Overcoming Trauma through Yoga

Author: David Emerson
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN: 1583945334
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 184

Book Description
Survivors of trauma—whether abuse, accidents, or war—can end up profoundly wounded, betrayed by their bodies that failed to get them to safety and that are a source of pain. In order to fully heal from trauma, a connection must be made with oneself, including one’s body. The trauma-sensitive yoga described in this book moves beyond traditional talk therapies that focus on the mind, by bringing the body actively into the healing process. This allows trauma survivors to cultivate a more positive relationship to their body through gentle breath, mindfulness, and movement practices. Overcoming Trauma through Yoga is a book for survivors, clinicians, and yoga instructors who are interested in mind/body healing. It introduces trauma-sensitive yoga, a modified approach to yoga developed in collaboration between yoga teachers and clinicians at the Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute, led by yoga teacher David Emerson, along with medical doctor Bessel van der Kolk. The book begins with an in-depth description of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including a description of how trauma is held in the body and the need for body-based treatment. It offers a brief history of yoga, describes various styles of yoga commonly found in Western practice, and identifies four key themes of trauma-sensitive yoga. Chair-based exercises are described that can be incorporated into individual or group therapy, targeting specific treatment goals, and modifications are offered for mat-based yoga classes. Each exercise includes trauma-sensitive language to introduce the practice, as well as photographs to illustrate the poses. The practices have been offered to a wide range of individuals and groups, including men and women, teens, returning veterans, and others. Rounded out by valuable quotes and case stories, the book presents mindfulness, breathing, and yoga exercises that can be used by home practitioners, yoga teachers, and therapists as a way to cultivate awareness, tolerance, and an increased acceptance of the self.

Trauma-Sensitive Yoga in Therapy: Bringing the Body into Treatment

Author: David Emerson
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0393709515
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 154

Book Description
This practical guide presents the cutting-edge work of the Trauma Center’s yoga therapy program, teaching all therapists how to incorporate it into their practices. When treating a client who has suffered from interpersonal trauma—whether chronic childhood abuse or domestic violence, for example—talk therapy isn’t always the most effective course. For these individuals, the trauma and its effects are so entrenched, so complex, that reducing their experience to a set of symptoms or suggesting a change in cognitive frame or behavioral pattern ignores a very basic but critical player: the body. In cases of complex trauma, mental health professionals largely agree that the body itself contains and manifests much of the suffering—self hatred, shame, and fear. Take, for example, a woman who experienced years of childhood sexual abuse and, though very successful in her professional life, has periods of not being able to feel her limbs, sensing an overall disconnection from her very physical being. Reorienting clients to their bodies and building their “body sense” can be the very key to unlocking their pain and building a path toward healing. Based on research studies conducted at the renowned Trauma Center in Brookline, Massachusetts, this book presents the successful intervention known as Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TSY), an evidence-based program for traumatized clients that helps them to reconnect to their bodies in a safe, deliberate way. Synthesized here and presented in a concise, reader-friendly format, all clinicians, regardless of their background or familiarity with yoga, can understand and use these simple techniques as a way to help their clients achieve deeper, more lasting recovery. Unlike traditional, mat-based yoga, TSY can be practiced without one, in a therapist’s chair or on a couch. Emphasis is always placed on the internal experience of the client him- or herself, not on achieving the proper form or pleasing the therapist. As Emerson carefully explains, the therapist guides the client to become accustomed to feeling something in the body—feet on the ground or a muscle contracting—in the present moment, choosing what to do about it in real time, and taking effective action. In this way, everything about the practice is optional, safe, and gentle, geared to helping clients to befriend their bodies. With over 30 photographs depicting the suggested yoga forms and a final chapter that presents a portfolio of step-by-step yoga practices to use with your clients, this practical book makes yoga therapy for trauma survivors accessible to all clinicians. As an adjunct to your current treatment approach or a much-needed tool to break through to your traumatized clients, Trauma-Sensitive Yoga in Therapy will empower you and your clients on the path to healing.

Teaching Trauma-Sensitive Yoga

Author: Brendon Abram
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN: 162317225X
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 145

Book Description
A practical, hands-on, experienced-based guide from a military veteran turned yoga teacher Brendon Abram combines his first-hand experience with PTSD in the field and years of teaching to offer this practical guide to bringing trauma-sensitive yoga to both clinical and studio settings. Drawing on his work with military veterans, first responders, and survivors of domestic and sexual abuse, he emphasizes the importance of respecting the uniqueness of every individual and demonstrates how to use the foundational principles of yoga to create a safe experience. Abram explains that basic principles of yoga bring power to the practice and that breath, mindful movement, focused awareness, and acceptance of present-moment experience form the foundation of any yoga offering.

