SeiteNeuWarriors At Ease-Supporting Those Who Serve & Sacrifce
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<strong>Supporting</strong> <strong>Those</strong> <strong>Who</strong> <strong>Serve</strong> & Sacrifice<br />
Our mission is to increase awareness about the power of yoga and meditation and<br />
educate a network of professionals qualified to share evidenced-based practices<br />
through programs that support the health and healing of service members,<br />
veterans and their families.<br />
Our History<br />
In 2006, our co-founders were part of the first Department of Defense (DoD)<br />
funded research on yoga and meditation as an adjunct therapy for Post Traumatic<br />
Stress Disorder (PTSD) at the Walter Reed National Military Center in Washington,<br />
D.C. With the success of this and other pilot programs came an increasing need<br />
for appropriately trained yoga and meditation teachers. Thus, we developed<br />
advanced yoga teacher training to support the demand for specialized teachers<br />
equipped with tools to support students with trauma-related health conditions.<br />
Our Vision<br />
Our vision is to integrate yoga and meditation into military, veteran, and civilian<br />
settings to support the health, resiliency, post-traumatic growth, and connection of<br />
service members, veterans and their families.<br />
www.warriorsatease.org
What is Unique about Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Yoga?<br />
Yoga, meditation, and mindfulness have become increasingly popular around the<br />
world. However, not all yoga is appropriate for those with combat or traumarelated<br />
health conditions.<br />
Our Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> (WAE) teachers are trained in mind-body practices that are:<br />
Culturally Appropriate<br />
Evidence-Based<br />
Trauma Sensitive<br />
We provide training on the<br />
unique aspects of the<br />
military profession and<br />
culture. WAE teachers are<br />
trained on how to teach in<br />
a way that is relevant and<br />
accessible to warriors.<br />
Our curriculum is based on<br />
research and the<br />
combined experience of<br />
our seasoned faculty. We<br />
continually provide our<br />
teacher network with the<br />
latest research.<br />
Our approach and the<br />
practices we teach are all<br />
trauma-sensitive - safe,<br />
effective, and appropriate<br />
for those with visible or<br />
invisible injuries incurred<br />
from trauma.<br />
Our Global Network of Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Teachers<br />
Since becoming a 501(c)(3) organization in 2014, we’ve trained over 750 teachers<br />
who serve warriors and their families in the U.S., Australia, Japan, Canada, Korea,<br />
Germany, and throughout<br />
the Middle East. Warriors<br />
at <strong>Ease</strong> Certified Teachers<br />
have the knowledge, skills<br />
and ability to integrate<br />
evidenced-based, mindbody<br />
practices into a variety<br />
of therapeutic settings as<br />
well as to support the<br />
readiness and resiliency of<br />
our active military.<br />
www.warriorsatease.org
Our Impact<br />
Our growing global network of teachers impacts an estimated 100,000 service<br />
members, veterans, and family members by sharing yoga and meditation in a<br />
variety of settings:<br />
• Veteran Administration (VA) Hospitals, Clinics and Vet Centers<br />
• Hospitals, clinics, and fitness centers on active military installations<br />
• Unit physical training (PT) programs for active and reserve components<br />
• In partnership with civilian healthcare providers who serve warriors and their<br />
families<br />
• Retreats specifically for service members, veterans, family members, and<br />
caretakers<br />
• In collaboration with other Veteran Service Organizations such as Team Red,<br />
White and Blue, The Wounded Warrior Project, and The Mission Continues<br />
• DoD schools and other schools where military children attend<br />
• United States Military Academy and veteran-friendly colleges and universities<br />
• Yoga studios and community centers<br />
“Yoga and meditation give me a sense of<br />
peace that I cannot find in other parts of my<br />
life. Just learning to sit and breathe has<br />
become medicine doctors cannot prescribe….<br />
Being a part of this women veterans retreat<br />
has restored my faith in humanity.”<br />
~ Staff Sergeant Cyndi Lee, USMC Retired<br />
www.warriorsatease.org
Our Accomplishments<br />
The achievements of our esteemed faculty and highly trained teachers are<br />
exponential and have helped us to advanced our long-term goal of offering<br />
standardized yoga and meditation classes across the full spectrum of health care<br />
on military installations and in VA facilities. Additionally, our organization has<br />
accomplished the following in 2016-2017:<br />
• <strong>Serve</strong>d on The George W. Bush Institute’s Health and Wellbeing Task Force and participated in<br />
Stand-To, A National Veterans Convening in Washington, D.C. in June 2017, where we helped<br />
outline key priorities and created an action plan to drive improved outcomes for veterans and<br />
their families<br />
• Launched Train, Teach & Transform in<br />
January 2017, a program that provides free<br />
