Calm together
tools and practices for parents and carers of neurodivergent young people
An 8-Week Wellbeing Programme for Parent Carers of Neurodiverse Children and Young People
Come as you are. Be supported. Leave with tools to help you — and your child — thrive.
Learn self regulation techniques that you can then share with your child.
Caring for Carers is a gentle, heart-led 8-week programme created especially for parent carers of neurodiverse children and young people.
Developed by Special Yoga in partnership with MyOTAS, and funded by Essex County Council, this pilot programme offers a safe, supportive space to nourish yourself, connect with others and build sustainable practices to nurture your own wellbeing, while also supporting your family.
No previous experience is required.
Every session is fully guided and accessible. Just bring yourself as you are.
What You’ll Experience
Each week, you’ll be gently guided through simple, effective wellbeing practices:
Self-awareness and Compassion - Develop self care practices to nourish and restore.
Gentle Movement - Support for releasing tension and reconnecting with your body.
Breathwork Practices - Tools for self-regulation and emotional overwhelm.
Mindfulness - Building calm and steadiness in everyday moments.
Energy and Relaxation - Practices to re-balance your system and promote deep rest.
You will have access to our online training platform with videos of the practices to support you between sessions.
No previous experience is necessary.
What You’ll Gain
By the end of the 8 weeks, you’ll walk away with:
A toolkit of practical, body-based strategies to calm your nervous system and reduce stress.
Greater confidence in your ability to co-regulate and support your neurodiverse child emotionally.
A stronger connection to your own needs and how to meet them.
A sense of community, understanding, and shared experience.
We prioritise:
A non-judgemental, inclusive space where all experiences are welcome.
Compassionate facilitation by practitioners trained in working with neurodiverse families.
Support, including access to recorded online resources for six months after the course ends.
Programme Details
Day: Monday evenings
Dates: 6th October – 24th November 2025
Time: 7:15pm – 8:30pm
Location: Online (zoom)
How to Join
Thanks to funding from Essex County Council, this programme is free for eligible parent carers.
To reserve your place, email: info@myotas.org
Spaces are limited to ensure a supportive, personal experience — early booking is recommended.
You Deserve Support
Caring for a neurodiverse child is profound, beautiful, and often exhausting and stressful.
This programme offers a space for you to rest, be seen, and build inner resources that ripple out into your whole family.
No experience needed — just a willingness to commit to ONE hour a week for 8 weeks.
We’re here to support you.
Meet our Trainers
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Jyoti Manuel
FOUNDER
With her depth of knowledge and many years of experience, Jyoti Jo Manuel is recognised by many as one of the worlds leading authorities on therapeutic yoga for children.
Her personal yoga journey started in 1974 and she began teaching in 1989.
In 2002 Jyoti founded Special Yoga, a global organisation established to provide and develop sustainable and accessible yoga programmes for children with special and additional needs.Special Yoga’s work reaches across education, therapeutic settings and within the home. Jyoti has travelled extensively implementing Special Yoga programmes in orphanages, social care, education and health care and for paediatric therapists and psychologists.
As founder, lead and spiritual head of Special Yoga she has trained senior practitioners to support the effective and impactful delivery of Special Yoga into local councils, academies and
individual special schools and specialist provisions to provide training in therapeutic yoga for children with special needs. -
Karen Rodrigues Ayers
ADVANCED PRACTITIONER & TRAINER
I am a busy mum of a young lady who has a dual diagnosis of Down Syndrome and ASD and a hearing impairment.
I came to Special Yoga a total novice; I was really looking for techniques to support my child and the children I support but I came away with so much more, I learned tools to regulate my own emotions, I could be calm and regulate the tide of emotions that as a Sen parent I am often dealing with.
I have a passion for supporting children and adults with SEN/D and their parents. I am privileged to share special yoga with specialist schools and on a one to one basis with children and adults.
As a senior practitioner with Special Yoga I am one of the study group leaders for their flagship Foundation Course, I have also completed the Special Yoga for Adults with Special Needs training and the Yoga Nidra CPD.
My background is in Early Years and my degree is in Special Educational Needs and inclusive practice.
As well as sharing Special Yoga I also lead a Portage Early Years team for a national disabled children's charity where I manage the tendered service delivering Portage and other specialist early interventions and parent programmes such as sleep counselling and the NAS EarlyBird programme. -
Laura Tilley
ADVANCED PRACTITIONER & TRAINER
Laura is a caring, intuitive and creative individual and teaches yoga to children and adults with SEND in nurseries, schools, day centres and private 1-2-1 work.
Her background is in dance and movement therapy and yoga for over 10 years. She has an in depth knowledge of Special Yoga having studied with us for many years and having taken foundation and senior practitioner courses. She now supports our work as a study group leader and teacher.
Laura has two very special daughters, one with complex learning disabilities and another with ADHD and Autism. This experience has shaped her journey towards yoga and self care for the children. She is also keenly aware of the importance of practise and self care for parents/carers and enjoys sharing ways in which this has supported her.