A Message About The Coronavirus

If you are like me, the more you understand about the coronavirus, the less stressed you will be. I want to spend my energy educating myself and sending light to where it is needed, to those infected, to those working in health care, and to the communities affected most by the disease - economically and physically. And I want to focus my energy to keep my immune system strong.

To that end, I want to share this information video that I received in my inbox this morning. It describes how the coronavirus works, what it does to your body, and how your body can fight it. The video is about 8 minutes long, so it won't take too much time to watch.

Happily, there are many sources of information and encouragement when it comes to building and maintaining a strong immune system. If you are interested in following an Ayurveda, herbal or homeopathic protocol, I posted some sources below.  

Given the growing concern about the spread of the coronavirus, you will not be surprised to learn that Kashi Ashram and I have decided to cancel the upcoming AYT retreat. We feel it is important to respect people's hesitation to travel at this time, so we will try to reschedule the retreat in the fall. Stay tuned for more information on that. In the meantime, I am offering a one-day Ayurvedic retreat on Saturday, March 28 (see information below) which will cover much of the material that I was going to teach at Kashi.

Based on best practices encouraged by the NJ Department of Health, the US Centers for Disease Control and other experts, we are instituting some changes at Yoga Loka as well.

• As you have heard, frequent and thorough hand-washing is considered key, and you will find reminders of that in the bathroom, along with paper towels (rather than cloth) with which to dry your hands.
• Consider bringing your own blanket to class. Many of you do already.
• We are asking everyone who uses blocks to clean them after class with  anti-bacterial wipes you'll find on those shelves.
• We have also instituted a change to the practice of teachers providing hands-on assistance in class. We have set red poker chips at the front desk for students who are not comfortable being assisted in class at this time. A red poker chip placed at the front of your mat signals to the teacher that you do not want to be touched.
• Finally, for those of you who want to continue your yoga practice but feel uncomfortable coming to the studio, I am making my classes available via Zoom. You can join a live class by installing the Zoom app on your computer or phone and "showing up" on time for class in the comfort of your own home. Those of you who are on monthly auto renew or have an established class block can join any time. "Drop-ins" who pay by class can continue to do so via Zoom as long as there is a credit card on file. Please contact me for further instruction on how to attend.

Practicing yoga is one of the best things you can do to keep stress in check. I hope you will continue to treat yourself well by attending class in the studio - or from home. Keeping yourself healthy is also the best thing you can do to help keep our community healthy. if you need assistance in maintaining (or establishing) a robust yoga practice during the coronavirus outbreak, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Namaste
     ~  Bonnie

Additional resources:

• Ayurvedic protocol
• Homeopathy
• Using Mushrooms and other immune boosting tinctures