Happy birthday Special Yoga Centre

“The Special Yoga Centre is a Yoga centre in north west London with the fundamental aim of making Yoga available to everyone and is celebrating its first year in permanent premises. What is the genesis of this unique, inclusive organisation and why?
The Centre is the outcome of the dream of one woman, Jo Manuel, and is the UK home of the Yoga for the Special Child (TM) programme initiated in Brazil by Sonia Sumar over 30 years ago. The Centre, a registered charity, offers Yoga therapy to infants and children with a very wide range of special needs including downs Syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism, epilepsy, ADD and other physical and developmental difficulties. Jo Manuel who is also the Director of the Centre, trained extensively under Sonia Sumar. Sonia’s Yoga programme revolves around the core belief that all children are special and no label can define or limit their potential for positive change. Her teachings involve five basic principles: love without attachment, patience, trust, to be careful but not afraid, and ultimately for all of us to see beyond those limitations that we see in the child, to the loving personality or spirit within.
This was a concept Jo immediately understood from practising Yoga for over 30 years, first studying with he world renowned Dharma Mittra in New York, then Faustomaria, Jon Stirk and Mary Stewart, amongst others in London...
...According to Jo, ’All children, even disabled children can practice Yoga and benefit form it. The practice of Yoga touches deeply into our beings and is healing to all who practice well’...
...From a charity initially set up to offer yoga therapy to children with special needs, an inclusive organisation has grown which reaches out to all levels of family. The Special Yoga Centre now offers Yoga classes for pregnancy, mum and baby, post-natal, toddler, children’s and teenagers Yoga, gentle remedial Yoga for people with health disorders as as a range of adult classes such as Astanga Vinyasa, Hatha, Dynamic Flow Yoga, Kung Fu and Tai Chi...”

This article is written by Cheryl Taesali, and copyright is retained by the author and the Special Yoga Centre. For more information, visit www.specialyoga.org.uk