About Holistic Yoga
All About Holistic Yoga Therapy and Somatic Movement
Yoga and Somatics – Suitable for Every Body
Thank you for your curiosity about Holistic Yoga Therapy. Yoga Therapy is an evidence based approach to supporting and guiding clients through life challenges. Many people seek yoga therapy when faced with a physical or mental health challenge that is ongoing. It is an ideal support for people who are going through medical treatment, and is not intended to be used as an alternative. Yoga Therapy works best in combination with an integrated approach which might include medical care, physiotherapy, nutritional support and other complementary health therapies.
Yoga Therapy offers you support in learning how to tend to your whole self in support of your health and wellbeing. You are in the driving seat, in that you set your goals and choose the practices that resonate with you and work with your lifestyle.
The good news is, you don’t have to be a lycra clad yoga bunny to benefit from yoga therapy. A few simple, enjoyable movements, alongside breath and mindfulness practice can make a positive difference to your experience of every day life.
It’s Your Body – Tailoring Your Practice for Your Individual Needs
Each of us is an individual with a unique history, constitution and coping strategies. As such, in sessions I offer different choices and ways of accessing the postures and practices so that you are free to pick what suits you best.
Honouring and Listening to Your Body
This way of moving and relaxing is essentially about learning how to be responsive to your body. Our society has a “no pain = no gain” attitude. This creates the belief that if we strive to achieve and push harder we will get to where we want to be. This is an untruth. You will not get out of stress, anxiety or pain by over riding it, you will either push the stress elsewhere or increase the stress in the longer term, which may lead to adrenal fatigue and burnout. Holistic Yoga and Holistic Somatics teaches you a different way.
Yoga Therapy and Hanna Somatics
Essentially, I view movement practice as an opportunity to dialogue with the body. Many people view the body as the manifestation of the unconscious mind. By working to clear through stuck stress in the body, we can have an effect of our psyche as well as our mood, energy levels and thought patterns. Some days you will need a stronger uplifting practice, some days a calming, slower practise will be what is required.
Holistic Yoga is gentle by modern yoga standards, it’s similar to Hatha Yoga. We do not do repetitive vinyasa or flow (lots of down dogs and planks, looped together) we don’t do inversions (headstands or full shoulder stand). It is not a sweaty practice. This is a yoga method informed by modern concepts in anatomy such as Anatomy Trains, Anatomy in Motion and Functional Movement. This type of movement can be grounding (ideal for circling thoughts); lift your spirits (good for low mood) and bring clarity and calm. We utilise a wide variety of yoga practices including body scans; pranayama (breath practices); joint release practices; mudra; mantra; restorative yoga; yoga nidra and yoga philosophy.
Hanna Somatics is ideal if you feel tired, achy or need a more restful practice, similar to yin style yoga but with more movement and muscle engagement and release. This is an ideal practice for people who have persistent pain or feel exhausted or depleted in their energy levels. We focus on neuromuscular education, which means working to improve the sensory – motor communication between the brain and the body. This two-way process involves us listening to the body in detail and learning how to use muscles in a balanced and harmonious way. It’s very relaxing, which calms the nervous system. People with ME/CFS often comment how much more energy they have after a somatic based practice.
