Graham Nolan has been exploring the potential of yoga to enrich the lives of a group of people with congenital deafblindness.

With the growing concern for people’s health and well-being it is important we look at new ways to tackle the lack of exercise opportunities for many disabled people. Yoga, for example, has a lot to offer. 

Yoga doesn’t simply deal the body but actually means 'a union of mind and body’  It is an ancient practice originating from India and although not linked with any religion, provides a deep spiritual practice for millions of people across the globe. In fact, it was an article in Deafblind Review by Dipti Karnad who works with deafblind children in India which initially sparked my interest. `Our students have developed spatial and body awareness, confidence and concentration,’ he wrote. 

As a trainee yoga teacher myself I decided to explore how yoga might be therapeutic for a group of congenitally deafblind people who attend the Anne Wall Centre in Barnet.

So how do we make yoga accessible to deafblind people?

It is incredibly important that the yoga session appeals to as many of the senses as possible (but is not overwhelming). Using colours, texture, smells, sound and vibration over time enables us to introduce new objects and/or smells of reference, such as a cut-up square of a yoga matt or a particular brand of incense. 

The group starts with the chanting of three ‘Om’s by all those who can participate. This sound is said to be the ‘first sound’ in yogic philosophy and covers a wide range of frequency and sounds, which may allow some hearing impaired individuals to `feel’ the vibrations of the sound.

Incense is burned 15 minutes prior to the session. This creates an atmosphere which will, over time, trigger the temporal cortical area of the brain, also associated with memory. “A smell is a very personal thing and goes, so to say, straight to our heart,” wrote Lex Grandia in 2005. A Tibetan symbol with ‘good vibrations’ is used to mark the start and end of the lesson.

Yoga nidra is a meditative practice which involves bringing awareness to different parts of the body in sequence. Swarmi Nirmairatna Saraswati writes in his article on teaching yoga to deaf children, that a similar process can be achieved through a ‘hands on’ practice involving touching a sequence of body parts. `Scientific research has shown that simple yoga nidra techniques help to induce deep relaxation, allowing the negative impressions stored in the unconscious mind a chance to come to the surface and dissipate,” he writes. 

The practice adapted for a deafblind yogi is very similar, with staff supporting the person hand-under-hand to touch each area of their body. This method is chosen is preference to a hand-over-hand method which some practitioners feel may encourage passivity on the part of a deafblind child or adult.

Breathing is also important. Slowing the breath down has a calming effect on the mind and relaxes tension in the body.

We have explored a number of ways to encourage our deafblind users to breathe more slowly: 

• Using feathers and a bubble-mixture to give the deafblind person feedback about their breathing.
• With a profoundly deafblind person a process of exploration of a staff member’s breathing may offer the suggestion to the deafblind person that breath length can be altered. 
• Sitting up close to the back of a deafblind person may enable staff to use a full yogic breath to demonstrate the movement of breath occurring from as low as the belly.

We have also looked at ways to encourage a deafblind person to breathe through their nose since this offers a more controlled inhalation and exhalation:

• Enabling a deafblind person to experience the feeling of their breath on a staff member’s hand
• Holding the deafblind person’s hand below the staff member’s nose to feel the difference in temperature of breath through the nose to breathe through the mouth.

The very process of breathing together and ‘playing’ with breath is bonding and builds relationships. Pranayama (Breathing practice) is one of the most important aspects of yoga and the energy which is created from this practice can profoundly stimulate feelings of well-being.       

One of the essential changes we have made at the centre is that staff also have the chance to attend their own (subsidised) yoga class. This means that they have a better understanding of yoga and are more confident in their practice with their communication partner. It also means that staff members are more supple which means that they are much less susceptible to injury and strains. It’s good for morale too.

Evaluation

Evaluating results was never going to be easy. It’s hard to measure if someone has become more relaxed or has enjoyed a bonding experience with their communication partner. A more scientific approach would perhaps look at body tone, flexibility and physical health over a period of time. But then yoga has always been about a lot more than the body and I believe that it can be a very positive experience for deafblind people in many ways.