group rates for non-profits and state healthcare facilities, and scholarship for disaster survivors and those in developing countries available.
www.fellowshipsspirit.org

News: First Kripalu Yoga Teacher Training on the West Coast

Senior Kripalu Yoga teacher trainers Brahamani Liebman (brahmyoga@aol.com) and Jashoda Edmunds (jashoda415@hotmail.com) offer the first West Coast Kripalu Yoga Teacher Training in Berkeley, California. The training begins September 7 – 11, 2012 and continues through November 14 – 18, 2012, January 4 – 8, 2013, and March 1 – 6, 2013. For more information and to register, visit http://kripalu.org/study_with_us/305/

News: Inner Peace Yoga Therapy Training

The 300-hour Inner Peace Yoga Therapy training program is designed for yoga teachers and health care professionals. Learn directly from top instructors in the fields of yoga therapy and Ayurveda including: Marc Halpern, Nischala Joy Devi, Maria Kali Ma, Amy Weintraub, and more. Register now and save on the upcoming 2012 program at Mt. Madonna! Session I: June 12-25, 2012. Session II: October 27-November 9, 2012. Learn more: innerpeaceyogatherapy.com/

Calendar Highlights:

March 10 — March 11, Tucson, AZ

Tucson Festival of Books
University of Arizona Campus, Amy will be presenting with Michele Herbert, author of The Tenth Door on Sunday, March 11 at 4pm at the U of A Bookstore. Festival is Free.
tucsonfestivalofbooks.com

March 21 — March 25, Washington, DC

Psychotherapy Networker Symposium
Omni Shoreham Hotel, Amy will be leading morning yoga, afternoon meditations, a full Creativity Day workshop entitled “Yoga and Self-Inquiry,” along with a clinical presentation “Yoga for Self-Regulation.”
www.psychotherapynetworker.org/symposium/symposium-2012/march-22/itemlist/tag/S12%20Amy%20Weintraub

March 25, Silver Spring, MD

LifeForce Yoga to Manage Your Mood
1:30 — 5:30pm, Willow Street Yoga Center, 301-270-8038
willowstreetyoga.com/workshops.php#3d4fa84ed60200001cd44a7441450000

March 30 — April 1, Atlanta, GA

LifeForce Yoga to Manage Your Mood
Kashi Atlanta, 404-687-3353
kashiatlanta.org/workshopsWinter2012/workshops_Weintraub.htm

April 3 — April 5, Paradise Island, Bahamas

Easter and Passover Symposium and Celebration – Yoga and Sacred Healing
Amy will be presenting at this Symposium. Please note: the Symposium dates are April 1 – 10.
Sivananda Ashram, Bahamas, 866-446-5934 yogafordepression.com/practitioner-training/
sivanandabahamas.org

April 6 — April 12, Paradise Island, Bahamas

LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training for Depression & Anxiety – Level 1
Sivananda Ashram, Bahamas, 866-446-5934. This is a certification training for yoga teachers and health professionals. Joining Amy as faculty are Dr. Shirley Telles, as well as LifeForce Yoga Practitioners -Level 2, who are highly trained yoga and/or mental health professionals. Information on the LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training can be found here:
www.sivanandabahamas.org/course.php?course_id=3124&var=amy weintraub&range=a

April 20, Tucson, AZ

Yoga Skills for Therapists Talk & Mini-Workshop
Antigone Books, 520-792-3715, 7 – 8pm
Amy will discuss her new book, Yoga Skills for Therapists: Effective Tools for Mood Management, and lead a mini workshop.
www.antigonebooks.com

April 21, Tucson, AZ

Women’s Mental Health Symposium
University of Arizona, Grand Ballroom, Student Union Memorial Center, 2:15 – 3:15pm
Amy will be presenting on Yoga Skills for Therapists
wmh.arizona.edu/home

