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Yoga for trauma

Becoming friends with your body is an essential part of trauma healing, and it must take place at a pace that respects your own unique needs. This first involves developing the capacity to deal with difficult feelings, unsettling symptoms, and unpleasant memories.

The intention is to give you a sense of safety and stability so you are able to hold your ground. Applied polyvagal theory in yoga teaches you to have faith in the reliability of the support that your yoga mat offers.

It is best to practise therapeutic yoga in a quiet, secure, and tranquil setting when using it to aid in trauma rehabilitation. Maybe this is something you can find in a class, but if you’re going to start practicing at home, I suggest you to spend some effort setting up a space that feels good for your body and mind.

developing the capacity to deal with difficult feelings, unsettling symptoms, and unpleasant memories

When applying polyvagal theory to your Yoga practice, it can help you to become a compassionate observer of your body and mind. This offers an effective starting point for self-knowledge. Sometimes, your body may respond to a stressful situation before you ever realise what caused it.

Your body and brain have released a series of stress chemicals, including cortisol and adrenaline, even if you are not aware of it. This is one of the reasons you need to work with the body to optimise healing rather than trying to mentally rationalise your way out of trauma symptoms. doing yoga on a regular basis.

Because the vagus nerve has several extensions throughout the body, it is important for neuroception. The best way to think of it is as a bidirectional communication channel between your body and brain. It is the tenth cranial nerve. A nerve that runs from the brainstem into the stomach, intestines, heart, lungs, throat, and face muscles is called vagus, which means “wandering” in Latin. The majority of vagus nerve fibers—between 85 and 90 percent—are afferent, meaning that they deliver.

Yoga as an Awareness Practice with Applied Polyvagal Theory

By intentionally noticing signs that your body is reacting to a threat of harm, you can develop your ability to recognise neuroceptive cues. You might clench your thighs, clasp your fists, stiffen your jaw, or wrinkle your brow. Whether you are doing asana, pranayama, sitting in meditation, or moving in savasana, you have the opportunity to cultivate awareness in every yoga practice.

Begin by observing if you find it easy or difficult to remain motionless. Do you move differently than usual? Are you tempted to fidget? Are you agitated or nervous? Do you feel drowsy or unmotivated? Do you feel drooping or bent over? Are you too still, or do you feel frozen? Are you at peace and feeling relaxed?
Start observing your breathing. Is there an impulse for you to hold your breath? Are you taking shallow breaths? Does it feel like you’re breathing faster or that you’re having trouble breathing, as if you’re not getting enough oxygen? Do you breathe gently and freely? Is there any tightness around your eyes? Is your brow wrinkled, or have they narrowed? Do you feel tense around your temples or in your forehead? Pay attention to your mouth and jaw. Do you catch yourself clenching your teeth or pursed lips? Is the roof of your mouth firmly pressed against your tongueBe aware of any tightness in your neck, base of the skull, or throat. Try rolling your shoulders back and forth to feel for any constriction or tightness in your chest, upper back, or shoulders.
Focus on your abdomen. Is there any stiffness in your low back, stomach, or diaphragm? Pay particular attention to your hips and pelvis if that’s comfortable for you. Do you find that you often clench your buttocks’ gluteal muscles or clutch your pelvic floor? Feel your feet and legs to find out whether you have a tendency to hold tension in your thighs by clutching them. It’s possible that your calf muscles are tense from habit. Are you prone to curling your toes or gripping your feet?
Once this mindfulness practice is complete, spend some time noticing what you noticed about yourself.

Your Vagus Nerve: Breathe

The vagus nerve extends into the smooth muscle of the heart and lungs, which is one reason why breath is important for your overall health. Both parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous systems are represented in the heart and lung connections. Quick, forceful breaths into the upper lungs, often known as hyperventilation or overbreathing, are linked to the sympathetic nervous system. In response to stress, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA-axis) releases cortisol, which raises your heart rate and respiration rate and activates your self-defense mechanisms. Over time, this causes fast breathing in the upper chest, which causes over breathing or symptoms of anxiety.

hyperventilation or overbreathing, are linked to the sympathetic nervous system

This practice involves developing an even length of your inhale and your exhale with diaphragmatic or “belly” breathing. I recommend you to explore how a fundamental practice affects your body and mind.

