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Natural Awakenings Central New Jersey

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Chair Yoga for MS Patients

Sponsored by the MS Association and taught by Amy Shanti Manifase, this open-level yoga class will guide participants through yoga poses and teach breathing techniques, alignment and mindfulness. Held every Thursday afternoon from 1:30 to 2:30 pm, students will gain flexibility and strength while moving at a perfectly slower pace- allowing ample time to enjoy each pose. Although much of the class will be done seated in a chair, the option of practicing some standing poses to improve balance and strength is also included.  Lots of gentle stretching brings movement to the joints and muscles.

In addition to poses, meditation techniques will be introduced during Deep Relaxation time in every class. Chair Yoga for MS Patients is perfect for stress relief and overall wellbeing. Suggested donation is $15 per class.  

Amy Shanti Manifase is a certified yoga teacher, registered with Yoga Alliance since 2008 and has been practicing yoga for over 10 years.  After being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 1981, Amy originally starting practicing yoga as a means to improve and maintain optimal physical health.  She has since realized that yoga is so much more than exercise and physical postures; a regular yoga practice, including asana, breathing exercises, meditation and the study of yogic philosophy, has truly changed her life.

Location: Sand Hills Community Wellness Center, 57 Sand Hills Road, Kendall Park. For more information, call Shanti at 732-261-7419. FeedingAllWhoHunger.com.

Yoga MS News Briefs
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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