Mini Episode: What is Trauma Informed Yoga?

Abby (00:30)
Hello everyone, Abby here. I'm going to read out loud a recent blog post I've written on our website, which we will link in the show notes below. And I'm grateful that you're here. So again, if we don't know each other or you're new to this page, this podcast, my name is Abby. I am a trauma and EMDR therapist, also a yoga teacher.

And I'm here today to talk about what is trauma-informed yoga. So trauma-informed yoga is a way of teaching yoga that incorporates a deep awareness of and training in the effects of trauma on individuals, be that relationally, emotionally, physically, the list goes on. As a trauma EMDR therapist and yoga teacher, I blend the two to meet you where you're at.

So what does trauma-informed yoga look and feel like? Choice, options abound. Throughout class, I offer options for different postures. Advancing in your yoga practice isn't at all about what forms your body can take and how far you can go in a given posture. Instead, advancing your practice is so much more about attunement to your breath and your body and how you honor those needs.

In my classes, there's no hierarchy of places to be in a posture, no place of going further. Instead, all options are good options. And really, the best option for you is the one you choose based on what your body and breath are indicating to you. Yoga practices can include breathwork, and some people find breathwork dysregulating. I offer multiple options when engaging in breathwork beyond just focus on the breath.

I often encourage grounding into something concrete and tangible in your immediate environment, which can feel safer and more tolerable than going inward. For example, this might sound like an invitation to notice colors in your space, to feel textures around you, or to listen to the sound outside or the sound of my voice, all of which you can pause and take a moment to do here and now.

you look around your room with your eyes to notice any colors that you see. Maybe you find one you particularly enjoy or find neutral and you gaze at it for a moment long.

And now I invite you, if you'd like, to feel something near you, whether it's the table in front of you, even your phone in your hand, the seat beneath you, and just notice the texture first. And maybe you notice the temperature. Is it warmer, the same as, or cooler than your hand? No need to think too hard about it.

and then maybe listen to sounds both near and far. So you're hearing the sound of my voice and also are there any other sounds in your environment? Right now, I hear the hum of my fan going as it is July 1st as I'm recording this. Fan is necessary. So.

Just a little bit of grounding. I wanted to play around with that. Anyway, back to my reading. Ultimately in my classes, you get to choose what is right for you. I found in my own practice that when I consistently get offered choices and when I check in with myself to make the appropriate choice for me, I grow and I heal. Now sometimes I don't make the appropriate choice for me in that school too because it's good information and I learn from it.

What else does trauma-informed yoga look and feel like? Voice, consent, and boundaries. So if we ever have the opportunity to practice in person together, which I really hope to offer soon, I only offer hands-on assists with very clear consent. Anything other than a clear yes is a no, and therefore your space and boundaries are completely yours and respected. I ask every single time.

How can trauma-informed yoga help me heal? Good trauma-informed yoga is in large part informed by Polyvagal Theory by Stephen Porges. And without getting into the weeds of the science here and now, this is where so much of our current sort of nervous system regulation knowledge comes from. Over time, yoga can provide you the tools to help you get grounded in the here and now.

And when you're able to notice the here and now with more regularity, your yoga practice can more clearly reveal to you your nervous system state. From there, you can engage in a practice that supports with up regulating or down regulating your system as needed. To get real world with this, here are some examples of how I've used this practice for nervous system regulation. Again, side note, this didn't happen overnight by any stretch.

I wrote here pun intended. Just saw the word stretch and I thought that was fun. But yeah, like this took a lot of time and practice and certainly not a perfect practice. So I titled this next section, Feeling Depleted, which could be considered a hypo arousal state, dorsal vagal state. I'm gonna use some polyvagal language here for those who are interested or are.

have the familiarity. Otherwise, you can kind of just go with that sense of feeling depleted. You may have been there. So an example from my life. One day I'm feeling lethargic, fatigued, and fuzzy. I notice the early signs of this in my body from lots of time getting tuned into what's actually going on in there. And then I have the choice and the space to decide, what do I want to do with this? I have every right to stay in it, but instead I decide

You know what might feel nice? Getting some movement going, micro movement, like a brief moment in, let's say, downward facing dog. Or if I don't want to leave my couch or my chair, I might just stretch my arms high to the sky or out to the sides. This movement sometimes brings me up a few notches on my ladder, if you will, which allows me to feel maybe just like 1 % more awake than I just did.

On flip side, feeling anxious, which we can consider to be a state of hyperarousal, sympathetic nervous system activation. Here's my example. On the flip side, the next day I'm feeling on edge. My thoughts are racing. I'm tense as ever. I notice these early signs and I decide, you know what might be supportive? Laying on the ground and feeling all points of contact with the earth.

And because it's in my practice, I take a few deep diaphragmatic breaths, which supports me in slowing down my thinking. I then decide to squeeze all my muscles briefly to feel into that tension for just a moment. And then on an exhale, whoosh, I release it. This practice brings me down a bit on my ladder, taking me out just a micro amount of nonstop thinking.

and a bit more into the here and now, maybe even into my body.

section I titled Feeling Good, Ventral Bagel. My practice often allows me to notice the good, to see the glimmers in a given moment, not to bypass distress or challenge and certainly not to just look on the bright side. But instead when I do notice a glimmer, I can mentally note it and beyond mentally noting it, I may even take a more expansive breath to savor the glimmer and let the glimmer glow and grow.

A lot of the work that we can do together through trauma-informed yoga is just this, and it's slow and steady. First, we build capacity to slow down. That takes time. We build capacity to be present slowly, steadily, to notice what's going on in the here and now. From that place, we can build awareness of our nervous system's unique patterns.

All the while, we can build out our own toolkit of practices for regulation if and when we'd like to use them. We don't have to think too hard about this, which is nice. know, yoga isn't about thinking, thinking, thinking our way through healing. It really is a dance of sorts, a collaboration. Showing up to practice in a space that is contained and trauma-informed can be the way for this type of healing.

So if any of what I shared in this podcast slash blog makes you curious, I invite you to reach out on our website. We can link it below. is a form, you know, can submit an inquiry. You can sign up for an email list. And in that email list will be free practices, more blog posts and podcasts.

And then a schedule, ideally, that will come out soon for live practices, virtually, that you can take part of. And maybe one day soon, some in-person offerings as well. Thank you so much for taking the time to listen, and I look forward to maybe hearing from you, practicing with you in the future, and take really good care.