Lori-Anne Biddiss
Holistic Yoga Therapist
Holistic Yoga Therapy is a great complimentary therapy that can benefit anyone. Yoga therapy looks at the whole person and provides tools for wellness through asana, pranayam, meditation, and yogic philosophy.
Yoga Therapy is a type of therapy that uses postures (asanas), breathwork (pranayama), yogic philosphy, and meditation to improve both mental and physical health. Yoga therapy is inherently holistic as it works on the physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects of a person. Yoga therapy uses the application of yoga practices to encourage overall well-being through self care to ease aches and pains, balance mood, and help the body and mind heal.
Yoga Therapy is for everyone. Some common conditions treated through Yoga Therapy include everything from migraines and mood disorders to diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis. The theraputic application of yoga can reduce the effects of radiation and chemotherapy for cancer patients. Yoga therapy can help all people heal physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
No! Yoga therapy uses an incremental approach to healing. Your yoga therapist will start with gentle breathing techniques and gentle, supported movements and slowly increase according to your ability and comfort. The physical postures (asanas) are only one part of yoga therapy and your therapist will guide you through postures adding modifications and variations to assist. There is no need to be flexible - in fact yoga therapy can help improve your felxibility reducing the chance of injury in daily life.
Yes! Yoga therapy meets you where you are. Many of the postures used with clients can be modified to be done in a chair, wheelchair, or even a bed. They can be modified to use props to increase flexibility and balance. Yoga therapy can be very beneficial for those who cannot get out of bed (with your doctor's permission) by using breath work (pranayama) and meditation.
For your Yoga Therapy session you can expect to have an intake - discussing your concerns, your health, and emotional well-being. There will be some observing of physical movement and posture, balance, and breathing patterns. Follow up sessions may include meditation, discussion of progress, and personally chosen yoga poses. Your yoga therapist is likely to give you some homework - poses or breathwork - to practice at home between sessions.
Yoga classes are often planned beforehand by the yoga instructor and follows themes, postures, and breathwork determined for a general yoga clientelle. In yoga therapy, the therapist works with your specific concerns, your physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional needs, as well as assessing your improvement and ability in the moment.
Yoga therapy differs from physical therapy in that physical therapists have a focus on restoring function through exercises, manual therapies, and electrical stimulation, whereas, yoga therapy uses its practice to foster regulation, resilience, and well-being. Yoga therapy uses physical postures (asanas), breath work (pranayama), meditation, self-inquiry, and life-style changes.
Yoga therapy differs from psychotherapy in that yoga therapist do not diagnose mental health conditions or problems. Yoga therapy assesses and emphasizes overall wellness and health through techniques based in yogic philosophy rather than the psychological sciences.
Yes! Yoga therapy can help healthy and happy people lead fulfilling lifestyles through a variety of techniques. Physical postures (asanas) can help improve strength, balance, and flexibility. Breathing techniques (pranayama) and meditation can help improve sleep, memory, relationships, and decrease daily stress levels.