Carolyn Cowan

Last updated

Carolyn Cowan
Carolyn Cowan in 2020.jpg
Carolyn Cowan in 2020
Born1960
London, England
Known for Therapist, make-up artist, photographer, teacher and body painter
Website carolyncowan.com

Carolyn Cowan (born 1960) is a London-based yoga and breathwork teacher and psychosexual and relationship therapist. Prior to her career as a therapist, she was a fashion designer and photographer. During the 1980s, she earned acclaim as a makeup artist in the pop music video industry. She taught body painting at the  University of the Arts London for over 20 years. Most recently (2019) Carolyn founded and launched a new form of yoga, Kundalini Global, in answer to the rapidly growing and profound need for yoga to become more inclusive and serve a wider demographic.

Contents

Early years

Cowan was born in 1960, the eldest of three children of fashion photographer John Cowan and Syddy Cooper. She grew up in Chelsea, London and was exposed to fashion at a young age, often posing as a child model for her father. In 1964, her parents divorced and her mother eventually married a broker at Lloyd's who took care of the family financially. Cowan has said that the loss of her father led to depression and eventually contributed to substance abuse.

During that period, John Cowan leased his studio at 39 Princes Place to Michelangelo Antonioni for interior and exterior filming of the film Blowup . His photographic murals are featured in the film. He also shot the title stills for 2001 A Space Odyssey. [1]

From age 11 to 16, Cowan attended a Catholic boarding school, which she has called "a horrible experience," due to the abusive staff. During that time, she would often escape to the city to take art courses at the Victoria and Albert Museum as a way "to get out of school." [2] When she was 16, she left school and moved to London with her then-boyfriend, music composer Hans Zimmer.

Early professional life

While in her early 20s, Cowan met members of the Italian group Krisma, a new wave band formed in 1976 with Maurizio Arcieri and Christina Moser. The lead singer of the band, Moser, allowed Cowan to paint her face for shows. Soon Cowan was doing body painting and wanted to become a makeup artist.

When she was 22, she sold her clothes to buy a train ticket to Milan to pursue a career in fashion. Her first job was working for Italian Vogue . [2]

She returned to England and worked in the pop music video industry. She would eventually work with such personalities as Bryan Ferry, David Bowie and Freddie Mercury, who were part of the booming 1980s video music industry. She also worked with singer Steve Strange.[ citation needed ]

Photography

During the early 1990s, Cowan began a career as a photographer. Among her first jobs was an Ilford Photo-sponsored trip to India to photograph nomads. While there, she was exposed to Hindu spirituality and Sikhism, which would later fuel her passion for yoga and meditation. "I preferred this idea of choosing your experiences and transformation, that you can have all your past and drama and that could be your mountain on which you stand. Like the root of a tree that you become." [2]

Cowan has been acclaimed for her photography, which includes nudes and family portraits. “Today we are so defined by the exterior, labels and what we wear. Clothes hide and mask who we really are. But if you take it away we are nothing else but ourselves. I am fascinated by bodies, regardless one being skinny, not skinny, fat, obese, wrinkled, aged or young. There is beauty in absolutely everything, even in a nude body, which is not perfect as none of us are. There is beauty in human vulnerability." [2]

In her photography, Cowan said she strives to show the "magical spark" inside her subjects. "When I take a picture of someone it is always about redemption, a way of liberation if you prefer." [2]

Psychosexual, Author and Yoga Trainer

Cowan’s profession life is now largely focused on her work as a psychotherapist and author. She is a member of the College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists (COSRT) and accredited with the National Counselling Society (NCS). She works in all manners of addictive behaviours and sexual dysfunction, including working with same-sex couples, pre- and post-natal relationships, and sexual issues.

