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Vision:
Optimal Health
Strength, Clarity, Relaxation
Yoga instructors will bring their art to Heritage
By Patricia Sherlock
Sanwich Community Newspaper
Tue Oct 09, 2007, 01:39 PM EDT
Sandwich - In a spirit of giving back to the Cape they love for its natural beauty and restorative serenity, a place they say has enriched their life and work here, four established yoga and meditation professionals are uniting to donate their teaching expertise Saturday, Oct. 20 when they will lead a full-day yoga and mindfulness retreat for the public.
The retreat, called Cultivating Nature From Within, will focus on ways to celebrate nature and one's inner nature while becoming aware of the connection between the two. The workshops will be on the grounds of Heritage Museums & Gardens in Sandwich. Proceeds will be divided equally between Heritage — originally the estate of the late amateur horticulturist and rhododendron hybridizer Charles O. Dexter, and now a 100-acre woodland boasting hiking and walking trails, annual and perennial gardens, and Shawme Pond — and the Barnstable Land Trust, an organization also dedicated to preserving valuable open spaces, wildlife habitats, wetlands and scenic views for present and future generations.
Leading the retreat will be Diane Kovanda, who teaches yoga and Yoga Teacher Certification at Yoga Cape Cod in Centerville and sees clients at her stress management office at Complete Wellness in Cotuit; OHMWorks wellness decks and book author Olivia Miller of Marstons Mills, who also facilitates Stress Buster Relaxation Workshops; Catherine Paulson of West Barnstable, instructor of Pranashanti Yoga and a licensed massage therapist at Bodywork, Mashpee Commons; and Adam Liss, who instructs students in Mindfulness Meditation, a program developed at the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in 1979. Liss teaches at Cape Stress Reduction in Marstons Mills.
The idea for such a retreat originated with Kovanda. "I had done a video and wanted to give 10 percent of the proceeds back to the Cape. I was thinking, 'Even if I can just save one tree!' So last year I offered a small yoga retreat with Catherine at the beachfront home of Ann Gould in Cotuit for about 25 people and donated the proceeds to the Barnstable Land Trust."
This year Kovanda and Paulson set their sights higher. Paulson has taught Yoga in the Garden classes at Heritage for the last three summers. Miller, who had heard of Kovanda's beachfront yoga retreat last year and also is a member of the Barnstable Land Trust, had kidded Kovanda saying, "I'm jealous. If you ever do another one include me!" So Kovanda and Paulson asked Miller to be part of the retreat. "Next we asked Adam if he would be free to participate," says Miller, a former neighbor of Liss' in Marstons Mills. "All four of us have known each other for years, so we hoped he would round out the faculty for the day."
Explains Miller, "We're all donating our services, doing it out of love for Cape Cod. We're so passionate about our work and want to share with others what brings us good health and a sense of peace inside."
Liss adds, "We teach what we need to learn ourselves. This is a really good opportunity for people to learn and practice a wide range of yoga and meditation as Heritage generously opens its facilities to Cape Codders and others who wish to participate in and enjoy various practices, such as a walking meditation in the labyrinth and, weather permitting, more yoga in the garden."
Kovanda is looking forward to the retreat, saying it will be an amazing day that allows people — whether novices or advanced students of yoga and meditation — to sample and explore different disciplines. "They can come to know themselves better in body, mind and soul."
Miller agrees. "I try to get across that yoga can be fun, that you don't have to be standing on your head to enjoy it! Life can be so serious sometimes, but this is simply about celebrating nature outdoors along with your inner nature — joyfully being aware of the relationship between the two. And focusing on the gardens helps increase that awareness."
To that end, one of the yoga workshops is called Laughter Yoga on the Carousel, where participants will put the "merry" back in "merry-go-round" while riding as a group on Heritage's famous, 100-year-old carousel. "A big part of doing yoga is learning how to breathe properly," adds Kovanda, "and laughter is one of the best ways to achieve that. And it's wonderful to be laughing as part of a group."
Liss' mindfulness meditation classes often emphasize that in the rush and busyness of living, taking care of ourselves is often relegated to the back burner. "But by caring for ourselves first, we are better able to care for others, be more efficient in our work and homes and be more compassionate in our communities. In meditation, there is room for humor, curiosity, acceptance, openness and loving kindness."
