Group Information: Trauma-Responsive Yoga (TRY) is a form of yoga designed to directly address symptoms associated with traumatic exposure by offering a gentle teaching approach and a safe environment to cultivate compassionate awareness of what is happening in one’s body in the present moment, recognize choice when relating to one’s body, and develop the ability to take effective action based on that knowledge (Emerson & Harper, 2011). The group workshop structure is relatively small, 10 participants or less, and with minimal requirements for physical fitness.
How is TRY different from traditional yoga: The instructor will lead you in a series of predictable “forms,” not “poses.” There will be no emphasis on getting the form “right,” as the power resides in you. There will be no physical assists. Breath will be experimented with, rather than prescribed how to. The language will be invitational, directing attention to what is felt in the body (interoception experiences), and no instructions/commands will be given. Modifications and choice-making about the forms are emphasized to your comfort level both physically and psychologically.
Location: UNI Student Health Clinic/Counseling Center.
Further questions: Contact Cathryn Baumgartner, LMSW at (319)273-5108 or cathryn.baumgartner@uni.edu
