Ashtanga Yoga and Trauma-Informed Care

Ashtanga Yoga and Trauma-Informed Care 

Ashtanga yoga has been a profoundly healing practice for me.  Over the last 15 years, my daily practice, and the community I’m part of, have been a constant source of support.  I can’t imagine my life without it. 

That said, I understand this practice is not for everyone, nor was it designed as a healing modality for the effects of trauma.   That’s why it’s wonderful there are other options available.

Trauma-sensitive yoga is a branch of yoga that’s designed specifically to help people (re) connect with their body and sense of self in the aftermath of trauma.  

As well as teaching Ashtanga, I work with survivors of trauma and vulnerable adults, facilitating trauma-sensitive yoga.   The model I work with, Trauma Centre Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY), is a clinical intervention designed specifically to help survivors of complex or relational trauma and dissociative symptoms.  It was co-created by relational trauma survivors, along with yoga teachers and experts in the field of trauma.

I’m interested in the intersection between trauma-informed practices and Ashtanga yoga, and how we can pass on the method we know and love in a way that’s trauma-informed.  Allowing for the practice to be inclusive for as many people as possible.

Trauma is an adaptive response

Trauma is an adaptive response that allowed an individual to survive an intolerable situation. When trauma occurs within the context of relationships it’s known as relational or complex trauma. Relational trauma involves coercion, a breakdown of trust, and removal of choice for the survivor.  

Trauma can be experienced personally, systemically and generationally. The forms of oppression that exist in our society perpetuate trauma. This trauma can then be passed through generations.

Judith Herman, a leading expert in the field of trauma and recovery, says, healing from trauma must be led by the individual and can only occur in the context of relationships. Therefore the foundation of trauma-informed care is based on creating a culture of safety, trust, choice and empowerment.

Trauma-informed care is based on creating a culture of safety, Trust, Choice and empowerment

Although you might get to know more about your students over time, when people first show up to practice with you, it’s unlikely you’ll have much information about them or their trauma history.  As yoga practitioners, it’s not our job to diagnose or counsel our students, or to ask them questions that aren’t relevant to the physical practice of yoga.   This is beyond our scope of practice and outside of the unofficial contract of service we’ve agreed i.e to teach Ashtanga yoga.

However, by focusing on creating safety, empowering our students and facilitating an opportunity for them to have a present-moment embodied experience we can be more sensitive to the needs of attendees whether or not they have a trauma history. 

Creating Safety

The way our nervous system functions means that for us to have an embodied present-moment experience we need to feel safe.  

When we’re in a state of fear (SNS - fight or flight response) the felt sense of our body (interoception) is impaired. This allows our body to respond to the situation at hand rather than distracting us with feelings of hunger or thirst. It also means if we get injured we’re less likely to feel pain. 

Therefore doing our best to help people feel safe in our class (they won’t always) will allow them the opportunity to begin to connect with themselves, something they can’t do if they feel scared.

There are many ways we can try to create a sense of safety in our classes. Here are just a few to consider:

Be predictable

Being predictable is a great way to create safety. It lets people know what to expect from you. Doing what you say you’ll do helps build a sense of trust. This is particularly important if you’re working with people who have had their trust broken by others.

You can create predictability by consistently letting both new and existing students know what to expect through the information on your website, any communications you have, and how you present yourself in class each time you show up.

If like me, you teach Mysore you could consider explaining how the practice works, your policy on adjustments, the dress code, how busy the room is etc in advance via your website as well as once people arrive for their first class.

Offer Choices

Trauma is often about the removal of choice. Empowering individuals to make choices about how or when to move is a is a key element of TSTSY and it’s something we can also bring into regular classes

Consider the different ways you can offer choice in the Mysore room or when you teach a fixed sequence like Ashtanga in a led class environment.

When offering choices try not to make one choice seem more desirable than another. Simply offer different options and allow the student to decide for themselves what they would like to do at that moment. Allow space and time to try both choices and decide what one they’d like to stick with.

Here’s an example of using invitational language and offering choice when teaching.

Language 

The language we use can make a big difference in how safe and welcome people feel in our classes. It’s something we can continually refine and adapt.

One of the most important learnings from my TCTSY studies was around the use of invitational language and this informs my teaching of Ashtanga too.  

As with offering choices, using invitational language provides space for participants to consider if or how they would like to move. It shifts the power away from the teacher and rests it with the individual.

In led classes avoid using language that places weighting on one option over another e.g “if you can’t do this….then try this” or “full pose” or ‘modification”. Practice presenting options neutrally so that people are empowered to choose the option that works for them at that moment.

 We can also consider other ways the language we use might make people feel either included or excluded based on our differing identities.

Be Open

Unfortunately, many of the major yoga lineages, including Ashtanga, have individuals within their organisations who have perpetrated abuse.  

Part of being trauma-informed includes acknowledging that abuses of power have occurred, listening to the voices of survivors and making changes so history does not repeat itself.

If an organisation you’re part of has abuses of power in its history it’s important not to hide from the past and show the steps you’ve personally taken to ensure it does not happen again. For example, if you're regulated by any professional standards or in Supervision with any senior teachers you could consider sharing this information on your website. 

Create a consent culture

Touch is a big part of Mysore-style Ashtanga and in many ways, it can be very helpful. Being guided into Karandavasana multiple times was a big help to me in figuring it out.

However, if we’re creating a trauma-informed space, we should do so with the understanding that not everyone will want to receive adjustments, either all of the time or some of the time and this shouldn’t exclude them from being able to experience this (or any other) transformative practice.

Even if we are consistently asking for consent, it’s worth considering how difficult it might feel to say no, especially in what’s often a quiet and busy space.

That’s why the relationship we have with students is so important.  Open and honest dialogue among practitioners and teachers is essential if we’re to find a way of doing things that allows everyone in the room to feel empowered to advocate for themselves.

Understand your own biases

 “ Transphobia, Homophobia, racism, sexism, ableism, bigotry & intersectional oppression in any form are antithetical to being a trauma-informed practitioner” (TCTSY Instagram account)

So much relational trauma is experienced as a result of individuals and society acting on the “isms” described in this quote.

We all have different identities, backgrounds and unconscious biases. Part of the work of being both a yoga practitioner and a trauma-informed practitioner is taking the time to understand our identity, and our biases so we can take steps to ensure we don’t unintentionally cause harm. This is fundamental to caring for those who show up in our classes and making them feel safe.

Ask for and encourage feedback 

Creating a space where practitioners feel safe and supported enough to offer feedback is a great way to refine our offerings, build trust and share power. Providing, of course, we act on the feedback we receive.

Our differing life experiences mean there’s no one transformative practice/method, asana or technique that works for everyone to heal trauma. If there was the world would be a very different place. Trauma-informed care should always take an approach that centres on the individual rather than a process or “the method”. Therefore, I believe it's essential we continue to adapt the way we teach to suit whoever shows up.

If you’re an Ashtanga teacher or practitioner and you are interested in continuing this conversation, please get in touch. I’m working on creating a space where we can facilitate a group conversation about some of the topics addressed here.

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