It’s early morning. You rise, have a quick shower, and then you dial your yoga teacher for your weekly class. Yes, you read that right – “yoga by phone” is the new idea for personalized yoga instruction. When your hectic life just doesn’t allow you to get to a class, your favorite teacher is just a call away!

(more…)

The Gwalior prison in India houses 3,000 female inmates, along with several children. The officials of the jail, recognizing that the ongoing negativity of the women was a problem, found a solution by putting into place a 45-day yoga program for the inmates.

(more…)

These days, more and more adults are going through the stress of caring for their aging parents. And when their parents suffer from dementia or Alzheimer’s, there can be an added stress and strain on the caregiver.
(more…)

We have finally turned the corner on dinner and a movie, or dinner in front of the TV. Have you ever imagined that you could have a yoga class and a healthy, delicious dinner made especially for you in your own home?
(more…)

I learned a little while ago what WAHM stood for – “Work At Home Mom”.

How many of you out there are WAHMs? I have to tell you, sometimes I feel like – WHAM! It’s as if something has just hit me hard and knocked me off my feet, throwing off my balance and my world.
(more…)

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”
~ The Dalai Lama

For Deborah Bernstein, a yoga teacher, and Scott Wahlen, a firefighter, their act of kindness to soldiers recovering at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center led them to a new career path. The beginning of their truly compassionate act was the purchase of a house on St. John, US Virgin Islands, which they named Florian Villa. Their intent to create a healing environment for both soldiers and families of fallen firefighters became their passion and dedication.

(more…)

Every year, I look forward to the explosion of blossoming Jasmine that takes over my back porch. When the Jasmine blooms, I move as much of my life as I can to the back patio. I read, meditate, write, eat, do yoga, drink tea – and sometimes I just sit and do nothing at all except bask in the spell of this intoxicating scent. (more…)

I was teaching a stress management workshop for kids the other day at a highly competitive private school. Even writing that sentence makes me connect with how extremely stressed so many kids are today. As a therapist, I specialize in working with teens and am constantly reminded of how much pressure is put on adolescents these days to succeed. It seems as if there is very little room just to be a kid. (more…)

Is all music spiritual? The reason I ask this today is because I love to play all kinds of different music when I am practicing yoga – everything from Deva Premal to Madonna. I let each style inspire me with the musician’s unique energy. I have shared this love of music with others and most people I teach also enjoy it. (more…)

This weekend I started noticing some of the people in my life who embody the spirit of yoga. Although I teach and practice yoga all the time, I am not talking about the people I see at the studio or on the yoga mat. I am talking about those amazing people I run into, who seem to have found the secret of serenity in their lives. (more…)