LifeForce Yoga® for Depression
News & Research
Issue: #23 August/2009
As I was preparing this newsletter, my beloved father, Milton “Mickey” Weintraub, died at 91, after a long and fulfilling life. Even as I grieve him deeply, I am nourished by the sound of his voice, saying the special name he had for me. I will always hear that in my heart. As I watch myself smile appreciatively at his picture, through my tears, a gratefulness arises. In the years that I lived with depression, there was just the numbness. “Aimzee,” I say to myself in his voice, “what a big, juicy heart you have.” When depression was present, my heart felt shrunken and cold. Now it is alive with tenderness for Aimzee and her dear Dad.
Enjoy your practice and take it outdoors to embrace whatever the day brings. In my grief and my gratitude, I am outside breathing.
Namaste’,
Amy
“…There is no way to look ahead,/ or read the ending/ first. The luminous/ now is never done/ with its surprises.”
~ Danna Faulds, “The Luminous Now,” Limitless
(Reviewed below)
In This Issue
LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training Level 1
RESEARCH: Yoga Decreases Weight and Lowers Cholesterol
RESEARCH: Yoga & Meditation Shown to be Beneficial for Musicians
RESEARCH: Depression in Young Children
ARTICLE HEADLINE
NEWS: Yoga Therapy in the News
ARTICLE HEADLINE
Calendar Highlights
REVIEW: Limitless by Danna Faulds
Media Mention
LifeForce Yoga Resources
Resources Amy Recommends
LIFEFORCE YOGA PRACTITIONER TRAINING ~ LEVEL 1
Registration for the LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training for Depression and Anxiety ~ Level 1 has begun. Take advantage of the Early Bird Rate until October 1st.
www.yogafordepression.com/Training_Registration.html
LifeForce Yoga Training
As part of your registration, you will receive a 150+ page manual, room and board, and CEUs. Mention that you read about the training in the current newsletter and you will receive a LifeForce Yoga T-shirt (while supplies last).
RESERACH: Yoga and Obesity
Researcher Shirley Telles and her colleagues at Patanjali Yogpeeth, in Haridwar, India, found that forty-seven obese subjects who participated in a six-day residential yoga and diet change camp lost weight and lowered overall cholesterol. Since participants practiced five hours of yoga daily, and ate a lacto-ovo vegetarian high fiber diet, the results are not surprising. However, according to the researchers, a previous study showed that the same yoga program as that of the present study reduced total cholesterol. The researchers think that the decrease in high density lipoprotein (HDL) seen in the present study, but not in the earlier one, may be related to the change in diet. Improvements were noted in waist and hip circumferences, and postural stability and bilateral hand grip strength increased (a marker of overall musculoskeletal strength). A decrease in fasting serum leptin levels was suggestive of an improvement in energy balance. According to Dr Telles, the intense yoga program and diet did cause weight loss, “but it is most likely water and even muscle. On the other hand yoga does help to increase stability and changes a chemical call leptin which may ultimately help people to regulate their energy expenditure and appetite.”
Though the yoga intervention included postures, the emphasis was on yogic breathing, which included both pranayama and kriya (vigorous cleansing breath).
The results of this study will be published in their entirety in Medical Science Monitor, December, 2009.
RESEARCH: Yoga & Meditation Shown Good for Musicians
In a study published in August, 2009, in Applied Psychophysiology Biofeedback, researchers from Harvard Medical School found that Yoga and meditation helps musicians alleviate performance anxiety, stress and mood disturbance. In addition, performance-related musculoskeletal problems were reduced and cognitive and physical performance were enhanced. The study was designed and conducted by Sat Bir Khalsa, PhD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Associate Neuroscientist, and and Stephen Cope, MSW, director of the Institute for Extraordinary Living at Kripalu Center in Lenox, MA and their associates. The researchers measured young professional musicians in residence at the Tanglewood Institute who volunteered to participate in a two month program. The participants were randomly divided into two groups who attended three yoga and meditation classes per week. One of these groups also participated in an immersive treatment that included lifestyle intervention. A third control group did not practice yoga. At the end of the program, Both yoga groups showed a trend towards less music performance anxiety and significantly less general anxiety/tension, depression, and anger at end-program relative to controls.
