Going Upside Down with Ana Forrest

I recently wrote a piece for Yoga Journal on fear of inversions, which will run in the May 2008 issue.Among the many remarkable teachers I interviewed -- Aadil Palkhivala, Tias Little, Judith Lasater, and others, I was most moved by Ana Forrest.I took Ana's class at the Yoga Journal Colorado Conference on arm balances. Ana is as fierce as she is kind, and though I was nervous to study with her, she proved to be a great teacher and healer.She told me to kick into handstand from standing up. I thought she was insane. She promised not to drop me, and I figured, if ever there was a time to try a stunt like that, it was with her.So I did--  I kicked into handstand, from standing up, and with Ana's help, I made it upside down.As I was in the pose, Ana bent down, looked into my eyes, and told me to look back into hers.Then she said in a very soft voice, "Never say another unkind word towards yourself again."And I'll be damned. I haven't much since.