Yoga for Emotional Trauma

Author: Mary NurrieStearns
Publisher: New Harbinger Publications
ISBN: 1608826449
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 218

Book Description
Many of us have experienced a traumatic event in our lives, whether in childhood or adulthood. This trauma may be emotional, or it may cause intense physical pain. In some cases, it can cause both. Studies have shown that compassion and mindfulness based interventions can help people suffering from trauma to experience less physical and emotional pain in their daily lives. What’s more, many long-time yoga and meditation teachers have a history of teaching these practices to their clients with successful outcomes. In Yoga for Emotional Trauma, a psychotherapist and a meditation teacher present a yogic approach to emotional trauma by instructing you to apply mindful awareness, breathing, yoga postures, and mantras to their emotional and physical pain. In the book, you’ll learn why yoga is so effective for dealing with emotional trauma. Yoga and mindfulness can transform trauma into joy. It has done so for countless millions. The practices outlined in this book will teach you how to use and adapt the ancient practices and meditations of yoga for your own healing. Drawing upon practices and philosophy from eastern wisdom traditions, and texts such as the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, the Bagavad Gita, and the Buddhist Sutras, this book will take you on a journey into wholeness, one that embraces body, mind and spirit. Inside, you will discover the lasting effect that trauma has on physiology and how yoga resets the nervous system. Combining yogic principles, gentle yoga postures, and mindfulness practices, this book filled with sustenance and practical support that will move you along your own healing path.

Trauma-Sensitive Yoga Deck for Kids

Author: Kirsten VORIS
Publisher:
ISBN: 1623173280
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 200

Book Description
This deck of 50 yoga shapes was created for trauma-sensitive yoga facilitators and other counselors, social workers, and caregivers who work with children. Unlike a traditional yoga deck, this one is trauma informed, somatic focused, and ideal for use in a variety of settings including small groups, classrooms, and one-on-one. Facilitators are free to create a shared, authentic experience that is non-coercive and non-prescriptive. The booklet included with the deck offers an array of games and explorations.

Yoga for Depression

Author: Amy Weintraub
Publisher: Harmony
ISBN: 0767914503
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 306

Book Description
“A brilliant illumination of how the ancient wisdom of the yogic tradition can penetrate the often-intractable challenges of depression.”—Phil Catalfo, Yoga Journal Take the natural path to mental wellness. More than twenty-five million Americans are treated with antidepressants each year, at a cost in excess of $50 billion. But the side effects of popular prescription drugs may seem nearly as depressing as the symptoms they’re meant to treat. Veteran yoga instructor Amy Weintraub offers a better solution—one that taps the scientifically proven link between yoga and emotional well-being as well as the beauty of ancient approaches to inner peace. Addressing a range of diagnoses, including dysthymia, anxiety-based depression, and bipolar disorder, Yoga for Depression reveals why specific postures, breathing practices, and meditation techniques can ease suffering and release life’s traumas and losses. Weintraub also reflects on her own experience with severe depression, from which she recovered through immersing herself in a daily yoga routine. Yoga for Depression is the first yoga book devoted exclusively to the treatment of these debilitating conditions. Amy Weintraub will help readers see their suffering and themselves in a vibrant new light.

Overcoming Trauma through Yoga

Author: David Emerson
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN: 1556439695
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 184

Book Description
A trauma-informed approach to healing body and mind: an evidence-based yoga program for survivors, clinicians, and yoga teachers Research-backed and trauma-informed, this book introduces a yoga program that helps readers heal from the cognitive, emotional, and physiological symptoms of PTSD. From managing triggers to accessing safety, the approaches and exercises presented in Overcoming Trauma through Yoga are deeply practical and grounded in what survivors need to know to heal from the effects of trauma. The book opens with an introduction written by Bessel van der Kolk, moving into a transformative approach to recovery that was developed by experts at the Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute. The program facilitates somatic healing through gentle breath, mindfulness, and movement practices, and offers insights on the specific needs of trauma survivors practicing yoga at home or in class: adjusting pace, creating safety, accessing empowered choice, and more. The final chapters offer specific guidance and practical, trauma-informed insights for: Survivors to develop a trauma-sensitive practice at home and in the studio Clinicians to integrate yoga into clinical care, pair yoga-based interventions with therapeutic goals, and address challenges to yoga-based strategies Yoga teachers to build trauma-sensitive yoga classes and learn best practices for responding to triggered responses “In this landmark book, the authors offer survivors a gentle, step-by-step, mindful yoga that is tailored for their specific needs…it is a great companion and guide to those taking the journey of recovery from trauma to wholeness” (Peter A. Levine).