Cowan is one of a growing number of psychotherapists who do not believe in the traditional concept of sexual addiction. Going against current assumptions and trends, she debunks the idea that sex addiction is real. Instead, she says, the current concept of "sex addiction" is a belief system, supported by faith, moral conviction and religious principles, that represents an attack on sexuality and its expression. It was originally devised, as a system, in the 1980s during the AIDS crisis, and does not support recovery from trauma, an abusive background, mental illness, etc. in its concepts and applications, she says. Cowan believes that labeling behaviors as sex addiction asserts a false, dangerous myth that undermines personal responsibility.

Cowan is also an international Kundalini yoga teacher. She said she discovered yoga in India and is heavily inspired by Hindu spirituality. During an interview with British Vogue, Cowan said, "yoga builds confidence, connections and friendships. It eases loneliness, gives you faith in yourself. By attending a regular class, you join a community and a worldwide tribe; with yoga as a part of your focus you can go on to train as a teacher, empowering yourself and changing the lives of others." [3]

In 2019, she was named among the top 16 yoga teachers in London. [4]

In addition to her therapy practice, she also provides training for the treatment of drug and alcohol addiction as well as sexual compulsion, compulsive porn, shopping, gambling and cutting through her Mastering the Addictive Personality Teacher Training course, which certifies the practitioner to work in prisons and rehab centers. Cowan explores addiction and anxiety through the lens of trauma, shame and abuse rather than the widely accepted 12-step disease model. Her other workshops focus on topics such as breathwork, shame, the anatomy of posture and hormones, female arousal and menopause.

Cowan has produced numerous DVDs about vegetarian cooking, conscious pregnancy, overcoming addictive personalities and the art of meditation. She was also a contributor for TabooZapp, an app that is designed to support mental health, identity, well-being and confidence in youth. She is currently preparing to self publish a new book on Kundalini Global.

She has contributed her expertise to a variety of magazines and digital outlets including The Guardian, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Glamour Magazine, Psychologies, Women’s Health, The Sun (United Kingdom), i news, Natural Health Magazine, and Woman’s Own. She has also has written feature articles in Planet Mindful and Yoga magazines about Kundalini yoga and menopause. In November 2023, Cowan’s first book Breathing for Pregnancy was published by Vermillion, an imprint of Penguin Random House in the UK.

Kundalini Global

In 2019, Carolyn founded Kundalini Global in answer to the rapidly growing demand for yoga to become more inclusive and serve a wider demographic, and after she stepped away from Kundalini yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan in 2014. As well as teaching Kundalini Global classes, in 2020 Carolyn began offering Kundalini Global teacher training. Kundalini Global and its teachers adhere to the view that yoga has the power to deal with anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, negative history and physical responses to trauma in the body. In 2021, Carolyn further launched a Kundalini Global pregnancy yoga teacher training. Having worked with the issues that can occur in these experiences for over 30 years in a number of ways, in her work as a therapist, and previous role as a Doula, pregnancy yoga teacher and a pregnancy teacher trainer, Carolyn explores pregnancy yoga and breathwork through a radical and inclusive lens. [5]

Personal life

Cowan lives in South London and has two children, Louis and Isadora.

Acclaim

Exhibitions and shows

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kundalini</span> Form of divine energy in Hindu mysticism

In Hinduism, Kundalini is a form of divine feminine energy believed to be located at the base of the spine, in the muladhara. It is an important concept in Śhaiva Tantra, where it is believed to be a force or power associated with the divine feminine or the formless aspect of the Goddess. This energy in the body, when cultivated and awakened through tantric practice, is believed to lead to spiritual liberation. Kuṇḍalinī is associated with Parvati or Adi Parashakti, the supreme being in Shaktism; and with the goddesses Bhairavi and Kubjika. The term, along with practices associated with it, was adopted into Hatha yoga in the 9th century. It has since then been adopted into other forms of Hinduism as well as modern spirituality and New age thought.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kundalini yoga</span> Schools of yoga