yoga classes across four key regions as well<br />
as teacher training scholarships to injured<br />
service members, veterans, and military<br />
spouses funded through a $100K grant from<br />
the Bob Woodruff Foundation<br />
• Developed and successfully launched a<br />
pioneering on-line training called “Teaching<br />
Yoga to Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma,”<br />
funded through at $24K grant from the Disabled Veterans National Foundation<br />
• Offered yoga and meditation retreats in four key regions for service members, veterans,<br />
spouses, and caretakers in partnership with other veteran service organizations and Military<br />
Family Readiness Groups, funded by the Walter Reed Foundation, private companies, and<br />
individual donors<br />
• Expanded an innovative mind-body program for veteran college students in partnership with<br />
Manhattan College and Sivananda Ashram (Bahamas)<br />
• Participated in a national symposium of subject matter experts that resulted in a publication<br />
released by the Yoga Service Council called “Best Practices for Yoga with Veterans,” a book<br />
distributed nationally to support the integration of yoga and meditation into VA facilities<br />
www.warriorsatease.org
On the Horizon<br />
In addition to improving, sustaining, and expanding our current programs, we are<br />
considering or in the process of developing new initiatives to further support<br />
warriors and their families. Projects include:<br />
• Updating our teacher training curriculum and launching it on a world-class, on-line teaching<br />
portal in fall of 2017 in partnership with Yoga International.<br />
• Expanding Train, Teach & Transform to at least 4 new regions in 2018<br />
• Broadening the scope of our offerings at the United States Military Academy<br />
• Expanding our mind-body programs to more colleges, universities, and service academies<br />
• Partnering with major research organizations to study the effects of using yoga and meditation<br />
as adjunct therapy for service members and veterans with sleep issues, chronic pain, PTSD,<br />
and other common health concerns<br />
• Developing Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Kids, an emerging mind-body program specifically for children of<br />
service members and veterans<br />
• Working with leaders within Department of Defense to further integrate Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong><br />
teachers into pain management clinics, unit PT programs, and other areas where our teachers<br />
can be effective<br />
• Working with Department of Veterans Affairs to fill newly dedicated positions for “yoga<br />
instructors” in the VA system with our Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> teachers<br />
• Establishing Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> affiliates in rural areas where veterans may be underserved<br />
www.warriorsatease.org
Help Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Make a Deeper Impact<br />
Individual donors, charitable foundations, and corporations, have an opportunity<br />
to directly impact the health and wellbeing of active service members, veterans<br />
and their families by:<br />
• Sponsoring an individual or group<br />
for Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> yoga classes<br />
• Providing scholarship to teachers in<br />
training<br />
• Helping to fund research on yoga in<br />
military and veteran communities<br />
• Sponsoring an individual or group<br />
for a Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Retreat<br />
• In-kind donations of yoga mats,<br />
yoga props, professional services, lodging for traveling faculty, accommodations<br />
for a Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> retreat, etc.<br />
Volunteers, health care providers, yoga studio and retreat center owners, Family<br />
Readiness Groups (FRG), unit commanders, and other leaders can us make a<br />
deeper impact by:<br />
• Hosting a Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> yoga class, teacher training, or retreat at your facility<br />
• Connecting patients or clients with a local Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> teacher<br />
• <strong>Supporting</strong> or hosting Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> special events and presentations<br />
• Inviting a Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> teacher to share yoga at unit FRG events, Physical<br />
Training, pre/post Deployment workshops, etc.<br />
• Sharing about Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> and our efforts to support the health, resiliency,<br />
post-traumatic growth, and connection of warriors and their families<br />
www.warriorsatease.org
I have been serving in the Army for the past 18 years.<br />
I was born and raised in Puerto Rico until the age of 12<br />
when my family moved to Worcester, MA. <strong>At</strong> 18, I<br />
enlisted in the Army and graduated from Basic<br />
Training. After seven years, I was accepted into the<br />
“Green to Gold” Program where I earned both my<br />
commission and a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology.<br />
I have supported several humanitarian missions and<br />
deployed twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom<br />
