The Teaching on Self-Compassion with Rodrigo Souza

Join host, Jivana, and guest, Rodrigo Souza, as they discuss teaching yoga with compassion and awareness, the role of yoga in healing trauma, and the importance of representation and advocacy for people with disabilities in yoga.

Rodrigo shares his journey of living with a spinal cord injury and how yoga became a transformative tool for healing and self-acceptance. He reflects on his first time teaching a yoga class and the impact it had on his students and himself.

In the Question and Answer segment, Jivana and Deanna discuss the importance of empathy in today’s world, the significance of self-compassion, and allowing space for all experiences in yoga. Jivana answers a question about who his current teachers are and his ongoing learning and growth as a yoga teacher.

Topics Include:

• Yoga as a tool for healing


• Strategies for creating safe and inclusive yoga spaces


• What gentle yoga means beyond asana


• Why being present in the body can be challenging for students


• The importance of language and offering choices in yoga classes


• Accessible Yoga Training Online: Learn from Rodrigo and other guest teachers


• Rodrigo's Yoga for Disabled Folks online course


• The Accessible Yoga Ambassador & Mentorship Program, led by Rodrigo


• The upcoming Accessible Yoga Restorative Yoga Series, April 24-May 27, 2025

We Want to Hear from You!

What story, teaching, or practice inspires your yoga journey today? Submit your answer or any other questions you have for Jivana via Google Form: https://forms.gle/NtijeM82dSgU5jVD7 or leave a voice message here (90 second maximum): https://www.speakpipe.com/AccessibleYoga

Selected responses may be featured in future episodes!

Connect with Rodrigo:

Rodrigo Souza (he/him) is an Adaptive and Accessible Yoga teacher with experience in instructing folks who have endured trauma and disability.

After suffering a traumatic injury which left him paralysed from the chest down, Rodrigo recognised the significance of taking care of his own recovery to enhance his long-term well-being.

This journey inspired him to become a yoga teacher, where he aims to share his personal insights into discovering joy in movement and rest.

www.allihopayoga.com | @allihopayoga (IG)

Connect with Jivana:

Check out Jivana’s books, Accessible Yoga, Yoga Revolution, and The Teacher’s Guide to Accessible Yoga, and get more information about Accessible Yoga at accessibleyoga.org

www.jivanaheyman.com | @jivanaheyman | facebook.com/jivanaheyman

Connect with Cheri Clampett: Therapeutic Yoga

Check out the Cumbria Yoga Foundation! 

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Credit: Mikus Dharma, AYP Podcast Sound Engineer