Week of November 7-12, 2010

Yoga and Addiction Recovery: A Celebration of Healing

Addictive behaviors separate us from ourselves, each other, our environment, and the Divine. Yoga means union, balance, connection, integration, relationship. The practices of yoga and meditation teach us the art and science of balancing and integration, connecting mind, body, and spirit. This profound interweaving, this union, rockets healing forward.



This retreat celebrates the ancient tools and practices of yoga as a way to deepen the exploration of recovery from addictions within the mind/body continuum. It brings together a dynamic collection of teachers and healers from a wide variety of backgrounds who will share their experience, strength, and hope through the journey from addiction to recovery.



The ancient yogis provided us with a system for connecting mind, body, and spirit through asana, pranayama, chanting, and meditation. The integration we experience through our practice enlivens our recovery and deepens our relationship to ourselves and the world around us. Connected to our wholeness we more readily recognize our addictive behaviors and find the inner strength to move beyond them. This groundbreaking retreat, the first of its kind, welcomes everyone – all recovery, all addictions, all seekers. There will be something for everyone, with asana practices ranging from to gentle to rocking vinyasa classes. The meditation session will inspire the most novice to the most seasoned meditator. No matter where you are on this path this retreat is for you!



We will feature Kevin Griffin, the author of One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps and the forthcoming God, Buddha, and the Path of Recovery. Through his dharma talk, Kevin will enlighten us about Buddhism, its practices, and the correlation to Twelve-step recovery. Kevin will lead a meditation workshop to guide us through the process of meditation: how to begin, continue, and deepen our own practice. Everyone from a first-time meditator to one with years of practice will benefit from the experience Kevin shares, the hope he brings, and the strength we gain through practicing together.



Each day we will delve into our practice and explore new possibilities of connection, acceptance, and awareness. Our hearts will open. We will know that our direct experience is our ultimate guide to our spiritual awakening. Beyond the practice, we will take an in-depth look at the history of yoga and its connection with twelve-step programs. Exploring the chakra system, and how it aligns with recovery, will unleash our potential. We will connect our inner and outer worlds and awaken the joy and peace from within by learning how to bring the twelve steps alive in our practice. The divine practice of Bhakti yoga will lead us to our own heart song. Guided meditations will be the thread to connect our experience, leading us toward deeper integration and self-realization. As we illuminate our greater potential, may we all have a desire to share what we have been given.



These five days will be filled with celebration of our mind/body connection. The mornings will begin with an asana and meditation practice. Each day a different workshop will be offered, allowing us to explore more fully the convergence of the path of yoga and recovery. The asana practices will carry out the themes of yoga and recovery, embracing such concepts as surrender, letting go, acceptance, and gratitude. A special component of this retreat will be a “meeting with movement,” which will help move our understanding organically within our body through a traditional twelve-step meeting combined with asana. Our evenings will be filled with Kirtan, speakers, dancing, and free time to mingle, reflect, soak in the hot springs, rest, rejuvenate, and connect. Through these magical five days, we will celebrate the vision for our life paths.



Roxanne "Nikki" Meyers is an accomplished teacher and practitioner on the path of yoga. Nikki came to yoga in the midst of her own health crisis, and quickly realized yoga also allowed healing to happen far beyond the physical. Nikki is the founder of CITYOGA School of Yoga and Health, and cofounded the Yoga of 12-Step Recovery program, featured in the New York Times and Yoga Journal. She is a certified Viniyoga teacher and yoga therapist, and has completed teacher trainings with Tias Little, received cardiac and cancer certification with Nischala Devi, studies with Peter Levine, and assists and co-teaches with her sister/friend Seane Corn at workshops and conferences across the US and abroad. She is a regional leadership "Diva" for Off The Mat, Into The World and she has worked and studied internationally.



Rolf Gates is the author of Meditations from the Mat: Daily Reflections on the Path of Yoga and conducts Vinyasa intensives and teacher trainings throughout the US and abroad. Rolf and his work have been featured in numerous magazines including Yoga Journal, Natural Health and People Magazine and as one of Travel and Leisures' Top 25 Yoga Studios Around the World. A frequent conference presenter, this year he was also the Keynote Speaker at the 10th Annual Midwest Yoga Conference, in Illinois. Rolf is also honored to be a contributor in the newly released Good Men Project: Real Stories from the Front Lines of Modern Manhood being featured nationally on television and in print. All proceeds from this project go to support groups working with men and boys at risk. Rolf also works one-on-one with clients in his Yoga Life Coaching program. A former social worker and US Airborne Ranger who has practiced meditation for the last sixteen years, Rolf brings his eclectic background to his practice and his teachings. For more about Rolf, visit www.rolfgates.com.



Carrie Coppola completed her teacher training with D’ana Baptiste and has studied with many teachers including Ana Forrest, Rolf Gates, Christy Burnette, Brian Kest, Mitchell Bleier. Carrie brings to her classes a delicate balance between intention and surrender. She guides each student to discovery their own beauty, to embrace their humanness and to live from their place of truth. Carrie brings that same sense of balance, ease, and spiritual connection to her work with yoga and recovery. She believes yoga found her. The healing benefits were profound and ignited her passion for her practice and subsequently for her teaching. Carrie quickly saw how the healing of her mat mirrored the healing of her recovery. This, along with her numerous years teaching prevention education, led her to create Yoga for Recovery, a program integrating yoga in treatment centers. Carrie also holds monthly workshops, which incorporate the 12 steps with asana and meditation, and trains other yogis to teach those in recovery. For more about Carrie, visit www.carriecoppola.com.

A popular Vinyasa flow teacher in Los Angeles, Vinnie Marino teaches a strong, physically challenging practice set to inspiring music. Vinnie is a featured model in the health section of the Los Angeles Times and leads retreats and workshops throughout the country and the world. Vinnie writes: "I grew up in New York and started doing yoga as a teenager with Lilas Folan on TV, channel 9. I was drawn to a lot of the spiritual literature of the 60s and started reading books about yoga and meditation- Alan Watts, Ram Dass. In high school, my gym class wound up being yoga and biking. It was the early 70s and the drug culture was still very prominent. For me, drugs became a quick and easy way to feel happy and free. I experienced freedom and an openness, which eventually dead ended. In my late twenties, I got clean and sober. I started living a healthier lifestyle. In the early 90's I moved to LA and found my way back to yoga. This yoga was different from the gentle 70s yoga; it was hot, sweaty, hard and intense. I loved it. I felt energized and alive."

Kevin Griffin is the author of A Burning Desire: Dharma, God & the Path of Recovery and One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps. A longtime Buddhist practitioner and 12 Step participant, he is a leader in the mindful recovery movement and one of the founders of the Buddhist Recovery Network. Kevin has trained with the leading Western Vipassana teachers, among them Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, and Ajahn Amaro. His teacher training was as a Community Dharma Leader at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Marin County, Calif. Kevin teaches nationally in Buddhist centers, treatment centers, professional conferences, and academic settings. He specializes in helping people in recovery connect with meditation and a progressive understanding of the 12 Steps. His events range from evening classes, to daylong workshops, and long weekend silent retreats.



Jai Uttal, a sacred music composer, recording artist, multi-instrumentalist, and ecstatic vocalist, combines influences from India with influences from American rock and jazz, creating a stimulating and exotic multi-cultural fusion that is truly world spirit music. Having traveled extensively in India, where he met many beautiful saints and singers, Bhakti yoga became his personal path. Jai has been leading kirtans around the world for more than 30 years, creating a safe environment for people to open their hearts and voices. His latest CD Thunder Love was just released by Nutone Records.

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