“Brain injury is an invisible illness,” Hayley
muses. “I looked normal but it took me
over a year to feel like I was back to being
a functional person, able to maintain my
energy level, and get through the day.”
As her strength and confidence returned
through yoga, Hayley began to pursue new
interests. She started a career as a freelance
wedding photographer and became a yoga
instructor.
Hayley is keenly aware that an inch in the
other direction and she might not be here
today, but she embodies the “realistic op-
timism” that LYB espouses. “The accident
helped me to look at life in a new way and
see that things aren’t happening to me,
they’re happening for me. It flipped our
whole life upside down, and I’m definitely
the new Hayley. I used to pride myself on
being driven and on top of my game. Now
I’m a bit forgetful and sometimes lack a
filter, which is pretty common for people
with TBI. Luckily, I tend to blurt out happy
thoughts. My husband, Andy, has been so
wonderful and supportive. The accident
transformed who I am and serendipitously
led to these new opportunities and
amazing people.”
Hayley will attend the training this March
in Vancouver to become a LYB yoga
instructor. And she hopes to become a
LYB intern doing outreach and education.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t be where I am today
without LoveYourBrain.”
Slow the Pace, Remove the Pressure
“TBI often leads to dizziness, fatigue, and
headaches, so we created strategies to
avoid further physical or mental stress,”
Kyla says. “Sometimes in a yoga class, you
feel pressure to achieve a certain shape or
way of positioning yourself. Our classes do
the opposite; we encourage people to listen
to and honor what they can feel from the
inside, which is a very empowering
message. By supporting people to turn
68 VERMONT MAGAZINE
inward, we see people tapping in to their
inner resilience in a new way. In many cas-
es, people with TBI already feel different
or struggle to keep up with daily life. They
don’t need one more pressure.”
Caitlin Pascucci founded Burlington’s
Sangha Studio in 2014. Sangha is a non-
profit, donation-based yoga studio with
a social mission to make yoga accessible
to all, regardless of ability to pay. LYB’s
specialized population and commitment
to offer free programs to TBI survivors
aligned well with Sangha’s mission. In
February 2016, Sangha became LYB’s first
partnering yoga studio in the nation.
“We host the FUNdamental LYB six-week
program several times a year,” Caitlin says.
“It’s incredibly accessible with a gentle
approach and very low stimulus to make
participants comfortable. We keep the
lights low, cover the floor-to-ceiling
windows, and there’s no music. We teach
slow movements that can be done
standing or sitting on the floor or in a
chair to reduce dizziness. People can use
props and all the poses can be modified to
meet the needs of each individual.”
Kyla and her team ensure that all yoga
instructors have undergone rigorous
training on how to teach adaptive yoga.
In late 2018, approximately 300 trained
instructors were teaching at 60 partner
studios across the nation and in Canada.
Each class, geared for 7 to 13 participants,
meets once a week for six consecutive
weeks. The 90-minute yoga instruction is
followed by a half-hour group discussion.
This vital feature enhances the sense of
communal support, a powerful
opportunity for participants to share
openly about the challenges and triumphs
they’re experiencing. Most people who
have attended these sessions describe them
as “life shifting.” “As of 2019, we’ve served
nearly 3,000 people with TBI and their
caregivers,” Kyla reports. “Twenty percent
repeat the program because they find it so
empowering and healing.”
Maggie Smith, already a yoga instructor,
admired LYB’s mission so she trained
under Kyla in Boston. She then taught
a few six-week sessions at Heart of the
Village studio in Manchester in 2016. “I’m
really impressed with LYB’s organized and
thoughtful teaching approach—and the
In my own case, I went from being social
to being on the couch all the time, in the
dark, and not feeling well. During that first
session, I knew this was where I was meant
to be, surrounded by people who under-
stood. I think that’s where everything
changed for me. That’s how I came to grips
with accepting my new reality. LYB yoga
has helped de-stress my life in so many
ways.”