CHILD and parent yoga classes are coming to Halstead.

Elaine Baker, founder of Eyoga, is bringing the classes to Halstead after initial success in Braintree.

The classes, based around a number of breathing techniques, have huge effect on boosting confidence and battling anxiety.

They aim to relax your child and increase the parent-child bond.

Elaine said: “We do a normal yoga class with the kids, then we do what I call, Partner Postures, so they pair up with the parent and either they lean forward and back against each other, or they do a balance to add a trust complex.

“Because we do a lot of breath work, and we find it has a calming effect on the child, it works well for bedtime routines.

“It is something that the parent and child can do together and it gives a lot of body awareness to these young people and it makes them aware of how their body can help them.

“We take breathing for granted. but in yoga we slow it right down, so you are aware of all three parts of the respiratory system. We do breathing, posture and then balances and partner sequences.

“We then have a relaxation session at the end, where the parents and child lie together, and a lot of the time they will end up holding hands, showing the strength of their bond.

“I work with some children who are just so stressed that they cannot sleep, life isn’t easy for anyone, even children, but I find if they slow their breath down, and the moment they concentrate on their breath they stop thinking about anything else, they switch of their body parts and truly relax.

“We start at the brow, and then relax all the way down to their toes, and we do find it helps them to switch off, making going to sleep at night a much simpler task.”

The classes will run from 6 to 7pm on Thursdays at Richard de Clare School.

They are aimed at children aged eight and over and the sessions will cost £10 for parent and child.