Yoga Basics:
THE Therapist’s Guide to Integrating Yoga into Clinical Sessions
Providing strategies for Safe and ethical implementation for success
Questions to ask yourself to see if this course for you:
Have you thought about integrating yoga into clinical sessions but are unsure how to do this?
Are you concerned about potential liability and would you like to learn how to add yoga into your therapy sessions in a safe and ethical way?
Are you wanting something more than traditional talk therapy and understand the importance of including the body in therapy?
Do you want your clients to experience the benefits of yoga like you do?
If yes to all of these, this course is for you!
In this course, participants will learn:
- The basics of shifting from traditional talk therapy to a more holistic and somatic approach
- Learn how to effectively integrate yoga asanas into sessions safely and ethically
- A basic understanding of sequencing and cues
- Clear guidelines and examples on the how and when to introduce yoga to clients in session
- Understand how to integrate yoga with varying counseling theories including: polyvagal theory, DBT, CBT & Brainspotting
- How to build confidence in teaching yoga to clients with my 4 step method
How to create a trauma informed practice - What are the foundational poses and strategies for helping with anxiety and depression
- Simple yogic practices for telehealth for cars, closets and other nontraditional spaces
- How to properly documentation through liability waiver creation, clinical notes, treatment plans and informed consent
- Keys to creating a consistent personal yoga practice
By the end of this course you will know how to:
Effectively integrate yoga asanas into sessions safely and ethically
Know how to integrate into both telehealth and in person sessions
Feel confident in your teaching and discover more positive therapeutic outcomes
This is currently a Pilot course and will be starting in April 2024 for 8 classes on Zoom for
90 minutes Day/time TBD
Interested?
I am so glad I signed up for this course! I integrate many holistic techniques into my therapy practice, but was always hesitant about adding in yoga, since I don’t have the 200 hour training and I am fully virtual. Chris assured me that the course would be designed to help those of us with less training in yoga, and she was absolutely right. She did a phenomenal job of working with clinicians like myself who are new to integrating yoga into therapy, while also working with therapists who already do some yoga in session. Since taking the course, I have felt more comfortable doing yoga in session with clients, rather than just recommending they do it on their own. It has been such a huge help to those who need more than traditional talk therapy, and integrates wonderfully with other modalities. As an added bonus, by integrating yoga into my client sessions, I am feeling more regulated myself, as I’m getting that practice throughout the day rather than just sitting in my chair or standing at my desk. I am so glad I dedicated the time to this course, and can’t wait to do a more advanced course in the future!
I was fortunate enough to attend Chris McDonald’s Yoga for Therapists Training and it was a wonderful learning experience. Chris is an engaging presenter and was able to integrate the teaching of the principles of Yoga with ways to introduce and lead clients through the various poses. We learned the movements in a safe and fun way and were able to practice with one another to get more comfortable with these skills. I have been able to incorporate Yoga movements with many of my clients and it has added to the therapeutic experience, helping clients to reduce their trauma response. I highly recommend this course for any therapist interested in adding mindful movements to their trauma work with their clients.
I enjoyed the Yoga Basics class. I did find it helpful. It helped fill the gap between about how to bring it to the office which is something I did not get from the 200 hour course. I almost set in on a yoga therapy course introduction at the conference I attended but after speaking to the presenter prior to the course, I feel like a lot of what she was saying it was similar to this course or not applicable to what we do in the office as this one was.
I learned so much from this course. It was extremely detailed and grounded in research. Chris is a very knowledgeable and empathetic teacher. You will have lots of opportunities to practice the skills that you are learning. You will definitely feel ready to use the knowledge both personally and professionally.