Sharing the Joy of Mini Me Yoga
My son Thomas and I have been doing Mini Me Yoga for a couple of years. We were introduced to Mini Me Yoga through his primary school and we attended a student and parent afterschool Mini Me Yoga Club. Thomas had a challenging start to life; being a premature baby 12weeks early, and having numerous trips to and from hospitals, not only for appointments but also trips to A&E or CAU, and on more than one occasion in an ambulance. These kinds of experiences can be distressing for anyone, especially a child, therefore finding something that can help calm and focus a distressed child is vital. 5-breaths or what we nicknamed ‘rollercoaster breathing’ or ‘Magic Hand’ has been a phenomenal tool in our household. When the little man has been ill, distressed, or anxious we have used it to help ground, and calm him down. I must say it definitely works! Other parents have seen us use it during swimming lessons, when he has started to panic or swallowed water and began to get upset. They have asked us about the breathing and why we do it, where we got the idea from etc, and we tell them. Some have even taken it with them to use with their families, play groups and school groups. So as it shows, the sharing has been great!
I now work at my son’s school during the out of hour clubs and have completed the Mini Me Yoga training. We have used the 5 breaths with the pre-school children as some have asthma and get out of breath very easy. One parent approached me explaining her 3 year old daughter used it when she was feeling poorly and upset, explaining to her mum that she has learnt the technique with me and it calmed her down. The parent was so impressed she thanked us!
During some training, we discussed how Mini Me Yoga could help out home with a child who has had a difficult day or suffering from bad dreams etc. Ashley Costello, Mini Me Yoga CEO, said to get the child to go into Dog pose and discuss the issue, but also add some humour. Thomas has recently been having some trouble with anxiety and bullying. Although the school have been excellent in tackling the bullying, it still affects him and he has disrupted sleep patterns, therefore we tried the Dog Pose discussion approach and did some more yoga poses before bedtime. We also placed our hands on our hearts and repeated “I am happy, I am brave, I am strong, I am me”. Thomas has slept all the way through since!!!! So every time he seems anxious or upset, we have tried this approach and it is very effective at bedtime.
I am so happy we discovered Mini Me Yoga, not only for my son, but for me and my job. It is something you can do on your own or with others. We have even started to get Thomas’s Dad giving it a go!
About Donna Burston
Our Parent Blogger Donna Burston, also works as a Personal Trainer, Fitness Instructor, Tai Chi and Qigong Instructor, PureStretch Instructor and School Out-Of-Hours Manager.
Follow Donna on Facebook: www.facebook.com/D13Fitness
