Yoga Therapy is not yet a burgeoning part of the Australian healthcare system!
However Yoga Therapy is a beneficial, practical, and safe non-pharmacological adjunct to Western Medicine. It is already used widely by many and referred to by health professionals, like Psychologists, Clinical Nurses, Physiotherapists….
As an alternative lifestyle approach to support your health and well-being, Yoga Therapy will one day be recognised by Medicare or as ‘extra’ on Private Health Insurance.
SO to debunk a few myths and expose some truths, here goes…
Important truths about Yoga Therapy:
- Yoga Therapy practices and ‘tools’ already support many people living with chronic health conditions and particularly right now in addressing the global health crisis post-Covid.
- Yoga Therapy principles and practices are increasingly becoming the focus of research studies to demonstrate their benefits and validate long-term outcomes.
- Yoga Therapists are fully trained and experienced Yoga Teachers, further trained and qualified to international Standards, with many now recognised as certified Yoga Therapists by the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT).
- Yoga Therapists liaise directly and work alongside other Health Professionals to provide coordinated care for their clients, which is the same practice as for any other healthcare provider.
Debunking a few myths about Yoga Therapy:
- Yoga Therapy is a range of adapted yoga poses that you wish to achieve.
- Yoga Therapy is just like a yoga class, but you come for one-on-one sessions.
- All yoga is therapeutic, Yoga Therapy just costs more.
- Yoga Therapy only takes a few sessions to ‘fix’ an issue (like back pain, poor sleep).
- Yoga Therapy treats a condition, a symptom – it is not about you, the person.
So how does Yoga Therapy help?
- Yoga Therapy invites you to:
- reflect on your current health and lifestyle, how you got to here, and where and how you may wish to change.
- to address any current lifestyle concerns (like too much stress), your health (like not enough movement), a health condition (like high blood pressure), emotional changes (like depression, anxiety).
- view yourself as a person, the 'whole', not as your condition (like labeling yourself as a diabetic, insomniac).
- learn practices tailored uniquely for you, based on all the teachings of yoga (like breath, mind, philosophy) not just physical ‘moves’, that you can practise independently.
- bring gradual change of your habits and tendencies, and that you are in the ‘driver’s seat’ of your own well-being.
Here are some of my current Yoga Therapy Clients
- a 70+ woman with respiratory issues, osteoarthritis and a history of trauma, who is gradually 'restoring' her way back to confidence in her body and in herself.
- a 65+ male who takes life at full pace and wishes to reduce his injuries, as well as be comfortable to slow down and 'rest'.
- a 45+ woman with balance and stability issues, as well as unrelenting stress, who is coming back to her outer and inner 'centre' with mindful movement and mudra techniques.
I’d love you to comment with your thoughts below or contact me about how Yoga Therapy can help you!
