Embodied Healing

Survivor and Facilitator Voices from the Practice of Trauma-Sensitive Yoga

First-hand essays of embodied healing from the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at Justice Resource Institute: challenges, triumphs, and healing strategies for trauma-sensitive therapists and yoga teachers.

This collection of essays explores the applications of TCTSY–Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga–as a powerful evidence-based modality to help clients heal in the aftermath of trauma. Written by a range of contributors including yoga facilitators, survivors, and therapists, the first-hand accounts in Healing with Trauma-Sensitive Yoga examine real-life situations and provide guidance on how to act, react, and respond to trauma on the mat. Each essay centers the voices, wisdom, and experiences of survivors and practitioners who work directly with trauma-sensitive embodiment therapies.

From navigating issues of touch and consent to avoiding triggers, practitioners and readers will learn how to support survivors of trauma as they reintegrate their bodies and reclaim their lives. Organized into sections based on principles of trauma-sensitive yoga–experiencing the present moment, making choices, taking effective action, and creating rhythms–the 12 essays are for yoga teachers, therapists, survivors, and mental health professionals and trauma healers.

EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACH TO A TIMELY TOPIC: Over 61% of men and half of women have experienced trauma–in any given yoga class, there will likely be at least one trauma survivor. Teachers and therapists need to be fluent in trauma-sensitive yoga to be truly effective (and well regarded). Turner offers an evidence-based model that addresses how to conduct classes with an informed, sensitive approach.

EXPERT AUTHOR: Editor Jenn Turner is the director of training at the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at the world-renowned Justice Resource Institute, where she leads a global network of leaders in the field of embodiment and trauma and trains mental healthcare providers and embodiment practitioners. She designed the protocol for a randomized controlled NIH-funded study demonstrating the efficacy of TCTSY for reducing PTSD symptoms in a treatment-resistant population, which has been used effectively in subsequent studies.

FIRST-HAND NARRATIVES: Including essays from a broad range of contributors–healers, mental health practitioners, yoga teachers, and survivors–Healing with Trauma-Sensitive Yoga grounds evidence-based methodology in accessible, interesting first-hand stories that bring the theoretical aspects of TCTSY to life.