Why I will never miss a NAMA conference

by Maria Radloff

Chair – NAMA Students Subcommittee

It was through yoga that I discovered Ayurveda, and every time I practice, I think of my first teacher and all the doors he opened for me. Today I still practice ashtanga yoga, study Sanskrit, participate in a weekly Ayurvedic philosophy class, and am working on completing my AP training at Kerala Ayurveda Academy.

Ayurveda was an instant attraction for me, but it took many years to solidify my dream of attending a NAMA-recognized school. During that time, however, I did discover NAMA and longed to attend their conferences, featuring famous speakers and so many interesting topics. I was so smitten, but I was too afraid to go since I had no formal education in Ayurveda.

Fast forward ten years to when it became my dream to study Ayurveda. Not only am I now a NAMA Student Member, I am an active on a NAMA Students committee, and I have already attended two conferences and am registered for a third in April!

Community

I was a little nervous about going alone to my first conference, but a dear friend hooked me up with a roommate, and I had a few friends from other cities that would also be attending. I knew my teachers and some classmates would be there, which was also comforting.

After having attended two conferences, I can say that I have always felt included because everyone there is very friendly and welcoming. I met people at meals with whom I shared a table and at workshops, and I met other students. I now feel confident about going because there will be many familiar faces from my growing circle of friends who study and practice Ayurveda.

Spending an entire weekend with passionate Ayurvedic professionals and students is great support for me because I feel a bit isolated in my Ayurvedic community in Utah. Spending the weekend learning and sharing with such a variety of people really helps me stay connected to both the greater vision of Ayurveda and my purpose in studying it.

Good Eats

When I talk to people about Ayurveda, the subject I’m most passionate about is Ayurvedic cooking. I love food and I love encouraging people to cook and use spices. Let me tell you about eating at NAMA conferences! There is no greater joy than that of sharing an Ayurvedic meal, especially when the food is sublime. NAMA brings recipes to the chefs who prepare the meals, and the magic that happens in the kitchen produces unforgettably delicious results. There are three daily vegetarian meals that even for a snacking vata like me are fully satiating. The food is seriously the best!

Friends and teachers from Ayurveda school, 2019.

Panchakarma panelists, 2018

Friends that I knew from Phoenix who also love Ayurveda, 2019.

Learning

Because my knowledge of Ayurveda is still at the student level, I was nervous that the workshops might be over my head. That wasn’t the case. My feeling is that we hear is what we can understand, and we all get something a little different. The presentations are useful for students and  practitioners at all levels. What I enjoy most is hearing from a teacher who broadens my understanding of a topic by presenting it  in a new way. 

I can also continue my studies after the conference by purchasing recordings of the workshops. I listen to them on my iPod while hiking, dog walking, or traveling. Knowing that I can get the recordings means that I can be fully present to the speakers and not have to worry about taking notes.

Relevance in the Modern World

The conference is the best place to hear about the role of Ayurveda in the real world, complete with real-world data and studies. This material shows why the ancient practice of Ayurveda is a practical healthcare approach for modern society. Presenters share current data about health and cultural trends. For example, during last year’s conference on Ayurveda for the Mind, the topic of social media’s psychological impact came up frequently. We were given stats on how social media affects mental health and how we can use Ayurveda to manage its effects. If you want to learn about how Ayurveda is being used as a modern healthcare tool, the conference is the place to go.

Conferences really inspire me each year to study, practice, and invest in Ayurveda as an student, because it is there that I get to experience Ayurveda through the lens of NAMA. This perspective helps me truly appreciate NAMA’s vision and purpose. I am so excited that there is work being done to create a licensed Ayurvedic career pathway in this country. NAMA is needed to help our community eliminate the legal and other barriers to the growth of Ayurveda in the U.S. It was because of my first conference that I was inspired to join NAMA as a volunteer. 

Ayurvedic celebrities!, 2019.

Of course I’m sharing the photo with Robert Svaboda. Can you see my giddiness?!, 2018.

Ayurvedic Celebrities

And lastly, one of my favorite things about the NAMA conference is the chance to enjoy “celebrity sightings”! I see the authors of my favorite books and the famous Ayurvedic teachers—all of the big names in Ayurveda. Robert Svoboda was the keynote at the first conference I attended, and I am his biggest fan! He was as charming and smart in person as he is in his books. I was mesmerized. I tried to be nonchalant when I got a photo with him, but as soon as I felt my feet walking toward him, all giddy hell broke loose and I couldn’t stop smiling like a lunatic. I have since gotten my demeanor around Ayurvedic celebrities under control, but I have to admit, seeing them in person is still quite glorious!

