Parkinson's UK has announced a new partnership with the British Wheel of Yoga (BWY) to help more people with Parkinson's access yoga classes throughout the UK.
The British Wheel of Yoga is the UK’s largest yoga charity and the National Governing Body for yoga in England and Wales, offering training and yoga classes for all ages and abilities. The partnership aims to deliver more accessible yoga classes and wellbeing support for people living with Parkinson's, as well as their relatives and carers. The new partnership will also offer training and coaching for yoga instructors to help them better understand Parkinson's as a condition.
To celebrate the new partnership and to mark World Parkinson's Day, the British Wheel of Yoga will host a special free online yoga taster session for anyone with a connection to Parkinson's to try on Friday 10 April. The 45-minute online chair yoga class is delivered by experienced BWY yoga teacher, Richard Kravetz, and has been designed specifically for people with Parkinson’s, yoga teachers keen to adapt their classes for the community, and anyone with a connection to the condition. The session will focus on sharing safe, practical movements and breathing techniques that can be done while seated to aid mobility and mindfulness.
Jed Parsons, Physical Activity Programme Manager at Parkinson's UK, said: "I am delighted that Parkinson's UK has been able to agree the new partnership with the British Wheel of Yoga and to offer more opportunities for people living with Parkinson's to access yoga classes across the UK.
"Yoga is shown to have many benefits for a person's physical and mental wellbeing when they live with Parkinson's and it can be a very accessible and adaptable way to live well with a long-term health condition. We are encouraging everyone with a connection to Parkinson's to join us on Friday 10 April to try the free seated yoga class and find out how the activity can help you live well at any time of the year."
Diana O’Reilly, Chair at the British Wheel of Yoga, said: “Yoga can be hugely beneficial for people with Parkinson’s.
“Gentle chair-based practices can be adapted for almost everyone, which means people can participate safely whether they are newly diagnosed or have been living with Parkinson’s for many years. Through this partnership, we want to give more teachers the tools they need to welcome people with Parkinson’s into their classes and to make sure no one feels that yoga ‘isn’t for them’.”
Parkinson's is a complex brain condition that gets worse over time. It has more than 40 symptoms, from tremor and pain to anxiety, and there is no cure. Someone is diagnosed with Parkinson’s in the UK every 20 minutes and by 2050, the number of people living with the condition worldwide will double to 25 million.
Parkinson’s UK is the leading European funder of Parkinson’s research and here to support every Parkinson’s journey, every step of the way. For information and support, visit parkinsons.org.uk or call the charity’s free, confidential helpline on 0808 800 0303.
