The day will start at 9am with a practice suitable for anyone diagnosed with cancer so that you will have the opportunity to experience four different classes and the adaptations that might be necessary. The day will include a mixture of physical practice, lectures and teaching practices working in smaller groups. There will be a break in the morning and the afternoon and 1 hour for lunch. The day will end at 5pm and we will finish with pranayama / meditation.

Day 1: Gentle practice with mudras the importance of building back strength slowly. Overview of cancer terminology and diagnosis. How to create a safe and healing environment. Understanding stress, fear and anxiety and the impact of living with cancer. Exploring different treatment options for cancer and the possible side effects of the treatment. How to start creating a toolbox of poses and adjustments to help with the side effects of treatment and diagnosis. Each day will build on our toolbox for side effects.

Day 2: Stronger practice with mantras. Breast cancer treatment and reconstruction and its implications. Modifying the practice and the importance of building back range of motion and strength. How to create compassionate classes that start with ourselves. Building on our toolbox. Lymphoedema specific exercises. Guest Speaker Louise Malone Specialist Oncology Physiotherapist will talk on how movement helps to maximise a person’s function before, during or after treatment. How it can help with, and even prevent side effects of systemic treatment such as muscle weakness, peripheral neuropathy and treatment related fatigue (TRF).

Day 3: Empathy practice. Koshas a multidimensional approach to healing. Hormones and menopause, building on our toolbox to support side effects. Osteoporosis and building strength to prepare students to work toward more weight baring poses that might help to build bone strength. The big Cs are also Community and Connection and how important this is for these classes. Group class planning on how we can start to put what we have learnt into practice. Working in small groups to create and modify a class for specific side effects. Secondary Cancer and palliative care.

Day 4: Guest Speaker Liliana Branco Supportive Care/Palliative Care Clinical Nurse Specialist will talk to us about how to support those in palliative care. The importance of learning to relax on a deeper level including Meditation, Yoga Nidra and guided relaxation. The business of teaching yoga for cancer.

Vicky encourages anyone on the training to observe a class.

Cultivating a safe space, how to hold that space, to listen and be compassionate in a yoga studio when working with fear, anxiety and possibly pain. To reassure people who may have found themselves in a world filled with tests and procedures. How you as a teacher can make the yoga studio a welcoming place that is accessible to a very wide range of experiences, abilities and quality of health.

Understanding cancer terminology. Diagnosis and grading of cancer. Treatment for breast cancer and implications of reconstructive surgery. Lymphoedema and cording and how to adapt the class to allow people to increase range of motion and build strength slowly and in a safe way. How your class can minimise muscle atrophy and keep blood and lymph circulating to help promote well-being.

Understanding the A-Z of Side effects, building a toolbox and being able to use your skills as a yoga teacher or therapist to adapt classes so that the class is accessible and inclusive to all.

Exploring the concept that we are not just a physical body. How we are multidimensional beings of mind, body and spirit that are connected. Our bodies are made up of different layers or koshas that are constantly changing. We will explore how to fully let go and how we need to relax each layer from the outer to the inner layers for us to allow healing to take place.

Considering what your students may need most to feel empowered but also taking into account practices that support the changes occurring such as bone density, menopausal symptoms or secondary cancer.

The role of Yoga Nidra, guided relaxation and meditation. Use of language that is validating and supportive.

This training is open to all qualified or accredited teachers of yoga or therapists with a committed yoga practice.

There are 4 pieces of coursework needed to complete the training. Course work includes recording a 40min class for someone impacted by cancer, completing questions on the course and 2 reading assignments. First reading assignment is an account of someone living with cancer and answer some relevant questions on the book in reference to the Koshas. Second reading assignment is “Making Friends with Death – A buddhist guide to encountering mortality” by Judith L Lief and completing an assignment on this book.