Lets Talk About Hands On Adjustments

When I started doing yoga more regularly about 12 years ago I never gave any thought to hands on adjustments. I don’t have any clear recollection to be 100% sure but I guess it is largely because in the classes I attended there were hardly any. In the classes I attended the instructions were given orally with the teachers demoing, to different degrees, the poses in front of the class.

As I started to practise more regularly and also to make a point of attending yoga classes in the places I got to travel to, I also got more acquainted with hands on adjustments. Usually they were perfectly pleasant and helped me to understand a particular point and to gain better awareness of the asana. But I also had different experiences. Once on a sports camp the instructor literally sat on my back during a forward fold. Sure I could go deeper but also I was not given any advance notice this might happen. I remember very clearly thinking, “I don’t like this.” This was both because it was physically uncomfortable (although not painful) and secondly, I just really did not appreciate somebody sitting on my back like that, in a pose that is supposed to be about internalising and calming down.

There have also been moments where I was given adjustments without any particular verbal cueing. I am of course sure the good intentions were there but if the teacher fails to verbally explain how and what a particular asana is about, it can be hard to grasp what the adjustments are trying to convey. Because it is not always about the physicality of the action not being welcomed, there is also the aspect of everybody learning things in a different manner.

Some years ago I was in a group of yoga teachers and we had an interesting conversation about hands on adjustments. We were in the presence of an international senior yoga teacher who advised us that when teaching a class, it is good policy to ask the students at the start of the class if they do not want any hands on adjustments, outlining few specific examples. This sparked a big (and very interesting) debate: Some of the group did not see the point of asking about adjustments. Their argument was that if you come to a yoga class, you should expect hands on adjustments. Some mentioned they rarely had any done so they had not given much thought about to the topic. Others pointed out that when you start a career as a yoga teacher you are likely to be focused on expressing your sequence the right way you would not even think about giving hands on fine tunings on the participants.

All the insights were very valuable and demonstrated how differently we can feel about a particular matter. What that conversation sparked for me was a deep consciousness of personal boundaries in the space of a yoga practise and the importance of respecting them.

We all come to our yoga practise from different backgrounds, with widely different experiences and expectations. What those experiences and expectations are, we do not know. But what we can do as yoga teachers is to give the practitioners the option of not to be touched. In the #MeToo era, knowing that the yoga world unfortunately has not been spared of its own incidents, this is even more important than ever.

So how to go about this? Some teachers lay out in their studio profiles that hands on adjustments are to be expected – This is great but also requires that the profile is read. Some ask you to raise your hand if you don’t want any – but then again, not everybody is happy to speak up in front of others, especially if you are new to practise. There is also the option of the teacher asking you to fold a corner of the mat, or putting a prop in front of the mat. The idea is good in theory but in practise, especially as a teacher, I am always concerned I overlook THE one prop, or the corner of the mat comes undone.

 

Recently I have however seen few new innovative initiatives. Few days ago Pranama Studio in Stockholm, Sweden, posted on their Instagram page that they are now using “Consent Crystals” in their classes. Pranama Stockholm writes: “We respect and honor you, and it is totally your choice to be touched/assisted or not during a yoga class. It might even depend on the day […] When you take a Consent Crystal with you in the class, our teachers will know your wishes without asking. Just place it next to your mat and we know we have your consent. Without it, we respect your wish not to be touched at that time and that class.”

Another example I recently saw was an American lady who had come up with a small two-sided cards, one side saying “yes” to adjustments and the other “no.” You just place the card next to your mat and the teacher will know. Unfortunately I cannot remember where I saw this but if you recognise this initiative, let me know in the comments and I will edit this post with more detail about this.

I feel this topic is very much part of the inclusivity in the yoga community discussion that has been taking place for some time now. I would be interested to hear your thoughts about this topic: Are hands on adjustments something you like, you expect, or something you have not really given any thought about? Any ideas you would have or you have seen how to communicate about this, either as a student or as a practitioner? Let me hear your opinions in the comments section!