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Articles by and about me at the International Associations of Yoga Therapist's Website
Disclaimer: Although beautiful, the picture of mermaid pose above associated with this article was not selected by Beth, but by V3 magazine, and is not an accurate representation of yoga therapy. It IS an accurate representation of a complex, not beginner, yoga pose. Below is a more accurate depiction of yoga therapy. One client is recovering from a hip replacement and the others are not. Different prop set ups are shown...
Yoga therapy is not the same as yoga much like art therapy is not the same as art. When you think of art, you might visualize a studio in which the artist creates, and classes are led. Likewise, when thinking of yoga, the first thing that comes to mind might be a studio where the yogi creates, and yoga classes are led. Art therapy uses the tools of art in combination with psychology to bring healing to the individual. Similarly, yoga therapy uses the tools of yoga (poses, breathing and meditation) in combination with physical therapy and psychology to bring healing into the body. A yoga therapist looks at “the issues in the tissues.” For example, many people experiencing stress tend to tense their body. Yoga therapists are trained to help relieve the tension and guide the client to the discovery of why this tension exists. It is through the combination of strengthening, lengthening and relaxing muscles – plus bringing mindful awareness to the issues through breath and meditation – that yoga therapy brings healing. Another classic example is that depression can cause physical dropping of the shoulders in bad posture. This can cause many physical symptoms when the real reason could be the depression. A yoga therapist may work with a physical therapist and/or psychotherapist to aid in relieving the physical, energetic, emotional, intellectual or spiritual issues in the body.
Research in yoga therapy has experienced a “three-fold increase in [the] number of publications seen in the last 10 years” (Jeter). A typical private yoga therapy session consists of an assessment of the physical body and breath as well as an intake interview. Next, the yoga therapist and the client develop a home practice together. During follow-up visits, the home practice is revised. The time spent in a yoga therapy session is not focused on “doing yoga” like one would in a yoga class, but on co-creating a custom practice that the client is then responsible for implementing. Additionally, sessions can also be spent in Dyads, or a guided customized meditation to aid in processing through issues. Group yoga therapy focuses on a common ailment such as Cancer or Fibromyalgia. These groups are typically very small. Home practices are still assigned to the group, which meets for a few sessions together.
The field of yoga therapy is brand new. Like all new fields, the typical stages of development are the accreditation of schools, the certification of graduates and, finally, the drafting of licensing laws by each of the 50 states. The International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) has begun accrediting schools and there are many worldwide. IAYT has also begun certificating individual yoga therapists (C-IAYT), most of whom have graduated from the accredited programs. A board exam for Yoga Therapy is in the process of being created as of this writing in 2018, within the next two years this exam should be in place. Re-certification processes are being implemented now. This field will be ready for state licensure soon; at that point, the acceptance of medical insurance will not be far behind. Yoga teachers (not therapists) can register with Yoga Alliance (RYT); teaching yoga is usually the first career step in the field, much like becoming an artist or teaching art would be the first steps toward becoming an Art Therapist. Later, after gaining a deeper knowledge, the yoga (or art) teacher can become a therapist. It is the hope of this yoga therapist that medical professionals will eventually refer to Certified Yoga Therapists (C-IAYT) where appropriate.
Reference: Jeter, P. E., Slutsky, J., Singh, N., & Khalsa, S. B. S. (2015). Yoga as a Therapeutic Intervention: A Bibliometric Analysis of Published Research Studies from 1967 to 2013. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.
BETH NOVIAN HUGHES, MS, C-IAYT, eRYT500 is a yoga therapist in private practice at Breath Yoga Therapy. She completed her M.S.in Yoga Therapy through Maryland University of Integrative Health, which is accredited with IAYT and is one of the only master’s program in the world for yoga therapy. The above is a revision of an article that Beth wrote and originally appeared in V3 Magazine.
