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The Joy of Yoga
with Gillian Stahl
Sunday, February 8th 1-3pm
Meditation Workshop
with Malisa Shames
Saturday, February 28th, 2:30-4:30pm
Pain Management w/the Foam Roller and More
with Rachael Bercey, RMT
Saturday, February 21st, 12-1:30pm
COMING SOON! 200hr Yoga Intensive Training
with Murti & Gioconda
April 4-June 20
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Teacher Highlight: Interview with Brigitte Edery
"The Joy of Yoga" by Gillian Stahl |
 Joy of Yoga
by Gillian Stahl
People are drawn to yoga to gain flexibility, clarity of mind, stress relief, a great workout...but what keeps many of us in the practice are the deeper more profound benefits that may not be evident to a raw beginner.
Ten years ago this month, I lost my brother to suicide. No words can ever describe the grief, sadness and depression that took over my life and the lives of my family members and close friends. It was early on in my yoga path and I had just started a three-year yoga teacher training program in Los Angeles. My first instinct was to back out of the training, focus on finding my way and to figure how to live my life without my brother. After much encouragement from my yoga teachers and others in the yoga community, I decided to continue my studies. That was a very important and necessary decision.
It turned out that yoga was my lifesaver, my raft in a sea of grief that was so new and foreign to me. I don't know what I would have done without it. My yoga practice and study made a profound impact on how I was able to navigate through my grief. It wasn't easy, there were many days that just getting out of bed was difficult. Yoga classes, study, my fellow practitioners and teachers, and my yoga mat gave me a safe and healthy way to explore my grief.
After completing the training program, I left my high paying public relations job in Los Angeles to pursue sharing yoga with others as my career. Now, ten years later, it is my quest to shine light on the possibility that yoga can help lessen the burden of grief and depression. It is no cure-all by any means, but every little bit helps. I still miss my brother every day, that will never go away, but through my yoga practice I have found an inner peace and the ability to experience joy and laughter and exuberance in my life again.
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