This past week of my yoga practice has consisted of several individual practices, and two practices with an instructor. I attended a beginners/all levels class at yoga nine with Laurie last Sunday. At this class, emphasis was placed on forward folds, seated postures, and stretches for the back, legs and core. From this class I learned the value of a proper forward fold, and how to keep a straight level back without looking like an unattractive hunch back. I learned some great pointers on keeping a straight back, such as arching the lower back forward and then going into a forward fold, then imagining a rope on the upper back pulling the chest up. The following day I did an individual practice to stretch out the soreness I experienced the next day. On Thursday in class, we did a Sivananda practice in class with Jenn. At the beginning of that practice we did breathing exercises where you would breathe out of one nostril, then out the other. I was relieved when we moved on to the physical practice as I was uncomfortable doing the breathing and was worried the entire session was going to be devoted to that. We did some exercises, and I managed to do an assisted headstand. Some of the questions posed to us this week address yoga as a transition from a counterculture to a popular culture practice. Yoga transitioned to a pop culture practice when it was marketed in the United States alongside exercise routines for women's health. Yogi's in the East became popular when they published books and were visited by Westerners who sought their teaching. Popular celebrities doing yoga such as Marilyn Monroe made yoga popular in the West. As a means to treat addiction, yoga is a powerful tool to help addicts towards recovery. With regular practitioners, addicts choose the spiritual path, or the more exercise oriented yoga routine. Those who are spiritual use yoga along the same lines as those who seek God and put their energy in faith to help them when they feel down, and aid in their recovery. Addicts experience a "lack" in their life as noted by a Huffington Post article. They feel that they need something to fill a void that is missing, and many turn to drugs and alcohol. Once an addict is detoxed, they can concentrate on breathing, meditation, and yoga. This is a cure proven to aid in addiction recovery.