Kundalini yoga derives from kundalini, defined in tantra as energy that lies within the body, frequently at the navel or the base of the spine. In normative tantric systems, kundalini is considered to be dormant until it is activated and channeled upward through the central channel in a process of spiritual perfection. Other schools, such as Kashmir Shaivism, teach that there are multiple kundalini energies in different parts of the body which are active and do not require awakening. Kundalini is believed by adherents to be power associated with the divine feminine, Shakti. Kundalini yoga as a school of yoga is influenced by Shaktism and Tantra schools of Hinduism. It derives its name through a focus on awakening kundalini energy through regular practice of mantra, tantra, yantra, yoga, laya, haṭha, meditation, or even spontaneously (sahaja).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marty Klein</span> American sex therapist

Marty Ralph Klein is an American sex therapist, author, educator and public policy analyst. Klein has spent his career supporting the healthy sexual expression of men, women and couples in a wide range of ways. He is critical of censorship, the concepts of sex addiction and porn addiction, as well as the anti-pornography movement. He believes that public policy relating to sexuality should be driven by scientific data rather than emotion, "tradition" or popular but untrue myths. He has been a participant in various state, federal and international court cases dealing with the First Amendment, obscenity, censorship and "harmful to minors" laws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yogi Bhajan</span> Indian-American Sikh yogi (1929–2004)

Harbhajan , popularly known as Yogi Bhajan, and also Siri Singh Sahib to his followers, was an Indian-born American entrepreneur, yoga guru, and spiritual teacher. He introduced his version of Kundalini yoga to the United States. He was the spiritual director of the 3HO foundation, with over 300 centers in 35 countries. He was accused posthumously of sexual abuse by hundreds of his female followers; an investigation called the Olive Branch Report found the allegations most likely true.

Sex therapy is a therapeutic strategy for the improvement of sexual function and treatment of sexual dysfunction. This includes dysfunctions such as premature ejaculation and delayed ejaculation, erectile dysfunction, lack of sexual interest or arousal, and painful sex ; as well as problems imposed by atypical sexual interests (paraphilias), gender dysphoria, highly overactive libido or hypersexuality, a lack of sexual confidence, and recovering from sexual abuse ; and also includes sexual issues related to aging, illness, or disability.

According to proponents of the concept, sexual addiction, also known as sex addiction, is a state characterized by compulsive participation or engagement in sexual activity, particularly sexual intercourse, despite negative consequences. The concept is contentious; neither of the two major mainstream medical categorization systems recognise sex addiction as a real medical condition, instead categorizing such behavior under labels such as compulsive sexual behavior.

An addictive behavior is a behavior, or a stimulus related to a behavior, that is both rewarding and reinforcing, and is associated with the development of an addiction. There are two main forms of addiction: substance use disorders and behavioral addiction. The parallels and distinctions between behavioral addictions and other compulsive behavior disorders like bulimia nervosa and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) are still being researched by behavioral scientists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geeta Iyengar</span>

Geeta S. Iyengar, the eldest daughter of Yogacharya B. K. S. Iyengar, was a yoga teacher credited with advancing yoga for women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexandra Katehakis</span> American psychotherapist

Alexandra Katehakis is the co-founder of the Center for Healthy Sex in Los Angeles and an author. Katehakis is a clinical supervisor at American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) and clinical supervisor and member of the teaching faculty for the International Institute for Trauma and Addiction Professionals (IITAP) a national certifying body for sex addiction therapists. She has been a contributor to Psychology Today and The Huffington Post, as well as a panelist at sexuality conferences and public events.

Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa is a teacher of Kundalini yoga, as taught by Yogi Bhajan, and a pioneer in the field of pre-natal yoga. She is the co-founder and director of the Golden Bridge Yoga Center in Los Angeles, and the author of two books and three DVDs. She has become a yoga guru for Hollywood film stars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jennifer Storm</span> American writer and Victim Witness Advocate of Pennsylvania

Jennifer Storm is a victims' rights expert and author who has written about alcohol and drug addiction and recovery. She is the former victim advocate of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, who served after being appointed by Governor Tom Corbett in 2013. She was unanimously confirmed by the Pennsylvania State Senate and sworn in for a six-year term on December 20, 2013.

