Extracts from Yoga Therapy for Arthritis: A Whole Person Approach to Movement and Lifestyle

by Steffany Moonaz

For those who don’t know me, I’m a research scientist and a yoga therapist. I serve as the Director of Research at the Maryland University of Integrative Health, which offers the only Masters of Science in Yoga Therapy, and my research is exclusively focused on yoga and yoga therapy, especially as it applies to people living with arthritis, rheumatic diseases, and chronic pain. As a yoga therapist grand-parented through IAYT, I have explored this area as a clinician as well as a scientist for many years. In fact, it was the topic of my doctoral dissertation at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and has subsequently become the basis for my life’s work. 

This work is a dharma that found me without me knowing quite how or why at the time. In retrospect, I knew as a kid that there was a lot of suffering in the world and that feeling connected would help reduce suffering. I believe that the work I do now does help people to feel connected in many ways and thereby does reduce suffering. 

Doing this work, I have been honored to share in the journeys of people whose lives have been absolutely transformed by the teachings and practices of yoga. Sometimes this happens gradually over time and sometimes it happens in a single moment via a specific pose or a sudden epiphany. I decided to write my book, Yoga Therapy for Arthritis: A Whole Person Approach to Movement and Lifestyle, to share some of those stories and hopefully provide information to foster even more of those stories. I wrote it for people with any form of arthritis at any age, for yoga professionals, and for healthcare providers who serve them. Within it, each should find something useful. It is my sincere hope that this book, through its science, practices, stories, and suggestions, somehow makes a small difference in the lives of those who read it and those they touch. 

The book will come out December 21, 2018 and Nina invited me to share an excerpt from it on the Yoga for Healthy Aging blog. So today I’m excited to share two excerpts. The first is from the beginning of the book where common understanding and myths about arthritis are discussed. The second is a sample practice from later in the book that uses a chair as a prop. The book proceeds along the koshas, from the physical body to the subtle bodies, and explores the role of arthritis at every level, as well as the role of yoga in addressing the challenges common to life with arthritis. It is appropriate for people with arthritis, yoga professionals, and healthcare providers. If you’re interested in buying the book, you can pre-order it now on Amazon, on my website, or directly from the publisher. 

Here's the first extract:

© 2018 Singing Dragon, singingdragon.com/usa/yoga-therapy-for-arthritis, $35.00, Reprinted with permission.

Here's the second extract:


© 2018 Singing Dragon, singingdragon.com/usa/yoga-therapy-for-arthritis, $35.00, Reprinted with permission.

Dr. Steffany Moonaz is a yoga therapist and researcher, currently serving as Director of Clinical and Academic Research at the Maryland University of Integrative Health, which offers the nation’s only M.S. in Yoga Therapy. She is the founder of Yoga for Arthritis, an organization bringing evidence-based yoga programs to people with arthritis nationwide, as well as educating yoga professionals to work safely and effectively with this population. Dr. Moonaz collaborates on multiple interdisciplinary research teams and mentors emerging integrative health researchers.


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