Create a cosy spot to sit where you’re able to relax and feel supported. Just focus on observing your breath at first. Take note of how long your breaths are when you inhale and outhale. Take note of how the inhales and exhales change. Take note of any tension or physical, emotional, or mental discomfort you may be experiencing.
I recommend placing one or both hands over your tummy, expanding the area like a balloon with each breath, and then drawing your navel back towards your spine with each exhale.
When you’re ready, begin to measure how long your breath ought to last by inhaling to around a count of four and exhaling to around a count of four . By changing your count, you may quickly modify this breath to suit your needs depending on what’s comfortable for you.
When you feel finished, spend some time reflecting on whatever you noticed about yourself via this breathing exercise.

In the next blog post I will be guiding you through a sequence that explores postures to encourage vagal toning.

I hope you found this post useful and useful please put it into practice over the next few days.
Leave a comment with any feedback on any changes you notice in your general wellbeing after consistant practice.

Thanks for reading!

Why Winter is a Time for Rest and Reflection, Not Resolutions

As the new year begins, we’re often met with a flurry of pressure to set goals, make resolutions, and “hit the ground running.” But what if we paused to consider the natural rhythms of the season instead? Winter, with its long nights and quiet stillness, invites us to rest and reflect—not rush toward change.

In nature, winter is a time of dormancy. Trees shed their leaves, animals hibernate, and the earth itself slows down to conserve energy. This season isn’t about growth or action—it’s about restoration and preparation. As humans, we’re part of this natural cycle, and winter offers us the same opportunity to turn inward and rest before the busyness of spring.

Why Rest is Essential in Winter

1. Physical Renewal: Just as nature slows down, our bodies crave rest during the colder months. Winter is the perfect time to prioritize gentle practices like restorative yoga, meditation, and mindful breathing to support our immune systems and nervous systems.
2. Mental Clarity: Winter’s stillness gives us the space to reflect on the past year. Instead of rushing into resolutions, we can use this time to assess what truly aligns with our values and what we’d like to release before stepping into spring.
3. Emotional Grounding: The slower pace of winter allows us to process our emotions and connect with ourselves on a deeper level. This introspection helps us cultivate resilience and self-awareness as we prepare for the seasons of growth ahead.

Here is a link to my Immune Boosting Yoga post. You will find in this blog article, lots of useful tips on boosting your immune system and a lovely live pdf sequence you can use in the comfort of your own home as a weekly top up through these last couple of winter months. CLICK HERE

Resolutions Can Wait

Spring, not winter, is nature’s season of renewal and beginnings. When the days grow longer and the energy of the earth begins to rise, we naturally feel more inspired to take action and plant the seeds for growth. By aligning with this rhythm, we can set intentions and goals that feel grounded and authentic, rather than forced.

How to Embrace Winter’s Energy
1. Create Space for Stillness: Dedicate time to slow practices like restorative yoga, yin yoga, or meditation. These practices help you honor the quieter energy of winter.
2. Reflect Instead of Resolve: Use journaling or quiet contemplation to review the past year. What worked? What didn’t? What lessons did you learn? Reflection can be more powerful than setting rigid resolutions.
3. Nurture Yourself: Prioritize rest, warm nourishing foods, and self-care rituals that honor your need for restoration.
4. Practice Patience: Trust that this period of rest is preparing you for the energy and action of spring. Growth takes time, and winter is an essential part of that process.

Closing Thoughts

Winter is a sacred pause, a time to honor where you are without rushing to become something else. By embracing rest and reflection, you align with nature’s wisdom and give yourself the grace to renew in your own time.

