Bringing Trauma-Informed Yoga into Mental Health Clinical Practice

CPD

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Debra Alvis, Ph.D. Related seminars and products: 7

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Debra Alvis, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist and private practitioner with over 25 years of clinical experience in supporting clients’ recovery from shame, trauma, anxiety, depression and relational concerns. A seasoned international presenter and consultant, Dr. Alvis is a therapeutic yoga educator and retired as faculty from the University of Georgia where she developed and led the Mind/Body Program. The program included a clinician training program integrating contemplative approaches in psychotherapy. A thirty-five year personal contemplative practice, research experience, and a deep understanding of applied neuroscience, Polyvagal Theory, and compassion resiliency further enrich her presentations. She draws upon this unique background to provide effective and easily applicable skills designed for immediate integration into clinician’s practices.

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Debra Alvis is in private practice. Dr. Alvis receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc.
Non-financial: Debra Alvis has no relevant non-financial relationship to disclose.

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Objectives

1. Evaluate ways that autonomic nervous system dysregulation contributes to PTSD symptoms.
2. Determine symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder which can be decreased through a trauma-sensitive yoga practice.
3. Practice trauma-informed chair yoga postures for use in the individual or group psychotherapy session.
4. Determine the benefits of bringing yogic deep relaxation into the therapy session.
5. Utilize yogic strategies to help reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression in clients.
6. Apply applications of chair yoga and three-part deep breathing practices into your clinical work, using scripts and practice sessions.

Outline

• Yoga, Patanjali and MIR’s
• The importance of heart rate variability (HRV)

• The Triune Brain: left out of traditional psychotherapy?
• Regulating the brain’s trauma center
• Tracking body sensation and breathing deeply
• A frame of reference from Somatic Psychotherapy
• Neuroplasticity and interpersonal neurobiology

• The evidence in evidence-based yoga practice
• Yoga and polarities
• Guided script for chair yoga:
  • 5 trauma-informed chair yoga postures
  • Guiding and integrating the poses into your existing treatment modality (EMDR, Somatic Experiencing, etc.)
• Chair trauma-yoga:
  • Tracking body sensation
  • Gaining self-mastery
  • Increasing self-regulation
  • Expanding present-moment awareness
• Experience a chair yoga warm up and posture sequence

• Respiration and the autonomic nervous system (ANS)
• Breathing techniques to regulate the ANS and calm symptoms of trauma, anxiety and depression
• Experience the three-part deep breath and script

• Evaluating the client
• Opening the session
• Healing polarities:
  • Inner/outer
  • Sympathetic/parasympathetic activation
  • Sensing/action
  • Cognitive/somatic
• Healthy symptoms of trauma discharge
• Key points in making referrals to yoga classes

• The benefits of sleeping while awake
• Varieties of Yoga Nidra
• Guided experience of Satchidananda’s Yoga Nidra
• Discussion of Yoga Nidra script

• The relaxation response
• Mindfulness meditation: open-focused meditation
• A guided experience of both styles of meditation
• The benefits of meditation in the trauma psychotherapy session

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