Offering hands-on assists can be a practice in compassion and communication. Through this course, we’ll explore an approach to assisting, which begins with integrity in your own body and being.
After years of separation and disconnection, we finally feel this sense of moving back into community. This will be a process of rebuilding trust with ourselves and others.
Through dharma talks exploring intention, seeing, and listening, we’ll approach assisting as a practice that goes beyond the physical. Detailed demos will explore the more technical aspects, looking at the biomechanics, perfect fit, and how to communicate through your hands with clarity and confidence.
Introductory materials and course overview
Week 1 | Intention: Discover your intention for offering hands-on assists
Week 2 | Foundation: Find your own foundation and center as the starting point to support others
Week 3 | Relationship: Experience assisting as a relationship and a way to be in authentic connection
Week 4 | Technique: Learn specific techniques to understand biomechanics and to express effective hands-on assists
Week 5 | Compassion: Explore compassion for yourself and others
Week 6 | Course wrap-up and recap
We encourage you to find a partner, friend, loved one, or other teachers to create a community of practice.
The course includes:
This course can be taken for 30 continuing education hours through Yoga Alliance or as part of Janet's teacher training programs.
Enrollment is closed for the 2025 offering of this course. We'll open enrollment in 2025, about two weeks before the course begins.
Janet’s studentship began at 17 under the meditation teachings of Prem Rawat. His reverence for simplicity and finding joy in the rise and fall of life live on in her practice and teaching today. In 1996, she traveled to India, the birthplace of her grandfather, and became dedicated to the path of yoga. Janet blends the alchemy of her own practice with decades of studentship. She aspires not to teach but to allow the practice to emanate from her, letting awareness blend with movement and breath. Based in Bali and San Francisco, she leads immersions, retreats, workshops and more.
Acclaimed physical therapist, yogi, and beloved teacher, Harvey Deutch, P.T. has been merging the art and science of yoga and physical therapy for over 33 years, exploring and perfecting the the nuances of each. His laser-sharp precision and keen eye for working with the physical form join his innate ability to understand and finesse the energetic body. Along with his signature humor, Harvey is well-known for taking two-dimensional anatomy off the page and making it burst alive on the mat.
Over seventeen years ago Mark went through a near death experience which catapulted him into the depths of his own soul, the trenches of the human experience and a long expedition through the healing arts. Through his own healing crisis he learned several techniques and modalities while surrounding himself and studying with many master teachers. After nearly two decades of having a thriving private practice, intense self study and traveling the world teaching he created The Anatomy of Emotion Course.
We are using an intuitive, yet robust learning platform, called Mighty Networks. Once you enroll in the course, you’ll be invited to join the course + community space and you'll have access to the course intro.
In order to provide a container for this practice and process, one lesson will be covered each week for 6 weeks. As soon as you have course access, you’ll get access to introductory lectures and practices that will thread through the entire course.
The course is setup so that it works for individuals no matter where they live in the world. New content will be released each week, and you can work through the practices, videos and exercises at your own pace. The ongoing community connection in the Mighty Network sets up an amazing way for ongoing connection, wherever you are.
Yes. Each section has an asana practice and a set of sun salutations that works with the theme for that week.
Each week includes approximately 2.5 hours of video content, including practices, dharma talks and discussions of the philosophy underlying the practice of assisting, and demos. We recommend meeting with a friend or another teacher to practice assists for at least one hour each week.
This is an excellent question. Janet has been offering live courses on assisting for over a decade, and her approach goes far beyond the physical. Many of the modules explore the broader practices of yoga—intention (sankalpa), self-study (svadhyaya) and more as they relate to offering hands-on assists. In other words, this course offers an opportunity for a deep inquiry into why we assist and how we connect when we do.
In addition, we strongly encourage everyone who joins to find a way to practice. Whether you join with a friend, work with a family member, or find a way to assist in another teacher’s class, there is no replacement for hands-on practice, ideally with one or more people who will share honest, compassionate feedback.
Yes, absolutely. Once content for a week is unlocked, you will have access to that in the future. You can return to the course at any time and you’ll receive any updates to the curriculum for future course releases as well.
The course is non-refundable, since you get lifetime access to the content. If you have serious extenuating circumstances, email connie@janetstoneyoga.com and we’ll discuss options.
Email connie@janetstoneyoga.com if you have other questions.
