Monday, March 14, 2011
Baby Yoga
I may be a little delayed in my response to the viral YouTube video of a Russian woman claiming to do "Baby Yoga" by swinging around a two-week old baby by its limbs. I was so appalled by the idea of it, that I couldn't even stomach watching it at first and cringed when I finally did see it.
Thankfully, most links have been shut down by YouTube to take away from the attention this woman has been getting. I don't think, after seeing this video, that there is a fuzzy line of whether this is abuse or not. New mothers can't leave the hospital without receiving and reading a pamphlet about Shaken Baby Syndrome, so why would what this woman does be okay? And how in the world can she claim that this is any form of yoga?
Yoga comes from the word yoke meaning to unite. There are many ideas or concepts that come with a deeper practice or understanding of yoga and one of them is ahimsa or non-harming. Call me opinionated or just call me a mom, but I believe all babies should be nurtured, cuddled and held close. This is just part of what one of my Mama & Baby Yoga classes includes. We also incorporate stretches and poses that stimulate baby's brain and body development. There's also lots of singing and smiles. All of this seems to be absent from what this woman labels "Baby Yoga".
Nowhere in my training as a yoga teacher, experience as a mother or morality as a human being do I find the acts in the video to be any form of baby yoga, safe, stimulating or anything other than abuse.
When and if you are looking for a true baby yoga class, ask questions about the teacher, his/her training, style and the makeup of the class (ages of babies, ratio of moms and dads, etc.). Ask questions about how babies participate in class and the interactions. And, of course, what I tell all my mommies is to trust your instincts and if a class, pediatrician, babysitter or baby yoga teacher doesn't feel right for you, trust your maternal instincts. Your baby chose you as its protector and parent, so trust yourself as much as that baby trusts you. And I thank all the parents who have chosen me as their yoga teacher.
Thankfully, most links have been shut down by YouTube to take away from the attention this woman has been getting. I don't think, after seeing this video, that there is a fuzzy line of whether this is abuse or not. New mothers can't leave the hospital without receiving and reading a pamphlet about Shaken Baby Syndrome, so why would what this woman does be okay? And how in the world can she claim that this is any form of yoga?
Yoga comes from the word yoke meaning to unite. There are many ideas or concepts that come with a deeper practice or understanding of yoga and one of them is ahimsa or non-harming. Call me opinionated or just call me a mom, but I believe all babies should be nurtured, cuddled and held close. This is just part of what one of my Mama & Baby Yoga classes includes. We also incorporate stretches and poses that stimulate baby's brain and body development. There's also lots of singing and smiles. All of this seems to be absent from what this woman labels "Baby Yoga".
Nowhere in my training as a yoga teacher, experience as a mother or morality as a human being do I find the acts in the video to be any form of baby yoga, safe, stimulating or anything other than abuse.
When and if you are looking for a true baby yoga class, ask questions about the teacher, his/her training, style and the makeup of the class (ages of babies, ratio of moms and dads, etc.). Ask questions about how babies participate in class and the interactions. And, of course, what I tell all my mommies is to trust your instincts and if a class, pediatrician, babysitter or baby yoga teacher doesn't feel right for you, trust your maternal instincts. Your baby chose you as its protector and parent, so trust yourself as much as that baby trusts you. And I thank all the parents who have chosen me as their yoga teacher.
Labels: baby yoga, real baby yoga, viral baby yoga video
