New Beginnings Writing Group

Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

ONLINE | By donation $0, $5, $10, $15

Monthly on the second Friday

Free follow-up Friday, July 22 • 4:00 – 6:00pm Monthly on the fourth Friday (Zoom link will be sent with the original registration).

In these times of great change we will explore a path toward meeting ourselves where we are to give voice to all that matters! As we live with interruptions and chaos, we can deepen into the roots of our creativity, encouraging the river of expression to flow. Beginners and seasoned writers are welcome, as we explore various forms of writing: poetry, prose, short stories, memoir, among others. Through writing exercises using everyday life, place, family, images, poetry of others, while using pranayama, meditation and the guidance of the Sutras we will build a body of work. Participants are encouraged to go at their own pace.
Tools we will Practice:

  • The Art of Paying Attention
  • Acceptance
  • Play
  • Writing from the Heart

Together we will combine self-care with our writing and discover what a writing practice means to us and how it may take shape.

Susan Ford, C-IAYT, RYT-500, began teaching in 2011 and has been an assistant trainer for the Basic Yoga Teacher Training at Integral Yoga Institute (IYI) since 2012. She specializes in gentle yoga and yoga therapy working with people with disabilities, cancer, heart disease, arthritis, aging, bone health, anxiety, depression and asthma. Her focus is to help students to meet their bodies where they are by introducing and incorporating Therapeutic Yoga, Raja Yoga, Hatha Yoga, pranayama and meditation.
Susan has been a writer of poetry, short stories and plays most of her adult life and has been repeatedly featured in storytelling events in Northern California. She has led writer groups, tutored many in writing, and regularly hosts poetry reading Satsangs at the IYI.

TRE® (Tension and Trauma Releasing Exercises)

Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

ONLINE | $45

TRE is a simple, gentle and profound technique that facilitates the lengthening and relaxation of the psoas muscle and the release of physical and emotional tension and stress. The TRE exercises mildly tire the legs, triggering an involuntary shaking and trembling response, which begins in the legs and often spreads throughout the body. This natural response is the nervous system’s way of discharging long-held tension and unconscious body contraction, caused by everyday stress and traumatic life experiences, in order to restore the body to wholeness.

TRE® was developed by Dr. David Berceli, a bio-energetic therapist and social worker, who used it successfully worldwide working with soldiers, firefighters, police officers and survivors of war, natural disasters and other traumatic circumstances to help alleviate the many symptoms of post-traumatic stress. TRE is taught in over 77 countries worldwide.

Reported benefits include:

  • decrease anxiety
  • release chronic tension
  • discharge emotional and physical trauma
  • increase energy and flexibility
  • improve sleep and mood
  • decrease of aches, pains and symptoms of fibromyalgia and sciatica

This workshop is suitable for all ages and fitness levels as the exercises can be modified to accommodate any body’s need. Maria offers a FREE weekly online refresher class that workshop participants can attend.


CEU certificate available upon request from the teacher for psychotherapists and massage therapists.

Please read a downloadable pdf with important preparation instructions about your Online TRE® session. This document contains information about how to set up your camera and mat and checklist of needed items.

For more information about TRE please visit TREcalifornia.com

Maria is a native Italian living in Santa Cruz, California. She has over 30 years of yoga experience and a background in Chinese martial arts and massage. As a senior TRE® Certification Trainer she has taught thousands of people in the US, Canada, Europe, Asia and the Middle East since 2004. She assisted Dr. Berceli, TRE’s founder, in numerous trainings in the US, South Africa, Brazil and Japan and led hundreds of public workshops and over hundred certification trainings worldwide.

Maria is also the co-creator of Neurogenic Yoga™, the sister method of TRE and facilitates workshops and trainings globally. She creates a supportive environment that makes people feel safe as she leads her classes with compassion and a sense of humor.

 

2022-06-06T10:51:45-07:00May 4th, 2022|Tags: , |

New Beginnings Writing Group

Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

ONLINE | By donation $0, $5, $10, $15

Monthly on the second Friday

Free follow-up Friday, June 24 • 4:00 – 6:00pm Monthly on the fourth Friday (Zoom link will be sent with the original registration)

In these times of great change we will explore a path toward meeting ourselves where we are to give voice to all that matters! As we live with interruptions and chaos, we can deepen into the roots of our creativity, encouraging the river of expression to flow. Beginners and seasoned writers are welcome, as we explore various forms of writing: poetry, prose, short stories, memoir, among others. Through writing exercises using everyday life, place, family, images, poetry of others, while using pranayama, meditation and the guidance of the Sutras we will build a body of work. Participants are encouraged to go at their own pace.

Tools we will Practice:

  • The Art of Paying Attention
  • Acceptance
  • Play
  • Writing from the Heart

Together we will combine self-care with our writing and discover what a writing practice means to us and how it may take shape.

Susan Ford, C-IAYT, RYT-500, began teaching in 2011 and has been an assistant trainer for the Basic Yoga Teacher Training at Integral Yoga Institute (IYI) since 2012. She specializes in gentle yoga and yoga therapy working with people with disabilities, cancer, heart disease, arthritis, aging, bone health, anxiety, depression and asthma. Her focus is to help students to meet their bodies where they are by introducing and incorporating Therapeutic Yoga, Raja Yoga, Hatha Yoga, pranayama and meditation.
Susan has been a writer of poetry, short stories and plays most of her adult life and has been repeatedly featured in storytelling events in Northern California. She has led writer groups, tutored many in writing, and regularly hosts poetry reading Satsangs at the IYI.

Awaken the Power of the Warrior

Please register in advance, a Zoom link and passcode will be provided via confirmation email.

Please review our In-person Safety Guidelines.

$20, $25

Build strength, stamina and stability through the warrior poses: Virabhadrasana I, II and III, Humble Warrior and Reverse Warrior.

This interactive workshop covers the basic anatomical information and various modifications to fit different abilities. Learn about your own body in terms of alignment and safe practice. Discover the subtle details of each posture and access their ability to develop courage and determination.

 

Mia Velez entered the Integral Yoga Sangha in 2016 through the kitchen by helping to cook Thursday community lunches and silent retreat meals. In 2018 she certified as an Integral Yoga teacher to learn more of the IYI approach and be part of the lineage. Mia is a disciple of the Moy Yat Ving Tsun Kung Fu lineage and is highly influenced by her martial arts training. After completing her first 200 hour teacher training in 2008, she began to see undeniable parallel in Yoga and Kung Fu. When she began teaching Kung Fu in 2014, she incorporated Yoga insight and principles in her classes. Her goal in teaching is to connect with the students and to facilitate a safe space for exploration and self inquiry. Yoga and Kung Fu is integrated into her daily life as a mother, a preschool teacher, and an advocate for gender, race and class equality through multiple non-profits groups.

Mia is also a trainer for the IYISF 200-Hour BIPOC Yoga Teacher Training. Please read more on our website to learn about, apply or support this scholarship based training. This training is an effort toward dismantling the structural and institutional racism that exists in wellness communities, and to increase diverse representation in Yoga. If you are BIPOC and would like to become a certified Yoga instructor, we encourage you to apply today!

2022-05-04T14:37:52-07:00May 4th, 2022|Tags: , |
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