Big Break for NAMA Student Members

If you’re a NAMA Student Member like me, you get the benefit of the biggest pricing discount NAMA offers. If you’re not, you can sign up (make sure you complete steps to become a Student Member). 

After you’re all signed up as a Student Member, you’ll want to take advantage of your discount and register for Conference.  

In Conclusion

Attending the NAMA conference had been a dream for so long that I do everything I can to make it happen each year. I have to plan early and budget, which can sometimes be intimidating, but I wouldn’t miss the yearly conference for anything. My experiences there are what inspires me to continue studying and practicing. As a student, I get to see what is possible. I learn from the best. I discover Ayurveda in new ways. I think it’s important for anyone studying or practicing Ayurveda to be able to attend as many conferences as possible in order to connect with other  students and practitioners, share ideas, and stay in the know.

I will be attending the NAMA conference in 2020 and look forward to seeing many familiar and new faces, especially the other students!

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About Author

Maria Radloff is currently an AWP student at Kerala Ayurveda Academy. Besides studying ayurveda, Maria practices and teaches Ashtanga Yoga as well as Sanskrit. She has taught at a variety of yoga studios for over ten years and has taught at many yoga teacher training programs. She also offers a regular online Sanskrit class. Besides her passion for yoga, she loves design and writing and works as a graphic designer, specializing in non-profits and yoga businesses. Her greatest love, though, is introducing Ayurveda to anyone she can reach through writing articles and teaching workshops.

An Event for Growth and Connection

Of all the things I look forward to every year, one of my favorites is the annual NAMA Conference. I have only attended the last two years, but the reason is because my journey as an Ayurvedic professional is still short. Both years I attended as a student, and the first year I was rather nervous about joining a group of seasoned experts. Surprisingly, I felt very welcome and not at all overwhelmed by the technical details of the presentations. In fact, I had an absolute blast! Call me a nerd, but I wanted to attend every session and absorb every ounce of knowledge that I could. The sessions were informative, interesting, and very relevant to current health trends and my interests. I was excited to hear from both Western and traditionally trained experts, as it shows there is a growing trend toward integrative and collaborative efforts, something I personally support and feel is necessary to improve the current state of health care worldwide. I knew at the start I would be back for more the next year.

The vendor displays were fabulous, too. I added to my library and got to sample lots of products, some of which have been incorporated into my business and are now earning me additional income. Knowing the company and products that I am endorsing gives me confidence when sharing them with my clients. I was also very moved that a couple of the vendors remembered me from the previous year’s conference. How many companies maintain relationships like that in this modern age? Truly, it shows the connectedness of the Ayurvedic community. We are a growing community spanning the globe, yet we remember each other from talking briefly a year ago!

In the past two years, I have met wonderful like-minded people who inspired me to keep growing my practice, even though I am in a location that is just starting to embrace the concept of holistic health. I engaged one-on-one with educators, vendors, practitioners, and other students, even though I find myself to be quite shy and an introvert. The knowledge I gained at the Conference helped me grow as an individual, and I have routinely used current research as focal points for conversations with clients and other professionals. NAMA has brought a sense of legitimacy to a field that is often viewed as “woo-woo.” I have the confidence to keep growing my practice and continue my advanced education because I know that there are highly trained professionals worldwide adopting the system of Ayurveda and raising the standard for practitioners for the benefit of people who need resources for healing.

This year I look forward to more of the same: wonderful connections, engaging presentations, and a sense of community. I also look forward to the new setting at a retreat in a beautiful part of the country. I know there will be amazing food, beautiful scenery, and a sense of harmony in the entire experience. For those who are on the fence about going, this will be the year to attend. See you there!

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About the Author

Eszter, LMT, AHC, RYT

Eszter is an Ayurvedic Health Counselor who is trained in neuromuscular therapy, prenatal yoga, and Reiki. She left engineering to grow her practice with her husband.

The Value of the NAMACB Certification Board Exam

By Paula A. Witt-Enderby, Ph.D., CAHC
 
When new graduates think about preparing for the National Ayurvedic Medical Association Certification Board (NAMACB) exam, they probably become nervous as I was when I was getting ready for mine. We dread studying. We have doubts about our mastery of the subject matter. We wonder why we’re doing this.   
 