April 26 & May 3

Your Home, 5:30pm Pacific / 8:30pm Eastern, (access forever)
Yoga Techniques to Lift Your Mood: Simple Yoga Practices for Depression and Anxiety
Learn simple strategies anyone can adopt to balance mood and uplift emotions. As a special bonus, all participants will receive a soothing recorded yoga nidra practice designed to induce greater relaxation and stress relief.
bit.ly/wbBcGq

May 16 – May 19

Phoenix (Goodyear), AZ
FACES Conference: The Art & Science of Mindfulness – A Revolution of the Heart
featuring Jack Kornfield, Ph.D. & Bessel van der Kolk, M.D. Amy will offer an all-day pre-conference workshop on May 16th: Yoga Skills for Therapist: Effective Tools for Mood Management.
bit.ly/yZ07Q3

May 18 – May 20

Stockbridge, MA
Kripalu Center, 800-741-7353
LifeForce Yoga Meets the Hungry Ghost with addictions specialist Dr. Kathy Shafer www.funtherapist.com,
kripalu.org/program/view/MMFL-121/lifeforce_yoga174_meets_the_hungry_ghost_mood

© Yoga for Depression, 2012. | Permalink | No comment

In the process of learning Yogic techniques to help clients manage their moods and increase self-efficacy, you will also be practicing tools for self-care.

This workshop is designed for all level of Yoga practitioners, including beginners. Every day will include easy and accessible movement, yogic breathing, and meditation or guided relaxation.

Along with didactic components and practice, the format will include emotional process from a Yogic perspective in dyads and small groups.

Recommended Reading/Practice: Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books), Yoga Skills for Therapists (W.W. Norton, 2012), LifeForce Yoga to Beat the Blues – level 1 & level 2 (DVD) LifeForce Yoga CD Series.

Upcoming Programs:

July 30 – August 3, Eastham, MA
Cape Cod Institute
cape.org/2012/amy_weintraub.html

© Yoga for Depression, 2012. | Permalink | No comment

Richard Schwartz and Amy Weintraub create a safe and Self-nourishing environment where you will practice yoga tools to help you manage your mood as you learn to apply the IFS model. Through LifeForce Yoga and IFS presentations and exercises that offer the opportunity for deep inner exploration, you will follow your own map home to Self.

Recommended Reading/Practice: Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books), Yoga Skills for Therapists (W.W. Norton, 2012), Introduction to the Internal Family Systems Model (Trailheads Publications), LifeForce Yoga to Beat the Blues – level 1 & level 2 (DVD) LifeForce Yoga CD Series.

Richard Schwartz, PhD

Richard is the developer of Internal Family Systems (IFS) and founder of the Center for Self Leadership, which offers three levels of trainings and workshops in IFS for professionals and the general public internationally. A featured speaker for national professional organizations, Schwartz has published more than 50 articles and five books about IFS. selfleadership.org

Upcoming Programs

July 22 – 27, Rhinebeck, NY
Omega Institute
eomega.org/omega/workshops/1fcc2203b97be5a60fe8a5aa70fb84bc/

© Yoga for Depression, 2012. | Permalink | No comment

With Amy Weintraub, author of Yoga for Depression and Yoga Skills for Therapists and Kathryn Shafer, PhD

This weekend helps you cultivate the compassionate inner space to embrace life’s challenges with a clear and peaceful mind and a courageous heart.

In this inspiring workshop, you learn and practice breathing exercises, easy postures, guided meditations, and other experiential yogic tools for managing your mood. Come release what is no longer serving you and make peace with the ever-craving “hungry ghost” and “the committee” in your head—whose aim is to hijack your best intentions. You learn to strip away the obstacles that keep you from knowing the joy that is your birthright by

• Energizing and elevating depressed moods
• Calming anxiety
• Recognizing and transforming addictive cravings
• Releasing what no longer serves you
• Working with the chakra system and creative self-inquiry.

Designed to be useful for both professionals and lay people, this program leaves you feeling refreshed, renewed, and enthusiastically committed to radiant well-being.

