Moms-to-be Lori Cohn, Megan Sla t
Julie Wedzina and Nicole Hall-Gendj

flank Katherine Austin, center.

Marvin & Betty Danto
Health Care Center
Heartland — Georgian Bloomfie
Heartland —West Bloomfield
Heartland — Oakland

800.800.CARE

www.lChooseHeartland.com

Karma Yoga in Bloomfield Hills
launches prenatal and family classes.

Lynne Meredith Golodner
Special to the Jewish News

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44 June 28 2012

racticing and teaching yoga for
nearly two decades has trans-
formed Katherine Austin. As
yoga changed Austin, it also enhanced
the way she parented her three sons
— and that's what she aims to share
with local families during prenatal
and parent-child yoga classes at her
Bloomfield Hills studio, Karma Yoga.
"Yoga has grounded me, centered
me and inspired me," says Austin, who
opened her studio in 2003. "It puts
everything in perspective. Yoga is a
spiritual foundation on which to build
any pursuit — from parenting to pro-
fessional life."
The launch of prenatal classes last
month is the first step in Karma's mis-
sion to become a full-scale family yoga
center.
For Julie August, one of Austin's
cadre of teachers, "Yoga was the spark,
the igniter of my spirituality, the key
that unlocked the door',' she says.
"From yoga, you become more patient,
compassionate and grateful."
Research shows that the nine
months of gestation constitute the
most consequential period of life —
and the time when a mother can most
influence her child's development.
The conditions encountered in utero,
according to author Annie Murphy
Paul, "shape everything about us —
from potential diseases, anxiety levels,
even intelligence."
The most powerful tool in yoga, the
breath, can influence and guide stress
levels and help people reach healthier
outcomes. Karma's prenatal classes
include partner yoga and meditations
to help expectant parents silence the
noise of the world and focus inward,
on themselves and on their growing
family.
Austin has worked with adults for
years as well as their tween and teen
children. A year ago, Austin realized

she needed to offer yoga earlier — at
the beginning of life — so children
could learn from the start how to
manage whatever challenges arise.
While yoga studios offer occa-
sional prenatal or parent-child yoga
classes, Karma is the first in Southeast
Michigan to put prenatal and mom-
my-and-me classes on the regular
schedule. Austin is the first Michigan
graduate of the prenatal yoga tech-
nique the Khalsa Way. The studio also
offers teachers trained in Mindful
Mamas and Digyoga prenatal.
Lori Cohn is one of Karma's prenatal
yoga teachers. Cohn has been teaching
at Karma for five years and practic-
ing yoga for 18."By offering prenatal
yoga, we are able to provide pregnant
women with the tools they need to
have a healthy, confident and graceful
pregnancy," she says.
"The knowledge you receive from
yoga translates to the language of the
heart, spirit and mind," says Deborah
Roberts, a Karma student. "The prin-
ciples of yoga teach you how to deeply
care for yourself and how to be kind to
others. Prenatal yoga classes connect
heart, spirit and mind. Learning to
take better care of yourself while preg-
nant will transform how you parent."
August, Cohn and Roberts agree
that yoga complements their Jewish
identity and faith. August says yoga
ignited her own spirituality. "The more
I study yoga, Mussar and meditation,
the more commonality I see among all
spiritual paths:' she says.
Next month, Karma will launch
Spirit Baby Yoga, a parent-child yoga
class for babies ages 6 weeks to 3
years. In the fall, more family yoga
offerings will be launched.
Karma Yoga is located at Maple and
Lahser Roads, next to Plum Market.
For more information, www.karma-
yoga.net or call (248) 723-9168.

Lynne Meredith Golodner owns Your People

LLC, a public relations firm in Southfield.

