The Give Back Yoga Foundation

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The Give Back Yoga Foundation

Yoga can change a life. The Give Back Yoga Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization in the United States and a registered charity in the United Kingdom.

We help yoga teachers, health workers, and charitable organizations bring to individuals facing illness, hardship, and inequality. Over the past thirteen years, we have offered yoga to people in prisons, hospitals, and mental health centers. We have trained over ten thousand yoga teachers and healthcare workers, awarded more than $400,000 (USD) in grants, and dist

ributed more than 20,000 mats to kickstart programs in communities where there are barriers to access healthcare. OUR MISSION
Our mission is to bring the therapeutic benefits of yoga to people facing illness and hardship. We help yoga teachers, healthcare workers, and charitable organizations offer yoga to people facing addiction, cancer, eating disorders, incarceration, and post-traumatic stress. We also work with community partners to increase access to yoga for populations that face systemic bias and prejudice. HOW WE WORK
We support a broad spectrum of the yoga service movement; from teachers leading classes in their local communities, to seedling yoga service projects, to established not-for-profit organizations. Our strategy includes three key initiatives:

START-UP SUPPLIES
We send free yoga mats to yoga teachers and healthcare workers to lead not-for-profit yoga projects in their local communities. SMALL GRANTS
We provide funding to yoga teachers and small organizations to kickstart not-for-profit yoga projects. RESEARCH & EDUCATION
We work in collaboration with academic institutions to conduct and disseminate research on the benefits of yoga for individuals facing illness and hardship.

06/01/2026

Happy 💙

Through our partnership with , we were able to provide mats to .co in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where yoga is helping a community find its footing — one Wednesday at a time.

Founded by yoga teacher Kalish Nesbitt, Calm & Co. brought the March Consistency Yoga Series to the Greenwood District — a neighborhood with a profound and resilient history as the home of Black Wall Street. The series was intentional: the same slow flow sequence, four weeks in a row, so participants could build familiarity and confidence without the pressure of learning something new every class.

No mat? No problem. Donated mats meant full participation, no barriers.

By week three, something had shifted. People stopped introducing themselves and just started arriving. And during the final class, when Kalish asked participants to think of one word for where they'd been showing up for themselves — one person said simply:

✨ "Returning."

That one word was the whole point.

This is how consistency becomes community.

05/30/2026

It’s not about the perfect pose.

It’s about presence—
✨ noticing the breath
✨ feeling what’s here
✨ staying, even when it’s uncomfortable

This is where regulation begins.

This is where practice becomes support.

05/27/2026

People heal differently when they feel safe.

Mental health support isn’t always about doing more.

Sometimes it’s about slowing down enough for the nervous system to feel safe.

A softer cue.

An option to rest.

A reminder that there is no “right way” to participate.

These moments help create environments where students can breathe a little deeper and reconnect with themselves without pressure or judgment.

For many people, that kind of gentleness is rare.

✨ Safety can be part of the practice.

05/25/2026

Happy 🇺🇸

This Memorial Day, we are honoring the service of veterans while recognizing the importance of mental health support, healing, and community care.

Through our partnership with , we were able to provide mats to Army combat veteran Isah Kushma in El Paso, Texas.

Living with PTSD and a brain injury herself, Isah saw a need for beginner-friendly, trauma-informed yoga for veterans in his community and began offering free and low-cost classes designed to feel safe, supportive, and accessible.

For many veterans, traditional wellness spaces can feel intimidating. These classes offer something different: movement, breathwork, meditation, and connection with others who understand.

Isah shared that many participants have reported:
✨ decreased pain medication use
✨ decreased alcohol consumption
✨ increased self-esteem and sense of value

Healing can take many forms. Sometimes it begins with breath, movement, and a space where you feel understood.

This is how

Isah Maazing Fitness & Wellness

05/23/2026

Not every moment needs to be fixed.

Yoga teaches us to sit with what’s here—
without rushing past it,
without needing it to change.

For mental health, this kind of presence can be a powerful form of care.

05/20/2026

Holding space for others can be meaningful—and exhausting.

Many yoga teachers, therapists, and caregivers spend so much time supporting others that they forget to check in with themselves.

This month, let your practice include your own nervous system, too.

✨ Rest is not separate from service.

✨ Boundaries are not separate from compassion.

✨ Your well-being matters.

05/18/2026

Happy ! Through our partnership with we were able to provide mats to Adriana with of Breath to Movement LLC in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.

Adriana’s project is centered around making the therapeutic benefits of yoga more accessible to people who may not have access to traditional studio spaces.

Through guided walking meditations and yoga sessions in local parks, she creates low-barrier, welcoming environments where people can reconnect with their bodies and breath in a natural setting.

Her work is especially supportive for individuals navigating stress, trauma, chronic pain, and emotional overwhelm by offering practices rooted in gentle movement, breathwork, nervous system support, and belonging.

✨ “My intention is to create safe, grounded spaces where people can reconnect with themselves.”

This is how

Gaiam

05/16/2026

The relationship we have with ourselves shapes everything.

Yoga invites us to listen more closely…

to respond with compassion…

to soften the inner dialogue.

For mental health, this relationship is the work—and the healing.

05/13/2026

Healing begins with connection.

Through LIT Yoga, Alexxa Casanova brings trauma-informed, culturally respectful yoga directly into tribal communities across San Diego County. From elder programs to youth groups and recovery spaces, her work creates accessible opportunities for movement, community care, and mental health support.

Participants have shared that yoga has helped reduce stress, improve sleep, ease anxiety, and build confidence. One elder shared that after consistent chair yoga classes, she was able to get up from the floor without pain for the first time in years.

✨ “She said she felt hopeful and stronger, which reinforced how powerful accessible movement and community care can be.”

This is the impact of accessible yoga rooted in trust, consistency, and community.

Read Alexxa’s full Story of Impact here:

🔗 givebackyoga.org/stories-of-impact

05/11/2026

Happy 💙

Through our partnership with , we were able to provide mats to in San Lorenzo, California, where yoga is helping build strength, belonging, and community.

Founded by yoga teacher and co-founder William Cristobal, the Human Connection Initiative brings accessible movement and mindfulness to older adults and individuals in transitional housing through their M³ Method: Move, Meditate, Mingle.

One story that stood out to us is Mike’s.

After showing up consistently to his men’s group, moving, connecting, and building strength week after week, Mike earned a new mat after attending 4+ sessions.

But when asked what his biggest takeaway had been so far, his answer was simple:

✨ “To have fun.”

Sometimes the most meaningful part of the journey is simply showing up, moving your body, and feeling connected.

This is how yoga changes lives.

Address

Boulder, CO

Website

http://givebackyoga.org/

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