What is Yoga Therapy and how can it benefit me?
YOGA THERAPY takes "yoga" off the mat. Yet it's more than that, and can benefit anyone, even if you've never stepped into a yoga class or have no interest in doing that.
The International Association of Yoga Therapy (IAYT) defines Yoga Therapy (YT) as the process of empowering individuals to progress toward improved health and well-being through the application of the philosophy and practice of Yoga. The ancient tradition of yoga comprises a wide range of mind/body practices, from postural and breathing exercises to deep relaxation and meditation. Yoga therapy tailors these to the unique constitution and the health needs and wellness goals of the individual. By integrating body, mind, emotions, and spirit through practices designed for the individual, YT helps to promote all-round positive health. It may also assist with particular medical conditions. Yoga therapy can be used as a complement to medical treatment of chronic and acute physical and/or mental/emotional conditions.
With the support of a compassionate guide, YT may help you better understand how your habits help you or hurt you.
a practiced tailored specifically for you offers an opportunity to explore body/mind tools to shift ineffective patterns of movement, breathing, thinking, or feeling so that you may feel better, be better, and do better - in body, mind, heart AND soul.
Consider it a form of Holistic Wellness Education - receive compassionate and astute feedback from a neutral guide in order to better understand how the ways you move, breathe, think and possibly even act may be affecting your health. And, together, you may craft a plan that serves to alleviate suffering and guide you toward healing in a progressive, non-invasive, and complementary manner.
As a certified, professional Yoga Therapist, I offer potent and and pleasant support to you as an individual in order to help you weather the storms of life with more grace. The wellness protocols that I develop for my clients are influenced by their unique constitution, and are not only preventative or curative, but may also help you to gently turn an illness around in the early stages, manage an illness with less fear in chronic stages, or facilitate a sense of integration and healing of all the levels of your being.
This treatment modality is perfect for you if you consider yourself to be talented, successful, and yet stressed out and know there's a natural way to address that.
It's also great if you are someone who is just noticing subtle changes to your health and seek a non-medical approach to addressing that. If you have tried many things to alleviate stress, and the negative changes to your mental, emotional, or physical health, yet have found little success, or if you are looking for a guide along the path of reclaiming, maintaining, or elevating your self-care and overall wellbeing, exploring yoga therapy with me may be exactly what you need.
Know that an appointment with me, Sharon Harvey Alexander C-IAYT, is private time for YOU to explore what's working and not working in your life while receiving compassionate support from a skilled and caring guide.
The practice of Yoga Therapy can be applied on many levels - cultivate greater awareness as you learn to nourish and support your deepest desires. What is it your body, your mind, your heart and/or your spirit is yearning for? Uncover that, and find the support you need to begin connecting all the pieces of yourself into a healthier, more wholesome YOU.
Not sure what's missing? Feeling not quite right? Move closer to your true self with the support of a devoted practitioner at your side.
CLICK HERE and set an appointment up today!
Frequently Asked Questions:
What exactly is Yoga Therapy? Sharon's work combines aspects of psychotherapy with body-centered somatic or movement therapy and energy healing with a strong foundation of focused and conscious breathwork. It offers you a chance to share concerns and gain perspective not only from the comfort of a chair, but perhaps on a meditation cushion, a healing table, or a mat. Depending on what you want to explore, results might come from discussing issues with the intent of gaining third party insight, or from being guided into a pose, breathing practice, or meditation where you can explore more deeply into sensations and/or messages hidden in the body/mind. Sharon is trained in Reiki, as well, and often incorporates that into her healing work.
Through the lens of holistic stress management we explore the body, mind, spirit connection. This means striving to foster and maintain balance in four key areas: the physical body, the mental body, the emotional body, and your spiritual self, or connection to source energy.
As a Yoga Therapist, I serve as a guide to the inner realms where steadiness, wholeness & wellbeing reside. I offer tools and techniques with roots in ancient wisdom traditions and backed by modern neuroscience to support you in finding peace so that you may navigate the ups and downs of life with grace.
Who would benefit from this type of support? Anyone can benefit. This one-on-one time is a great way for someone with little or no yoga experience to experience it under trained supervision. Those with some yoga background may have questions that are not fully answered in a group class. And those who have tried traditional "talk therapy" yet feels that isn't quiet getting at the root of an issue find success exploring it through movement, mindfulness, or the breath. These people schedule time to come in and explore such things privately.
