Can Yoga Therapy cure PTSD?
Suffering from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) is nothing to take lightly. There are various different types of traumatic events that can cause your body and mind to lose sync with each other and be unable to establish proper coping mechanisms for the necessary healing needed.
There is nothing more frustrating than knowing you are suffering from PTSD, but also accepting that you have no control over your reactions to the infinite number of triggers that start to surround you following the trauma. For those who have tried it all, or who haven’t thought to take action, yoga therapy is a serious healthcare option that can help. You might be thinking though, how could yoga possibly cure such an inescapable and what seems impossible mental routine?
Yoga Therapy prepares a different intention for the practice, allowing professionals to identify with individuals for their specific symptoms and needs. Following an adequate assessment, therapists can prepare methods for symptom management unique to each client. Robin Carnes, MBA, E-RYT 500, C-IAYT described her methods towards neuroscience of trauma, or PTSD, as “almost a physiological approach to calm the body through yoga.” She explained how our bodies have betrayed us when suffering PTSD, unable to comprehend and translate trauma appropriately for proper healing. By training the mind through body movement, one is able to create their own calm and control the traffic of thoughts.
Redirection of the mind is a very powerful tool, allowing a person to overcome something as small as a stressful day, to ultimately providing methods of symptom management for a traumatic experience. Those who suffer from PTSD are able to take control by becoming reacquainted with the body, reestablishing a sense of time and noticing how things change and flow on the inside.
With the practice of yoga, those who suffer can redirect the attention from the mind to the body. Allowing the mind to get some space while focusing on body movement can give clarity for how the body directly affects the mind; helping give back control by introducing a new perspective. For example, a panic attack triggered from a sudden flashback could be preventable by focusing on the breath and practicing suggested movements that would take the traffic of thoughts into
the background.
Think of it like a relationship, the mind and body both need attention but also need space to function properly. Even out of PTSD, most of us tend to suffocate our minds and give little attention to our bodies. There has to be a balance for harmony to take place. Recently published, The Principles and Practice of Yoga in Health Care documents research on how finding that balance through yoga has been documented to help PTSD sufferers find methods to cope and find control again. Yoga therapy offers a valuable healthcare solution, so why say no?