Trauma informed yoga impacts

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It's a specialized approach to yoga that integrates trauma awareness into physical movement, breathwork, and mindfulness practices, specifically tailored for children and adolescents. Its impact can be profound, particularly for young people who have experienced adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as abuse, neglect, violence, or instability.

1. Safety – Emotional and physical safety is prioritized (e.g., no physical adjustments, use of invitational language).
    
2. Choice – Youth are empowered to make decisions about what feels safe and right for their bodies.
    
3. Empowerment – Builds a sense of control, confidence, and self-worth.
    
4. Mindfulness – Encourages awareness of the body, thoughts, and feelings in a nonjudgmental way.
    
5. Connection – Fosters trust, peer bonding, and healthy relationships.
    

• Trauma disrupts the autonomic nervous system, keeping youth stuck in fight, flight, or freeze.
   
• Yoga uses breath, movement, and stillness to help downregulate this response, promoting calm and balance.
   

Impact: Reduces hypervigilance, restlessness, and emotional outbursts.
 

• Trauma-informed yoga can lower cortisol levels, promote self-soothing, and reduce symptoms of mental health disorders.
   
• Studies have shown significant improvements in PTSD severity and emotional resilience after consistent practice.
   

Especially effective when combined with other therapeutic interventions.
 

• Trauma can cause dissociation or a disconnection from the body.
   
• Yoga helps youth reconnect with their bodies in a safe and empowering way, building positive physical self-awareness.
   

Impact: Helps prevent self-harm, eating disorders, and dissociative behaviors.
 

• Practices like naming feelings, noticing sensations, and breathing through discomfort help kids develop emotional intelligence.
   
• Yoga provides tools for managing anger, sadness, or fear without acting out.
   

• Practicing yoga in a safe group environment can rebuild trust and foster a sense of belonging.
   
• Youth often learn cooperative behavior, empathy, and respect for boundaries.
   

• Trauma affects memory, attention, and executive function.
   
• Yoga improves focus, working memory, and classroom behavior, making it valuable in school-based interventions.
   

• The Holistic Life Foundation, Yoga Ed, and Little Flower Yoga have implemented trauma-informed yoga in schools and juvenile centers with positive outcomes.
   
• Research (e.g., from Harvard, UCLA, and Justice Resource Institute) supports its effectiveness in improving behavioral and emotional outcomes in traumatized youth.

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