Recommended Reading/Practice: Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books), Yoga Skills for Therapists (W.W. Norton, 2012), LifeForce Yoga® to Beat the Blues – level 1 & level 2 (DVD) LifeForce Yoga® CD Series.

Amy Weintraub, MFA, ERYT-500

Amy Weintraub, MFA, ERYT-500, director of the LifeForce Yoga Healing Institute and author of the bestselling Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books, 2004) and the ground-breaking Yoga Skills for Therapists: Effective Practices for Mood Management (W.W. Norton, 2012), has been a pioneer in the field of yoga and mental health for over 20 years. She trains health and yoga professionals at notable international venues and offers workshops for every day practitioners. The LifeForce Yoga protocol is being used in residential treatment centers, hospitals and by health care providers around the world. She is involved in ongoing research on the effects of yoga on mood, and has produced an award-winning library of evidence-based yoga and meditation CDs and DVDs for mood management. She edits a newsletter that includes current research, news and media reviews on Yoga and mental health, archived here.

Kathyrn Shafer, Ph.D., LCSW, ACSW, CAP, E-500RYT, CPT, LFYP-2

Kathryn is known for her work as a psychotherapist, educator, consultant, and practitioner of mindbody therapies for emotional and physical health. She conducts interventions and assessments for addicts and their families, is a certified yoga instructor, and

has authored and conducted research on these and related topics.
In psychotherapy sessions, yoga classes, and mindbody retreats Dr. Shafer introduces participants to the YOGAFUN™ program. This individually designed healing program challenges “dis-eased” thinking and beliefs about life, relationships, and stress. Her areas of expertise in the addictions, trauma, and the emotions explore alternative and complimentary practices for children, teens, families, and relationships. Utilizing the whole person approach, Dr. Shafer integrates mental imagery, proper diet and nutrition, exercise and the YOGAFUN™ program in her work.
funtherapist.com

Upcoming Programs:

May 18 – 20, Stockbridge, MA
Kripalu Center
kripalu.org/program/view/MMFL-121/lifeforce_yoga174_meets_the_hungry_ghost_mood

© Yoga for Depression, 2012. | Permalink | No comment

Author of Yoga for Depression and Yoga Skills for Therapists
This course is a pre-requisite for the LifeForce Yoga® Practitioner Training.

LifeForce Yoga interweaves the power of an ancient discipline with current scientific findings to help you release what’s no longer serving you—without a story attached! In this inspiring workshop, you will learn and practice breathing exercises, easy postures, guided meditations, and other experiential yogic tools for managing your mood.

We’ll practice:

• Pranayama and kriya breathing techniques that regulate the emotions
• Meditations that lift the mood
• Creating Affirmation (sankalpa)
• LifeForce Yoga Bhavana (Imagery)
• LifeForce Yoga Chakra Clearing Meditation
• LifeForce Yoga Nidra
• Tones that regulate the emotions (mantras)
• Yoga asanas suitable for multilevel practitioners
• Self-Inquiry through writing and Dyad Sharing

You will leave feeling refreshed, renewed, and excited about your at-home or teaching practice with new tools to bring balance to the emotional and physical body. Accessible for all levels, including beginners. Psychotherapists, health professionals, and yoga teachers will learn techniques not regularly taught in yoga classes to help their clients focus, relax, and have greater access to their feelings.

Recommended Reading/Practice: Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books), Yoga Skills for Therapists (W.W. Norton, 2012), LifeForce Yoga to Beat the Blues – level 1 & level 2 (DVD) LifeForce Yoga CD Series.

