Self esteem becomes established and we find it easier to make the wise, healthy choices that are needed to lead a balanced, whole existence of well being. Many of the Inuit find balance through their beautiful artwork, some through sports and Inuit winter games, others may find it by connecting to the land through hunting and fishing. Yoga can help those who have not yet found what works for them.

During my “tours” to the North I offer a two day workshop for school teachers and community workers interested in the program I developed called “Building Resiliency for Youth through Yoga”. The idea is that Yoga is a coping method or “tool” to help youth who struggle in a culture that has been radically changed causing an imbalance that results in high incidents of addiction, violence and suicides. The hope is that Yoga can help this struggling culture survive, just as their Yoga like practice was used for better chance of survival for thousands of years. On this last trip the workshop was conducted in Yellowknife NWT and teachers were flown in from Nunavut and NWT. There were 20 teachers in total. I then visited 5 of the communities that were represented to work in the schools, with the teachers, integrating the program. The communities visited on this trip were: Behchoko and Yellowknife NWT where the aboriginal population is a higher percentage of Dene than Inuit, Gjoa Haven, Arviat and Rankin Inlet NU. As well as the schools, I also worked in Young Offenders facilities and gave presentations and lead classes to the communities on evenings and weekends.