Pages

Labels

12th anniversary 21st Amendment Monk's Blood Abbaye De Saint Bon Chien abhyasa abuse abyss active vs. passive poses acute pain agility agitated depression ahimsa Al-Aksir alasya ale alesmith alignment Allagash anatomy Anchor Brewing Anchor Brewing Company anchor steam Anchor Steam Brewing and moderation Andrea Gilats Angel's Share anger ankle circles ankle injuries ankle joint ankle problems ankle sprains anti-aging solution anxiety aparigraha appetite arm pain arm strength arms arthralgia arthritis arthritis (menopause) arthritis of shoulder joint atrial fibrillation avery avery maharaja award winning beer store ayurveda B.K. Bose baba back care back extensor muscles back pain balance Ballast Point baltic thunder bandhas bandwagon of healthy eating baroreceptors basque cider Baxter Baxter Bell bay area beer beer beer advocate beer castro beer club beer club san francisco beer list Beer of the Month beer of the month club beer pong beer shop san francisco beer store Belgian beer belgian beer glasses belgian beer san francisco Belgium. Japanese best beer store in the world BFM Bhagavad Gita Bhramari Bikram Choudhury biological clock Birra Troll Birrifio bitches brew Bittersweet Lenny black butte black lager blood lactate blood pressure body image bone strength Bonnie Maeda bottle bag bourbon Brad Gibson brain strength Brasserie Caracole breath breath practices Brettanomyces Beer Brewing Bridge pose Bridget Frederick Bruery Coton Bruery Mischief Bruery Saison De Lente bruising Brussels Bruton beer bursitis bypass surgery California beer Callifornia beer caloric restriction Cantillon cantillon san francisco Carol Krucoff cascade apricot cascade sang rouge cask strength sake Castro Cat pose Cat-Cow pose cataracts central nervous system cervical nerves Chair Cat pose Chair Downward-Facing Dog pose Chair Purvottansana chair yoga chair yoga sequence challenging pose charlie papazian chatoe rogue cheese Child's pose children Chimay chimay san francisco chocolate indulgence chondromalacia christmas beer chronic illness chronic inflammation chronic pain chronic stress cognitive decline cognitive health collapsed lung commenting comments community community yoga compassion compression of joints connective tissue conscious relaxation contacting writers contentment cortisol counter-poses Cow pose craft beer craft beer san francisco craft beer store craft brew creaky knees Cucapa Barley wine Cuvee de Tomme Cuvee des Champions Damnation dave hauslein david hausein David Hauslein Dayna Macy De Dolle De Proef De Ranke Dead Guy Ale Decadence Pomegranite Saison Decadent Evil degenerative disc disease dementia dental disease depression Depuceleuse san francisco DFH Faithful Ale DFH Twenty dharana dhyana dhyanam diabetes diet digestion digestive disorders digestive system dogfish head Dogfish Head Theobroma Dolphin pose dominus vibiscum doshas double ipa Downward-Facing Dog pose Downward-Facing Dog pose (variations) drake's denogginizer Drie Fontinen duck feet Eagle pose Easy Inverted Pose eating habits eating healthy Einbecker El Camino (un) real emotional wellbeing endorphins endurance training enteric brain equanimity eric's ale European Society of Cardiology exercise extensor muscles eye floaters eye problems facebook beer Fantome fatigue feet felt real happiness fifty fifty brewing company Firestone Walker first growth first trimester fizzy yoga Flanders flat feet Flemish Primitive flemish sour ale flexibility Food pyramid guide forehead skin forward bends fred echardt front body frozen shoulder full sail topsail fun gait Gandhi ganglion cysts Garudasana genetics Georg Feuerstein George Gale ginjo Gonzo goose island goose island san francisco Goouden Carolus gouden carolus Grand Cru greed grief grow your own Gueuze gueuze girardin Haandbryggeriet hakutsuru Halasana (supported) hands Handstand Hanssens lambic happiness hard cider head position head rush headaches health care professionals healthy aging healthy eating Healthy Eating Ideas healthy spirits healthy spirits Mikkeller 1000 IBU healthy spirits san francisco healthy spirits. Deschutes Jubel Ale 2010 healthy spirits. san francisco healthy spirits. san francisco beer healthy spriits healthy style of eating heart problems Hedonist Beer Jive herbs hernias high blood pressure himsa Hinduism hip arthritis hip dysplasia hip replacements history of yoga Hitachino Nest Hitachino XH hoarding home brew home practice home yoga practice hop wallop Howe Sound Hugh Malone hummus hypertension hypotension ida immune system inflammation inguinal hernias injuries insomnia Inverted Lake pose Irritable Bowel Syndrome Jalandara Bandha Japanese beer jatharagni jay hinman jizake John John joint health joint pain joint replacement joints Jolly Pumpkin Jon Kabat-Zinn Judith Lasater kampai karma yoga karuna Kausthub Desikachar kidney kleshas knee alignment knee joint knee pain knee