(OIF) in Iraq and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF)<br />
in Afghanistan. I am married and the proud father of 3<br />
girls and 3 boys (ranging from ages to 10 to 26 years). I<br />
met my wife, Joan, while stationed at Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM) in Washington. Joan also served<br />
in the Army but was medically retired due to injuries sustained in Iraq.<br />
Before joining the service, I had no understanding of the type of commitment, dedication and sacrifice it<br />
takes to be a soldier and military family. My grandfather served during the Korean War but didn’t share<br />
any of his experiences during that period of his life. He chose to bury those memories, and I respected his<br />
wishes. War is a terrible ordeal and the scars sustained, whether visible or invisible, last a lifetime.<br />
I joined the Army before the events of 9-11 unfolded. My second deployment to Afghanistan was a<br />
transformational experience that changed me at my core, and I had a difficult time upon my<br />
redeployment. The images in my mind were a constant presence. I struggled with anger issues and was<br />
unable to maintain my emotional balance at times.<br />
The mind and body connection is real. My lack of mental focus resulted in decreased physical<br />
performance. I pushed my body so hard due to my early indoctrination from drill sergeants who<br />
introduced me to mentality of “stop whining and drive on.” After the humanitarian missions and<br />
deployments, I had several chronic conditions which I ignored for some time. My knees and back finally<br />
started deteriorating to the point that I couldn’t run or bear any weight for almost 2.5 years. My wife<br />
invited me to attend some yoga sessions that were helping her heal and grow. I initially declined, but<br />
eventually decided to attend. After only a couple of classes, I started noticing that I was more flexible,<br />
relaxed, and focused.<br />
For the first time in years, I was able to successfully complete my physical fitness examination, including<br />
the run with no issues because of yoga. In fact, I achieved the highest score ever in my 18 years of military<br />
service. Yoga has been a tremendous source of strength to me. It has enabled me to obtain inner peace,<br />
and control the memories which caused me anxiety for many years. I was once a skeptic, but now I’m<br />
proof of its effectiveness and restorative properties.<br />
Captain Enrique Incle, United States Army<br />
Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Student<br />
www.warriorsatease.org
Testimonies from Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong><br />
Our impact is evident in the teachers we train and the students we teach.<br />
Watch this moving testimony about the power of yoga featuring Army veteran and<br />
Certified Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Teacher, Jeffrey Sergeant and Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Co-Founder,<br />
Robin Carnes.<br />
“I used yoga and meditation while<br />
deployed to a Forward Operating Base<br />
in Afghanistan in 2013. I meditated and<br />
practiced yoga daily to combat my<br />
anxiety and insomnia. My experience<br />
inspired me to become a yoga teacher.”<br />
Robin Cushing, U.S. Army<br />
Physician Assistant Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> Teacher<br />
Find more inspiring testimonies at www.warriorsatease.org<br />
www.warriorsatease.org
Susan Alden is the Executive Director of Warrior at <strong>Ease</strong>. She is<br />
a graduate of the United States Military Academy and served as<br />
a logistics officer in the 82nd Airborne and 3rd Infantry<br />
Divisions. Susan started practicing yoga before she entered the<br />
military and continued practicing throughout her career. She<br />
first began teaching yoga in the military in 1997 as a Second<br />
Lieutenant, sharing the practice with her own soldiers as part of<br />
the unit fitness program. Whether through her yoga studio<br />
once located near Fort Bragg, North Carolina, teaching on or<br />
around various military installations, or hosting retreats across<br />
the globe, Susan has been fully committed to bringing the<br />
power of yoga and meditation to the military community since<br />
2003 as a certified yoga and meditation teacher. Susan has been married to an Army Special Forces<br />
soldier (Green Beret) for the past 19 years and has been especially involved in serving the Special<br />
Operations Forces community and Gold Star Families. Susan resides in Hawaii with her husband who<br />
recently retired from the military and their two boys.<br />
For information on partnership opportunities, please contact<br />
Susan Alden at salden@warriorsatease.org or (808) 469-5279. <br />
Warriors at <strong>Ease</strong> is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to supporting<br />
service members, veterans and their families. Federal Tax ID #45-4010067<br />
CLICK HERE TO DONATE NOW<br />
Our Board of Directors and our team of staff, faculty, and volunteers, consist of veterans,<br />
business leaders, and subject matter experts in the field of yoga, meditation, and health.<br />
CLICK HERE TO MEET THE TEAM. <br />
www.warriorsatease.org