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Yoga for Stress, Trauma, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Addiction Recovery


What is this program based on and who is it for?

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If you have suffered from the effects of prolonged stress, trauma, or PTSD, depression, anxiety, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, eating disorders, substance abuse and addictions, or other destructive behavior patterns, you should know that YOU ARE NOT ALONE.  The unfortunate fact is that 70% of adults in the U.S. have experienced some type of traumatic event at least once in their lives, that affects their current quality of life. That’s 223.4 million people!  

After suffering personally and silently for many years from the debilitating effects of trauma, I trained with the creators of this innovative curriculum, and earned a special certification to teach Yoga For Stress, Trauma and PTSD to heal myself.  I now teach this course passionately from a place of deep personal understanding with the intention of ending the silent suffering that prevents traumatized people from creating the joyful, peaceful life we all deserve and are capable of experiencing.  I provide a safe, comfortable and supportive environment, guiding and empowering my students to dive deeply into their experience of self healing and discovery. 

The course is an evidence-informed, clinically tested Kundalini yoga program that was developed after medical and scientific research documented that the body stores stress and trauma deeply in the muscles and the brain circuits.  The effects of stored trauma  may include nightmares, anxiety, panic attacks, depression, chronic fatigue, insomnia, fear, compromised immune system, and an inability to release the repetitive  negative and fearful thoughts in the mind.  Stored trauma can also lead to negative self defeating behavior patterns, substance abuse and addiction.  

This course is  for anyone who has experienced prolonged exposure to stress, trauma or  has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress, regardless of the source of trauma, including everyone from war veterans to car accident victims.  The eight-week curriculum is designed to restore balance while reawakening the mind-body’s ability to heal and self-regulate. As the body releases the stored trauma, a sense of security, connection, and purpose return, and  the chronic pattern of the trauma cycle is broken.

This specialized curriculum is also highly effective for people suffering from disorders such as depression, anxiety, chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia, as well as those struggling with addictions, eating disorders and other destructive behavior patterns, as the research indicates that a high percentage of negative behavior patterns have their origin in some type of trauma. 

Trauma changes the way the brain processes information and the body engages with the world. This course explores how trauma affects people’s rhythms within themselves and with their surroundings. Because of altered biological systems, traumatized people continue to be trapped by their history and react to current experience in a myriad of ways as a replay of the past. 

From a student who recently completed the eight week course:


"Vikki is a strong teacher with a gentle heart.  Her commitment to Kundalini is the foundation of her strength.  Vikki is an excellent guide for any student of any age".  Not only would I recommend this course to a friend, I would also retake this course to support a friend."  Vittorio



Click HERE to read the article published in the Santa Barbara News Press, January 28, 2014 about me and this course



The Process

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The eight weeks are sequenced to match participants where they are in week one, starting with practicing small and simple physical and mental exercises to feel safe, grounded and present.  Then we move into gaining an awareness of the body and its strength, feeling calm and in control of the thoughts, and experiencing feelings of competence and self mastery.  The practice includes gentle movement, breath, mantra, meditation and deep relaxation designed to reclaim the body and quiet the mind.

The curriculum addresses the effects of trauma on the brain, the physical structure of the body, and the loss of a healthy identity. The underlying cause of PTSD is addressed, not just the symptoms, as the physical and mental exercises, breath work and meditations work to restore the body’s natural Rhythmic Strength through their effect on the brain, nervous systems and structural integrity of the physical body.  In this way the chronic pattern of the trauma cycle is broken. By restoring Rhythmic Strength, we learn to experience the body as a vehicle for healing rather than pain.

Participants learn to deeply connect to their Original Self, restore their lost sense of Identity, and gain hands–on tools they can apply to daily life for maintaining balance and optimal health after the course is complete.

- Photo courtesy of Santa Barbara News Press




Click HERE to read the article Yoga and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, by Bessel van der Kolk, MD

To learn more, email vikki@healinglifeyoga.com

From Casa Serena:

​March 3, 2015

 
"On behalf of the staff, residents and Board of Directors of Casa Serena, we wish to express our sincerest thanks to Vikki Taylor for volunteering as our yoga instructor for the past year. Most of our residents have suffered past traumas that are impactful in their stages of development. Vikki’s Yoga for Healing & Recovery from Stress, Trauma & PTSD provides our residents with a way to release trauma and promote self healing.

Vikki’s supportive instruction to our residents (most are in their first 90 days of their recovery program) allows them a chance to process and heal on a somatic level. Our residents often comment that after Vikki’s instruction they feel more attuned with themselves and more confident about being present in their bodies".

Sandra Mistretta, CATC III
Program Director
Casa Serena Inc.

Click HERE to read How Yoga is Beneficial to People on a Path of Recovery from Addiction, by Tommy Rosen




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CLICK HERE to read about how Navy Seal, Mikal Vega, founder of the Vital Warrior Program, successfully used Kundalini Yoga to overcome his addictions and post war  PTSD

"Through personal experiences in "treating" my own combat related stress (commonly described as PTSD) and mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI), I entered a space that had afforded me the clarity to transform post-traumatic stress into a strength—a strength that I never would have developed were it not for these very experiences that led me to Kundalini Yoga."


"Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan has been, and continues to be, the most difficult and rewarding thing I have done in my life. Naturally, it is the core of Vital Warrior and allows our clients to develop the awareness to learn the subconscious landscape, remove obstacles and choose a positive projection in their day to day thought patterns. It repairs and increases cognitive function and mitigates the stress response. This clears the psyche to receive the blessings that we are meant to enjoy and share"., Mikal Vega


How Yoga for PTSD Helps Veterans Heal Unseen Scars
by Amy Hamilton

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In a black T-shirt and black jeans, John Armendarez takes his place on a mat on the floor. The 47-year-old veteran who was assigned to the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea has never taken a yoga class before, but has been trying new things lately and figures the experience couldn’t hurt.
Read More...



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Learn more about the following programs:
***READ MORE BY CLICKING ON THE LINKS BELOW***

Kundalini Yoga

You Can Heal Your Life®

Healing Life Yoga

Yoga for Stress, Trauma, PTSD & Addiction

Workplace Wellness

One on One


Vikki Taylor is a mind-body teacher who joyfully shares the wisdom gained from her own self-healing journey through the teachings of Kundalini Yoga, You Can Heal Your Life®, Healing Life Yoga, and Yoga for PTSD. She creates a safe and comfortable environment for her students, empowering and guiding them to dive deeply into their own experience of self-discovery.  A KRI certified Kundalini Yoga teacher with a specialty in PTSD and a licensed Heal Your Life ® workshop leader, Vikki teaches individuals and groups in Austin, Texas, and offers transformational retreats worldwide.


vgtaylor2@hotmail.com
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Austin, TX
Website Design: Sagacious NY
Photography: Janaye Culton