Box please
Cultivating Natrue From Within
When: Saturday, Oct. 20
Where: Heritage Museums & Grdens, Sandwich
Classes are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Workshops will include:
Yoga for Energy and Relaxation
Mindfulness, Stress, and Weight Reduction
Emotional Intelligence
The Labyrinth
Stress Buster: An Oasis in a Hectic Day
Laughter Yoga on the Carousel,
Chakra Balancing
Meditation 101: Practical Applications for Life
Moving into a Seasonal Cleanse
Lovingkindness Meditation
Yin Yoga
To register or for more information, call 508-888-3300, ext. 100. Participants may view the full schedule of classes and times by logging on to heritagemuseumsandgardens.org.
The registration fee is $125 for members of the Barnstable Land Trust or Heritage Museums & Gardens, and $150 for non-members. Registration fees include a breakfast snack and a vegetarian lunch. Participants are advised to wear comfortable clothing and bring a yoga mat and towel.
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Favorite links!Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine (BHI) www.myspace.com/livetrueyoga Marie Gould's yoga classes:
Links below are not live yet - please copy the 1 or 2 line code into your browser bar Jen's baby and Me and Toddler yoga classes: Jack Adams Yoga Classes Belle's Bee Natural Shiva Rea - sun salutations You tube video: Sun Salutations- not the greatest videography, but nice explanation of surya namaskar and a few poses we won't be attempting today... 1938 BKS Iyengar Yoga at the Kitchen Sink is a book of standing yoga postures for strength and balance. This book, written in large print, with clear drawings, shows how you can bring your yoga practice into your every day life. The author is an Occupational Therapist as well as a Kripalu trained yoga teacher who created this joyful book to encourage her students and patients to bring yoga into your home and kitchen. The illustrator is an educator and liturgist. Price of $10.00 includes shipping in the USA. |
by JASON KOLNOS
STAFF WRITER, Cape Cod Times,
(Published: September 28, 2004)
It's the elephant in the room that everyone knows is there but barely anyone acknowledges.
 
Office workers can use yoga-like breathing techniques to put some distance between them and stress on the job. (Times photo by PAUL BLACKMORE) |
Experts say anything can trigger stress. The stack of papers that should have been graded yesterday. The boss who asks for a private meeting. The table of grouchy diners. So what can a harried employee do to take the edge off while they're on the clock?
Gretchen Holly, an insurance saleswoman in Yarmouth, said she likes to take her shoes off when she's feeling frazzled. Edward Theodore, a grocery stocker in a Hyannis store, whistles while he works under the gun.
"I hate to perpetuate the cliché, but we tend to eat around here when we're stressed," Harwich police dispatcher Donna Tavano said. "They don't call it comfort food for nothing."
We asked some relaxation and stress management experts, as well as employers, to recommend healthy ways workers can de-stress, even if it's just for a few minutes.
Office workers
Hypnotherapist Nancy Canning has a knack for unwinding folks. Before her patients go under hypnosis, they must be in the most relaxed state possible. That begins with something we all do every second of the day.
"Proper breathing is nature's gateway to optimal relaxation," Canning said.
She prefers the LSD approach (no, not that one) which involves taking periodic breaths that are Long, Slow and Deep."You literally have to feel yourself breathing and think about inhaling and exhaling and nothing else," she said. Here's how:
Close your eyes and draw a deep breath until you can feel it in your stomach.
At the apex of the inhale, hold your breath for a few seconds while relaxing your head and neck muscles.
Push all of the air out of your body.
"If you do this for just 10 seconds a couple times a day, you'll be able to feel the pressure lift off your shoulders, which is the main area where tension builds," she said. "It sounds so simple, but it really helps."
Diane Kovanda, a stress management expert at Complete Wellness in Cotuit, teaches relaxation techniques in the workplace. She has recently counseled employees at Barnstable High School, a battered women's shelter and local banks.
Kovanda said she believes stress is reactionary and that it's important to develop a relaxation response before being put on the defensive. She teaches yoga classes and recommends simple stretching and mediation techniques workers can do at their desks without a mat. These include:
Yoga Mudra: Gently clasp arms behind the lower back, bend forward and hold arms up for 10 seconds.
The Human Basketball Net: Interlace fingers over head and alternate palms upward and push like you're reaching for the sky. Take deep breath, hold and release.
Neck rolls: Alternate rolling neck left and right for 20 to 30 seconds. Next, do the same rolling your wrists.
Deep focus: Focus your eyes on a single object for 30 seconds. This reduces eye tension resulting from staring at a computer screen all day. Repeat when eyes feel strained.
Trauma responders
(police officers, surgeons, firefighters, doctors, mental health professionals, crisis center staff)
For lifesavers, responding to disturbing situations is part of the everyday job. But it's tough to carry on the rest of the day after witnessing a disturbing situation. Kovanda said it's often hard not to personalize events, but workers should try to shift perspective and realize there are circumstances beyond their control.