Others find they prefer the support and guidance that comes from practicing yoga in a private session in order to receive individual attention and suggestions aimed specifically at them.Those who have been practicing for years may just need to tweak the way they hold a pose or breathe into it, and a few private sessions will have them on the road to deepening their practice once again.
Perhaps you have no interest in practicing yoga at all, but believe that learning to sit quietly and meditate might have benefits for you. Come on in and begin today!
My intention is not to hold you hostage to ongoing sessions over many years, but to lean into what's going on for you and set you on a path to reclaim, maintain, or elevate your well-being by developing a personal wellness prescription that you may implement over time to stand steady, even as the winds of change blow fiercely around you.
What if I've never practiced Yoga before? Working one-on-one is the perfect way to begin practicing yoga! For many there may be preconceived barriers to joining the yoga movement or actual limitations that are best worked through with the guidance of a trained Yoga Therapist. Working with you as an individual, we can identify potential barriers to successful practice, identify a few poses for you to explore and/or devise a practice you can easily do on your own, at home, at the gym, or in the office.
How is Yoga Therapy different than a regular yoga class? A yoga therapist is an advanced yoga teacher with many years of study and application not only of the postures and how they move energy through the body, but of a myriad of ancient wisdom philosophies, as well. You don't get this type of training as a yoga teacher. I have been trained to utilize an arsenal of tools and weave them into a well-rounded practice or specific protocol tailored for you, as a unique individual unlike any other.
While one might experience a sense of harmony and well-being following a group class, the poses offered don't necessarily target individual needs and conditions. Diving deeper into an issue during a private session, we can begin to look at what's underneath pain or discomfort. And we can explore this on the the physical, mental, emotional, and/or spiritual level. Yoga Therapy gives us tools that you won't get much exposure to in a group class. It also offers techniques for applying the principles of yoga to issues of body, mind and spirit.
And guess what? You don't even have to do a yoga pose at all. Sharon consults on a variety of healthy lifestyle practices including diet, breathing, mindfulness and meditation. And she offers Reiki, an Asian form of energy medicine that can be extremely relaxing and balancing to body, mind and spirit. Skip the poses.... and you'll still benefit from time with her!
Why not give it a try? Click here or on the button below and schedule a complimentary exploratory session now.
The International Association of Yoga Therapy (IAYT) defines Yoga Therapy (YT) as the process of empowering individuals to progress toward improved health and well-being through the application of the philosophy and practice of Yoga. The ancient tradition of yoga comprises a wide range of mind/body practices, from postural and breathing exercises to deep relaxation and meditation. Yoga therapy tailors these to the unique constitution and the health needs and wellness goals of the individual. By integrating body, mind, emotions, and spirit through practices designed for the individual, YT helps to promote all-round positive health. It may also assist with particular medical conditions. Yoga therapy can be used as a complement to medical treatment of chronic and acute physical and/or mental/emotional conditions.
With the support of a compassionate guide, YT may help you better understand how your habits help you or hurt you.
a practiced tailored specifically for you offers an opportunity to explore body/mind tools to shift ineffective patterns of movement, breathing, thinking, or feeling so that you may feel better, be better, and do better - in body, mind, heart AND soul.
Consider it a form of Holistic Wellness Education - receive compassionate and astute feedback from a neutral guide in order to better understand how the ways you move, breathe, think and possibly even act may be affecting your health. And, together, you may craft a plan that serves to alleviate suffering and guide you toward healing in a progressive, non-invasive, and complementary manner.
As a certified, professional Yoga Therapist, I offer potent and and pleasant support to you as an individual in order to help you weather the storms of life with more grace. The wellness protocols that I develop for my clients are influenced by their unique constitution, and are not only preventative or curative, but may also help you to gently turn an illness around in the early stages, manage an illness with less fear in chronic stages, or facilitate a sense of integration and healing of all the levels of your being.
This treatment modality is perfect for you if you consider yourself to be talented, successful, and yet stressed out and know there's a natural way to address that.
It's also great if you are someone who is just noticing subtle changes to your health and seek a non-medical approach to addressing that. If you have tried many things to alleviate stress, and the negative changes to your mental, emotional, or physical health, yet have found little success, or if you are looking for a guide along the path of reclaiming, maintaining, or elevating your self-care and overall wellbeing, exploring yoga therapy with me may be exactly what you need.
Know that an appointment with me, Sharon Harvey Alexander C-IAYT, is private time for YOU to explore what's working and not working in your life while receiving compassionate support from a skilled and caring guide.
