Re-Growing Our Wings: A Yoga Workshop for People Healing from Trauma
Trauma is an injury, in relation to an event or life situation, that overwhelms the nervous system, altering the way we relate to ourselves, and the world. It is not a story that simply happened in the past; it creates an imprint of fear held in the body, creating a chronic and ongoing set of adaptive responses that continue to tax our entire systems. This imprint can show up in many ways, and may appear to be only in the mind. However, research shows us that trauma is a physical experience and is held in the body, directly affecting a person’s thinking and how they show up in the world. For healing to occur, reconnecting to our bodies, their instincts, and their resources of feeling and wisdom can be crucial.
Yoga can be a wonderful tool in the healing process. The practice of yoga can allow us to create a safe space within ourselves to reconnect the parts of us that may feel severed or lost. As this reconnection occurs, yoga can teach us to calm our nervous systems with breath, physical poses, and meditation; and to gradually undo the chronic tension, pain, and emotional and physical responses resulting from the trauma’s imprint. Yoga also teaches us that we are already whole, and that our identity is not the experiences we go through, but the self that can touch on peace, self-understanding, and joy regardless of our circumstances.
In this workshop, Jennifer Kollasch, MA, LMHC, DDMHS, will provide education about what is happening in our nervous systems, how it affects our thinking and relating to the world, and create the space for internal and interpersonal dialogue that will allow us to safely explore the practices of yoga as tools of healing. Veteran yoga teacher, Deborah King, leads yoga practices in these monthly workshops.
All levels of practice are welcome.
Schedule:
- Sunday, Aug. 26, 2018
- Yoga for Healing Trauma takes place at 8 Limbs West Seattle (stairwell access) on the last Sunday of the month.
- Please save the date: Sept. 30, 2018
- 1:30 PM – 3:30 PM
About the Teachers: Deborah King and Jennifer Kollasch
What to expect in Deborah’s classes: Deborah provides a focus on using awareness to discover alignment, and exploration of and deep connection to the body’s story, whether in the context of movement or stillness. She believes that the poses are templates for experience, not accomplishments. Well-versed in adapting the practice to the individuals in front of her, passionate about making the practice accessible to everyone, this focus infuses her range of teaching from flow to restorative and therapeutics. A lifelong practitioner, she is currently pursuing her full, advanced certification through IAYT (The International Association of Yoga Therapists) via Integrative Yoga Therapy at Kripalu.
Main Influences/ Styles/Traditions: Iyengar, Vijnana, my children, aspects of Ashtanga, Viniyoga, and Anusara, and most of all, life as a creative and unfolding process.
You are naturally whole. Unhealthy experiences and negative thought patterns can disrupt your relationships with yourself and others. I will go at the pace and depth that your are willing and ready to work.
Professionally, I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), a Developmental Disabilities Mental Health Specialist (DDMHS), trained in Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Emotion Freedom Technique. In my private practice I offer counseling and Reiki energy healing. I graduated from Antioch University Seattle, a CACREP accredited university with my Masters in Mental Health Counseling.
My therapeutic approach is to work holistically honoring your individual needs, desires, and goals. This includes your spiritual, intellectual, psychological, interpersonal and cultural aspects of what makes you a whole person. The themes I work with are relationships, mindfulness, anti-oppression, family of origin, and trauma informed healing.
Jennifer co-leads Yoga for Healing Trauma along with Deborah King at 8 Limbs West Seattle on the last Sunday of the month.