"Think about the reason you're in this situation, which is to help people," said Kovanda, noting that focusing on the families and victims who will benefit from your actions - rather than focusing on the trauma - will bring more peace of mind.
Also, the taboo of keeping emotions inside is a thing of the past. "An emotional letting go of any kind works as a relaxation technique," Kovanda said. "It is not a bad thing to have a good cry or sit in your car, roll up the windows and just scream."
She recommends a 10-second exercise where you consciously have control of your muscles: clench your hands, fists and shoulders tight like a child about to throw a tantrum. Hold your contracted muscles for 10 seconds, take a deep breath and then relax.
Priscilla Adams, director of the Rape Crisis Program at Independence House in Hyannis, teaches staff to communicate with each other during a crisis. "When you're experiencing an emotional roller coaster, it's best to find a trusting person who is going through the same things as you," Adams said. She encourages everyone who works with trauma to have their own personal counselor to help deal with the stress.
Service jobs
(teachers, restaurant staff, retailers)
Teachers and wait staff have a particularly difficult time relaxing because they must care for others nonstop, whether it be a student or a customer. Natasha Dunne, the dining room supervisor at Bobby Byrne's Pub in Hyannis, said no matter how hectic the environment is, she lets workers take a quick break to avoid bottling up stress.
"If a customer sees that the staff is having a hard time, then the stress will be passed on to them and they won't come back," she said, adding that workers should step outside or go into the bathroom and take deep breaths.
"It's also imperative to have a strong network of support to help you out if you're in a bind," Dunne said. "Here, we're all trained for many tasks. Our bartender would help pick up a table if a waitress felt she had too much to handle."
Gail Briere, the principal at Orleans Elementary school, said one of her most successful faculty wellness programs is the Sunshine Group, staff members who monitor the well-being of their peers. Staff routinely consult the 10-member group about any problem, personal or professional. "Having that support network allows us to be more honest and open with what we are feeling," she said. "It's an extension of a family."
Tomorrow: Is the kitchen making you crazy? In the Food section, some strategies to make meal preparation less frantic.
http://www.barnstablepatriot.com/training_site_for_teachers_of_yoga_opens_on_cape_town_37_13299.html |
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Barnstable Patriot Newspaper Article: Training site for teachers of yoga opens on Cape Centerville woman among instructors at school in her village By Jennifer Sexton Centerville yoga teacher Diane Kovanda is bubbling with enthusiasm about the Finding Inner Peace Yoga Teacher Training Program that she offers, and with good reason. Until recently, yoga students who were interested in a teacher training program had to travel off Cape Cod to take part in one. Kovanda’s class is the first one available on this side of the canal since Kovanda went through her own teacher training program with her yoga teacher, the late Callie Lewis Tyber, more than 20 years ago. Kovanda remembers Tyber as a welcoming presence with an all-inclusive attitude toward yoga. “Anybody could go to her class,“ she said. “It wasn’t the kind of class where people were worried about doing the poses perfectly. She would laugh, and tell stories and jokes, yet she was very respectful and made you feel like you were in her living room. I feel like the Finding Inner Peace Yoga School, this teacher training program, and Maureen Spencer, the director, all share that attitude. And that is what I hope to pass along.” A holistic health practitioner and educator, Kovanda has practiced yoga for more than two decades. She is certified in Kripalu Yoga, and has an extensive background in body/mind approaches to wellness, including training in mind/body medicine with Herbert Benson, M.D., at Harvard Medical School, a license in therapeutic bodywork, certification and training in Reiki, Polarity, and stress management. She continues to deepen her understanding of yoga through ongoing practice and study. Kovanda found out about the Finding Inner Peace Yoga School this spring, when she noticed construction going on close to Cape Cod Natural Foods, near her home in Centerville: Centerville Yoga and Wellness Center owner Annika Iliadis is a graduate of Finding Inner Peace Yoga School. She teaches Hatha Yoga, Vinyasa Flow, and most recently Prenatal Yoga. The center offers wellness treatments such as massage, reflexology, and acupuncture, as well as a variety of yoga classes. Kovanda’s first Finding Inner Peace Yoga Teacher Training group has been meeting at the center every Tuesday evening since May, and will complete their six-month teacher training in November. A new session, with all new teachers in training, will begin on Nov. 27. The Finding Inner Peace Yoga School has been a registered 200-hour program with