Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Yoga for the Special Child

I just got my confirmation letter and itinerary for the week long Yoga for the Special Child Basic Certification Program I will be attending this summer. My youngest son has very mild cerebral palsy and I've been doing yoga with him for years. Sonia's book, Yoga for the Special Child, has been an inspiration. Knowing that I will be attending a training that she will be teaching is so exciting, I can hardly wait.

What does this have to do with frugality, you may wonder. Actually, quite a bit.
In terms of my sons health care costs over a lifetime, the savings can be substantial. The greater his mobility, the less his need for adaptive equipment and services as he moves into adulthood. In terms of his quality of life, this little investment will help me work with him more effectively. As it is, most people don't realize that he hass CP since he does all the things other kids do. Kyle will also have the opportunity to work directly with Sonia Sumar, the creator of Yoga for the Special Child as part of my training. Sonia uses the children of particpants in her teaching.

If you want to look at things in a more concrete dollars and cents spent way, consider this. This training is being offered in Queensbury, NY which is about 25 minutes from our cabin in the Adirondacks. Although the training costs $895, I will not spend any additional money on hotels,travel (ie. airfare), or meals. Finally, I am learning a skill and earning a certification that is not only useful in my personal life but can also be incorporated into my work as a fitness instructor.

I should also mention that I paid for the tuition by check, not by charge. I planned and budgeted for several months before comfortably being able to spend that much cash on anything. Now that its spent, I have no regrets and no credit card bill to worry about.

In other yoga news, I'm still working on that headstand. As I tell my yoga classes, Yoga is a practice and there's something to be learned each time we practice. Now if I could just stop falling over!

1 comment:

Barbara said...

Katie, I know what you mean about frugality. About 3 years ago, my knees and ankles were very bad. I limped and moved very slowly. Exercise was out of the question. Then I spent $275 (cash, saved up) on custom orthotics. Today, I can walk, exercise, and get around without limping and without pain. What is that quality of life worth? WAYYY more than $275, let me tell you.

Barbara