Yoga instructor Kelly Benson is using yoga to help others in their sustained sobriety according to an article published in Bangor Daily News. The young woman hosts a Recovery Community class in Portland, Maine where students take a 90 minute hot yoga class. Benson is 31 years old and has been in sustained sobriety for over two years. She detailed her addiction to heroin in the article and said that her usage began in high school.
During that time she used different types of drugs like cocaine, psychedelics, and prescription drugs. She now uses yoga in her continuum of care to manage the disease of addiction. She believes her class can help others in their sustained sobriety.
One student of hers, named Brian, said that yoga helped him immensely in his recovery. “There is a lot of work to do to stay sober, you are faced with a lot. [Benson’s class] has helped me grow and get healthy. I came in really beaten up, my body was a mess, my head was a mess.”
The student told of how he too was addicted to heroin when he was at his lowest point in his addiction. Brian said that his addiction was triggered following a surgery that prescribed prescription opioids for pain. His addiction to prescription pills eventually led him to heroin. “I started with Percocet, then to oxycontin, then to heroin.” Eventually he, “lost everything.” After he hit rock bottom Brian says that he used methadone and suboxone to recover. These are medications that are often prescribed to help people who are suffering from heroin addiction to detox from the drug.
The Department of Health and Human Services in Maine believes that by changing heroin addiction treatment to methadone and suboxone treatment only, “[we] could save the state $1.6 million and the federal government $4.26 million in the next two years while providing better primary care for addicts.”
Using suboxone to help treat those that struggle with heroin addiction is common at treatment centers around the country. But the usage of holistic activities in sustained sobriety is beneficial in the management of the disease of addiction. Student Brian said that the calm that he feels when he completes his yoga practice helps in his wellness and helps him to slow down.
At New Directions for Women our patients engage in yoga during their residential treatment. Our yoga instructors provide various levels of practice to the women that reside on our campus. From beginning to expert level, this type of holistic treatment allows women to find inner calm and allows them to connect with their higher power. The practice of yoga can also help with breathe work, flow, restoration and meditation. New Directions for Women provides a holistic approach to treatment with almost four decades of experience. We offer weekly yoga classes on our campus that are facilitated by Ethan Hedayat, and we also have Mommy and Me Yoga offered on our campus for our women and their children.
New Directions for Women is a treatment facility located in California that offers help to women of all ages, pregnant women in any trimester, and women with children. Founded in 1977, our courageous and visionary founders asked for the help of Newport Beach Junior League members to fulfill their vision of a tranquil home-like facility that would treat women with dignity and respect. Our caring admissions counselors are available 24/7 to take your call and answer any questions you may have on getting help. Reach us by phone at 800-93-WOMEN. We can help. Stay in the loop with New Directions for Women by connecting with us on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.