replacement Koningshoeven Krishnamacharya Krishnmacharya kundalini lactic acid lager Lambic large women leg cramps leg length discrepancy (LLD) Legs Up the Wall pose life coaching Life Coaching Executives Life coaching problems ligaments lips of faith longevity Lost Abbey Lost Abbey Brewing Company low back low back pain low blood pressure Luciernaga Lucifer lying male hormones male menopause malnutrition Man Bites Downward-Facing Dog marijuana marin brewing barrel aged old dipsea massage medical advice medical conditions (informing teacher of) medical conditions (yoga for) meditation Melina Meza Melitta Rorty men menopause mental health Mephistopholes micro brew micro-brew middle-eastern Midnight Sessions Lager Midnight sun brewing midnight sun hop dog midnight sun san francisco migraines Mikkeller Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast Mikkeller Black Mikkeller chipotle porter mind-body connection mindful yoga mindfulness mini office yoga sequence mini yoga practices miracle mission statement mood Morton's Neuroma motivation Mountain pose Multiple Sclerosis Muriel Zimmerman music nadis napa smith nate breed neck anatomy neck pain neuroma neuropsychiatric disorders new arrivals new belgium new releases nigori Nina Zolotow Niroga Institute noble pils nocturnal leg cramps Nogne-O non-hoarding non-violence Norwegian beer nutrient-dense foods oak aged oak aged ale oatmeal stout Odonata Rorie's Ale odonata saison office yoga Old Inventory Barleywine ommegang Ommegeddon oral hygiene Orval osteoarthritis osteopenia osteoporosis Oyster Stout pain pain management parabola partner yoga Paschima Namaskarana Paschimottanasana passive vs. active poses Patricia Walden Paul Grilley peanuts Pearl Jam Pearl Jam Beer pelvis perimenopause pes planus philosophy physio-yoga pigeon toes pingula pinto plantar fascitis Pliny the Elder Pliny the Younger Plow pose (supported) pneumothorax Port Brewing postural control posture Powerful pose practice practice (changing your) prana prana vayu pranayama pratipaksha bhavanam pregnancy private lessons proprioception psoas Puppy pose purusathas Purvottanasana Purvottansansa quadruppel questions R. Sriram Ram Rao rami barqawi Rami's Mommy's range of motion (ROM) rate beer ratebeer real ale Reclined Cobbler's pose red lentils Redemption relaxation Relaxation pose relaxation response religion (and yoga) resistance training resting restless leg syndrome restorative backbend restorative yoga retreats Reverse Prayer pose Richard Rosen Rodenbach barrel 230 Rogue Brewery Russian River Russian River Sanctification sacroiliac joint sacrum sacrum (anatomy of) safety saint somewhere saison Saison Du BUFF sake Salvation samana vayu samaranth san francisco san francisco Beer San Francisco beer store San Francisco Beer Week san francisco bottle shop san francisco craft brew san francisco fantome san francisco odonata santosha Sarah Powers Sarvangasana (supported) satya saucha Savasana scalene muscles scar tissue Schaerbeekse Kriek Schlenkerla Ur-Bock Schneider scientific studies Sculpin sedentary behavior Seedstore seniors sequencing Setu Bandha Shari Ser shochu shoulder blades shoulder joint (arthritis of) shoulder joint replacement shoulders shoulders. sequences Shoulderstand (supported) sierra nevada sierra nevada 30th anniversary Signature Ale sitting-rising sleep smiling soy speedway stout spiritual health spiritual wellness split peas squatting steenbrugge stem cell regeneration stillwater Stone stone brewing company stopping yoga practice store hours beer strength stress stress management stress response Stretching stroke strong cheese styana suffering Sukasana supplements Supplication Supported Child's Pose Supported Forward Bend Supta Badha Konasana surgery sushumna nadi Swiss beer Table pose tabouli Tadasana teacher (choosing) teachers teaching seniors Temptation testosterone Thanksgiving Thanksgiving Day Schedule The abyys san francisco The Bruery Thoracic Outlet Syndrome Thoreau tilting the pelvis timing poses Timothy McCall top sail toronado total knee replacement towards healing and finding the solution transferring transitions trappist trauma trial run coaching session truth tucking the pelvis TV Twilight and Life Coaching ujjayi breath unfiltered sake unibroue Upavista Konasana upper body flexibility upper body strength Upward Plank pose Upward-Facing Plank pose urthel Utkatasana val dieu Valley Brewing Company variety vata vayu vegetarian way vertical epic vestibular system victory Victory at Sea viloma breath vintage beer violence Viparita Karani vyana vayu Warrior 1 Warrior 2 pose Warrior 3 wedge weight loss weight management wild ale wild devil will power William Broad workshops wrist problems wrists wu tang clan xyauyu yamas Yin Yoga yoga history Yoga Journal conference yoga nidra yoga philosophy yoga sutras yoga therapy yogic breathing yogic phases of life yulesmith summer