the National Yoga Alliance since 2002, and has offered teacher certification since 1996. Founder and director Spencer and her faculty offer training in numerous off-Cape locations as well. Students complete 200 hours of asana, or yoga position, training, which includes standing poses, balances, seated, prone, and supine poses, inversions, and twists. They also study meditation practices, yoga philosophy, anatomy and physiology, and yoga methodology. Spencer is recognized as an Advanced Registered Yoga Teacher with the National Yoga Alliance. She lectures locally and nationally on the Science of Yoga and Energy Medicine, and teaches Reiki Energy Healing to nurses and therapists at the New England Baptist Hospital in Boston. Kovanda is proud and excited about what the future holds for her soon-to-be-released crop of new yoga teachers. “They’re wonderful,” she said. “Seven of them are already teaching regular classes. Each one of them has their own unique style and special gifts to offer. I am just so proud of them. And I’m so blessed to have come full circle, teaching new yoga teachers. As much as I can hardly believe that this class is almost finished, I can hardly wait to meet the new group.” For more information about Diane Kovanda and the Finding Inner Peace Yoga Teacher training that she teaches at Centerville Yoga and Wellness Center, call 508-428-8635 or go to www.yogacapecod.com. For more information about the offerings at the Centerville Yoga and Wellness Center, call 508-775-1422 or go to www.centervilleyoga.com. For more information about Maureen Spencer and the Finding Inner Peace Yoga School, call 781-878-0115 or go to www.findinginnerpeace.com.
So glad to be here Cape Cod Community College Alumna of the Year reflects on overcoming adversity By Kathleen Szmit If you’ve ever heard the name Diane Kovanda and seem to recognize it but aren’t certain why, take a moment. Reflect. Chances are you know Kovanda’s name not because you’ve met her personally, but because you’ve seen one of her wonderful DVD’s. Kovanda is the creator and videographer of the Cape Cod-Reflections of Beauty and Yoga CapeCod dvds. Last week Kovanda was honored by Cape Cod Community College as its Alumna of the Year during graduation ceremonies held at the Melody Tent. "Oh my goodness," she said of the honor. "I was just so floored! It’s a rite of passage." When Diane Kovanda was a child she went by the name Jarmila, which means "Spring Favor." She lived with her parents in Communist-occupied Czechoslovakia, in Prague. "I lived in a city of stone, cement and castles," she said. Unfortunately, it was a time of great political unrest in Czechoslovakia. Outspoken citizens were being jailed, or worse, for speaking out against Communism. Because Kovanda’s mother was such a woman, her safety was compromised. With her young daughter in tow, Kovanda’s mother escaped on a night train and relocated to the United States, settling on Cape Cod. "My mother knew one person in the US and he just happened to be [here]," said Kovanda. For many, Cape Cod is a retreat, a vacation place where they come to escape the stresses of the working world. To Kovanda, the Cape is a sanctuary. Because she had few opportunities as a child to be outdoors except when she visited her grandparents in the Czech countryside, Kovanda was immediately smitten with the Cape landscape. "Nature was very healing to us," she said. "Where I got my strength was out in the wild places." Other than her mother, Kovanda’s one constant was nature. She delighted in the outdoors. When she took a photography course in high school she put her camera to work. "It was the first exciting thing I ever did in school," she said. "I became obsessed with getting the perfect picture of a flower." Perhaps because of her childhood struggles, Kovanda felt deeply for children in similar situations. While living on Fresh Holes Road, she became a part of the Big Brother/Big Sister program. "There was this little girl who would sit on my step every day," she recalled. "To get my attention she would throw my lawn furniture in the bushes." Although that little girl was too young for the program, her sister became Kovanda’s first "little" and she was the second. So strong was her involvement in the program, she was named Big Sister of the Year in 1986. Photos of her "littles" adorn her refrigerator. She still keeps in touch with all of them, one of whom is serving in the Middle East. After graduating from CCCC, Kovanda received a Masters in Education from Cambridge College. These days she is a stress-reduction counselor in Cotuit, as well as a Yoga instructor and videographer. Diane feels blessed to have washed ashore on Cape Cod. "I walk Long Beach and after a while I know all the walkers," she said. "All the dogs, the kids in the backpack carriers. It’s an amazing connection. I’m so glad I’m here." Cape Cod Reflections of Beauty DVD’s, video postcards of the exquisite natural beauty of the Cape, a place Kovanda loves deeply. Although it is not the only home she has ever known, it is the only home she has truly become a part of.
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© 2003-2007 Diane Kovanda