Intimacy and Play This Valentine's Day

Are you tired of the stereotypical Valentine's Day filled with heavy food and Hallmark cards? Are you seeking a deeper, more intimate and playful connection with your romantic partner this Valentine's Day?

On Sunday, February 13, join Nianna Bray and Ryan Patterson in Malibu for Ecstatic Connections - A Partner Yoga Playshop. I met with Nianna to learn more about her passionate and fun-filled playshop.

Pacific Palisades Patch: How can partner yoga bring more closeness into a relationship?

Nianna Bray: Partner yoga is a time for two people to stop the busyness of the day and tune in with each other. Closeness blossoms naturally when two people slow down and listen to each others breath and heart beat. When we are challenged during partner yoga we witness our own tendencies toward judgment or insecurity, slowly we shift towards compassion and acceptance of our partner and ourselves.

Patch: Have tantra yoga, partner yoga, meditation and breathwork enhanced your own romantic relationship?

Bray: Ryan and my relationship is built on mutual love, respect, and a recognition of the Divine in one another. Our partner yoga practice gives us the time and space to enjoy our union in playful passion. Breathing together is one of the single most important things in our relationship because it unites us even when our egos or outside circumstance cause tension. Seeing each other eye to eye keeps us honest, present and compassionate with ourselves and each other.

Patch: Is any yoga experience necessary to attend this workshop?

Bray: No prior yoga experience is necessary. We'll meet everyone exactly where they are with their current physical, mental, and emotional state. This is a playshop for anyone who is ready to explore their love. All you need is an open mind, a loving heart, and a willingness to try. And isn't that how we all want to show up in our relationships?

Patch: What do you hope couples will gain from this workshop?

Bray: I hope couples leave with a renewed sense of play, and find that even within the demands of being an adult, there's room for fun, pleasure, heartfelt intimacy and connection. I hope they explore what they've learned at home and turn their room into a love den. It's essential that we protect the delicate flower of our love relationships. My intention is that couples remember the love that they had for each other when they first met and continue to rekindle the fire.

Patch: Why did you choose Valentine's Day weekend to host this event?

Bray: Valentine's Day has become a day where people go to expensive dinners, eat too much, overdose on sugar and alcohol, go home and pass out. Where's the love and intimacy in that? The way we celebrate love in our playshop honors the sentiment behind Valentine's Day, which is to love and cherish your partner in consciousness, wholeness, and vitality. Instead of going out and eating too much, savor each other and save room for the real desert...Your lover!

Patch: Do you have any suggestions for couples to gain more intimacy and closeness in their busy daily lives?

Bray: My advice is to slow down. Carve out 5 minutes a day to sit together and breathe. Enjoy giving and receiving foot massages or shoulder rubs- believe me, this goes a long way. Turn off the computer, shut out the world. Make love during the day. Remember, you chose this person in front of you, and if you're smart you will grow and learn from your partnership. Love blossoms out of truth. Be yourself, be free and serve each other.

Please join Nianna and Ryan for what promises to be a beautiful afternoon of closeness and connection! After the playshop, raw organic chocolate and organic wine will be served for everyone to savior. Please sign up in advance as space is limited:http://awayinward.com/sitefiles/EcstaticConnections.htm