Monday, June 18, 2012

The Way Home: Yoga for Grief

Bonnie Maeda is one of the teachers I trained with when I was in the Advanced Studies program at the Yoga Room in Berkeley, CA, and lately I've been taking a series of classes from her and Shari Ser on yoga therapeutics. I've known for some time that Bonnie was a hospice nurse as well as a yoga teacher, and that one of her specialties was teaching yoga for grief. Intrigued by the compelling possibilities of this aspect of yoga, I asked Bonnie if she would agree to an interview on this topic. 

Nina: Why did you decide to start teaching about yoga for grief?

Bonnie: It was a month following 9-11.The entire nation was in a state of shock and grief. My youngest son, Steven, age 29, was murdered. It paralyzed me. I could not move.

At the time I was working as a hospice nurse, and completing The Advanced Studies Program at The Yoga Room. It was purely the love and kindness extended to me and my family that allowed me to put one foot in front of the other. The yoga community surrounded me, and gave me strength. I was determined and committed to complete the program by June of 2002, although I didn't know how. I kept practicing.

In the midst of my early grief, I did graduate in June. That same year my dear friend and yoga mentor died of metastatic breast cancer. I kept practicing. But it was only 3-4years later, as I began to feel the healing process from multiple losses and devastating grief, that I began to understand how yoga had influenced the way home to my body and self.

I believe grief needs to be felt fully, and the process of grief given as much time as it needs. It then began to create a workshop to share my yoga experience of grief and loss called "Moving through Grief."
View of Jade Green Pond by Nina Zolotow
Nina: Bonnie, all I can say is thank you so much for sharing your story with me, and our readers. Can you tell us more about how yoga can help with moving through grief?

Bonnie:The practice of yoga is a practice of remaining present with what is. I wanted and needed to be present with my grief without allowing it to consume me. This was not always possible, but I do believe yoga gave me a sense of balance in this area as well.

Also, there are some common physical manifestations of grief such as fatigue, a sense of heaviness, anxiety, and lack of motivation, which I believe the practice of yoga can support and even improve. I believe each of our emotions have an energy that presides in the body. Yoga, with its movement and focus on the mind -body connection, can support an individual's experience of their personal grief response.

Nina: What are some of your favorite poses and/or practices for moving through grief?

Bonnie: My favorite poses vary depending on where the student is in their grieving process. This is not necessarily a chronological time. It is more how they are processing their emotions, and the physical manifestations at the time. But in general what I have found to be beneficial working with students are the poses that soothe the nervous system. Forward bends, such as Parsvottanasana to a chair or blocks, seated forward bends, and supported Shoulderstand. I also link two or three standing poses together in a flow-like sequence to create a rhythm for the body and the breath.

Breathing awareness is an important aspect of moving through grief. Bringing attention to the breath encourages the life force of prana to be felt. But I do not teach any prayanama for this class, as I am cautious in this area.

Nina: Is there anything else you'd like to say to our readers?
Bonnie: I'd like to share my Ardha Chandrasana story. It was four or five years after Steve's death. I was at a yoga retreat, and we were practicing Ardha Chandrasana. My balancing poses had continued to be a challenge for me. My teacher was talking about the strength of the standing leg, and I felt a shift in my whole being. I began to open my body and my heart, prana was flowing throughout. I knew then as I know now, life was forever changed, and I was learning how to manage my grief. I will keep practicing.

Nina: Thank you so much, Bonnie, for being so open, direct, and heartfelt. This whole whole interview is very powerful and inspiring, and I hope we'll be able to talk more about this, and other topics, in the future.

Bonnie Maeda, RN, is a trained Iyengar-style yoga teacher. She graduated from The Advanced Studies Program of The Yoga Room in 2001. Her approach is gentle yoga for health and healing as well as restorative yoga to promote relaxation and to manage stress. She believes in the benefits of yoga for every age, body type, and ability. See http://yogaroomberkeley.com/site/ for information about the classes Bonnie teaches at The Yoga Room in Berkeley, California.
Posted by
Labels: ,
 

Sample text

Sample Text

Sample Text