Lori and I are attending the Symposium on Yoga Research (SYR) at Kripalu, sponsored by IAYT. We’ll have a Phoenix Rising booth there as well. Lori and attended last year and were impressed by the amount of yoga/medical research going on in the world. What I’ve noticed recently is that there is more and more research being done using mindful styles of yoga that focus on awareness that brings forth empowerment for lifestyle, thought shifting, and change as opposed to types of physical prescriptive yoga with a treatment approach in mind. There is a place for both types, of course, and yet, it is new that research is being initiated from the medical community into the more body mindful approaches to yoga such as what Phoenix Rising Yoga and Yoga Therapy offers.
Let’s put our hat in the ring…
What really interests me, in terms of the role Phoenix Rising Yoga professionals can play here, is noticing there is a place for us in this research and it is time we put our hat in the ring. For 30 years now, we’ve been delivering this work around the world. We all know from our anecdotal evidence that it works, is successful, and helps people (quite a bit, actually). Well, I think it’s time that we step up and prove it with research. A lot of Phoenix Rising practitioners have expressed interested in research, and, I often hear,“You know, I’d like to be involved with research, but I don’t know how.” Well, to be honest with you, I don’t know either. I haven’t got a clue about research, and, also, I haven’t been very passionate about it until recently. Well – our time has come, as there’s a lot of evidence now that supports our work in the world, and I think that has created an opportunity for us as practitioners.
Now, how do we get to do that? The best way I can think of is to learn from the people who have been doing it. That’s why, Lori and I are going to SYR and putting out a really big, strong urge to you to CONSIDER JOINING US AT SYR. Imagine a large enough group of us to make an impactful showing from Phoenix Rising. Together we can network with researchers, invite them to sit with us for awhile and tell us about what they are doing, why they are doing it, and offer ourselves to assist. I found, last year, that it does impress researchers to find wide spread control groups of professionals who are similarly trained – and we fit that bill! We’d like to interest a research group into using us for a project, taking us along for the ride, teach us more about how to perform research and be involved. And so, I really encourage you to come.
Looking forward to seeing you there. Make sure you let us know if you plan to attend as we will plan strategic networking ahead of time.
Click this link to register for the symposium. NOTE: IAYT members get a $100 discount.
