For those who have experienced trauma in their lives, Partners Family Services in Humboldt has introduced a new initiative for healing and support that stems from a very old practice. Trauma Sensitive Yoga is a six-week program designed for those who live with the lasting impacts of traumatic events in their lives. The sessions take place in the serene atmosphere of the Bella Vista Inn’s poolside.

The yoga instructor is Kristen Ochitwa who is a counsellor with Partners Family Services. Ochitwa has recently completed her instructor’s certification and sees yoga as a natural addition to the toolbox when dealing with trauma’s aftereffects such as anxiety, stress or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Ochitwa explains, “With the work we do at Partners, we thought it would be an asset to the community to have another resource in helping people work through struggles. It adds another alternative for care on top of traditional medicine and counselling.”  

Yoga, which focuses on physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects, has many different styles and provides a variety of benefits according to Ochitwa. It’s particularly welcome in the fall when the beginning of school, harvest, and the oncoming Christmas season all bring particular demands. One of the greatest benefits to the practice is simply self-awareness. 

Ochitwa elaborates, “The practice of yoga itself is just learning how to listen to the body and the mind. It’s feeling what you feel, feeling what your body is sensing, and feeling what your mind is going through. It’s reconnecting to yourself, and your body, and your mind.”

Following a traumatic event, an individual can experience a type of dissociation, and yoga is designed to work toward regulating the dysfunction to make the individual feel safe and whole. This places the person in a position to move forward. 

One of the features of practices such as yoga and mindfulness meditation is the awareness of breathing. It’s the feature that connects the mind with the body notes Ochitwa. 

“The breath is really the component you utilize to work through things and connect everything together,”

For Ochitwa, becoming a yoga instructor is something she had wanted to do, and she confesses that it has been fulfilling knowing that her instruction can provide comfort and connection with her counselling clients. 

This six-week session is at capacity with 11 individuals participating. Judging from the current demand, the Trauma Sensitive Yoga sessions could return in the future to provide more support to a wider clientele.