Cancer Assistance and Resource Education Center

Yoga offers support for mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual health and has helped people for thousands of years’ experience a greater sense of well-being.  Yoga includes more than positioning the body in certain ways.  Beyond gentle movement, practices may include relaxed breathing, picturing relaxing images, letting go of tension in muscles, and ways to quiet the mind. It also includes practicing ways to self-regulate, following values and principles like kindness, honesty, steadiness, and contentment in daily life, as well as spiritual awareness. Yoga Therapy tailors these tools to each person, including those diagnosed with cancer, according to their unique needs, symptoms, and personal goals.

Several studies have shown potential benefits of yoga therapy to manage symptoms in patients with cancer, including: decreasing tiredness, pain, anxiety, depression, stress, and sleeplessness.  Improvements may include increased flexibility, balance, mood, and overall quality of life.

Risks associated with Yoga or Yoga Therapy movement practices may be different for each person, and related to cancer and/or another condition. Importantly, follow your healthcare provider’s advice and your inner wisdom to avoid strain or going beyond the body’s current limits.

Yoga Therapy is an integrative, complementary approach to health and wellness that supports traditional medical care. Note, it is not a replacement for physical therapy, medical, and/or psychological care.

From the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT): “YOGA THERAPY IS the professional application of the principles and practices of yoga to promote health and well-being within a therapeutic relationship that includes personalized assessment, goal setting, lifestyle management, and yoga practices for individuals or small groups.”

For more information or to register for an Introductory Session with the Invitation to Experience, email Beth Voss, CARE Center medical office associate or call 717-531-0003, x285186

​​​​​​​Dawn Shawley, E-RYT500, C-IAYT, is a registered and certified yoga instructor with over 15 years of experience in adaptive yoga to a wide range of individuals.  As a certified Yoga Therapist, Shawley works with each person to increase self-awareness and create a foundation from which to navigate change and stress with greater ease.  

Shawley’s professional training includes: 2007: 200-Hour Certification, Integral Yoga (RYT200); 2019: Pelvic Floor Yoga™ certification, Leslie Howard; and 2021: 800-Hour Comprehensive Yoga Therapy certification, YogaLife Institute (E-RYT500, C-IAYT).

The following studies suggest benefits of yoga for those going through cancer diagnosis, treatment, and recovery:

1. White Paper: Yoga Interventions for Cancer Patients and Survivors
2. Review of yoga therapy during cancer treatment – Danhauer SC, Addington EL, Sohl SJ, Chaoul A, Cohen L. Review of yoga therapy during cancer treatment. Support Care Cancer. 2017 Apr;25(4):1357-1372. doi: 10.1007/s00520-016-3556-9. Epub 2017 Jan 7. PMID: 28064385; PMCID: PMC5777241.
3. Yoga for symptom management in oncology: A review of the evidence base and future directions for research – Danhauer SC, Addington EL, Cohen L, Sohl SJ, Van Puymbroeck M, Albinati NK, Culos-Reed SN. Yoga for symptom management in oncology: A review of the evidence base and future directions for research. Cancer. 2019 Jun 15;125(12):1979-1989. doi: 10.1002/cncr.31979. Epub 2019 Apr 1. PMID: 30933317; PMCID: PMC6541520.

Write from the Heart with CARE is a creative writing workshop for adults with a history of cancer diagnosis, whether in active treatment or beyond. Participants are asked to simply be themselves and explore what writing may offer. Sponsored by Penn State Cancer Institute’s Cancer Assistance and Resource Education (CARE) Center, the online workshop will be offered via Zoom in eight weekly sessions:

• ​​​​​​​April 4 through May 23, 2024

The workshop begins gently, as participants gather to meet each other. Melissa Greene, the workshop leader, then offers a writing prompt to engage the imagination. Participants explore the ways in which writing, when approached in a light and easy manner, can offer opportunities for reflection, meaning and connection. Sharing is optional. No judgment. No grades. No writing rules. Meetings include the sharing of poems by contemporary poets whose work is meant to delight and inspire.

Workshop leaders

​​​​
Melissa Greene is a writer, teacher and director of Write from the Heart creative writing workshops. Based in Lancaster, Pa., since 2001, Greene has inspired people of all ages to experience writing in new ways. She served as the writing workshop instructor in a Cancer Institute patient study entitled, "The Effect of Creative Writing on the Mood of Patients with Cancer." It was published in the British Medical Journal in 2021.

​​​​​​​Greene is accompanied by Dr. Michael Hayes, the CARE Center’s founding program director and a licensed psychologist. Hayes strives to advance comprehensive, whole-person care for adults diagnosed with cancer. He was a co-investigator for the Cancer Institute study, which explored writing and cancer recovery. It provided preliminary evidence for the benefits creative writing may offer to those with a history of cancer diagnosis and treatment.

What our participants are saying

"Let your mind play!" - Carol

"By writing, we become a little lighter." - Jay

“It’s amazing how a simple word or phrase can shake loose so many beautiful memories of life.” - Sharon

"You are welcome here
To find some words
And to share some thoughts
And to explore some feelings
About all of it
Or some of it
Or none of it" - Linda

"I found comfort, inspiration, and awe in my heart." - Lizz

Find out more

For more information or to register for an upcoming session, email Beth Voss, CARE Center medical office associate, or call 717-531-0003, x285186.

Contact Us

1-888-531-6585, option 4
400 University Drive
Hershey, PA 17033

Hours of Operation

Monday through Friday