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Terms of Participation: Consent, Waiver, and Media Release

Informed Consent and Release​

Welcome to the informed consent and release​ for our Yoga Teacher Training. This document outlines important information regarding the risks and benefits of participation, your rights as a student, and the steps we take to ensure a safe and supportive learning environment. By reviewing and agreeing to this consent, you confirm that you understand the terms of your participation and are prepared to engage fully in the course with an informed perspective.

Risks and Benefits

Yoga Teacher Training courses may have benefits and risks. You should consult your physician and obtain consent before beginning the course.

All movement programs involve a risk of injury. By participating in the program’s movement portion, you voluntarily assume a certain risk of injury. The following guidelines will help you reduce your risk of injury:

  • Breathe smoothly and continuously as you move and stretch.
  • Do not strain to attain any position.
  • Respect your body’s abilities and limitations.
  • Do not perform postures or movements that are painful.
  • Consult your healthcare provider if you have previous injuries or conditions.

You may experience uncomfortable feelings throughout the course. Some participants report feeling sadness, guilt, shame, frustration and overwhelmed during group discussions. Some aspects of the course may elicit uncomfortable memories.

This course also carries the possibility of many benefits. Many participants report a reduction in mental health disorder symptoms, improvements in self-care, improvements in coping and self-regulation, and a greater sense of ease in their body and self. It is important to note that there are no guarantees of what you will or will not experience.

Medical Concerns

This course and Yoga are not treatments for any mental or physical illness. It is not a substitute for medical or mental health treatment. Your teachers cannot diagnose or treat mental or medical conditions. It is recommended that you seek counsel from qualified medical and mental health professionals for issues related to psychological and physiological illness.

Your Rights

  1. You have the right to ask questions about the process and content of the course.
  2. You have the right to voice concerns or complaints about the course. Your teacher welcomes your feedback directly. In addition, you can contact the Life of Wellness Institute with any concerns about unethical or unfair treatment by the teacher(s).
  3. You have the right to leave the course. If you wish, your teacher(s) will provide you with the names of other qualified professionals whose services you might prefer.
  4. You have the right to expect that the teachers will maintain professional and ethical boundaries. Your teachers abide by the Code of Ethics of the Yoga Alliance.
  5. You have the right to set physical and emotional boundaries. If there are any aspects of the course you do not wish to participate in, you have the right to opt out. If you do not wish to engage in activities that involve touch, you have the right to opt out.

Privacy and Confidentiality

Some of our courses take place via Zoom, so please protect your privacy by completing the activities in a private space to ensure conversations are not overheard. To protect your privacy, we suggest you only use your first name (or a pseudonym) in the Zoom meetings and do not share identifying details with others.

Your teacher(s) are required to maintain your confidentiality, and we ask that you respect the confidentiality of your fellow participants. Keep what happens in the group in the group. If you want to share what you are learning about yourself with friends or loved ones, remember not to share names, identities, or in any other way compromise the confidentiality of your fellow participants.

Limits to Confidentiality

Your teacher(s) are required to maintain your confidentiality, except for a few particular circumstances:

  • Instances of active or suspected abuse (physical, emotional, or sexual) or neglect of a child, an elder, or a dependent adult must be reported to the appropriate protective services
  • If you threaten to harm yourself or another individual, teachers are required to take steps to help maintain the safety of the person at risk.
  • If a judge orders a teacher’s testimony/records or, in the context of a legal proceeding, the teacher may be required to release confidential information to the court.
  • The teacher(s) may consult with the Life of Wellness Institute and its staff about what happens in the course.

Your fellow participants are asked to sign the same confidentiality agreement you do before beginning the course. Life of Wellness Institute and your teacher(s) cannot guarantee that fellow participants will uphold confidentiality standards.

Safety Factors

This course is not intended for individuals struggling with severe mental or physical illness. Your teacher may refer you to professional treatment if they are concerned that you are a danger to yourself or your fellow participants. Specifically, we may ask you to leave the course if you engage in:

  • Use of illicit drugs or alcohol before or during sessions
  • Self-harm behaviors (e.g., purging, cutting, laxative/diet pill/stimulant abuse, and burning)
  • Threats of violence toward others

Attendance

Your presence in each session is important. A healthy group dynamic is essential for healing, growth, and change. If you are absent, this dynamic suffers and affects the experience of you and other group members. We ask that you commit to attending each session of the course.

An emergency may occur that prevents you from attending a session. If you are faced with an emergency or sudden illness, please get in touch with your teacher(s) before the group begins to let them know you will not be present. Please find more details on the attendance requirements of your program in your student handbook.

Emergency Contact

Your teacher(s) will make every effort to return any contact you initiate (email, phone call, text, etc.) in a reasonable amount of time. Call the emergency services or go to the nearest emergency room if you have an emergency that requires immediate attention or action.

Records

The Life of Wellness Institute maintains outcome data for all courses. These records include questionnaires you fill out, billing records, and copies of any professional documents (e.g., informed consent forms, media releases, etc.). These records may be used for qualitative and quantitative research, but any identifying data will be removed to avoid revealing your identity. Review our Privacy Policy.

Questions about the informed consent and release​?

If you have any questions about the informed consent and release​, please speak with Melanie or contact us.

