Summary

Life experiences of loss or trauma can result in feelings of anxiety, sadness, agitation, and reactivity, as well as the symptoms of PTSD (e.g., flashbacks, hypervigilance, and nightmares.) These experiences live in our bodies, as well as our minds and hearts, and can manifest in subtle or obvious difficulties with self-regulation, insomnia, an increased startle response and heart rate, etc. Yoga, and mindfulness practices working with the breath, can gently shift these patterns and begin to introduce a counteractive experience of calm and relaxation that allows individuals to re-inhabit their bodies with a growing sense of safety, strength and stability.

Testimonials from Fall 2010 Trauma Yoga Series:

“I felt more grounded, centered and aware at the close of the series.”
“It was good to be on a healing path with other women who were in the same boat as me.”
“I really appreciated the supportive environment.  Deb was so gentle and created a safe space for all of us to just be.”
“After 8 weeks of participation I have become more self-accepting and thus less anxious”

Testimonials from Spring 2011Trauma Yoga Series:

“I appreciated Deb’s gentle, soft, loving and accepting presence.”
“I learned to let go of judgment and just be.”
“I have been sleeping more soundly at night.”
“I really appreciated the instructor’s patience and explanation of the process.”

Schedule

Week 1:  Introduction to: group members, class structure and safety agreements, establishing a container, gentle practice. 

Week 2:  Calming and relaxing with breath and gentle poses. 

Week 3:  Experiencing and exploring sensations of groundedness in body and breath.

Week 4:  Experiencing and exploring sensations of rising energy.

Week 5:  Nurturing mindfulness practices. 

Week 6: Skillful means – What does the body and breath have to say about our experience and how do we choose to meet this? 

Week 7:  Working safely and gently with experiences of intensity. 

Week 8:  Carrying healing forward and closing circle.

Modalities & Techniques

This workshop uses therapeutic yoga and psychotherapy to help treat trauma related symptoms- Yoga, breathwork, psycho-education related to trauma, yogic teachings, and how bodywork can assist in healing.

Who should go? What conditions does this help?

Adults suffering from PTSD, Anxiety, Depression, Insomnia, and Fear.

Experience or Requirements

Wear comfortable, loose clothing (not jeans).  Mats and props are provided but participants can bring their own.

About Deb Sherrer

"True service is not a relationship between an expert and a problem; it is far more genuine than that. It is a relationship between people who bring the full resources of their combined humanity to the table and share them generously. Service goes beyond expertise...Service is a relationship between equals." Rachel Naomi Remen

I believe deeply in the inherent capacity of individuals to be resilient, to heal, and to grow.

Areas of particular focus or interest are: learning variation/disabilities; grief work, trauma and PTSD (women and veterans), life planning, infertility and family adaptation after resolution, and diet/body image concerns. I am available to provide psychotherapy to individuals, couples, and youth, and related consultation. I am interested in working with students (high school through college age) related to learning variation/disabilities. General and therapeutic yoga classes (e.g., trauma-sensitive), private yoga/bodywork sessions, and workshops will be offered at the Center location.

My therapeutic orientation is drawn from psychodynamic, family systems, trauma, neurodevelopmental, and integrative bodywork theories and practice. My primary frame, informed by this knowledge and practice base, is that all individuals have learned ways of being in the world based upon a convergence of interpersonal and intrapersonal factors, general physical and cognitive functioning, and variable life experiences. Therapeutic work allows individuals to rework or shift patterns that no longer serve them and/or address specific treatment issues (e.g., trauma, learning disabilities/variation) through an exploration and reintegration of these experiences and/or the development of alternative adaptations and skill development.

I love yoga and because of this, I practice and teach. Yoga has been a central part of my growth and healing over the past 13 years. Having experienced PTSD, yoga has helped me re-inhabit my body with an ever-expanding sense of well-being and ease. My personal experience and professional training in yoga therapeutics has allowed me to understand the true potential of yoga, meditation, and breath-work in soothing the stress response in the body and mind. I completed a 40-hour trauma-sensitive yoga teacher certificate program at The Trauma Center at JRI directed by Bessel van der Kolk, a renowned trauma expert. He and the staff at JRI have been studying the impact of yoga on the reduction of PTSD symptoms with favorable results. Included within the training was how to utilize or adapt yoga to specific individuals needs (e.g., chair yoga.) I'm very much looking forward to bringing therapeutic yoga, both group and individual, into the broader community.

For me, the practice on the mat is a metaphor, an opportunity to become mindful about what happens in the body and mind in the presence of pleasure, discomfort, intensity, openness, and constriction. One of the core gifts is to learn how to meet whatever arises with compassion, loving-kindness, and grace.

Medicaid accepted.