LifeForce® Yoga for Resilience
There is a voice that doesn’t use words. Listen! — Rumi
There are many ways to listen. Sometimes words alone tell a story, but sometimes the truer story is written in the body. Our bodies speak to us in subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) ways. If we are not tuned in to the truth beneath the stories our minds tell us, we can become caught in a never-ending cycle of negative thoughts and beliefs, discouraged and angry at ourselves for reacting to situations in ways that ultimately don’t work for us.
Although we often believe we are primarily thinking beings who have feelings, biologically, we are feeling beings who think. Our feelings appear first in the limbic system — our body registers them before our mind grabs hold and attempts to provide meaning. And sometimes words fall short in explaining the true depth of our experiences. We feel anxious and our stomach hurts. We’re sad and our chest feels tight and our throat aches. We’re worried, anxious, or stressed, and we find ourselves barely breathing, and notice the muscles in our shoulders and neck ache to the point of distraction. Sometimes the troubles our brain describes and the feelings in the body are treated as two separate concerns. We talk, we process, we gain insight and understanding….. and yet we don’t “feel” any better.
Learning skills such as LifeForce Yoga practices are one way to bridge this gap. These strategies and skills are supported by current research and scientific findings in psycho-neurobiology. This provides a dynamic complement to both traditional talk therapy and more body-centered therapies such as EMDR. It focuses on balancing the emotional systems of the body through the therapeutic use of yoga, and may include breathwork, gentle movement, relaxation, sound, and imagery. Learning and using the tools outside of sessions provides practical opportunities to develop the skills necessary to be pro-active in responding to life’s stressors, therefore increasing one’s feelings of self-reliance and competency. Ultimately, LifeForce Yoga can deepen your true connection to yourself and those around you by allowing you live your fullest and most authentic life.
In working together, we may decide to use LifeForce Yoga interwoven with other modalities or as a stand-alone practice to manage mood in either individual or group experiences. In LifeForce Yoga focused sessions, clients will develop a home practice designed specifically for them, tailored to individual needs, and designed to use to enhance daily life.
I am a certified Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT-200) a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT-500), and I have completed LifeForce Yoga Practitioner training, and Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy for Mental Health Practitioners, Essentials Level, Level 1, and Level 2. You can learn more about LifeForce Yoga here.