Barb Bates found herself in a tough situation two years ago when she had to choose between surgery or yoga classes after an accident left her with excruciating neck pain.

Already having received unsuccessful acupuncture treatments for the pain, Bates chose yoga, but she didn’t know where to look next. So, she gathered books, videos and other material on yoga and taught herself.

Now her pain is nearly gone, and Bates is ready for others to experience the joy yoga has brought her.

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“I talked to my husband and others about how Carbondale needed a yoga studio, a place really devoted to the practice of yoga,” Bates said.

Bates achieved her dream Saturday when she opened One o One Yoga, located inside Center at 101 at 101 S. Graham Ave. in Carbondale.

Bates, the studio director, said she and the owners of the building, Kathryn Neely and her husband Bob Streit, have collectively prepared for this for about a year.

“If you can visualize it, then it can happen,” Bates said. “We really want this to be a place for the community to gather and to assess health and well-being.”

Center at 101 will also house the offices of philosophy counselor Janice Staab and Neely’s clinical psychology practice.

Neely said Center at 101 represents a collection of health and wellness practitioners whose work honors and promotes the oneness of the mind.

“I feel like yoga leads you on a path of quietness that can allow you to think more clearly and to choose things more purposefully in your life,” Bates said.

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The studio offers three classes taught by different instructors but may offer more in the future.

Neely, who has practiced yoga for almost 15 years, said anyone could attend any of the classes without having any previous instruction.

“We’re hoping that people who in the back of their minds always wanted to take a yoga class will find their way here and give it a try,” she said.

Neely said her desire to expand the quality of life for others was a major inspiration while she envisioned opening the center.

“I just work with so many people who I think, ‘Gosh, if I could get you in the yoga studio practicing, it would add so much to your life,'” Neely said. “I just want them to be able to feel better and have more fulfilling lives.”

The studio offers classes in six-and 12-week intervals and welcomes walk-in participants for $10 per class.

Liz Choate can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 258 or [email protected].