YOGA. - Free Online Library Motivated by love for her daughter, an exceptional parent makes some new adaptations to an ancient practice. Coping with stress is an everyday part of life for a child who has a disability. Meeting some or all aspects of daily life requires some adaptation or assistance. Family members and professional often focus on the child's efforts at mastery and overlook the psychological and social challenges. A variety of relaxation and meditation approaches--yoga among them--have been helpful for adults to meet these challenges. With some adaptation and an experienced teacher; children who have disabilities can also utilize yoga's techniques. --THE EDITORS
Yoga has been practiced for thousands of years as a means of attaining physical and mental well-being. "Yoga is good for everybody--there is something to help anyone from the poses to the gentle stretching, breathing techniques, massage, or just the deep relaxation," explains yoga instructor Sonia Sumar. When Sonia's second daughter Roberta was born with Down syndrome, Sonia was moved to seek a method of helping her grow and develop to her full potential. She turned to yoga--something she had practiced since her final year in college in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
She began to include her daughter in her daily yoga sessions, creating and adapting various postures to fit Roberta's body and
her needs. Over the years, Sonia noticed significant development in the young girl, far exceeding the doctor's expectations.
After losing Roberta (who died at age 14), Sonia felt that some joy might come of holding and helping other children with disabilities the same way she helped her daughter. Through Yoga for the Special Child[TM], the adaptive yoga program she founded, Sonia now instructs many children--newborns and up--diagnosed with Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, microcephaly, and developmental delays, in the United States and Brazil. She also trains parents, educators, and health professionals to use yoga in helping special children. Yoga for all
Sonia uses the same basic methods of yoga, those that are part of any yoga regimen, with some adaptation for children with disabilities. Modified stretching, breathing, and relaxation techniques, allow individuals with special needs an opportunity to enjoy yogas benefits. She divides the methods into five areas:
Asanas are "psycho-physical" poses. They form the basis of the mind-body integration that yoga is famous for. Hundreds of poses can be separated into two basic categories: active and passive. Active poses promote muscle tone, flexibility, and are physically stimulating, while the passive poses are used in meditation to teach relaxation and focus.
Pranayama focuses on breathing. The deep abdominal breathing helps to clear the lungs, promote relaxation and trains the lungs to increase their capacity.
Cleansing practices include: deep breathing, eye exercises, and an isolated abdominal exercise.
Music and sound therapy uses rhythms and melodies, combined with hand and body movements, to develop concentration, breath coordination, and communication and motor skills.
Deep relaxation allows the body to absorb and reflect on the previous physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental exercises.
In order to make these areas of yoga accessible, Sonia adapts them and works with her students in stages, which gradually give the child more control and eventually mastery of the pose. She asserts, "Mastering the pose develops serf-confidence."
The first, called the Preparatory Stage, uses modified versions of yoga poses to prepare the child to eventually go into the full pose. Sonia explains each movement as she gently moves the child's body into a particular pose and supports him or her while in the pose. In addition to the gentle stimulation the movement provides, this draws the child's attention to that part of his or her body. As the child gains more awareness, he or she is able to participate in holding the
pose, and can perform the pose by the time he or she reaches the Imitative Stage.
Benefits and cautions "Yoga helps children learn to focus on what is inside the body, not what is outside," according to Sonia. Yoga also places an emphasis on overall body awareness. Holding a pose, focusing on breathing can help develop concentration. The American Yoga Association, a nonprofit organization "dedicated to education in Yoga,"
conducted a children's yoga program in the Cleveland, Ohio area. Based on the results, the Association states that they highly recommend yoga relaxation and meditation practices for young people, especially those diagnosed with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The Association, however, points out that their program took place under close supervision of qualified yoga instructors. They stress that their position on yoga for children in general is a cautious one--hinging on the credentials and experience of the instructor.
Before a child embarks on any course of exercise, it is also important that all the professionals involved in his or her healthcare be involved. In Sonia's practice, she routinely interviews parents
and asks their child's physician, and any other therapist who works with the child, to fill out a questionnaire detailing the child's disability and medications. She maintains that with certain medications and treatments, some yoga postures should yoga for beginners be avoided.
Yoga forever
The flexibility inherent in yoga enables and encourages growth. "Yoga is unlike traditional physical therapy because it is continuous--people who practice yoga can always do it," says Sonia. This "open-endedness" allows for success and can enhance self-image for a child with a disability. As Sonia puts it, "Yoga helps children and adults alike learn to grow, to spread their wings, and take off."
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Ashley Wright, 9 1/2, of Northern California, who is undiagnosed and has a seizure disorder (controlled with the ketogenic diet), hypotonia, and developmental delays, has been practicing yoga for one year. Ashley does yoga postures at least twice a week, and sometimes daily. Her mother Gall notes, "Ashley has shown a tremendous improvement in balance and stamina. Yoga has also helped her academic skills by increasing her ability to concentrate." Ashley has worked her way through Sonia's program of yoga to the Imitative Stage. Having accomplished that goal, she is now setting other goals for
herself and working toward meeting them. Her "resolutions" include: learning to ride a bike without training wheels, getting off the ketogenic diet without seizures, and doing yoga every day.
Resources
The American Yoga Association PO Box 19986, Sarasota, FL 34276 (941) 927-4977 Fax: (941) 921-9844 E-mail: YOGAAmerica@aol.com Web site: http://users.aol.com/AmYogaAssn To receive the Association's materials catalogue and guidelines on how to choose a qualified yoga teacher, send a $0.55 stamped, self-addressed envelope.
Yoga for the Special Child[TM] Route 1, Box 1559 Buckingham, VA 23921 Telephone: (804) 969-2668 Fax: (804) 969-1962
E-mail: info@specialyoga.com Web site: http://www.specialyoga.com https://www.thefreelibrary.com/YOGA.-a054255921