By: Lisa Foss, MA, LMHC
If you have experienced a trauma, chances are, a doctor or therapist has recommended you try yoga for stress relief. There is research that supports the idea that “the body keeps the score” as noted by trauma expert Bessel van der Kolk. Trauma has an impact on not just our mental and emotional well-being, but science is showing us it also affects our brain and body. Yoga allows the body to reconnect to the brain and to start the process of connection that has been disconnected by trauma. We feel unsafe in our own bodies and feel a helplessness in our own environment.
However, not all yoga is created the same. Subtle Yoga is a specific type of yoga for mental health purposes and is a more holistic intervention which promotes attention, mindfulness, body awareness, self-regulation, resilience, self-actualization, and pro-social behavior. Subtle Yoga enhances the client’s mental health recovery in addition to other therapy interventions. It is a person-centered approach to yoga that calms the nervous system, improves breathing, increases mind-body connection, and is trauma-informed.
How do you know if yoga is right for you?
Yoga can feel intimidating to some, and some of the positions can lead you to feel vulnerable. When you have experienced trauma, you need to feel safe, supported, and validated. Subtle Yoga is an approach that helps your practitioner be mindfully aware of your space and allows you to make the choice to move or not move into a movement, paying attention to signs that any position can be triggering.
Yoga in therapy can be beneficial in so many ways: general stress management; recalibration of the nervous system; integration of past stress experiences; and development of resistance for future stress. Subtle yoga it is about moving mindfully and increases mind-body connection, emotional healing, pain reduction, and improved sleep. You may have never heard of Subtle Yoga or have access to this practice but want to learn more about yoga for trauma so for more information about Subtle Yoga you can visit subtleyoga.com or contact me at lisa.foss@wakeforestcounselors.com to learn more about how to incorporate yoga into your mental health practice.
If you would like to meet with a counselor to learn more ways improve your mindfulness practice, please reach out to our Raleigh, Wake Forest, or Rolesville offices at (919)556-6501. Each of our therapists are offering teletherapy and are committed to helping individuals, couples, families, children, teens and adults to lead happier, healthier lives.