Sex surrogates, sometimes referred to as surrogate partners, are practitioners trained in addressing issues of intimacy and sexuality. A surrogate partner works in collaboration with a sex therapist to meet the goals of their client. This triadic model is used to dually support the client: the client engages in experiential exercises and builds a relationship with their surrogate partner while processing and integrating their experiences with their therapist or clinician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yoga for children</span>

Yoga for children is a form of modern yoga designed for children. It includes poses to increase strength, flexibility, and coordination. Classes are intended to be fun and may include age-appropriate games, animal sounds and creative names for poses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Center for Healthy Sex</span> Community therapy center in Los Angeles, California

Center for Healthy Sex is a community therapy center in Los Angeles that specializes in the treatment of sexual dysfunction, sexual anorexia, sex addiction, and love addiction. The Center is located on Santa Monica Boulevard near Overland Avenue bordering the neighborhoods of Century City and Westwood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wendy Maltz</span> Sex therapist

Wendy Maltz is an American sex therapist, psychotherapist, author, educator, and clinical social worker. She is an expert on the sexual repercussions of sexual abuse, understanding women's sexual fantasies, treating pornography-related problems, and promoting healthy sexuality. She has taught at the University of Oregon and, up until her retirement in 2016 from providing counseling services, was co-director with her husband, Larry Maltz, of Maltz Counseling Associates therapy practice in Eugene, Oregon.

John Anthony Cowan was a British fashion photographer known for his dynamic photographic style when picturing the fashion icons of 1960s London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belisa Vranich</span>

Belisa Vranich is an American clinical psychologist, author, public speaker, and founder of The Breathing Class (TM). She has been an active consultant and columnist, promoting intentional breathing practices to improve health and providing psychological viewpoints on sex and relationships. She is an advocate for women's health, as well as volunteering, mentorship, and animal rescue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sexual abuse by yoga gurus</span> Allegation of sexual abuse by yoga guru

Sexual abuse by yoga gurus is the exploitation of the position of trust occupied by a master of any branch of yoga for personal sexual pleasure. Allegations of such abuse have been made against modern yoga gurus such as Bikram Choudhury, Kausthub Desikachar, Yogi Bhajan, Amrit Desai, and K. Pattabhi Jois. There have been some criminal convictions and lawsuits for civil damages.

Post-lineage yoga, also called non-lineage yoga, is a contemporary form of yoga practised outside any major school or guru's lineage. The term was introduced by the ethnographer and scholar-practitioner Theodora Wildcroft. She stated that with the deaths of the pioneering gurus of modern yoga such as B. K. S. Iyengar and Pattabhi Jois, yoga teachers, especially women, have been reclaiming their practice through their yoga communities, resisting commercialization as well as lineage.

Katie Griggs, professionally known as Guru Jagat, was an American Kundalini yoga teacher, podcaster, author, and the owner of both a fashion brand and record label.

References

  1. Staff writer. "On the Trail of the Swinging Sixties – 'Blow-Up', Antonioni's Cult Film, Hit Our Screens 40 Years Ago. Robert Nurden Goes in Search of the Places Used for Filming, from Notting Hill to a Neglected Park in a Little-Known Corner of South-East London" The Independent, 10 September 2006.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Carolyn Cowan Interview". Archived from the original on 10 December 2011.
  3. Roy, Poppy (16 March 2019). "Everything You've Ever Wanted To Know About Yoga" . Retrieved 18 March 2019.
  4. Duckett, Suzanne. "16 of London's best yoga teachers" . Retrieved 18 March 2019.
  5. "Radically Inclusive Kundalini Global Pregnancy Yoga" . Retrieved 18 March 2021.