Abstracted from: “Yoga Ameliorates Performance Anxiety and Mood Disturbance in Young Professional Musicians,” Appl Psychophysiol Biofeedback. 2009 Aug 6. Khalsa, SB; Shorter, SM; Cope, S; Wyshak, G; Sklar, E.
RESEARCH: Depression in Young Children
According to a study published in the August issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, major depression can become chronic even in very young children similar to what happens in older children and adults. In children as young as three, depression may manifest as a persistent lack of appetite, sleep problems, and frequent irritability, in addition to biting, kicking or hitting.
Depression was reported to be more common among children born to depressed mothers or those with mood disorders along with those who had experienced traumatic events such as the death of a parent or physical or sexual abuse.
Pre- and post-natal yoga classes can give depressed mothers yogic tools to work with their moods as well as providing the support of a community of women who share their concerns. If mothers are less depressed, their children will be too. Depression is a social disease.
To read more about preschool depression:
http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/66/8/897
RESERACH: MINDFUL EATING
Researchers from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Washington in Seattle created the Mindfulness Eating Questionnaire, a 28-item survey to determine the degree to which people practice mindful eating. Those with a yoga practice reported more mindful eating habits than those who walked or exercised moderately to vigorously. The results of this study suggest that a person wishing to modify their diet, or lose weight, would be served by adding yoga into their daily routine.
Study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association:
www.adajournal.org/article/S0002-8223(09)00628-2/abstract
An article published about the study can be found in the LA Times:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/booster_shots/2009/08/how-yoga-leads-to-weight-loss.html
NEWS: Yoga Therapy in the News
Dr. Elizabeth Visceglia, a psychiatrist and yoga therapist in New York, along with others in the field are featured in a recent Time CNN article about the ways in which therapists are integrating yoga in the treatment room.
Visceglia is in the process of analyzing data from a study she conducted at Bronx State Psychiatric Center on the effects of yoga therapy in people with chronic schizophrenia, some of whom have been hospitalized for 15 to 20 years. Her study suggests a decrease in negative symptoms and an increase in quality of life. The endocrine system and parasympathetic nervous system are out of whack in schizophrenia patients; yoga affects these systems, Visceglia says, leading to an increased overall feeling of calm.
Bo Forbes, a Boston psychologist and yoga therapist points out that mental health professionals need extensive yoga training to safely teach postures. However, trainings such as the LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training, which does not teach postures, can give psychotherapists tools from yogic tradition that are appropriate for a clinical setting to help their clients focus, relax and have greater access to feeling states.
Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy Training is also designed for both yoga teachers and other healing professionals, including psychotherapists. In this modality, touch is involved, as well as the safe and therapeutic holding of a single posture.
To read the entire article:
www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1891271,00.html
LIFEFORCE YOGA IN THE NEWS
The Aug 20th issue of the Detroit News contains a discussion about yoga and depression. Both Amy and Elle Garfield (Level 2 Practioner) are featured in the article.
www.detnews.com/article/20090820/LIFESTYLE/908200330/1040/rss34
CALENDAR HIGHTLIGHTS
Circle Yoga
Washington, DC (September 11)
LifeForce Yoga: Balancing Mood Through Challenging Times
Due to the passing of Amy’s father and a period of bereavement this workshop has been cancelled.