It’s perfectly normal to feel this way. When nearing the end of my health counselor training in May 2017 at the Kripalu School of Ayurveda, I wondered if I was prepared enough to pass the boards. I wasn’t sure when I should take the boards—I didn’t want to take them before I had studied sufficiently, but I also didn’t want to wait too long for fear that I would have trouble recalling all that I learned during my training.  
 
Nevertheless, I took the boards soon after graduating because I recognized their importance. The NAMACB boards play a critical role in standardizing training from the different schools of Ayurveda, lending credibility to our field, and ensuring that each of us emerges from our respective training programs as a truly competent Ayurvedic professional. 
 
From everything I now know after a year and a half in practice, I can say without a doubt that preparing for and taking the boards has given me confidence in my counseling skills and lent credibility to my services as a certified Ayurvedic health counselor. I proudly display my NAMACB-recognized Ayurvedic health counselor insignia on my business cards, on my website, and in any informational brochures or presentations that accompany my workshops.  
 
Getting ready for the boards by reviewing the study guides prepared by NAMACB and posted on its website helped me untangle many of the complexities of our field: I gained a clearer understanding of how to place the philosophy and history of Ayurveda in the proper context, what the 25 principles of samkhyaare and how they form the entire basis of Ayurveda, and how to differentiate between interrelated yet distinct Ayurvedic concepts such as the following:

1. The goals of Ayurveda (maintain the health of the healthy and cure the sick) 

2. The three pillars of Ayurveda (diet [ahara], lifestyle [vihara], and herbs [auśadha]) 

3. The three pillars of health (diet [ahara], sleep [nidra], and energy conservation [bramacharya]) 

4. Ayus(body, mind, senses, soul) 

5. The three causes of disease (misuse of the senses [asatmyendriyartha samyoga], crime of the intellect [prajnaparadha], and temporal factors [parinama])  

 
The study guides helped not only clarify the six schools of philosophy and their main principles—areas that I had trouble synthesizing during my training—but also deepened my understanding of the characteristics and symptoms associated with amaand low ojasby dosha(vata, pitta, kapha) and by system (digestive, musculoskeletal, nervous, general) as they relate to imbalances in the mind and body.  
 
Equally important, studying these guides helped realize what I didn’t know, sending me back to my class notes, training handbooks, or Dr. Lad’s textbooks to fill the gaps in my knowledge. The preparation process also forced me to memorize all the relevant details about herbs—their Sanskrit name, classification by genus and species, indications, contraindications, qualities, etc.  
 
As a professor for 23 years in a pharmacy school and coming from a discipline where testing, certification, and licensure are routine steps to a successful career as a healthcare professional, I want to reassure every examinee that the high quality of our Ayurvedic training ensures that we gain the competence required  to complete  a similar path to professional credibility.  
 
No doubt your training was as rigorous as mine and your teachers, like mine, did a brilliant job of infusing your training with the essence of Ayurveda as it was conceived in classic texts and passed down  in words, mantras, songs, and writing exercises and presented you with enough case scenarios from their diverse backgrounds and broad and deep experience to enable you to not only pass the boards but also achieve excellence as Ayurvedic professionals. 
 
We were led to Ayurveda for a reason. We are lucky to have been given this ancient wisdom. May we all trust in ourselves as our teachers and the Ayurvedic community trust in us!

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About the Author

Dr. Paula Witt-Enderby, Ph.D., CAHC is a Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology, NIH-funded melatonin research scientist and Board Certified Ayurvedic Health Counselor. She blends Western and Eastern medicine into her research on bone and breast cancer.

3-Steps to Building a Successful Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy Practice

By Jennifer Rioux, Ph.D., AD, AYT, CIAYT, RYT

The International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) paved the way for recognition of yoga therapy in the U.S. Building on that recognition, NAMA has now debuted the new professional category of Ayurvedic Yoga Therapist (AYT-NAMA). Our conception of this emerging profession draws from the IAYT’s statement that “although all yoga is potentially therapeutic and healing, yoga therapy is the specific application of yogic tools—postures/exercises, breathwork, meditation techniques, and more—to address an individual’s physical, mental, and emotional needs.”

The National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA) further defines Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy as the “application of Āyurvedic principles to the practice and principles of Yoga based on the Āyurvedic understanding of the nature of patient, the nature of imbalance, and the nature of the therapies, to promote healing and achieve a harmonious state of body and mind with respect to individual consciousness.”

