5 ways that Yoga can help heal trauma

I am a trauma informed Holy Yoga Therapist, which means that I use yoga to help people release trauma from their bodies. Trauma is any event that causes you to have overwhelming emotions that you are unable to process, when that happens your body stores the unprocessed emotions as a kind of warning system incase a similar experience happens again. Unfortunately this means that your body can become “on alert” never really relaxing and triggered into trauma mode when even a simple scent is similar to your traumatic experience. This also means that excess energy stored in the body can begin to cause dis-ease within the body causing issues like chronic pain or autoimmune disorders. Yoga is different than talk therapy because it unlocks these body issues associated with the traumatic experience, and research has shown that yoga therapy prior to talk therapy can quicken the healing process by allowing you to access feelings and reactions that were previously out of reach to you.

Here are 5 ways that yoga helps to heal trauma…

1 + Yoga brings you back into your body. Often when we experience trauma or unpleasant emotions in our bodies our response is to shut them down, to turn off what our bodies are feeling so that we can push through. Yoga reintroduces you to your body so that you can not only explore your emotions but you can control how you react to those emotions.

2 + Yoga puts you in control of your nervous system. While practicing yoga, the breath and the movement serve to assist you in controlling your own nervous system. When a trauma is triggered and your nervous system is highjacked knowing how to breath and move to gain control again is extremely healing for the trauma survivor.

3 + Yoga can help reduce anxiety, stress, and the effects of depression all of which survivors of trauma often experience.

4 + Yoga helps you to sit in what is uncomfortable, breathing through difficult postures and opening up places in the body where emotions are typically stored such as in the hips and shoulders.

5 + Yoga can also be a spiritual practice. In my years of working in healing I have discovered that a belief in a higher power is important piece to complete healing. For me that is a belief in God, Jesus, Holy Spirit. When we tap into the divine as we practice we can know that a power beyond ourselves is bringing us healing and speaking Truth into our hearts.

If you are interested in exploring the healing power of yoga in your own life I would be honored to connect with you on instagram @beautifulandbeloved or through email at beautifulandbeloved@gmail.com I offer private yoga healing sessions and yoga retreats so you can pick what feels right for you!

In Love and Light, Amber