Healing Yoga for People Living with Cancer (Paperback)

by Lisa Holtby (Author) "Welcome! Healing Yoga for People Living with Cancer is based on my two years of teaching yoga classes for Cancer Lifeline and is a compilation..." (more)
Key Phrases: Half Moon, Resting Child, Seated Warrior (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
A friendly, playful, and easy-to-use guide of yoga routines, this book is designed specifically for people who are in the active cancer treatment and early recovery stages.

From the Publisher
More than an exercise program, Healing Yoga for People Living with Cancer is a deeply soothing form of moving meditation and a physical expression of the heart's fierce desires for courage, strength, and love. Designed specially for people with all types of cancer at any stage of the disease, Healing Yoga is an effective and saf way to rebuild strength, stamina, and flexibility both during and following concer treatments.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 108 pages
• Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing; 1 edition (December 25, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1589791053
• ISBN-13: 978-1589791053
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 8.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #310,133 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic yoga book, May 11, 2006

By	Cancer Doctor, Cancer Patient (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

I am an oncologist being treated for breast cancer. I've done yoga off and on for years, but mostly haven't been up to going to classes during my treatment. The sequences in this book have helped a lot with both the mental/emotional stress of treatment and the stiffness of being less active than usual. Although it is a little challenging to do yoga from a book, I like the greater flexibility and ability to take things at my own pace compared to videos.

Some of the features I like:
-excellent introduction to breathing and meditation
-good guidelines for how to listen to your body and practice safely during your treatment
-sequences of poses of varying difficulty level (including one sequence that is all seated in a chair) so you can tailor your routine to what you feel up to, or combine them for a longer practice
-each pose is illustrated with 2 photographs, contains clear instructions on how to set up properly and good instructions on how to focus your mind and body during the pose. Almost as good as having a teacher with you!

Highly recommended for people new to yoga, and for people familiar with yoga who need a modified home practice during their cancer treatment. Namaste.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nice design, generally helpful, March 29, 2007

By	Margaret E. Coalson "flowersinthegrass" (Rochester, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

i bought this book as i was preparing to begin teaching yoga at a cancer center. i'm a certified teacher with lots of experience in yoga as therapy, but have little experience working with the physical, emotional and mental effects of cancer and wanted insight into how it feels to have cancer and what limitations one comes up against depending on what type of cancer is present. i found the text content about the experience of cancer to be helpful in my preparations, but the asana seemed dry and predictable and lacking in images of modifications. after working with the patients, it dawned on me that any book that teaches gentle yoga is just as good as this if you are viewing it purely from an asana standpoint. the way i teach is student-centered and individualized for the life experience of the student, so there is no broad formula that can be applied. i was looking for more specific information on modification for people with ports, recent surgeries and drug side effects and i still haven't found a resource that merges medical science with gentle asana, pranayama and meditation (in something smaller than a textbook!). The pictures are helpful, the sorting of postures is intuitive, the text is real and the design is attractive, but if you're looking for something more than a picture book of gentle asana, this might not meet your needs.

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful gift, May 8, 2007

By	A. Stewart "A. Stewart" (Providence, RI) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I sent this book to my aunt who was recently diagnosed with cancer and who is recovering from surgery. She had some prior experience with yoga before she was diagnosed, but was fearful of resuming her home-based practice because she was not sure how to proceed, given her new diagnosis and her recovery process.

My aunt called to thank me and said that this book is one of the most helpful resources she has found. The written words gave voice to her cancer experience and gave her the confidence to start practicing yoga again. The instructions on breathing were incredibly helpful and she would recommend this book to others living with cancer who want to be proactive about their recovery.

A few years ago I had the great honor of practicing yoga with Lisa's guidance. She is an amazing person who brings her yoga practice into her life and her life into her practice. When I bought her book I never imagined that I would be sending it to someone I love so dearly. I know I cannot change my aunt's diagnosis or make her well, but sending her a gift that I know is helping her cope better with the road ahead brought me great relief.