The practice of Yoga Therapy can be applied on many levels - cultivate greater awareness as you learn to nourish and support your deepest desires. What is it your body, your mind, your heart and/or your spirit is yearning for? Uncover that, and find the support you need to begin connecting all the pieces of yourself into a healthier, more wholesome YOU.
Not sure what's missing? Feeling not quite right? Move closer to your true self with the support of a devoted practitioner at your side.
CLICK HERE and set an appointment up today!
Frequently Asked Questions:
What exactly is Yoga Therapy? Sharon's work combines aspects of psychotherapy with body-centered somatic or movement therapy and energy healing with a strong foundation of focused and conscious breathwork. It offers you a chance to share concerns and gain perspective not only from the comfort of a chair, but perhaps on a meditation cushion, a healing table, or a mat. Depending on what you want to explore, results might come from discussing issues with the intent of gaining third party insight, or from being guided into a pose, breathing practice, or meditation where you can explore more deeply into sensations and/or messages hidden in the body/mind. Sharon is trained in Reiki, as well, and often incorporates that into her healing work.
Through the lens of holistic stress management we explore the body, mind, spirit connection. This means striving to foster and maintain balance in four key areas: the physical body, the mental body, the emotional body, and your spiritual self, or connection to source energy.
As a Yoga Therapist, I serve as a guide to the inner realms where steadiness, wholeness & wellbeing reside. I offer tools and techniques with roots in ancient wisdom traditions and backed by modern neuroscience to support you in finding peace so that you may navigate the ups and downs of life with grace.
Who would benefit from this type of support? Anyone can benefit. This one-on-one time is a great way for someone with little or no yoga experience to experience it under trained supervision. Those with some yoga background may have questions that are not fully answered in a group class. And those who have tried traditional "talk therapy" yet feels that isn't quiet getting at the root of an issue find success exploring it through movement, mindfulness, or the breath. These people schedule time to come in and explore such things privately.
Others find they prefer the support and guidance that comes from practicing yoga in a private session in order to receive individual attention and suggestions aimed specifically at them.Those who have been practicing for years may just need to tweak the way they hold a pose or breathe into it, and a few private sessions will have them on the road to deepening their practice once again.
Perhaps you have no interest in practicing yoga at all, but believe that learning to sit quietly and meditate might have benefits for you. Come on in and begin today!
My intention is not to hold you hostage to ongoing sessions over many years, but to lean into what's going on for you and set you on a path to reclaim, maintain, or elevate your well-being by developing a personal wellness prescription that you may implement over time to stand steady, even as the winds of change blow fiercely around you.
What if I've never practiced Yoga before? Working one-on-one is the perfect way to begin practicing yoga! For many there may be preconceived barriers to joining the yoga movement or actual limitations that are best worked through with the guidance of a trained Yoga Therapist. Working with you as an individual, we can identify potential barriers to successful practice, identify a few poses for you to explore and/or devise a practice you can easily do on your own, at home, at the gym, or in the office.
How is Yoga Therapy different than a regular yoga class? A yoga therapist is an advanced yoga teacher with many years of study and application not only of the postures and how they move energy through the body, but of a myriad of ancient wisdom philosophies, as well. You don't get this type of training as a yoga teacher. I have been trained to utilize an arsenal of tools and weave them into a well-rounded practice or specific protocol tailored for you, as a unique individual unlike any other.
While one might experience a sense of harmony and well-being following a group class, the poses offered don't necessarily target individual needs and conditions. Diving deeper into an issue during a private session, we can begin to look at what's underneath pain or discomfort. And we can explore this on the the physical, mental, emotional, and/or spiritual level. Yoga Therapy gives us tools that you won't get much exposure to in a group class. It also offers techniques for applying the principles of yoga to issues of body, mind and spirit.
And guess what? You don't even have to do a yoga pose at all. Sharon consults on a variety of healthy lifestyle practices including diet, breathing, mindfulness and meditation. And she offers Reiki, an Asian form of energy medicine that can be extremely relaxing and balancing to body, mind and spirit. Skip the poses.... and you'll still benefit from time with her!
Why not give it a try? Click here or on the button below and schedule a complimentary exploratory session now.
Keep Reading to Learn More:
Yoga Therapy is a practice that offers unique support so that you can successfully navigate the ups and downs of life with less angst and more joy...
With its growing popularity, yoga is becoming a widespread activity in gyms, recreation centers, and studios across the country. Many have come to appreciate how a regular yoga practice can increase muscle strength and improve flexibility, improve body posture and alignment,enhance respiratory and cardiovascular health, and also improve balance and reduce body aches and pains. Yoga is also a great stress reliever and an antidote to anxiety, depression, and insomnia. It can even help with weight management. Wow!
