Colorful yoga mats dot the floor in the activities room of George Washington University’s Cloyd Heck Marvin Center during the gentle yoga class, where cancer patients and their families from across the Washington, D.C. area come to reduce stress and achieve a sense of mindfulness.
When a person is first diagnosed with cancer, they may not be in the best mindset, and yoga is a way to decompress, says Aaron Wertlieb, a class regular. After being diagnosed with prostate cancer, Wertlieb says his doctors at GW thought the class would help him manage both the stress of the diagnosis and the stress of his IT job at a downtown Washington, D.C. law firm. While at first skeptical about what yoga could offer him, Wertlieb says now he goes out of his way to make it to every class.
“When I miss a week, I really feel it physically and spiritually,” he says of the weekly sessions, which typically draw about eight to 12 people. “I try not to miss any because it really helps.” Wertlieb points to class instructor, Yael Flusberg, as the center of his newfound dedication to yoga. “I’ve heard a lot of people who take yoga say they have a lot of positive or negative experiences depending on the teacher. I think Yael has a special heart for the class and how she handles the people there,” he says.
