Education and Wellness
We offer a wide range of educational and wellness programs. Our goal is to provide a variety of options to meet your needs.
We have workshops focused on the needs of mind, body and spirit, to enhance your quality of life while living with cancer. We provide learning opportunities aimed at empowering you to better cope with diagnosis, recovery, treatment and beyond. We hold educational forums that are open to the public, offering the latest information pertaining to breast, ovarian and gynecological cancer.
Our program calendar changes throughout the year. Please view this page often to check for new offerings. You can also visit our calendar.
All of our programs are free. Pre-registration is REQUIRED. Call us: 914-962-6402 or 800-532-4290.
Tai Chi
WHEN: Mondays, 10:30 – 11:30 am (NY time) (*check our calendar for holidays & schedule changes)
WHERE: Zoom video conference
NOTE: Space is limited. Please call for more information.
Open to women who have or have had breast, ovarian or gynecological cancer. Pre-registration is required. To register, call Support Connection: 914-962-6402 or 800-532-4290.
The basic principle of Tai Chi (TIE-chee) is to cultivate what the Chinese allude to as the 3 treasures: mind, body, spirit. The practice includes a series of exercises called Silk Reeling (slow, repetitive, meditative movements) followed by form practice. Benefits include improved balance, strength and flexibility and a sense of well-being.
In this class, a basic beginner form will be taught. Learn to focus the mind while working on the principles of posture and motion. The goal is to help each student understand the mind-body relationship so they can continue to grow with the forms they have learned long after class ends.
INSTRUCTOR: Alan Bandes. Alan has been practicing Tai Chi for over 40 years. His teaching approach is to work with each student to achieve success within their unique capabilities.
Yoga Nidra
WHEN: The second Wednesday of the month (beginning August 2023), 10:30 -11:30am (NY time). 2023 dates: 10/11, 11/8, 12/13
WHERE: Zoom video conference
Open to people living with breast, ovarian, or any gynecological cancer. Pre-registration is required. For information or to register, call Support Connection: 914-962-6402 or 800-532-4290. Must register before 5pm the night before which ever session you’d like to attend.
Join us once per month for a 60 minute Yoga Nidra (Yogic Sleep) session. Yoga Nidra meditation is “yogic sleep.” Through a series of guided instructions, the body is led into a state of supreme relaxation where the unconscious and subconscious mind awaken, opening the potential for deep healing.
Benefits of Yoga Nidra include:
- Minimizes tension and counteracts stress
- Relaxes and trains the mind
- Improves sleep and reduces insomnia
- Clears up unconscious conflicts
- Awakens creativity
- Enhances memory and learning capacity
The instructor will guide you every step of the way, preparing you for comfortable participation. No experience necessary. All you need is a quiet, comfortable space to lie or recline and rest.
Instructor Jaimee Roncone is a multi-modality healer for over 20 years. She is a certified Daring to Rest™ Yoga Nidra facilitator. Jaimee is also a health and wellness coach and navigator.
Rosen Movement: A Gentle Wellness Class
WHEN: Fridays, 10:30 – 11:45 am (NY time) (*check our calendar for holidays & schedule changes)
WHERE: Zoom video conference
Open to people nationwide who have or have had breast, ovarian or gynecological cancer. Pre-registration is required. To register, call Support Connection: 914-962-6402 or 800-532-4290.
NOTE: Space is limited for each session. Please call for more information.
Are you are looking for a new way to reduce stress, relax, and connect with your body, in the comfort of your home? Then consider trying Rosen Movement. Developed by physical therapist Marion Rosen, a health and wellness pioneer, Rosen Movement encourages relaxation through range of motion and stretching exercises set to music. The sequence of movements encourages flexibility through joint lubrication, chest and rib expansion, muscle lengthening and ease of body, mind and spirit. The movements are easy and simple.
No experience necessary. All you need are comfortable clothing and a private space to move freely. Attend one or all of the sessions.
INSTRUCTOR: Betty Ross is a Licensed Massage Therapist and a Certified Rosen Method Bodyworker. She is also certified in Core Energetic Therapy and is a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner. Betty is also a breast cancer survivor.
Comments from some past participants: “This program helped me relax & exercise at the same time.” ~ “I felt like my various joints were put through a full range of motion and I didn’t feel quite as stiff. It was nice to connect with others, even if just virtually.” ~ “Betty was wonderful and her choice of music had a smile on my face throughout the class. I left each class happy and feeling great.”
Yoga – A Path Toward Wellness
WHEN: Saturdays; 10 – 11:30 am (NY time) (*check our calendar for holidays & schedule changes)
WHERE: Zoom video conference
Open to women who have or have had breast, ovarian or gynecological cancer. Pre-registration is required. To register, call Support Connection: 914-962-6402 or 800-532-4290.
NOTE: Space is limited for each session. Please call for more information.
Appropriate for beginners or more advanced students. Emphasis is placed on movement with breath awareness as a way to achieve a more tranquil mind. Experience the benefits of yoga, which include a stronger, healthier body and a calmer, more focused mind. Come every week, or as often as you’d like. Please obtain your doctor’s approval before participating in any wellness program.
INSTRUCTOR: Mia Azcue, CYT, E-RYT 500, RPT. Mia has been a student and teacher of yoga for more than 20 years and has been teaching classes for Support Connection for more than 10 years. She holds certificates from the American Viniyoga Institute, both as a yoga teacher and as a yoga therapist, and is also a licensed Physical Therapist in the state of New York. As a yoga therapist, Mia draws deeply on her training and applies yoga principles to assist the individual with any physical, emotional and/or spiritual challenges she or he may be facing.
Don’t Lose Sight of the Bigger Health Picture: Surviving and Thriving After a Cancer Diagnosis
WHEN: Tuesday, October 17, 2023 6-7pm (NY Time)
WHERE: Zoom video conference
Open to people nationwide who have or have had breast, ovarian, or gynecological cancer. Pre-registration is required. To register, call Support Connection: 914-962-6402 or 800-532-4290. Must register by 5 pm (NY time) on Monday, October 16.
We welcome you to join Support Connection and NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital for a two part program.
Part one will include a presentation by Dr. Natalie Berger, medical oncologist,about the importance of lifestyle, living with uncertainty and continuing cancer screenings while living with breast, ovarian or gynecological cancer.
In part two of this program,Chef Marti Wolfson will conduct a live cooking demonstration and speak about the important role nutrients play in helping to manage stress and inflammation and how to use them in recipes.
Presentor: Natalie Berger, MD is an Assistant Professor of Hematology and Oncology at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Associate Director of Breast Medical Oncology at NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital.
Dr. Berger earned her medical degree from St. George’s University. She completed her residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Connecticut and her fellowship in Hematology and Medical Oncology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
Before joining NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital and Columbia, Dr. Berger was an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, focusing on breast cancer and gynecologic malignancies.
Presentor: Marti Wolfson is a certified health-supportive chef and nutrition educator of over15 years. She specializes in food therapy, Functional Nutrition, and mindfulness practice for preventing and healing chronic illness. She has taught food as medicine for those healing from chronic illness as well as universities, nutrition conferences, culinary schools, advanced nutrition certifications, corporate wellness programs and health retreats. Marti has a master’s in nutrition and Functional Medicine from the University of Western States. She has been newly inducted into the prestigious Les Dames d’Escoffier New York, an unparalleled collective of forward-thinking and successful female leaders in all sectors of the food, beverage, and hospitality industries. She is honored to be the chef and coordinator of The Chef Peter X Kelly Teaching Kitchen at NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital, a teaching kitchen that serves the community, staff, and patients.