Amy Weintraub, MFA, ERYT-500

Amy Weintraub, director of the LifeForce Yoga Healing Institute and author of the bestselling Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books, 2004) and the ground-breaking Yoga Skills for Therapists: Effective Practices for Mood Management (W.W. Norton, 2012), has been a pioneer in the field of yoga and mental health for over 20 years. She trains health and yoga professionals at notable international venues and offers workshops for every day practitioners. The LifeForce Yoga protocol is being used in residential treatment centers, hospitals and by health care providers around the world. She is involved in ongoing research on the effects of yoga on mood, and has produced an award-winning library of evidence-based yoga and meditation CDs and DVDs for mood management. She edits a newsletter that includes current research, news and media reviews on Yoga and mental health, archived here.

Upcoming Dates:

June 22 – 24, Big Sur, CA
Esalen
webapp.esalen.org/workshops/10795

July 20 – 22, Rhinebeck, NY
Omega Institute
eomega.org/workshops/lifeforce-yoga%C2%AE-to-manage-your-mood

November 16 – 18, Austin, TX
Yoga Yoga, Westgate
www.yogayoga.com/event/yoga-amy-weintraub

November 30 – December 2, Tucson, AZ
Yoga Flow
yogaflowtucson.com/lifeforceyoga

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Beneath our aches and pains and shifting moods, we are bliss. Let the author of Yoga for Depression guide you through a menu of yoga practices to shine through the clouds of unknowing to release whatever blocks you from remembering who you truly are. Come home to the joy that is your birthright. Come home to your radiant Self. At the end of this workshop, meet yourself shining in the mirror. You will be amazed!

Along with accessible poses, pranayama breathing exercises, and Yoga Nidra, Amy Weintraub offers yoga practices drawn from Nondual and Tantric traditions not taught in regular Yoga classes:

• Love Pranayama Meditation
• LifeForce Yoga Bliss Meditation
• Mudras to Awaken Joy
• Mantras to Awaken Courage and Strength
• LifeForce Yoga Chakra Clearing Meditation
• Self-Inquiry in Dyads

Many of these practices are suitable in a clinical setting, so if you are a healing professional, in addition to taking care of yourself, you will learn new tools to support and empower those you serve.

Suggested Reading: Yoga for Depression: A Compassionate Guide to Relieve Suffering Through Yoga (Broadway Books), Yoga Skills for Therapists (W.W. Norton), LifeForce Yoga to Beat the Blues – level 1 & level 2 (DVD) LifeForce Yoga® CD Series

Upcoming Programs:

September 21 – 23, Skillman, NJ
Princeton Center for Yoga and Health
Amy Weintraub at Princeton Center for Yoga and Health Flyer
http://www.princetonyoga.com/events/events-calendar/2012/09/21/2448-amy-weintraub-yoga-for-mood-management/

September 28 – 30, Buckingham, VA
Satchidananda Ashram, Yogaville

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Feeling out-of-balance? Out-of-touch? Welcome your mood as a wake-up call. Jumpstart your journey to happiness with evidence-based practices that can change and transform your life. Join the authors of Yoga for Depression and Unstuck for a healing journey home to a happier Self. Cultivate the compassionate inner space that allows you to embrace life’s challenges with a peaceful mind and a courageous heart. Empower yourself to be the agent of your own healing with LifeForce Yoga and Mind-Body Medicine. Release what’s no longer serving you—without a story attached! In this inspiring workshop, you will learn and practice breathing exercises, easy postures, guided meditations, and other experiential tools for managing your mood and moving more fully into your life.

You’ll leave feeling refreshed and renewed, with timeless and up-to-the-minute strategies to revitalize your practice and manage your mood. Psychotherapists, health professionals, and yoga teachers will learn techniques they can use for self-care and to help their clients focus, relax, and have greater access to their feelings.

Faculty: Amy Weintraub, MFA, LFYP-2, ERYT-500, James Gordon, MD

Recommended Reading/Practice:

Unstuck: Your Guide to the Seven-Stage Journey Out of Depression (The Penguin Press) Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books), Yoga Skills for Therapists (W.W. Norton, 2012), LifeForce Yoga® to Beat the Blues – level 1 & level 2 (DVD) LifeForce Yoga® CD Series.