Step 1: Reach the Appropriate Educational Standards

The education of a yoga therapist must go beyond the usual training of a yoga teacher to include instruction on client assessment and treatment. The individualized nature of yoga therapy separates it from yoga practice in a community studio. IAYT describes this distinction: “A general public yoga class can certainly ease everyday aches, pains, and mood complaints. But a yoga therapy session goes much further because it is tailored to the individual. Yoga therapists have in-depth training to help them assess and keep their clients safe. They work with you to address your specific goals while considering any limitations you might be experiencing.”

The unique nature of an Ayurvedic Yoga Therapist’s role dictates a Scope of Practice that includes services grounded in Ayurvedic theory and applied knowledgesof physiology and cause and effect according to the underlying gunasand the manifesting doshas. The AYT Scope of Practice states that “the Āyurvedic Yoga Therapist shall have the competency to design, implement, demonstrate, instruct, and teach an individual a yoga therapy program to help with their healing process based on the Āyurvedic Prakŗti/Vikŗti paradigm and Āyurvedic definition of health.” 

Currently, IAYT maintains high educational standards for yoga therapists that include the completion of more than 800 hours of training. IAYT now has over 175 schools worldwide that have been accredited to train yoga therapists. Comparatively speaking, our efforts to legitimize the field of Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy as conceived by NAMA are still in their infancy. Schools are in the process of seeking recognition to train individual practitioners. The accomplishment of these goals rests on the assurance that this professional designation requires extensive training t in both Ayurvedic medicine and yoga therapy that enables the practitioner to provide comprehensive whole-person care. To that end, the AYT Standards Committee has increased the required training hours d to between 1,100 and 1,500 hours, with 1.300 as the median.

Step 2: Take Policies into Consideration

An Ayurvedic Yoga Therapist has the ability to help with disease prevention, health promotion, and both acute and chronic health conditions. However, the legal status of such a practitioner will vary from state to state. The National Health Freedom Coalition lists 10 states with Health Freedom Laws. Ayurvedic Yoga Therapists in these states will have more leeway in describing and advertising their practice to the public and in interacting with clients. Consult your local and state statutes for the specific details.

NAMA is not qualified to dispense information or advice on legal issues related to AYT practice; however, we can provide information on what types of guidelines and administrative requirements may influence the nature of your practice. It will be critical that you ensure compliance with any licensing (business or provider related) that is relevant for hands-on healing in your area. It will be necessary to provide a disclaimer on your website and documents indicating that you are not engaged in the practice of medicine. State clearly that your professional objective is to treat Ayurvedic imbalances and request consent for treatment from your clients.

Likewise, it will be helpful to publish a code of conduct on your website that states how you will interact with clients, the parameters for physical contact, and the measures you have in place to protect their confidentiality. Ideally, your clients should feel fully informed before they walk in the door. Always ask if they have questions before beginning assessment or treatment. In addition, make sure that clients understand that you are not equipped to deal with healthcare emergencies. On your voicemail, remind clients to call 911 in the case of any health emergency. Familiarize yourself with NAMA’s Code of Ethics and make sure you can confidently address any client concerns related to ethical practice.

Step 3: Understand Best Practices

Best Practices include behaviors, actions, and approaches that will help you to ensure a high standard of care for your clientele. This may include organizational systems, strategies for keeping yourself accountable to your scope and ethics during sessions, protocols for client documentation, and standards that ensure each client receives equal and appropriate care. You may also want to have an online appointment system or a designated return-call policy of 48 hours. You should have a set of documents you use for recording assessment and treatment information for clients to standardize recordkeeping across your practice. You may want to develop “charting” strategies for tracking patient progress as wellaspprotocols for common conditions that you can use as a foundation for personalized care.

Everyone will set up their practice differently; however, following some of the previously mentioned advice will help the field of Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy gain legitimacy and will helpt AYTs communicate with each other and with other health professionals more effectively. As we recognize more individual members of the AYT professional category and begin to approve training programs, it will benefit all of us to be mindful of the impact of training requirements, the defined Scope of Practice for AYTs, and local and state policy considerations on your approach to providing AYT services. The manner in which we implement best practices will ensure that the public has quality information and will ultimately increase both accessibility and effectiveness of Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy, thereby increasing the clientele for this emerging healing discipline. 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jennifer Rioux, Ph.D., AD, AYT, CIAYT, RYT specializes in the professionalization of Ayurveda/Yoga and their relationship to Integrative Medicine. Dr. Rioux has been faculty and researcher at the University of New Mexico, Arizona medical schools and the University of North Carolina.

