Holistic and supportive therapies help to promote mindfulness throughout the treatment of mental health issues. Trauma-informed yoga is a holistic, supportive approach to yoga that utilizes mindfulness to address a number of issues people who live with the effects of trauma face.
Mental health specialists who work with people who have experiences with trauma understand the negative effects of trauma not only on the mind but on the body as well. Individuals who have experienced trauma don’t only have to deal with emotional and mental health symptoms that are debilitating to life, but also physical symptoms that are brought on by trauma – even if there is no direct relationship between the traumatic experience and the physical symptom. However, traditional treatment methods like individualized therapy sessions don’t always work to completely address the somatic symptoms brought about by traumatic experiences.
Advances in neuroscience are telling those treating individuals with trauma that the impact on the brain due to trauma is something that results in physical ways. So, the body translates the impact of trauma on the mind. These physical changes to the body due to how trauma has impacted the brain can often shape how individuals live their daily lives, make decisions, and behave. Therefore, it’s important to not only understand how traumatic experiences affect our moods, emotions, and thoughts but also our bodies as well.
Mind-body sensorimotor integration is a type of psychological approach that embraces the fact that the mind and body are both affected by mental health issues including trauma. And, gives people a chance to utilize therapies that help reduce the result of stress and damage to the brain caused by trauma that can result in negative therapeutic outcomes in traditionalized therapies.
Essentially, mind-body sensorimotor integration leads patients to learn and utilize a recognition for how the body reacts to emotional triggers brought about by the traumatic experience. This way, individuals can better understand the triggers that stimulate negative emotional responses in order to manage them throughout their daily lives. Therefore, giving people who have been impacted negatively by trauma coping skills needed to overcome the emotional responses by recognizing somatic cues that relate to and even provoke them.
One of the ways that individuals affected by trauma can integrate a mind-body sensorimotor integration psychological approach into their trauma treatment is by utilizing trauma-informed yoga. This type of yoga addresses the individual and particular needs of people who have lived through traumatic experiences. During trauma-informed yoga sessions, individuals can expect to:
Trauma-informed yoga provides a safe and inviting space for people who have lived through trauma to address and recognize the disconnect between the mind and body that often occurs with traumatic experiences. And, explore the emotions that come about as the result of this process. Thus, stimulating a sense of self-acceptance and healing in order to manage both physical and mental symptoms of trauma.
To learn more about our trauma-informed approach to yoga and the mind-body sensorimotor integration, call us today at 866-364-2300.
If you or someone you know is suffering from mental illness or wants to optimize mental functioning, please contact us via phone, email, or contact form. Our assessment team is ready to help.