Similar to Physical Therapy, Massage Therapy, Chiropractic work and other healing modalities, Yoga Therapy is offered to the individual in support of health, healing, and wellness as a complementary modality. It differs from these other modalities in that Yoga, by it's very nature, considers the whole person. Pain in one part of the body may have its origin in a completely different part of the body/mind complex. Yoga Therapy combines tools, techniques and practices unique to the Yoga tradition to support one in connecting with their authentic wholeness, all parts together, allowing you to gracefully navigate the ups and downs of life, in body, mind, and spirit.
The tools of Yoga Therapy (YT) are not limited to asana, the postures typically practiced in a yoga class. They include breathing practices, hand and body positions known as mudras that influence the movement of energy in the body, the use of sound to enhance the flow of energy, and concentration or meditation practices designed to support one’s health and well-being as well as the art of simply listening and/or exploring an issue through "talk therapy." Whatever serves the client best in any given moment can be woven into a session or a protocol to take home.
Issues addressed by YT include and are not limited to: Musculoskeletal Issues including back pain, hip pain, knee, feet or shoulder issues, TMJ, Anxiety, Depression, Other Emotional Issues, Fertility, Joint Pain, Digestive Disorders, Asthma and other breathing concerns, Headaches, Blood Pressure concerns and more…
Uncover the root of an issue, and learn new ways to find comfort, solace, and joy in everyday! Schedule an appointment today or simply email me to explore how Yoga Therapy can help you by clicking here ([email protected]) .
My specialty is working with busy, successful and self-aware people who are in some sort of transition. Typically these people suffer from overwhelm and have lost their connection to the energy of the universe around them. I offer gentle and loving support as they seek to integrate or release the past in order to fully enjoy the present while preparing for a more comfortable future. Together, we find ways for them to reconnect with the life-giving and nourishing energy of the universe so that they may tap into and experience greater levels of joy.
What is the process? Typically, a minimum of five sessions is advised. In the first session, a detailed intake is performed. Information gathered here helps form a picture about the situation so that tools can be effectively selected and blended to address the issue presented. If desired, the client will leave with brief practices to implement at home, or in public yoga classes, or into an existing fitness regime if desired.
More information may be gathered at subsequent appointments which is used to refine and adjust the practices based on feedback from the client. As the client regains a sense of wholeness, additional appointments may be scheduled a few weeks apart to follow up on the case and support the client as she/he continues to work with the tools they've been given until the situation remedies itself or more information is needed. Some clients choose to return on a regular basis every week or every other week and have continued exploring the path to wholeness with Sharon's support over the years.
Call or Email me today to set up a Yoga Therapy appointment. (303-845-0870)
TESTIMONIALS:
Client Testimonial: " Thank you for our last session! I am doing a short meditation every morning and am inspired to make it a regular practice. I really appreciate you and the work that we are doing together. Your wisdom and suggestions are very gentle but powerful and inspire me to be consistently in touch with spirit." - JA
"Without your help I might still be the crumbling, bawling mess I was. Talk therapy got me no where. It only opened up painful wounds from my past with no healing offered. The exquisite manner in which you encourage me to blend breath with movement, and to take rest breaks throughout the day has had a profound effect on me. I truly believe that I am on the road to recovery, thanks to you." - CK
A Client Story: A client, who had been a student off and on for several years, came in to refine some physical therapy practices she had received following shoulder surgery. While she had plenty of wisely crafted exercises to do to support her recovery, I was able to fine tune them based on the client's specific alignment as well as her mental/emotional needs.
I also offered breathing practices designed to enhance the effectiveness of the client's PT exercises and increase healing. More importantly, however, I noticed during this one-on-one time that this client was a "reverse breather" (a pattern that may have surfaced as a result of the trauma experienced through the shoulder injury and resulting surgery) and was able to guide the client away from this very inefficient breathing pattern. That alone fostered a sense of greater wellbeing and relaxation for the client, as well as a more efficient way to oxygenate her cells by taking breath in and out effectively.
That's the benefit one gains from private yoga therapy sessions. Not only can I use my keen eye to assess alignment, I have the patience and intuition needed to work with one's mental/emotional state, and the life experience to be able to meet most anyone exactly where they are - body, breath, mind and heart. This type of support can be invaluable if you are seeking a calm mind, healthy body, and overall heightened sense of well-being.