Are you ready to
REDUCE PAIN &
TAKE YOUR PLAYING to the
NEXT LEVEL?
Do you experience discomfort or pain from playing your instrument? I can relate.
I was seriously considering giving up playing the guitar at one point and would drive home crying from gigs. Yoga allowed me to continue playing guitar and transformed my music and my life in more ways than I could have imagined.
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Here, you can expect to discover yoga and mindfulness tools to reduce/prevent industry-related physical and emotional pain while at the same time, enhances your musical practices and overall wellbeing.
Let this channel serve as a toolbox where you can explore different styles of yoga, strength and mobility work, breath work, meditations, and nutrition, and how they can positively impact your music and life!
DO YOU EXPERIENCE
ABOUT
Hi! I'm Melissa, a Nashville-based singer-songwriter and enthusiast for music, movement, and meditative practices. It's part of my life's work to share what I've learned about guitar pain as a yoga teacher and from my own personal journey.
I released my first full-length album in 2008 while attending music business classes in North Carolina. It was about that same time that I began experiencing persistent and intensifying pain in my neck and shoulders. My neck pain began affecting my voice and constant pain began affecting my overall wellbeing.
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After playing gigs on the weekend while earning a degree in Applied Nutrition at University of Delaware, I played music full time for about 13 years. Although I wouldn't trade any experiences, they did take a toll on my physical/mental state and I found myself feeling helpless and in pain most of the time, especially after gigs. I simply was not aware of the demands on my physical body as a musician and didn't know how to re-balance myself.
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Today, I am freelancing as a songwriter, guitarist and vocalist for studio and creative work and still encounter tension and postural issues from playing instruments and creating at a computer many hours each day... I am actively practices these healing modalities and exploring different way to expand and improve myself and my life and I want to share this journey with you!
MISSION
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My MISSION with Yoga For Musicians is to provide resources you can use at home, on the road, or in the studio that are effective and easy to incorporate into your daily routines. This includes guided yoga classes, discussions with other musicians and holistic professionals about how our bodies are affected by the physical (and mental/emotional) demands of playing our instruments, and what we can do about it to ensure a long, happy, healthy career and life.
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PURPOSE
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The PURPOSE of Yoga For Musicians is to serve as a resource for musicians to reduce pain, sharpen musical skills and increase overall wellbeing, through yoga, meditation, breath work, and other modalities of movement and stillness that cultivate creativity and a well-balanced life.
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My intention for Yoga For Musicians is that it can be utilized as a "tool box" musicians can go to when experiencing discomfort, and even just to deepen the relationship with your "self" as an artist.
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When we take care of ourselves, we can create more freely and authentically!