Upcoming Dates:

Nov 9 – 11, 2012, Kripalu Center, Stockbridge, MA
Registration opens May 2012

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Amy Weintraub, who recovered from years of depression when she began practicing yoga nearly 25 years ago , has dedicated many years to refining the techniques for mood management, which she has shared through workshops around the world and through her popular book Yoga for Depression. Her new book, Yoga Skills for Therapists, will be available in 2012. LifeForce Yoga is an evidence-based practice that has given countless individuals the motivation and tools they need to manage and even to overcome the pain of depression and anxiety.

Peg Duros and I, both yoga instructors and psychotherapists at the Center for Contextual Change, attended the LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training earlier this year in Tucson. We both had such positive experiences at the training that we were excited and honored to assist Amy with her weekend workshop at YogaView Wilmette this fall. For yoga instructors and yogis who are mental health or healthcare workers, the Tucson training and retreat is a great opportunity to learn how to help your students and clients and also have a personally transformative experience. Trainings are held three times a year, in Tucson, at Kripalu Center in Massachusetts, and at Sivananda Ashram in the Bahamas.

The weekend workshop at YogaView, from Friday evening to Sunday morning, was for anyone who felt that yoga might help them to manage difficult moods or stress-related issues as well as for yoga and health professionals. Ken Oba, who attended the Friday evening workshop, commented: “As a yoga novice looking for relaxation, LifeForce Yoga suits me well. The warmup and breathing exercises were relaxing and fun. Amy’s voice was very calming as she guided us through the exercises. I appreciated her concern for my high blood pressure.

Friday evening’s workshop was offered either as a stand-alone or as part of the entire weekend. Amy explained that her goal was not to simply teach us asana, but to give us tools to complement an existing practice or to help get one started. LifeForce Yoga is based on meeting the body where it is. As Amy explains, it’s not likely that someone who is feeling depressed will want to get up and do sun salutations. But this person might be willing to do a restorative pose or a quiet breathing practice. Once the body and mind are engaged, they could then gradually transition to more energizing practices. Similarly, if someone is feeling anxious, a restorative pose might feel intolerable. But starting with vigorous breathing, active kriyas (breath combined with movement), or strong poses would more likely meet the mood. Once some of that extra energy is discharged, the body can slowly transition to more quieting poses, breathing practices, or even meditation.

LifeForce Yoga uses the yogic tools of sankalpa (intention), bhavana (imagery), asana (yoga poses), pranayama (breathing), nada (chanting/sound), mudra (hand gestures), meditation, and yoga nidra (yogic sleep, or deep relaxation). The practice includes “attention to the breath, safe attention to body sensation, cultivation of both compassionate equanimity and self-awareness, and the cultivation of a witness consciousness.” Very much rooted in current research into the effects of yoga, the handout for the weekend describes the cultivation of witness consciousness as “engaging the cerebral cortex in self-regulating the emotional limbic brain.” As a psychotherapist who works with trauma survivors, I appreciate that this language takes the mystique out of yoga and recognizes it as a scientifically sound practice.

Amy’s emphasis on yoga as a life-affirming practice was evident from the very beginning of the workshop. She introduced the archetypes of Shiva and Kuan Yin, which she carries with her as tiny figurines. These archetypes represent self-awareness balanced with compassion. The first practice was tratak (candle gazing), during which we were encouraged to allow the light of the candle to shine at the brow point and then in the heart. Amy described these types of practices as “throwing the mind a bone,” that is, giving an overly active mind something of substance to “chew” on, rather than simply focusing on the breath. With attention to the heart, the group was then invited to allow their “heartfelt prayer” (sankalpa) to arise along with an image of calm strength (bhavana). Sankalpa and bhavana also give the mind an active and empowering focus.