Liability Release​

In consideration of participating in any class(es), course(s), workshop(s), training(s), or event(s) offered by the Life of Wellness Institute (the “Activities”), and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which I hereby acknowledge, I agree and acknowledge that I am fully aware of the nature and content of the Activities, that participation in the Activities may involve physical and mental risks and I knowingly and voluntarily accept all the risks of participating. I further understand and agree to the following:

  1. “Claims” include but are not limited to any liabilities, claims, demands, legal actions, rights of actions for damages, personal and mental injury, or death in connection with participation in the Activities. “Released Party” means the Life of Wellness Institute, Zoom, LearnDash, Teacher(s), hosting studio, location, or platform, and all of their affiliates, franchisees, and their respective representatives, directors, officers, agents, employees, and volunteer staff.
  2. I agree, acknowledge, and warrant that: (a) I am in a proper physical and mental condition to participate in the Activities and am aware that participation could, in some circumstances, result in physical or mental injury or death; (b) I understand my physical and mental limitations and am sufficiently self-aware to stop the Activities before I become ill or injured; and (c) I am aware that if the Activities occurs outdoors, the streets adjourning the area of the Activities are open to regular vehicular traffic during the Activities and I will obey all traffic laws and regulations.
  3. I hereby, for myself and my heirs, next of kin, executors, administrators, and assigns, fully release, waive, and forever discharge any rights or Claims I may have, now or in the future, against any Released Party, even if the Claims are based on the carelessness, negligence or gross negligence of a Released Party or anyone else. Without limiting the preceding, I release any recourse which I may now or hereafter have resulting from any decision of any Released Party.
  4. I agree not to sue any Released Party for Claims, even if the Claims arise from the carelessness, negligence, or gross negligence of any Released Party or anyone else. I agree to indemnify (reimburse for any loss) and hold harmless each Released Party from any loss or liability (including any reasonable legal fees they may incur) involving any Claim made by me or anyone making a Claim on my behalf, even if the Claim is alleged to or did result from the carelessness or negligence of any Released Party or anyone else.
  5. I am aware that it is advisable to consult a physician prior to participating in the Activities. If I have consulted a physician, I have taken the physician’s advice.
  6. I am aware that there is no obligation for any person to provide me with medical care during the Activities. I understand and acknowledge that: (a) there may be no aid stations available for the Activities; and (b) If medical care is rendered to me, I consent to that care if I am unable to give my consent for any reason at the time the care is rendered.
  7. If the participant is under the age of legal consent, the parent or guardian agrees to the following statements:
    1. As a parent or guardian of the participant child, I authorize the child to participate.
    2. I agree that if the participant’s child, or anyone acting on their behalf, should make any claim, I will provide the indemnity and hold harmless described in paragraph 5, and I agree to the terms of this Release and Waiver.
    3. In the event of a medical emergency involving the participant child and any Released Party is unable to contact me, I agree and grant my permission that any Released Party may provide medical care to the participant child.
  8. If any provision of this agreement shall be unlawful, void, or unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable from this agreement and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions.

Questions about the liability release​?

If you have any questions about the liability release​, please speak with Melanie or contact us.

Media Release

In consideration of participating in any class(es), course(s), workshop(s), training(s), or event(s) offered by the Life of Wellness Institute (the “Activities”), and other good and valuable considerations, the receipt and sufficiency of which I hereby acknowledge, I understand and agree to the following:

  • I grant my permission to the Released Party and any transferee or licensee or any of them to utilize any screenshots, photographs, motion pictures, videotapes, recordings, and other references or records of the Activity which may depict, record, or refer to me for any purpose including commercial use by the released parties, their sponsors and their licensees.
  • “Released Party” means the Life of Wellness Institute, Yoga Teacher Trainer(s), Activities facilitator(s), Activities hosting studio, location, or platform, and all of their affiliates, franchisees, and their respective representatives, directors, officers, agents, employees, and volunteer staff.
  • This permission is for use anywhere in the world, on the Internet, and for an unlimited time. I understand and agree that I will not be compensated or receive additional consideration for consenting to the use of the Images and that I will not be given a chance to receive, inspect or approve the promotional or marketing material, messages, and/or content that may use the images.
  • I hereby release the Released Party, including, without limitation, all persons who took or otherwise created, recorded, or modified the Images, from any and all claims, actions, damages, interest, costs, expense, and compensation of whatsoever kind and howsoever arising, whether known or unknown, and which I now have or at any time hereafter can, shall or may have in connection with, or in any way resulting from or arising from, the Images and the creation, use or disposition-of them.
  • I acknowledge and agree that the Released Party shall own all right, title and interest, throughout the world, in and to the images and any materials comprising all or any part of the images, and that the Released Party has the unrestricted right to use, license, sell, transfer or otherwise dispose of any or all of them, as well as the Released Party’s rights under this Release and Waiver, in any manner whatsoever and without any accountability to me.
  • I hereby assign to the Released Party all right, title and interest throughout the world I may have in and to the images and any materials comprising all or any part of the images, including all intellectual property rights thereto.
  • I hereby irrevocably waive any and all of my moral rights and any other irrevocable rights I may have, throughout the world, in or to the Images and any materials comprising all or part of the Images.

Questions about the Media Release?

If you have any questions about the media release, please speak with Melanie or contact us.