Yogaville
Buckingham, VA (September 18 – 20)
LifeForce Yoga® to Meet Your Challenges
*20% discount for online registration by September 2.
www.integralyogaprograms.org/product_info.php?cPath=13_118&products_id=520
Vancouver Yoga Conference
Vancouver, BC, Canada (October 3 – 5)
Vancouver Yoga Conference
Amy will be leading several workshops over the weekend conference.
www.theyogaconference.com/sites/S2/index.php?p=72&location=vancouver
Amy in Atlanta
Expressions of Grace Yoga
Grand Rapids, MI (October 23 – 25)
LifeForce Yoga to Manage Your Mood
www.expressionsofgraceyoga.com
Internal Family Systems Annual Conference
Chicago, IL (October 29 – 31)
2009 Internal Family Systems Annual Conference
www.selfleadership.org
Kripalu Center
Lenox, MA (November 13 – 15)
LifeForce Yoga to Manage Your Mood
www.kripalu.org/presenter/28
The Lotus Pond
Tampa, FL (December 6, 2009)
Joyful Breathing, Joyful Breath
An all day workshop, 9am – 4pm.
www.yogalotusroom.com
Desert Renewal Center
Tucson, AZ (January 11 – 17, 2010)
LifeForce Yoga Practitioner Training for Depression & Anxiety ~ Level 1
This is a certification training for yoga teachers and mental health professionals. Those who have attended the Tucson retreat and training previously may also attend at a reduced rate. If you are not a yoga teacher or mental health professional, but have taken at least one LifeForce Yoga weekend program, please consult with Amy for permission to attend. For more information and to register:
www.yogafordepression.com/Training_Registration.html
To view Amy’s full teaching schedule,
please visit:
www.yogafordepression.com/calendar.html
REVIEW: Limitless by Danna Faulds
Limitless
Danna Faulds new book of poems and short prose is her best to date. This is spiritual maturity manifest in writing, no easy task. Faulds manages to give voice to that which is unspeakable–our deepest knowing arising from moments of stillness when we know nothing, feel everything, are endless and yet embodied. This book arises from her dedicated practice that began in hatha yoga–her touchstone, she calls it now–and has come to rest and flourish on her meditation cushion.
Fauld’s writing practice is intimately woven into her meditation practice. Sometimes prose arises, begun with the phrase, “This is what I have to say to you,” as though giving voice to limitlessness. Sometimes an inspirational poem arises like “Open.”
Nothing to wall out
or hold in.
Open like the
wide sky at twilight.
Open as the ocean
or the reach of the unknown.
Open as a heart
that chooses not to close.
Faulds is at her best when she finds the every day, the concrete object, the nature image to reflect the magnitude of being, as she does in a prose piece:
“…When a cardinal sings in your yard, something very like a cat picks up its ears a hundred light years from here. When you feel grateful for your life, across the world, someone’s heart lifts for no apparent reason. The universe is like that, invisible threads connecting the granite bones of mountains with black holes, earthworms joined with sound waves, coke cans inextricably linked to crocuses…”
True, some poems have a didactic feel. Language is like that when it reaches for ultimate truths. But at her most abstract, at her teachiest, Fauld’s lessons are authentic and inspiring, as this from a prose poen: “When the entire universe blazes into being, take it all inside yourself, without exception.” Nothing is false here. And one can forgive a lesson for a line like: “…the scroll of this/ moment unrolls slowly,/ line by line.” Or, “…this unsettled/ anxiety clinging like wet/sheets” Or from the final prose poem: “Like a twig plucked from a tree, carried a great distance, and woven into a crow’s nest, you have no idea of your real destiny.”
Here is the title poem, “Limitless.”
Sun says , “Be your own
illumination.” Wren says
“Sing your heart out,
all day long.” Stream says,
“Do not stop for any
obstacle.” Oak says,
“When the wind blows,
bend easily, and trust
your roots to hold.”
Stars say, “What you see
is one small slice of a
single modest galaxy.
Remember that vastness
cannot be grasped by the mind.”
Ant says, “Small does not
mean powerless.” Silence
says nothing. In the quiet,
everything comes clear.
I say, “Limitless.” I say,
“Yes.”
