Blue Awning Yoga & Wellness brings normalcy, peace, and vision to those with vision impairments | KD Sunday Spotlight

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Inside Blue Awning Yoga and Wellness yoga instructor, Vivian Bowser helps reset people's nervous systems with breath work and movement all in the form of yoga classes.

"I just loved it, I was just like this is a whole different side of fitness that I never even knew about," said Bowser.

If you lean into the class even more, you'll notice it's led by a legally blind instructor. 

"When I was fourteen, I was told that I would be completely blind by the age of nineteen and...nope," Bowser said. 

She can still see some right now, but doctors diagnosed Bowser with Rod Cone Dystrophy, which means she's losing her vision gradually to the point where cooking is challenging and driving is impossible.

When it comes to losing her vision, Bowser said, "You feel alienated a little bit or you just have to take extra steps to kind of like do what everyone else is doing, just walking in the building." 

Her gradual loss of sight means teaching yoga holds even more value to Bowser. 

"Not taking it for granted, the sight that I do have today, it's going to be different in the next year - Even in two years, or five years, or ten years," she said.

One might argue, that the vision loss she's experiencing makes her exceptional at verbally explaining how to do yoga during lessons thanks to the non-profit Blind and Vision Rehabilitation Services of Pittsburgh.

"Yoga is not a very visual thing. Yoga is all about how you feel in your own body and all of the cues are given verbally, and you're instructed to adapt them as it feels good in your body," said Erika Petach, the President of the non-profit.

Each year, it serves 14,000 people in our regions each year, including preschool vision screening. This yoga program is just one of thirteen different programs to help teach people who are blind or visually impaired ways to get back to independence.

"It's not rocket science what we're teaching, it's little changes that a person can make so that they can do the things they always did before they lost their vision," Petach said. "They just have to do them a little bit differently."

Different classes teach participants how to cook, clean, work, and navigate life, but in the yoga studio, the non-profit is changing lives by starting to focus on fitness.

At the gym, people who are visually impaired are told they may be a liability, and fitness instructors don't know how to teach for the blind. In here, both the visually impaired and those who can see workout together. Bowser said clients tell her it's "kind of the same response though no matter what. It's like wow that felt great, I feel my whole body now."

It's a game changer and a gift to the community. 

"So often, there are these misconceptions that people who are blind or visually impaired can't do a lot of the things that you or I can do, and the more people we bring into the studio that get to see that rather than just hear us talk about it, it's a game changer," Petach said.

Classes are as cheap as $5 online, with no need for transportation or childcare. There are also some free passes for people who live in the area. Yoga exercises help lower blood pressure and the risk of diabetes and boost overall health.

Now thanks to the Blind and Vision Rehabilitation Services of Pittsburgh teachers like Bowser are adding namaste to all people's lives and creating a safe community with yoga for all.

Blind and Vision Rehabilitation Services of Pittsburgh also started going into assisted living facilities and doing yoga classes for them. In addition, they're doing free classes for the community sponsored by Uptown Partners of Pittsburgh.

Ultimately, they want to add more yoga classes. Right now, they're held every day of the week, but only a few classes each day.

For more information on classes or how to get involved with the non-profit, you can visit their website at this link.

If you would like to see an organization highlighted in KDKA's Sunday Spotlight segment, send Megan Shinn an email at mshinn@kdka.com!