Have you been pushing through your body’s need to rest?
Are you wishing you could experience more receptivity and softness?
Are you longing for time and space to relax completely and receive care?
Art of Relaxation
exquisite body work,
gentle movement,
& deep rest
ARt of Relaxation is A resource for receiving exquisite care, with simple and tactile guidance, so you can let go and rest deeply.
The Art of Relaxation experience combines superb body work with guided gentle movement and deep relaxation, for blissful rest in a supportive group setting.
This is a practice towards reclaiming a feeling of safety, openness and compassion together. This experience is a reprieve from the grind and an invitation to do nothing and remember you are inherently worthy of care and healing.
Body work from hand selected professionals invites our inherent need for caring contact and the benefits of skilled massage to deepen possibilities of becoming blissfully relaxed and tension free. Impeccable presence and masterful touch can allow us to release both superficial physical tension and deeper habits of guarding and resisting rest.
The nervous system needs regular practice of slowing down so that we can more easily and fully heal, sleep, digest and integrate. A properly toned nervous system not only responds to stress efficiently, but is also able to recognize when you are safe, which opens up the ability to feel reverence, gratitude and awe with life. The state of relaxation has the potential to help us integrate a vast range of human experiences, process conscious and unconscious emotions, and open ourselves to new possibilities and paths of how to move out into the world.
Rest is a human right, and a necessary part of our collective healing.
Next Session:
*Dates to be added for 2025*
What to Expect
Each restorative group session is supported by multiple body workers offering massage, assisted stretches, energy work and prop and body adjustments for deepening your comfort, while you're guided in breath, gentle stretching, meditation and deep relaxation.|
When you arrive at the Art of Relaxation you can expect a welcoming, peaceful space held by your host Ilana and the healing practitioners of that day’s session, with the opportunity to check in and ask any questions or make requests.
You will choose your space to receive from a lay out of cozy nests, set up with all the props (blankets, pillows, etc.) that you will need for the practice and begin to settle in.
At the start time, Ilana will open the session and guide you into the experience.
You will receive exquisite massage and potent energy work from hand selected professionals as you are guided through the Art of Relaxation flow:
-Landing in a calming breath
-Moving the body in gentle and profound ways
-Being guided into a meditative loving state
-Luxurious restorative poses, with support from attentive body workers, and permission and encouragement to do absolutely nothing.
-Experiencing a long deep relaxation
-Being thoughtfully guided back into group intention, and sealing the practice together.
Location
Conference Center @ South Hill Business Campus
950 Danby Road Ithaca, NY 14850
Price
$85
Payment is due upon registration.
Payment Options:
- Venmo to @Ilana-Berman
- Cash, contact Ilana personally to arrange
- PayPal or Credit Card through booking website - +$3 transaction fee
- Check made out to Ilana Berman, sent to 390 Mineah Road Freeville NY 13068
See FAQs for cancellation policy.
“I had the realization that a large part of the progress and increase in vitality that my healers (acupuncturist, chiropractor, massage therapist) are noticing is due to the last several months of my attending this offering and receiving the powerful healing offered by everyone.
What an incredible session today. Thank you so much for creating this and nurturing us all. Your warm and gentle presence and leading and the beautiful people who offer healing touch are just such a gift!”
Access Rest
Access Rest is an opportunity to supplement or receive support around the cost of Art of Relaxation to make it more financially accessible, because rest is a birthright!
If you would like to contribute to someone else’s ability attend OR receive support in a supplemented spot in an Art of Relaxation session please email ilanahata@gmail.com
To give, include how much you’d like to contribute and through which payment method (see above).
To receive, please include if you are hoping for a partial or fully supported spot and if there are any particular dates you are hoping to attend.
Ilana Berman, LMT & E-RYT 200
Ilana has been guiding and refining The Art of Relaxation since 2014, a natural evolution of the restorative yoga classes she was offering with an expansion and emphasis on healing touch.
Ilana established her practice in Ithaca, New York in 2011, and has been teaching in a variety of styles and venues in the Finger Lakes ever since. She graduated from her initial Yoga Teacher Training at the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health and has completed several advanced trainings in the years to follow including: Guiding Meditation & Advanced Asana with Yoganand Michael Carrol, Freedom Style Yoga with Eric Shiffman, Embodied Anatomy: Breath Focus with Leslie Kaminoff & Practices in Embodied Teaching with Amy Matthews of The Breathing Project, and Pelvic Floor Yoga with Leslie Howard.
Ilana graduated from the Finger Lakes School of massage with 1000 hours of training and received her NY license in Massage Therapy in 2013. She has completed advanced training in Biodynamic Craniosacral work with Jenna Milner and Thai Yoga Massage with the Lotus Palm School. Ilana’s massage practice invites a range of clients from those working with chronic conditions to dedicated athletes to find integration, pain relief and deep revitalization in their work together. Read more about Ilana here.
Calendar of Sessions
Dates to be added for 2025
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I wear?
Comfortable clothing that you can move and lie down in and possibly layers to adjust your temperature. There are facilities for changing. A notepad and pen if you’d like to free write or take notes about any realizations or experiences.
What do I need to bring?
