Release and Relax: Yoga for personal and professional self care

Do you feel yourself getting exhausted, burnt out, compassion fatigue, working long hours, stressed out, pouring from an empty cup, unable to unwind at the end of the day, and/or unable to give to yourself what you are constantly giving to others? If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, Release and Relax yoga might be for you!

Release and Relax is a 10-week self care yoga program in Geelong. Release and Relax is underpinned with social work and somatic therapy techniques. It is designed to help you reconnect to your body, to improve your mental health, and to release work and home related tension, stress, and worry.

Release and Relax introduces bite size approaches to yoga, breath work, mindfulness, meditation, sound healing, somatic therapy and social work self-care techniques. The goal is for you to take what you like, leave what you don't, and to build your own self-care toolbox by the end of the 10 weeks.

Yoga has a strong evidence-base. Studies have proven that yoga can have positive benefits for mental health (including reducing anxiety and depression symptoms). 

There's a reason why "self care" is a buzz word these days! Evidence has now shown that stress can significantly harm the brain and body. Becoming stuck in chronic stress cycles affects the message your brain sends and hormones released throughout the body. Over time this can cause issues like diabetes, decreased muscle strength, compromised immune system, high blood pressure, impaired kidneys, inflamed arteries, abnormal weight gain, chronic fatigue, gut disease, heart disease, heart attacks, and more. Additionally, stress often causes muscles to become tense which can lead to issues such as chronic pain, headaches and migraines.

Evidence now shows that self care is crucial in preventing secondary traumatic stress, burnout. It's time to step out of our stress cycles, and start making some positive changes to our brain and bodies! 

Release and Relax yoga is deliberately designed at a beginners level to make it accessible for EVERYONE!

Release and Relax guides participants through how to safely enter and exit yoga postures, and maintain good alignment to keep your body safe from injury. Over the course of the 10-weeks you will gradually learn the names of yoga poses to help you build confidence to enter a public yoga class down the track.

For the intermediate crew: Release and Relax is for you too! Alternative postures will be offered throughout for you to heat up the practice to your level.