Karen George was at a loss about how to help her client, a woman so severely depressed that she was unable to leave her house other than a weekly appointment with George in Skidegate in Haida Gwaii, BC. “She was so guarded, her hands clenched at the arms of the...
Gifted Mantra Performer Joins Yoga Training Faculty
For generations, Rishima Bahadoorsingh’s family has practiced meditation, mantra and kirtan as part of daily life. Sundays were for learning about yoga philosophy. The family even took multiple trips from their home in Canada to India, where they would spend several months studying together in an ashram with their spiritual...
Cedar weaving can embody healing for West Coast First Nations
“My family has been deeply impacted by colonization,” explains Avis O’Brien of her formative years in Alert Bay, home of the ‘Namgis People, off the coast of Vancouver Island. With her Irish father and Haida and Kwakwaka’wakw mother, O’Brien lived on the “white side of town”. Unfortunately, she associated being...
How I spend my yoga privilege
Depression and anxiety are frequent visitors for me. The trick is to wait them out, not battle them directly. Instead I meditate daily and practice yoga asana - either through my gym membership ($35/month) or online (internet access $80/month). In my yoga teacher training (approximately $3500), I learned to meditate....
Are we practicing yoga right?
Yoga every damn day + Positive vibes only = Peace and light. That’s the promise right? Instead we’ve got an international pandemic, a reckoning for racial justice, and we can’t see the light through the smoke of wildfires and conspiracy theories. Are we practicing yoga right? That’s the question...
How therapists cope with compassion fatigue
By Tannis Price, therapist-in-training Have you ever found yourself feeling numb to other people’s problems, or to sad stories on the news? Have you ever screened a call from a friend because you just “didn’t have it in you” to hear them vent? Everyone feels this way sometimes, but if...
Relationship is priority in trauma-informed yoga
Nicole Marcia’s self-esteem tanked after she was assaulted by a neighbour more than two decades ago. She shut up the negative voices in her head with drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes. In her early 20s at the time, she didn’t connect her behaviour with the assault. Essentially, she just thought she...
Why I’ll always find time to volunteer
Volunteerism is an important family value of mine. From as early as I can remember, my Grandma and Mom have been avid about donating time and financial resources to their communities. There was an expectation that, if we had privilege, we should reinvest in our communities to help elevate the...
Yoga at home for depression and anxiety
“Isolation makes any problem bigger,” says Leslie Wilkin, a clinical social worker. Normally, Leslie Wilkin sees her clients at Island Health in Nanaimo face-to-face for depression, anxiety, addictions, and other mental health challenges. Due to Covid-19, in-person therapy has ceased, and her clients have less access to personal supports because...
Six ways to talk about homelessness with kids
Talking to kids about inequality in a way that makes them feel empowered rather than helpless is challenging. The Street Feet Society works with local school districts in Metro Vancouver to engage youth in understanding and supporting issues of homelessness, marginalization and stigma. Here Tannis Price, co-founder of The Street...