MEDIA MENTION
James Lake, MD, an adjunct clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at Standford University and a visiting assistant professor at the Center for Integrative Medicine, University of Arizona, has written Integrative Mental Health Care: A Therapist’s Handbook. Dr. Lake describes how therapists can embrace and include new techniques of assessment and treatment into their practices. This book provides a comprehensive guide for those looking to “treat clients from an integrative perspective.”
LifeForce Yoga® Resources
2 Award-winning, LifeForce Yoga® to Beat the Blues,
75-minute videos (DVD) practice,
led by Amy Weintraub
Level 1 DVD Level 2 DVD
Programmable Chapters
Original music
Includes a Study Guide booklet
Shot on-location in Tucson, AZ by Emmy-award winning Director of Photography, Dan Duncan.
In both Level 1 & Level 2 DVDs, Amy Weintraub, MFA, E-RYT 500, author of the book Yoga for Depression (Broadway Books), offers a comprehensive and evidence-based sequence of breathing techniques, toning, and postures to lift and balance the mood.
__________
3 LifeForce Yoga® CDs
led by Amy Weintraub
Breathe to Beat the BluesBreathe to Beat the Blues:
In this breathing practice for the blues, you will be invited to practice ten pranayama breathing exercises that will lift your mood, followed by a guided relaxation. You can also use this practice if you are feeling anxiety by selecting the tracks suggested in the liner notes.
___________
LifeForce Yoga® Nidra to Manage Your Mood & Relaxation for Sleep:
LifeForce Yoga NidraYoga Nidra is a form of meditative self-inquiry that, while relaxing the body, opens the mind to greater discernment and self-awareness, and the heart to love and acceptance of what is. It is a powerful tool for clearing away your limiting beliefs and emotions and for living from a more balanced (satvic) state of mind. Practiced regularly, it can be a pathway to awakening.
___________
LifeForce Yoga® Bhavana Say Yes to Yourself ~ A Guided Relaxation Experience:
LifeForce Yoga BhavanaAlign heart and mind to find your life’s mission. This guided relaxation experience (Bhavana) will help you say “yes” to that which is most sacred to you. This original and inspiring bhavana practice incorporates mantra, pranayama breathing, some gentle stretching, and a writing exercise.
REVIEWS:
“A rare gem. This is a DVD that I will enjoy, and continue to learn from, for years to come.”-
Richard Miller, PhD – President, Center of Timeless Being; author, Yoga Nidra: The Meditative Heart of Yoga
“No matter what your mood, Amy’s unique LifeForce Yoga® program will bring you balance and joy. I loved this practice!”-Lilias Folan, PBS Host; author, Lilias! Yoga Gets Better with Age
“This is a wonderful testament to self-acceptance, the sentiment at the core of beating the blues.”-LA Yoga
For more LifeForce Yoga books, CDs and DVDs, please visit:
www.yogafordepression.com
RESOURCES AMY RECOMMENDS
Resources by leaders in the field of yoga and mental health that Amy recommends (books, CD’s & DVD’s) are available at Carol Hendershot’s online store Expressions Yoga. Many of the resources Amy uses during her workshops can be found here, including the music.
For wholesale orders, please contact Rose Kress at info@amyweintraub.com.
iREST YOGA NIDRA
Tools for deepening your awareness from the Center of Timeless Being by Richard Miller, Ph.D.
www.nondual.com
International Association of Yoga Therapists
This organization maintains a vast database of Yoga research, a library, publishes a yearly journal, and a tri annual newsletter with current research and articles. In addition, IAYT maintains a searchable online member database, which folks can use to locate a Yoga therapist/teacher in their vicinity. (They currently do not do any verification of training and experience). If you are a health professional, a Yoga teacher or therapist, or have an interest in Yoga therapeutics, I encourage you to become a member.
www.iayt.org
Have a Healthy Mind
Dr. Richard P. Brown and Dr. Patricia L. Gerbarg offer integrative approaches for mental health and brain function that include herbs, nutrients, yoga, yogic breathing and meditation based on their research and clinical experience as psychiatrists and psycho-pharmacologists.
www.haveahealthymind.com