A lively warmup for the joints to the music of Krishna Das, followed by introductions in which we paired off, was a great ice-breaker. It’s hard to take yourself too seriously when “your hips are leading the dance.” The joint warmup is also a great way to get the body moving in the morning or whenever you’re feeling stiff or lethargic. Amy takes special care in her workshops to create “a safe container.” These informal introductions gave participants an opportunity to connect in a nonthreatening way.

On Friday evening, the group was led in a series of pranayama that is appropriate for both energizing and calming the body. The kriyas known as power hara, pulling prana, and breath of joy were helpful for releasing pent-up anxiety and cultivating a positive awareness of the body. These were followed by more quieting practices. One of the simplest LifeForce Yoga practices, which has been proven to shift mood, involves exhaling while dropping the chin to the chest and turning up the corners of the mouth (smiling!) and then lifting the head on an inhale. (LifeForce Yoga practices are available on video and CD/mp3 download from yogafordepression.com and are described in Amy’s book Yoga for Depression).

The evening ended with shanmuki mudra with brahmari (bee breath). Amy described how this combination helped one of her students, a psychologist who is now a LifeForce Yoga practitioner, to manage his symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder. The mudra assists in pratyahara (sense withdrawal), while the sound focuses the mind. This inward focused practice can also be very effective for rumination. The homework was to try three of the practices before breakfast the next morning. As Amy suggested, even if you’re depressed, you could practice breath of joy on the way back to bed from your obligatory morning visit to the bathroom. Just that might be enough to help you meet the day.

Saturday morning’s practice was a self-inquiry exercise done with a partner. This practice was meant to help deepen our awareness of ourselves as more than we appear to be, moving beyond illusion through a partner’s simple inquiry, “Who are you?” This is a very powerful practice through which deep truths can emerge. As Merari Fernandez, a bilingual psychotherapist and yoga instructor, remarked, “The exercises and techniques used in the workshop helped us find answers to simple but yet profound questions such as who we really are. These questions confront our shadows and reveal how our past insists on determining our present. The practice of yoga acknowledges the past but also provides the space to break free from it and be reborn to a present moment of safety and compassion.”

The morning ended with a pranayama practice and a delicious yoga nidra, offering participants the opportunity to settle into a state of deep relaxation riding the soothing waves of Amy’s gently calming voice.

Saturday afternoon’s practice was designed to meet the tamasic (depressed) mood, starting quietly and building to more active asana. One of my favorites is the Victory Goddess, which is a graduated (standing) goddess pose combined with the energizing chant “Di-Ri-Ha!” There were lots of victorious smiles after that one! This practice included energizing bija (seed) mantras and other chants that stimulate the body and mind. Another favorite of mine is “Ma-Ha-Ha!” chanted enthusiastically with heart lifted to the sky in Front Warrior. We ended with the energizing version of the LifeForce Yoga chakra (energy center) clearing meditation.

Sunday morning’s practice, designed to meet the rajasic (anxious) mood, started strong with energetic kriyas including pulling prana and power hara. Active standing asana eventually transitioned to slower, mindful poses on the floor, accompanied by the cooling bija mantras. A quiet yoga nidra allowed gentle self-awareness and compassion to arise. Coming out of deep relaxation, we performed the cooling version of the LifeForce Yoga chakra-clearing practice, and then participants shared in triads what gains they would take with them into their own yoga practice.

The workshop ended with a circle and Amy calling on those who have preceded us, taught us, guided us, and challenged us, as we repeated for each: “Look at what I am doing with my Life!” After the weekend with Amy, we could truly say those words with self-compassion, joy, and enthusiasm.

Francine Kelley, LPC, RYT, is a psychotherapist at the Center for Contextual Change whose practice is focused on Mind, Body & Spirit Healing, which provides clients with a whole-person approach to mental health therapy including LifeForce Yoga ® , mindfulness, creative therapies, body-centered psychotherapy, EMDR, and Reiki as well as traditional talk therapy. Francine also teaches yoga at Bloom Yoga Studio and Galter Life Center in Chicago. She can be reached at francinek@centerforcontextualchange.org.

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