Yoga therapy is a more recent practice that integrates traditional yoga concepts and techniques with an understanding of Western medicine and psychological knowledge. Yoga techniques are used to stimulate and inspire the ways in which we react physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually with the world around us in order to develop an understanding of how to heal using the mind, body, and spirit.
As a yoga instructor, you are tasked with creating harmony and restoring balance during your practice. Have you ever felt like you could use yoga for more? If you are looking to broaden your practice, consider becoming a yoga therapist. In addition to hosting regular practices, you’re able to help those in need heal in a natural, soothing way.
Discover how yoga therapy differs from traditional yoga practice, as well as the many benefits it can provide:
Yoga Therapy takes a holistic approach. For physical concerns, yoga therapists are trained to think about the body as a whole. In a world full of never-ending specialization, you are able to see connections that others may miss. In practice, this often involves strengthening or stretching parts of the body that seem completely unrelated, whether it’s to one another or a particular injury or pinpoint.
There are no time constraints. Yoga therapy sessions are often an hour, sometimes more. Unlike other healing professions that are constrained because of insurance or traditional classes taught in studios with time constraints, yoga therapy allows you to take as much time as necessary to take in a client’s story. In doing so, Yoga Therapists are positioned to make connections that others simply don’t have the time to. When traditional yoga isn’t enough, a Yoga Therapist steps in to help connect the dots.
Instead of becoming dependent, you gain understanding. A yoga therapist is tasked with educating people on how they can heal themselves. After working through a session, your client should leave feeling empowered and ready to self assess themselves throughout the remainder of their healing process. Ultimately, it is your goal to help clients obtain independence from your practice and creating a practice of their own.
You provide a one-stop-shop. Yoga therapy taps into all aspects of the self: the physical and pranic bodies, mental states and emotions, the unconscious workings of the mind, the heart, and the ways in which those aspects intertwine. Yoga therapists are trained in practices that facilitate a healing connection between all of these parts. For many, this holistic approach can alleviate suffering across the spectrum and eliminate or reduce the need to obtain help from elsewhere.
Yoga therapy can treat a variety of symptoms, from trauma to addiction recovery. If you are a yoga instructor looking to do more with your practice, learn more about becoming a certified yoga therapist today.
This post is brought to you by Brandt Passalacqua, a trained Yoga Therapist and Medical Massage Therapist and owner of Breathing Deeply Yoga Therapy. After struggling with his weight, food and substance addiction and serious illness, Brandt discovered yoga and through his practice developed an appreciation for his body and his health. He maintains an office in Western Massachusetts.