MODULE 2:
Advanced Trauma-Informed
Yin Yoga (50hr)

Module 2: Advanced Yin Yoga (50 hours)
A Trauma-Informed Approach + Yoga Nidra

Course Information

Module 2: Advanced Yin Yoga is a 50-hour course that takes a trauma-informed, trauma-sensitive approach to teaching Yin Yoga. The course also includes training in Yin-related modalities including Yoga Nidra, Pranayama and Meditation, which enables you to support students or your own practice on a deeper level. This training provides a teaching intensive experience for those who are interested in the teaching path.

This module takes a deeper dive into the energetics, philosophies, science, sequencing, cueing and languaging techniques needed to deliver safe and inclusive yoga classes that speak to ALL bodies, hearts and minds. Both weekends takes place at AWHI Yoga & Wellbeing studio.

This module is designed for practitioners or teachers who already have a minimum of 20 hours Yin Yoga training (from anywhere). Foundational anatomy, meridian theory and yin poses will not be covered, so students are expected to come with this basic background. Please get in touch with kathleen@awhiyoga.co.nz if you’d like to discuss your existing qualifications in relation to the training.

Module 2: Advanced Yin YTT (50 hours) covers:

• Trauma-informed/Trauma-Sensitive Teaching Approaches

• Meditation & Pranayama

• Yoga Nidra

• Yoga Philosophy

• Class Sequencing and Theming

The primary focus of this module is around how to facilitate trauma-sensitive and trauma-informed yoga classes. We don’t always know what past experiences, imprints, patterns or mind/body states students bring with them when they step onto the mat.  A trauma-informed approach to yoga enables you to deliver classes that create a safe space for all students, empowering them with options that can foster a sense of agency over their bodies, decisions and yoga practice. You will be introduced to the science, psychology, cueing and languaging techniques needed to deliver a safe and inclusive environment for all. This training has relevance for healing modalities and yoga styles beyond yin, and can be adapted to a wide range of health-related practices and settings.

This module also introduces the theory, philosophy and practice of meditation, pranayama (breathwork) and Yoga Nidra (yogic sleep), providing you with additional tools for your teaching and personal self-care kete/toolkit. We teach you how to adapt these techniques in group classes and other teaching contexts - e.g., private lessons, workshops, courses and so on.

What is ‘Trauma-Informed’ Yoga training?

At AWHI we’re wary of buzzwords. We recognise that ‘trauma-informed/sensitive’ training threatens to be just that. Unlike many trauma-informed or trauma-sensitive yoga teacher training courses, we’ve brought on an experienced facilitator - Murray Hemi - who has a clinical background in psychotherapy, professional work experience in dealing with trauma survivors and experience teaching yoga as a healing practice for trauma. Murray also incorporates a Mātauranga Māori approach to his teachings, uniquely rooting yoga as a healing modality in the specific context of Aotearoa. This is not something you will find in most courses.

Our training takes the following approach and will cover:

1. Being in service to trauma: Trauma is a body-wise response to extreme or prolonged stress and harm. It is a response that is in service to the body. Working with body-based therapy and a trauma-informed yoga practice is an opportunity to encounter and re-frame trauma for more informed, positive, and empowered experiences.

2. Our bodies hold wisdom: Experiencing and expanding the the links between tinana (body), ha (breath), and hinengaro (innate wisdom) opens a pathway to māramatanga (insight) and, thereby, new understandings of trauma experiences and conditioning.

3. Window of tolerance: Differing levels of traumatic experience determine differing levels of stress tolerance in our daily lives. Trauma-informed yoga, by design, seeks to minimise the number and significance of potential stress triggers and thereby expands the window within which a safe practice can occur.

4. Key practice notes: What we can do to develop a safe yoga environment on the mat, how we can sense and identify potential needs, and how we deliver a yoga experience that is in service to trauma.

5. Managing trauma: How to respond to trauma responses, manage class, and bring people back 'on-line.'

Facilitators