I am a British Wheel of Yoga trained Yoga teacher, wife of a lovely man and mother of two wonderful teenagers.
In 1996, I trained as a Yoga teacher in a traditional school and had a long apprenticeship with that organisation while working full time in London.
My mother, grandmother and great grandmother were born and brought up in India until my mother came to England and met my dad. I have two sisters who are great friends and one late brother. We were brought up in Australia, Switzerland and England.
My late brother, Charles, was the most incredible person in my life. He grounded me mainly because of all his complex needs. He had Cerebral palsy and learning difficulties. I really wanted to share what I knew about Yoga with him but the traditional method of teaching Yoga that I had learned was not very accessible.
Eventually I was advised to go to the Yoga for Health Foundation, and I booked for my brother and I to attend a retreat at Ickwell Bury in England. Ickwell Bury was a beautiful country house where I first met some British Wheel of Yoga teachers. This retreat was a great success for my brother and for me. Inclusion is the inclusion of all beings into society and here Yoga seemed the perfect tool to ensure that all beings were fully included. Unfortunately, this wonderful retreat no longer exists.
During my two pregnancies I practised antenatal Yoga with Lolly Stirk in London. I really appreciated the importance of letting go of the traditional approach to Yoga. For example, when coming into Trikonasana ( Triangle Pose) what now becomes more important is making space for the baby, so you and your baby feel more comfortable rather than a full lateral stretch. This is when I understood that yoga adapts to you and where you are not the other way around. After the birth of my son in 2003, I took Lolly's "Pregnancy Yoga for teachers' workshop" and taught Pregnancy Yoga until the birth of my daughter in 2007.
The birth of my son was very traumatic, and he was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. Not long after his birth I discovered The Special Yoga centre, founded by Jyoti Jo Manuel, who had trained with Sonia Sumar. My son and I could now be part of something very different and enter a more inclusive world.
In 2013 and 2015 I attended; "Yoga for the Special Child teaching course" run by Jyoti Jo Manuel and am so grateful for what I learned on her course. My son and my daughter both practised Yoga in their childhood and now my son, 19 years old still practices Yoga twice a week with his Occupational Therapist, Lucy. Lucy attended Jyoti's 'Yoga for the Special child course' and now uses Yoga in her clinical work as a tool for Sensory Integration.
I introduced Jyoti Jo Manuel to Dr Mithu Alur and her daughter Malini Chib who set up the Adapt programme in India which provides inclusive education to children with special needs and promotes Yoga as a tool of inclusion. It is wonderful to see how Yoga is implemented in this way.
In 2019 I was inspired to update my knowledge and think about teaching Yoga again. However, it was at this was time I learned about abuse allegations in certain Yoga organisations. This was upsetting and eye opening but helped me to appreciate the importance of being alert, aware and cautious who one trains with.
Eagle pose
Warrior 1 with cat
Warrior 3 with arm variation
This steered me in the direction of British Wheel of Yoga. I enrolled with Clare Gibson's BWY Teachers Training certificate course. The BWY certificate in YTT course helped me to re-evaluate and rekindle what I loved about Yoga. There are so many lineages to discover, and I am now assisting on the diploma course with Clare Gibson. I love the feeling of community I have with my colleagues on the course.
What I love about the BWY approach is that many adaptions and modifications are considered. The course trains you to teach people with different bodies. I love the emphasis on Yoga being accessible to all and on body positivity. I love the attention to detail, and time taken to really study anatomy and posture profiles. I love the emphasis on what it means to be a Yoga teacher and the duty of care you have towards your students.
Our BWY certificate course took part throughout the pandemic and as a result I feel comfortable to teach on Zoom and love being able to reach other mums with special needs children who, like me, may also need to be up in the night to tend to our children's needs. Being able to get to a class is so difficult for some so online yoga is ideal. I also have recently included friends living abroad and it feels so wonderful to create this community of support and share this incredible knowledge to help others reduce stress and feel good.
I couldn't have done this without my Yoga teacher, Clare Gibson. I also want to thank those lovely people who have attended my classes from the beginning. Special thanks to my sister Victoria and my cousin Jane Hewitt for being so supportive.
Claire Wood, 2022
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Recommendations
For a wealth of information on Yoga and purchasing Yoga products like Yoga mats, straps and bolsters, contact:-
https://www.bwy.org.uk
My teacher, Clare Gibson runs BWY Certificate and Diploma teacher training courses and runs online yoga classes.
https://www.harmonyoga.co.uk
For pregnancy yoga I recommend Chantel at Yoga Elephant. https://www.Yogaelephant.co.uk
For Yoga courses that provide training on how to teach Yoga to children and adults with special needs, I recommend Jyoti Jo Manuel from Special Yoga at https://specialyoga.co.uk
For one to one Yoga Therapy for children in SW London I recommend Lucy Maher. She has trained with Jyoti Jo Manuel founder of Special Yoga and has worked with my son for many years.
https://lotus-therapy.net
A retreat in the heart of Devon for Yoga teachers and anyone who would like to practice yoga and deepen their spiritual practice I recommend Fiona at https://vivekagardens.com
For Yoga classes with beautiful, Sanskrit chanting I recommend Anusha who is also a BWY certificate teacher. Visit Tarkshya Yoga
For personal development and support with business ideas I recommend Jane Bisou. Jane Bisou is a success and restart mentor. She has been so supportive and helpful to me. She encourages people who are starting over, after the loss of a loved one or at the end of a relationship, to realise their dreams and goals. She is a certified Proctor Gallagher mentor with over 20 years experience in counselling and management.
https://www.atelierbisou.co.uk/
