NPR: Former Lecturer Susan Lovett Discusses the Benefits of Yoga for Marginalized Populations
Susan Lovett, a former lecturer at BU School of Social Work, talked to All Things Considered, an NPR program that aired on GBH, about providing meditation and mindfulness resources to marginalized communities through the Hands to Heart Center. Lovett draws on her experience as a social worker to use yoga as a coping strategy, helping participants lower heart rates, reduce stress, and build resilience.
Excerpt from “Hands to Heart Center Brings Yoga to Underserved Communities in Greater Boston” by Kana Ruhalter and Arun Rath:
This type of yoga is based on a lot of choices for the students and some suggestions of where a student might notice sensations in their body. A big difference from studio teaching is that teachers often say, “Reach your right arm up and stretch over to the left. Doesn’t that feel great?”
We are not telling people how their bodies feel. We would never put our hands on a student. We stay on our mats at the front of the room and we’re very explicit about that. We’re guiding people, suggesting forms and poses and then letting people choose whether to follow that guidance or do something of their own.
It offers a lot of options, and for trauma survivors, that shows to be really healing. We say that in trauma, people didn’t have a choice, or their choice didn’t matter, so this type of yoga puts the choice in the hands of the students.”