Yoga and the Traumatized Body
*For Mental Health Clinicians*
Presenters: Dave Emerson, E-RYT, Elizabeth Hopper, Ph.D.
Dates: November 11- 12, 2010
Times: 9:00 A.M. - 4:30 P.M. each day
Location: 1019 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA
Cost: $370.00 Full, $333.00 Group/Student, $315.00
Description:
Yoga is an ancient practice that combines physical movement and posture with special attention to breath. For the past 4 years, the Trauma Center JRI has conducted some first of its kind research looking at how Hatha Yoga affects some common symptomatology of PTSD. Along with some very compelling subjective feedback from trauma survivors such as, "I feel like I can use my body again," we have shown for the first time that yoga effects core physiology, namely Heart Rate Variability (HRV), which is associated with PTSD.
In this two-day training, clinicians will learn yoga techniques that can be introduced into a typical one-to-one therapy or small group session. We will present a range of simple practices from seated breathing to some gentle bending and twisting that will give the clinician or healthcare provider a new set of tools to address some of the most fundamental and persistent symptoms of PTSD such as feeling totally overwhelmed by sensation, disembodied, dissociated, powerless and more. The Training Team will also provide clinicians and other providers with some self-care techniques, recognizing that the work of being with severely traumatized clients on the path to healing is extremely challenging and requires special attention to one's own health and well-being.
Prerequisites: This training workshop is geared toward licensed mental health clinicians or others with similar background or training who wish to integrate yoga and breathing strategies into clinical practice with trauma-impacted individuals. This workshop will focus on techniques which may be integrated into the dyadic (1:1) treatment or similar modalities, not on the development and administration of full yoga classes.
This workshop is not geared toward yoga instructors without mental health training; the TC-JRI Yoga Program is pleased to also offer a Trauma-Sensitive Yoga Teaching Certificate Program which is directed toward the needs of yoga instructors.
About the Presenters:
David Emerson, E-RYT, the Coordinator of Yoga Services Program at the Trauma Center JRI, is an accomplished yoga instructor and founder of the Black Lotus Yoga Project, Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to the teaching of yoga to individuals with PTSD. Mr. Emerson was responsible for the implementation, supervision and oversight of the yoga intervention component of the two recent pilot studies conducted by Dr. van der Kolk to assess the utility and feasibility of yoga instruction with traumatized adults with PTSD. Mr. Emerson has extensive experience in the instruction of yoga with PTSD and mental illness populations, and has developed and conducted yoga groups for several rape crisis, domestic violence, mental health and veterans administration centers and clinics throughout Greater Boston. In addition, Mr. Emerson owns his own yoga studio in Cambridge, MA called Black Lotus Yoga.
Elizabeth Hopper, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist with a specialization in traumatic stress and has worked with trauma survivors for the past twelve years. Dr. Hopper is the Associate Director of Training at the Trauma Center and coordinates the Certificate Program in Traumatic Stress Studies and the Trauma Center's Regional Training Series. She has conducted national outreach on traumatic stress and complex trauma, focusing on cross-discipline training. She has been trained in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Neurofeedback, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM). Dr. Hopper is also the Director of Project REACH, a program that serves victims of human trafficking throughout the United States, as well as a staff psychologist and supervisor at the Trauma Center.
Please be sure to submit both the Registration form as well as payment, using one of the links below.
Full Cost $370.00, click below
Group/Student, $333.00
Note: Registration at Group/Student rate requires proof of current student status at a degree-granting program, or 3+ registrants from the same institution at the same time.