Yourself, a yoga mat (there are a few to borrow), and a water container with a sealable lid (no spills :))
What can I leave at home?
Please leave your smart watch/anything that you might wear that will buzz, blink or distract you or those around you.
Please do not wear perfume and be generally conscientious of odors which can be distracting or feel invasive to others. Essential oils in very moderate amounts are usually not a problem, be thoughtful and use your best judgment.
What if I don’t want to receive touch?
You are welcomed to attend without receiving touch! Please just arrive early and check in with Ilana, she will make sure to help you set up in the space and communicate with the therapists to leave you in peace.
How spaced are the mats?
Participants will be spaced at least a full arms width apart without overlap and will likely have more space depending on the number of participants and the size of the room. We try to leave plenty of room to sprawl out, move props around and have space for therapists to move easily between nests and position themselves to offer touch intentionally and not by accident.
How long is the event?
This is a 2.25-hour event. However, it is smart to give yourself plenty of space to arrive and settle in without feeling rushed and some buffer time afterward in order to take your time transitioning from deep relaxation back into the world.
What if I am signed up and feeling sick?
Please do not attend the session if you are feeling under the weather, or are experiencing any symptoms of potential illness. Please, contact Ilana at ilanahata@gmail.com as soon as possible to notify us that you will not be attending.
While relaxation, a healthy rested nervous system and being in community are essential components of maintaining a robust immune system, please be thoughtful and aware that there is a certain level of inherent risk in being with a group of people indoors and consenting to touch.
Please make choices about signing up for and attending based on your own levels of potential risk tolerance, immunity, ability to relax in the context of the space and consideration for our community. Masks are welcomed, and not required.
What People Are Saying
“This class has been the most relaxing experience of my life.”
“I’ve referred many people to the art of relaxation classes in the past, I knew they would find a safe and deeply relaxing experience no matter their physical shape, size, or gender.”
“Your knowledge of human anatomy and awareness of what humans need physically and emotionally drew me into your Art of Relaxation sessions. The amazing way I felt after each session, kept me going back for more.”
“Art of Relaxation classes are glorious. I am a yoga instructor and this class is the one that brings me joy, peace, and as advertised, relaxation.”
“What keeps me coming back is the beautiful way you present this class, my comfort in the others you bring in for the hands on, and the wonderful way I feel during and after class.”
“Ilana came highly recommended from a dear friend as a healing soul who could meet any body where they were and support their growth and relaxation. That is high praise and something that is harder to come by than it should be… The recommendation was not hype! Through multiple Art of Relaxation classes and one massage I found Ilana’s hands, heart and beautiful soul to be full of just the ‘medicine’ I needed.”
“The only other thing I might add... and I am never quite sure how to say this.... is just that yoga and body work can be particularly challenging if body image is a challenge. There is a vulnerability to getting on a mat or a massage table. For me, while I have made my peace with both on some level, when I have occasionally found myself in a class of fit, flexible, slender bodies I am prone to feeling like the hippo in the room. The saving grace of such situations is an instructor whose warmth, grace and acceptance is genuine and heartfelt. With that energy guiding a class, meeting me where I am and supporting my growth, I feel liberated and able to literally (and emotionally) stretch. You have always been such a teacher and your classes and massages have always felt warm and welcoming.”
Are there any contraindications?
Only if it is a challenge to lie on the floor without pain. Everything offered in the class is completely optional, and there are numerous props to help with comfort. If you can get comfortable in even one or two positions you are welcome to stay in those positions the entire time, receiving healing touch exactly where you are at.
All bodies at all stages of life are welcomed!
How is the touch offered different from a “yoga assist”?
Healing touch is touch with the intention of emphasizing the health and comfort of your body. It can range from light energetic holds, massage techniques to release, integrate, or connect parts of the body, and even deeper pressure for specific energetic or muscular points to free tension.
Yoga assists are often in the context of correcting, aligning or deepening into a specific shape. There can be some overlap, but the touch in this class is focused on feeling pleasurable and relaxed, rather than trying to achieve some external idea of correct form.
Your feedback in the moment is welcomed and encouraged, if it improves your experience.
Who are the healing arts practitioners?
The practitioners are trained and licensed body workers, hand picked by Ilana for their hands-on skills, peaceful and attentive energy, professionalism, and comfort and familiarity with restorative yoga. While there will always be a majority of licensed massage therapists assisting the class. In addition, practitioners in Thai Massage, Chinese Medicine, Reiki and other energy work modalities will also be in the mix.
How can I be notified the next time you run the event?
The website will be kept up to date with the confirmed scheduled sessions. Fill out the form at the bottom of the page to sign up for our newsletter to receive updates.
What if the session I’d like to attend is sold out?
Please add yourself to the Waitlist for the session of your choice . You will be notified when a spot opens for you!
Use the Reserve My Spot button if you’d like to save your spot for the next session!
What is the cancellation policy?
There is a 24-hour cancellation policy. Please notify Ilana via email: ilanahata@gmail.com as far ahead of 24-hours as possible so we can notify those on the waitlist.
If you cancel before 24-hours you will be fully refunded (minus service fee if by credit card or paypal) or added to a future session on the schedule.
Cancellations within 24 hours and no-shows will not receive a refund, or transfer to a future session.