A Resource list for our time of Drama and Trauma

Image by John Hain from Pixabay

​In June I finished the course I had been working on since February. I learned a lot about the pelvic floor in all our bodies- male, female. I learned about glute muscles (the butt and outer hips), internal rotation of the hips and hip hinging, about rib flare problems.
 
Everything I learned in this course that is of use to me is something I hadn’t been taught before or elsewhere. There are pieces that I am adding into the big puzzle of my body. I am noticing for the first time habitual actions and movement patterns I was not aware of before. This is great, as then I have the opportunity to replace that with a skillful action or pattern that benefits my body.  Sometimes I am doing this seemingly a million times a day, some days more successfully than others. All in all, it was a genuine life-changing course, as it answered some mysteries I’d had for maybe 40 years (how to stand up “straight”, or improve my posture) and questions as to why did I loose the ability to do things that used to be so easy for me. I am so glad I did the course and am personally grateful for all it taught me.
 
This, along with other circumstances leads me to share with you that I did not “enjoy” taking that online course. I struggled through 4-1/2 months of feeling aggravated. This has not been the only course or class or teacher I have “stuck it out”. I can’t say I’d do each of them again. Some I would, some I wouldn’t. But I can say I don’t regret any of them, for a variety of reasons.
 
Why tell you this? We are not going back to our little practice room to gather for class any time soon. But your being needs to be cared for no matter what the course of the pandemic is.
 
With that, here is my reference list of schools, teachers, trainers, classes online. This list is not exhaustive or comprehensive, so if I have missed something or someone, please be understanding that I just want to offer something to check out if you have not settled into a new way of practicing.

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​Yoga Schools offering online classes and online yoga streaming. These are schools I’ve been a student at that I respect and admire. You just can’t go wrong with any of these, in my opinion:
 
Seattle Yoga Arts https://www.seattleyogaarts.com/ my alma mater.
 
Two Dog Yoga https://twodogyoga.com/ my favorite place to take a weekend workshop.
 
Lotus Yoga http://www.lotusyoga.biz/ long established, steady presence with a mission to be present to the community in Columbia City.
 
Yoga in the Center https://www.yogainthecenter.com/ Very creative and widely sourced fusion yoga. Check out the kettle bells or the somatics.
 
Glo.com https://glo.com/ They are not exaggerating that they have “world class teachers”. I took many many classes from Jason Crandell, Stephanie Snyder, Jo Tastula, Kia Miller, Marc Holzman, Annie Carpenter and Rod Stryker. They have Meditation and Pilates, too.

Yoga Teachers offering online classes and private sessions:
 
Elizabeth Rainey https://elizabethrainey.com/ (my longtime teacher then mentor and now cohort) She is Inviting, gentle and kind- the diametric opposite of me. Rainey is a certified yoga therapist, offering Yoga Nidra along with asana classes and individual sessions.
 
Doug Keller https://www.doyoga.com/Pages/practice-video.htm I first met Doug at Two Dog Yoga in 2002! Excellent at teaching current scientific understanding woven into traditional yoga. He focuses on therapeutic practice for the body. This guy knows stuff… He brings together traditional postural yoga (he studied with Iyengar in India) with current studies of the fascial and nervous systems, just to mention the tip of the iceberg.
 
Dianne Bondy https://www.yogaforeveryone.tv/ Dianne is doing on a nationwide level work that I admire beyond words- yoga for those of us who do not look like magazine models. It’s not a hyperbole to say she has done the work to make yoga accessible!
 
Christina Sell https://www.christinasellyoga.com/ She’s extremely flexible, extremely strong and what you might have and image of when you think of the yogi who can do crazy poses. The caveat is she’s a baby boomer and shows what is possible at any age.

Trainers I have learned from and respect:
 
Tony Gentilcore https://tonygentilcore.com/ for his excellent and irreverent written content, https://home.tonygentilcore.com/ for his “Free-ish” training program. You may have seen the red sweatshirt “Because heavy things won’t lift themselves” This guy is great at keeping things interesting and getting things to move correctly. He’s a nice guy to top it off.
 
Dr. Sarah Duvall https://www.coreexercisesolutions.com/ is a trainer and a PhD of Physical Therapy. Check out her “Free Resources” tab or her social media content. It’s stuff to help with moving through life. The website states that she only works with women, but in her social media posts, she also works with men. The 4 months I spent learning from her has created a revolution in my ability to activate muscles and joints.
 
Cori Lefkowith https://redefiningstrength.com/programs/ Redefining Strength post tons of free stuff on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram. Pair how to move from the Physical Therapist with one or more of the stretching/activation/strengthening programs for steady, progressive changes for stability and mobility. All of Cori’s moves can been modified for the level you are working at- important to know because I’m not always sure she has a clue how strong she is.

To finish up, an emotional/mental care list of those I have or am finding key to understanding how to become kind and wise:
 
Tara Brach https://www.tarabrach.com/talks-audio-video/ Tara was my “gateway”. She was the first meditation teacher that spoke and taught what I needed. Her talks are easy to find and free, either through her website or podcast apps.
 
Sharon Salzberg https://www.sharonsalzberg.com/ Sharon taught me that there are actually a multitude of methods to mediation- especially important as the primary two that are taught (watch the breath and mantra) just get me more neurotic. Loving Kindness and Sound mediation were game changers.
 
Jonathan Foust https://www.jonathanfoust.com/weekly-talk?category=talks I first was recommended to listen to Jonathan because he also lives with chronic pain and teaches how to use mediation to live with it, rather that fix it or make it go away. I got hooked listening to him as he talks about his daily adventures and applying the Insight methods more or less skillfully. He really does walk his talk. Everything he teaches is freely offered.