Embodied Healing

Author: Jenn Turner
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN: 1623175356
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 370

Book Description
First-hand essays of embodied healing from the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at Justice Resource Institute: challenges, triumphs, and healing strategies for trauma-sensitive therapists and yoga teachers. All editor proceeds from Embodied Healing will fund direct access to Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY). This collection of essays explores the applications of TCTSY--Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga--as a powerful evidence-based modality to help clients heal in the aftermath of trauma. Written by a range of contributors including yoga facilitators, survivors, and therapists, the first-hand accounts in Healing with Trauma-Sensitive Yoga examine real-life situations and provide guidance on how to act, react, and respond to trauma on the mat. Each essay centers the voices, wisdom, and experiences of survivors and practitioners who work directly with trauma-sensitive embodiment therapies. From navigating issues of touch and consent to avoiding triggers, practitioners and readers will learn how to support survivors of trauma as they reintegrate their bodies and reclaim their lives. Organized into sections based on principles of trauma-sensitive yoga--experiencing the present moment, making choices, taking effective action, and creating rhythms--the 12 essays are for yoga teachers, therapists, survivors, and mental health professionals and trauma healers.

Reclaiming Life after Trauma

Author: Daniel Mintie
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1620556359
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 261

Book Description
Integrative tools for healing the traumatized mind and body • Combines cutting-edge Western cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and ancient Eastern wisdom to heal Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) • Teaches Kundalini yoga practices specifically designed to reset parts of the brain and body affected by PTSD • Presents a fast-acting, holistic, evidence-based, and drug-free program for eliminating PTSD symptoms and restoring health, vitality, and joy Trauma, the Greek word for “wound,” is the most common form of suffering in the world today. An inescapable part of living, the bad things that happen to us always leave aftereffects in both body and mind. While many people experience these aftereffects and move on, millions of others develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)--a painful, chronic, and debilitating barrier to happiness. Reclaiming Life after Trauma addresses both the physical and psychological expressions of PTSD, presenting an integrative, fast-acting, evidence-based, and drug-free path to recovery. Authors Daniel Mintie, LCSW, and Julie K. Staples, Ph.D., begin with an overview of PTSD and the ways in which it changes our bodies and minds. They present research findings on cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and yoga, giving the reader insights into how these powerful modalities can counteract and reverse the physical and mental aftereffects of trauma. The authors provide a suite of simple, powerful, and easily learned tools readers can put to immediate use to reset their traumatized bodies and minds. On the physical side, they teach four Kundalini yoga techniques that address the hypervigilance, flashbacks, and insomnia characteristic of PTSD. On the psychological side, they present 25 powerful CBT tools that target the self-defeating beliefs, negative emotions, and self-sabotaging behaviors that accompany the disorder. Drawing on many years of clinical work and their experience administering the successful Integrative Trauma Recovery Program, the authors help readers understand PTSD as a mind-body disorder from which we can use our own minds and bodies to recover. Woven throughout the book are inspiring real-life accounts of PTSD recoveries showing how men and women of all ages have used these tools to reclaim their vitality, physical health, peace, and joy.

Trauma Healing in the Yoga Zone

Author: Joann Lutz
Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
ISBN: 1912085089
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 169

Book Description
Trauma Healing in the Yoga Zone describes an original model of "Nervous System Informed, Trauma-Sensitive Yoga," (NITYA), a synthesis of classical yoga, somatic psychotherapy, and neuroscience research. It is organized around the eight branches of Raja Yoga, and includes scripts for administering NITYA chair yoga postures, breathing practices, and yoga nidra (the yogic sleep). These can be used by helping professionals with all levels of familiarity with yoga. The book is needed for several reasons: for mental health professionals, it offers a comprehensive overview of yoga philosophy and practices, as well as yoga-based options for working with the client's embodied experience, a major element in trauma healing. For yoga professionals and practitioners, it provides insight into the natural integration of yoga with polyvagal theory and other current approaches in the field of somatic psychology. Both professions are currently being enriched by data from the field of neuropsychology that describes brain function, in real time, in various mental and emotional states. This data supports yoga's effectiveness in regulating the autonomic nervous system, a key to trauma recovery.