THE BASICS ON TRAUMA-INFORMED YOGA

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WHAT IS TRAUMA AND WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE TRAUMA-INFORMED?

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Trauma is the experience of having no control/power or decision making ability over one's body to the extent that ownership over one's self is called into question. Often times, one's body is completely abdicated, ceasing to belong to the individual as their own. Therefore, the body is no longer the safe place or vessel through which an individual experiences life on a daily basis, and it can no longer act as the temple one would fill with happiness or satisfaction. 

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Being TRAUMA-INFORMED is having the education and ability to provide care/services (i.e. yoga) in a strengths-based framework that is grounded in an understanding of and responsiveness to the impact of trauma, that emphasizes physical, psychological, and emotional safety for both providers and survivors, and that creates opportunities for survivors to rebuild a sense of control and empowerment.

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WHAT IS A TRAUMA-INFORMED YOGA INSTRUCTOR?

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A TRAUMA-INFORMED YOGA INSTRUCTOR provides a service based on the clinical premise that the experience of trauma affects the entire human organism-body, mind, and spirit- and that the whole organism must be engaged in the healing process in order for it to be fully effective. So while traditional therapy is “talk-based,” focusing on the mind, it neglects the physical, visceral, and body-based dimension of trauma. The application of trauma-informed yoga aids the healing of the mind but also uniquely fills these gaps- addressing the physical, visceral, and body-based needs of trauma survivors through a strengths-based approach. In doing so, this enables survivors to cultivate healthy and friendly relationships with their bodies again.

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WHAT IS A STRENGTHS-BASED APPROACH?

 

A Strength-based approach is well defined and understood by British Columbia's Yoga Outreach Organization, which defines and describes strengths-based in their resource manual as the following:

​"A Strengths-based perspective in a service yoga setting operates from the core believe that our students possess the strengths, resources, and abilities to resolve their own challenges. As yoga teachers we become partners with our students within this context. This perspective looks at opportunities for solutions rather than seeing problems that require fixing. We work with our  students to facilitate an experience and we create space for our students to have the experience. A strengths based-practice is a rich process that invites us as teachers and individuals to be self-reflective and it is an opportunity to personal growth."

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A strengths-based approach operates with full authenticity through a different lense that focuses on seeking the strengths of individuals and their potential. This method seeks to return a sense of self-worth back to students and empower them by building on their existing knowledge. Strengths-bases yoga also calls for the abandonment of all preconceived notions about an individual's condition as well as the experiences of what yoga should look like and being flexible in meeting the students where they are in their journey and on their mat.

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AND HOW DOES TRAUMA-INFORMED YOGA WORK?

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Is trauma-informed yoga like a mainstream yoga class? No. 

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Trauma-informed yoga as a form of rehabilitation and healing is heavily centered on neuroscience of trauma and its ability to address such the related impacts of trauma on an individual. Studies have discovered that there is a substantial negative impact on the areas of the brain responsible for interoception. This is our ability to feel sensations within our body- feel our heartbeat, feel hot or cold, or sense our stomach growling with hunger. Essentially it’s our ability to experience our physical selves. So those who are traumatized experience disassociation and therefore do not have a reliable, feel able base to experience life, relationships, and the world. Trauma-informed yoga uses the language of interoception and inquiry with gentle yoga forms to allow individuals the opportunity to re-engage their bodies and re-learn how to become in tune with them and feel again, and most importantly to do so at a pace that is comfortable for them.

 

Trauma-informed yoga therefore centers on helping one reclaim their body using a three step approach practiced a pace that works on an individual basis. This three component practice was developed by the Trauma Institute in Massachusetts and it focuses on returning one's control/ power, decision making ability over their body while simultaneously supporting interoceptive awareness. The three tier model applied in trauma-informed teaching are (1) having a body, (2) befriending the body, and (3) body as a resource. What this teaching model in yoga achieves when applied with both a strengths-based approach and the languages of interoception and inquiry is the framework for an individual to gain the ability to do the following: re-engage and be present in their body, re-form a healthy and positive relationship with their body, and identify and learn how to use their body and breath as healthy tools for self-regulation.

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HOW CAN I PARTICIPATE IN TRAUMA-INFORMED YOGA?

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Please contract True TRIbe Yoga to learn more or receive trauma-informed yoga services offered by the True TRIbe Yoga Outreach Project. Cristina@TrueTRIbeYoga.com or 832-364-9560

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