Bilingual Yoga Removes Stigma, Helps Heal Comunidad

On a recent Thursday evening, Linda Natera stepped into an East Austin yoga space where her early bird students stretched and chit-chatted as they awaited her arrival. 

¿“Hola chicas, qué tal? ¿Están listas para empezar?” Natera asked first in Spanish then in English.  

Since 2020, Natera has created a safe healing space for bilingual Austinites. Sana Yoga, the nonprofit she founded, provides free yoga classes for the Latino community and other marginalized groups. 

As a Mexican immigrant, Natera says she recognizes the trauma and societal pressures these communities face and felt inspired to launch a way to provide a more accessible and inclusive path to wellness. 

“You need trauma-informed yoga when serving the Latino community,” she says. “Because we’ve all been through something and you want to make sure that you’re prepared to cater to folks walking into your class.”

LACK OF LATINOS IN YOGA

But in the world of yoga, Natera acknowledges a lack of both Latino students and instructors. “Us as Latinos don’t invest in our wellness as much as other communities do,” she says. “Within the Hispanic community, health challenges arise from limited accessibility, inclusivity issues, and disparities in healthcare equity.”

A data brief published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that Hispanics are less likely (6.6%) to practice yoga compared to others.  “Let’s explore the obstacles that impede access to health and wellness among Hispanics,” she says.

Natera says she was the “only Hispanic person” at her yoga training. “A lot of Hispanic yoga teachers don’t teach yoga in Spanish because they make money catering to other communities,” she says. “Hispanic yoga teachers might not actively engage with their communities due to a lack of resources to serve our communities.”

In her classes, she reminds attendees to go at their own pace and to use the yoga blocks as additional support if they need it. 

“Thank you for sharing your practice with me,” she says to her attendees when she wraps up her class and emphasizes the importance of unity and vulnerability in practicing yoga.

REMOVING THE STIGMA

“When they come to the yoga class, they see and hear someone who looks like them,” Natera says. “All the bad stigma goes away when they feel invited by us.”

She enjoys making Spanish references and jokes during the yoga sessions to keep her attendees feeling comfortable and at ease. 

For first-time yoga student Hilda Becerril, the practice became a way to seek physical healing for her back pain and she’s been attending classes at Sana Yoga consistently since May. Becerril began doing yoga at home until she found the nonprofit’s bilingual classes. 

“I used to do physical therapy, but coming to Linda’s classes makes me more flexible, reduces the pain I feel in my back, and it helps my anxiety too,” Becerril says.

Cindy Vankuren, a nurse for a local medical clinic, has been attending yoga classes with Sana Yoga for about two years and loves the bilingual instruction. 

“I work with a lot of Spanish-speaking families and people, and knowing the body parts when Linda points them out during yoga, it helps me memorize them and use them in my work,” Vankuren says. 

She tries to consistently attend class as she’s found it helpful to reduce stress and build muscle strength. 

At the end of class, Vankuren stays behind to chat and catch up on chisme. Soon, the topic turns to an eager discussion of what everyone will bring to an upcoming Sana Yoga party.

Natera hasn’t always felt that yoga has been an accessible or welcoming space for the Latino community. But Natera hopes that can change through Sana Yoga’s bilingual classes, along with plenty of feedback from the community. 

“I want to make sure the community knows that there’s a space where you can come to — to breathe and (then) get back there to the fast-paced life,” she says. 

IF YOU GO:

Sana Yoga offers various types of classes, from adaptive yoga to chair instruction. Visit their class schedule for more details.

This article was updated to provide additional context regarding the lack of Latinos in yoga.