Belonging to a Professional Association

by Marie-Josephine Royall-Schreck

I am a professional nurse and student of Ayurveda transitioning my career into integrative health coaching through education. It’s one of the most exciting times of my professional life, and, as I’ve learned over and over again in my career, I will need support—the support of a professional association. Wanting nothing less than to be valued for my experience, knowledge, ethics, commitment, and to be credible, one day, my education completed, I will venture out into the world and announce that I am ready to serve in a new way. I don’t expect it to be simple—I don’t know what I don’t know. When deciding to add Ayurveda to my professional life, the first thing I looked for was its professional association. NAMA. 

Having resources and professional support available through NAMA will help my self-confidence, and it will help those who choose to work with me, too. This is where belonging to a professional association has always worked for me.

I’ve been a member of associations throughout my career of more than 30 years, so it feels natural to me to seek out the one association that can make a difference for me as I journey into Ayurveda. Associations have been the hub for many areas of my professional life, becoming the one source I can count on for information surrounding policy, best practices, and what are the issues and concerns of other practitioners in my industry. Below are some of the benefits I’ve realized from belonging to professional associations and ones that I know I can count on as a NAMA member. Here’s how I would rank them: 

Industry News and Newsletters
Continued Education
Ethical Standards
Networking/Friendships
Ability to volunteer and serve
Certification/Credentialing
Events/Conferences
Resources
Advocacy
Techniques and Tools
Collaborate with colleagues

How about you? If you have experience as a member of an association, would you agree with my ranking? Write me and let me know. As a member of NAMA’s Membership Committee, Students Subcommittee, I am part of a team striving to help NAMA serves its future professionals, its future volunteers, its future leaders. Also, if you’d like to share some of your insights regarding membership in an association, send those to me as well, and I’ll do my best to share them with our—your—subcommittee.

If you are a NAMA member now, you’ve made a good choice. If you’re not, consider becoming a member of NAMA today and expose yourself to the many resources available, such as ENEWS, Annual Conference, and Professional Ayurvedic Continuing Education (PACE). Also, consider getting involved through volunteering. As you help others, you will see yourself grow in your own practice and enhance your association in the process. The more you know, the more you grow.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Marie-Joséphine Royall-Schreck is a life-long meditator, yoga practitioner, and learner dedicated to helping individuals understand Integrative Healthcare as a self-care option. Marie-Joséphine is a Professional Registered Nurse, with over 30 years of experience; a Certified Meditation & Mindfulness Instructor, MMI; a Certified Archetypal Consultant, CMED; and Yoga Therapist. Most recently, she and her husband, Jeff, relocated to Sedona, Arizona to explore the west and high-desert living.

How to Build a Successful Ayurvedic Practice with Education, Legalities and Business Practices

By Felicia Tomasko, RN, C-IAYT, AP

If you’ve embarked on a course of study of Ayurveda, you’ve likely done so out of passion. You may have found some purpose in the teachings or even some measure of healing in your own life. Then, perhaps you decide to put the teachings into practice in a practical way and build a profession from your passion. When it comes to building a successful Ayurvedic business, there are a number of factors to address, from understanding the scope of practice in relation to your education, to knowing the laws you are practicing within, to fully understanding yourself. In addition, even if you didn’t set out with this goal in mind, it’s time to embrace the art of being an entrepreneur. Here are some suggestions for transitioning from Ayurveda as passion to Ayurveda as practice.
 

Know Yourself

While this may seem like a bit of a cliche, taking some time for an inventory of self-awareness is a key component to building any successful career. This is distinct from understanding the scope of your education. Knowing yourself includes understanding something about the ways in which you want to engage with your practice and your business. Where and how do you want to work? For example, do you thrive as part of a team and want to join an integrative medical clinic or group? Do you prefer to set up a solo practice? If so, is there a space at home where you can create a professional office space? Are you looking to make or sell products? Are there specialties within Ayurveda that you feel you want to focus on? Do you visualize a full-time practice or part-time work to accommodate family or other commitments? Try journaling or finding a friend, mentor, or colleague who is willing to brainstorm or heartstorm (as one of my friends says) with you. Know that some of your ideas might change, but it’s helpful to start the process of self-inquiry at the beginning, as it may inform some of your direction and subsequent decisions. As with any business, you’ll be starting where you are in the moment yet making plans to grow a practice and hold an expanded vision.

