Monthly Full of Hope Yoga Sessions
Friday, October 8, 5- 7 pm
Stone Lake Farms, Elk Grove Ca.
(Non-Yoga Session)
The stress isn’t in your life, the stress is in your body.
Living in challenges times (to say the least) DOES NOT mean we have to give in to living a life of stress. That is living with the symptoms and FEELINGS of anxiety, overwhelm or panic.
I want to encourage you that you have capacity, and can develop even more capacity, for breaking the cycle of stress reactions in your body with some nervous system education and somatic (body-based) practices. Knowledge is power and practice makes progress! Learn to activate your body’s natural relaxation responses and overcome feelings of stress and overwhelm.
This educational and experiential session is accessible to all mobility levels. All the practices can be done sitting on a chair, sitting on the ground, on a yoga mat, standing or laying down. Or any combination.
We can learn to notice sensations of stress and muscle tension in our body and learn to activate the body’s parasympathetic system of relaxation responses to release tension, calm the nervous system, receive rest and break the stress cycle.
What to Expect From This Trauma- Sensitive Full of Hope Yoga Session:
Nervous system regulation education. Knowledge is power. I will explain the different states of our automatic Nervous System and while the system does react automatically to stress with stress responses, that doesn’t mean we are powerless against our body’s reaction to stress. We have the capacity to elicit the sympathetic branch of our autonomic nervous system, the “rest, digest, recover” system – and with that comes great power and hope for rest and renewal.
I will teach you Somatic Practices of Grounding and Orienting as a routine you can easily do anytime, anywhere to stabilize a stress response and calm your body.
I will lead you through specific and gentle stretches and movements for the face, jaw, neck, shoulders and back that go beyond relieving muscle tension; they stimulate the vagus nerve of the parasympathetic which activates the relaxation response of the body. This is the state where rest and recovery occur.
You will learn to recognize relaxation responses in your body as you experience them as we gently stretch, breathe and meditate.
I will teach you several easy and accessible Breathing Techniques to elicit your body’s relaxation response building your tool chest and confidence to sooth your system (Self Regulate).
For your comfort, please bring any of the following:
Folding or camping chair
Yoga mat
Beach towel
Blanket
Water
Karen is an inspiring 11-year, two-time breast cancer survivor who was introduced to yoga while recovering from treatments, surgeries, and a broken pelvis. Karen shares, “I could tell my body was healing and getting stronger, but something else was happening. I was healing from the severe anxiety I developed from post-traumatic stress from my cancer battle"…"I then set out to learn all I could about healing PTSD, Anxiety and Depression using what I now know as Body-Based Interventions like Trauma Sensitive Yoga, Breathwork, and other mind-body practices of Somatic Awareness, Mindfulness, and Therapeutic Meditation.”
Karen is a Registered Yoga Trainer (RYT) through YogaFaith with specialty certifications in Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TSY) as well as Meditation and Yoga Nidra. Karen leads four weekly classes from her Full of Hope Yoga home studio in Elk Grove and sees private clients in person and Online for Trauma Recovery. You can learn more at www.fullofhopeyoga.com or contact her directly at fullofhopeyoga@gmail.com.
“My passion is to help you transform from “Survivor” to “Thriver” as you heal your nervous system from trauma and traumatic stress, so you can Breathe, Move and Live - Full of Hope.” ~ Karen Penfold