Trauma-Sensitive Yoga

Research has shown that trauma significantly impacts the brain and the body.

While there are many different causes of trauma and types of trauma, research has shown that trauma significantly impacts the brain and the body. Trauma has been associated with dysregulation of the nervous system and disruptions to sleep, digestion, and breathing. It has been linked to eating disorders, addiction, and high risk behaviors. Trauma can also contribute to muscle tension causing chronic pain and migraines.

Yoga Teacher David Emerson and colleagues at the Trauma Center, worked to develop an evidence-based trauma-sensitive approach to yoga (TCTSY). I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to complete 40-hours of TCTSY training at the Kripalu Institute with David Emerson and Jenn Turner (Center for Trauma and Embodiment at JRI). I take care to mindfully integrate TCTSY principles in all practices I guide…acknowledging the impact of trauma and honoring the individual.

Trauma-Sensitive Yoga provides an opportunity to practice:

…experiencing the present moment
…making choices
…taking effective action
…moving in rhythm (both interpersonally and intrapersonally)

Principles for guiding Trauma-Sensitive Yoga include:

…Invitational language (using cues like: “when you are ready”, “taking your time”, “the next option is to”)
…language of inquiry (using words like: sense, feel, notice, experiment, explore, what do you notice if you…)
…offering visual assists and verbal assists (using hands on assists only with clear consent - and very sparingly)
…providing options within postures (your hands could be down, at your heart, or reaching towards the sky)
…exploring breath awareness and linking breath with movement
…focusing on how a posture feels in the body vs. looks in the body
…offering postures to support the needs of the people in the room
…staying in one place during practices, rather than moving about the room
…working to co-create a safe space for practice
…requesting feedback and making changes in response to feedback