Embrace Your Education and Scope of Practice

Ayurveda is a vast science and practice. In order to promote clarity in the different educational paths, the National Ayurvedic Medical Association (NAMA) offers separate categories of practitioner types, each with their own course of study, requirements and scope of practice. Of course, Ayurveda is a life-long pursuit, and no matter where you begin there are options available to earn new certifications. In the meantime, understand where you are now and organize your business so that you are operating within the scope of practice appropriate to your educational competencies and certification. Continuing your education is important from the perspective of adhering to ethical guidelines as well as setting yourself up for success.

Commit to Continuing Your Education

Wherever you land in terms of a certification and title, completing continuing education on an annual basis is an important part of staying fresh and current. Even if you are seeing clients daily, nothing substitutes for an ongoing infusion of knowledge and insight from master teachers, clinicians with different experience than your own, and the ongoing wisdom that comes from being a perpetual student. This will continue to expand your skill as a practitioner, clinician, and businessperson, promoting your personal success. Through conferences, classes, and even conference calls and webinars, NAMA offers and refers numerous opportunities for continuing education. Personally, every event or class I attend provides at least one (if not many) a-ha moments that fine-tune or expand my ability to practice successfully.

Know the Laws and Choose a Business Structure

Once you understand the scope of your Ayurvedic specialty, relate that to the laws where you are. This includes understanding the state or regional regulations that apply to the practice of complementary and alternative medicine or therapies. If you have an active medical license, make sure that you are operating within the scope of practice of your Ayurvedic certification as well as your medical license.

Follow the legalities of operating a business in your local area including maintaining a business license and sales tax reporting (if applicable). Look into liability and other insurance policies that relate to both your place of business as well as your practice. Also, create a business structure and accounting system to provide the greatest ease and set yourself up for a long-term successful practice. You may decide to operate as a sole proprietor or to create an LLC or other business corporate structure for liability reasons, for greater clarity, or to facilitate long-term growth if you plan to hire employees or sell products.

Even though you may start small, keep in mind your extended vision. Set up the structures that support your growth. This projected growth may be from one client to five clients or one client to five thousand. The size of the expansion doesn’t matter but having systems in place that create a container for your practice allows you to be the best practitioner you can be. Along the way, utilize the support available for small business owners and budding entrepreneurs. In the US, resources like the Small Business Administration offer free- and low-cost classes as well as opportunities to access mentors.

Ethics Including Confidentiality

Taking an online ethics course is part of maintaining your ongoing professional status with NAMA. Implementing appropriate ethics is essential to maintaining a long-term successful practice. Make sure to implement the appropriate levels of confidentiality surrounding record-keeping and working with clients. Apply this to the systems you set up as well as how you conduct yourself in public. Your clients will notice the care with which you handle sensitive information; it helps to build trust and empowers them to confide in you more freely. This allows you to make appropriate recommendations that set your client up for greater success.
 

Build Your Networks

When it comes to building your networks, think about this from a variety of perspectives. On one level, it relates to building out-bound as well as in-bound referral networks in your community. Who will you call upon when faced with something that is outside your scope of practice? Who will you turn to for advice? Continue to maintain referral relationships with the teachers and mentors from your Ayurvedic programs when you need to discuss (confidentially, of course) a specific case. In addition, develop relationships with people in your community, including providers from other disciplines, for when you are looking for advice or when one of your clients needs services from another system. Get to know acupuncturists, chiropractors, OB/GYNs, massage therapists, energy workers, primary care providers, and more. Find people that you feel sympatico with and would feel comfortable making referrals to. At the same time, develop relationships with people who would be willing to refer clients to you. There may be other providers in your community who are looking for an Ayurvedic specialist whom they can trust. Considering providing some of them a free introductory session so they can get to know you, or offer to give a talk at their office. You may want to host an Ayurvedic tea and chat and invite them for a meet and greet. Developing these relationships in your community is an important aspect of solidifying the success of your own practice.

The other part of building your network is related to growing your group of clients. Start out by connecting to your spheres of influence and being open and communicative about your practice and what you do. You could volunteer at health fairs, donate gift certificates when the opportunity presents itself, encourage (and reward?) referrals from your regular clients. Come back to knowing yourself and your areas of specialty and/or competency. Connect to relevant communities through your areas of expertise. This may include working with kids, women, men, special populations or conditions, areas of interest, and more. As you know yourself, share yourself. As you grow, expand and nurture your networks. Take every opportunity daily to connect your passion to your practice.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Felicia Tomasko, RN, E-RYT-500, combines decades of Ayurvedic study with her background as a registered nurse. Her experience includes working in hospice care, in drug and alcohol recovery, and in biochemical and cognitive neuropsychology research and is the editor in chief of LA YOGA Ayurveda and Health Magazine.