As we move through this season, I encourage you to resist the urge to rush into resolutions. Instead, give yourself permission to rest, restore, and reconnect with what truly matters. After all, the seeds of spring’s growth are planted in the stillness of winter.

Take a deep breath, wrap yourself in warmth, and let winter guide you inward.

With love and light,

Lea x

What is Sadhana?

It’s amazing sometimes what just a little bit of time out can do for you; so that is my challenge to you for this week, or even for the rest of the month of April — to take some time out with yourself, for yourself.

I know we all lead incredibly busy lives — we run from place to place, constantly plugged into the technology of one kind or another. We look after all those around us, and when asked to find the time to meditate, do yoga, take a break, or “indulge” in something that we actually love or enjoy doing, we will more often than not be seen to throw our hands in the air and exclaim that we don’t have time for that!

But even 15 minutes a day can make a huge difference. Fifteen minutes a day can help you to “find yourself” and move through the other 23 hours and 45 minutes of your day in a much happier, more inspired, and alive way. We can all find 15 minutes in the day, right?

If you need a little guidance and support to find your meditation practice, I know you’re going to love this Sunrise Sadhana Morning Yoga class It gets you into a great daily habit and it will help you find your focus as you explore your own sadhana. When you meditate, you take time for yourself. In just 10 minutes, you’ll feel more at ease, and awareness and daily practice will get you into good habits.

Creating a Sadhana

I invite you to create a sadhana. The word sadhana means daily spiritual practice and the idea of this, is that for just 15 minutes a day you get to think of yourself and only you.

Truly, a sadhana can be anything that makes your heart sing. It is a practice that promotes and maintains wellbeing. There is only one aim — that you commit to it every day, no matter what. Here are some ideas of ways you can create your own sadhana:

1. Asana

3-12 simple rounds of Sun Salutations (Surya Namaskara) will set you up for your day like never before! Notice how much more awake, alive, and tuned in you feel.

2. Meditation

Sit with a simple breath meditation. Follow the breath, the inhale and the exhale — or you could add a mantra that flows with the breath if that helps.

3. Journaling

An ideal way to start or end your day, as it helps you to clear your mind and regain focus. It’s most beautiful to simply allow the words to flow.

4. Commune With Nature

Go for a walk in the fresh air. Nature has a way of soothing the soul and allowing inspiration to flood in.

5. Affirmations

Positive affirmations done regularly can have a hugely powerful impact on your life. Work with around three at a time and repeat twelve times each.

6. Morning Intention

Set an intention for the day. It may be simply that you want to have a love-filled day, or there may be something that you need help achieving.

7. Pranayama

Commit to breathing, and I mean really breathing. Breath of Fire, Alternate Nostril Breathing, or full yogic breathing are all good options.

8. Gratitude Journal

At the end of each day, spend some time writing down all the things you are grateful for. This will help you spend as much time in gratitude as possible.

9. Be Creative

Write poetry, paint, sing, dance. Even if you write poetry that’s only ever read by you or sing words that only your ears will ever hear.

10. Be Present

A sadhana doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be as simple as lighting a candle every morning to welcome in the day and sitting in blissful silence.

I’d love to hear your sadhana ideas and results. Share in the comments below so we can all be inspired!

Immune Boosting Yoga

Yoga is

99% practice & 1% theory

Yoga is not just rolling out a mat, to twist, stretch, and breathe deeply, it’s more than that. It’s a way of life; Yoga is an ancient practice that stimulates the body and releases the constraints of the mind. It brings balance to the body, regulating the system and smoothing out any dysfunction with regular practice.

It’s also a wonderful way to stave off regular illnesses and ailments.

Yoga can help the body fight infection.

At any given time of the day or year, our bodies are vulnerable to infection by activating a multitude of viruses and bacteria. Experiencing the delights of runny noses, tickly coughs, stomach infections, and nasty bouts of the flu, winter definitely seems to be the time when they let their presence be known. This is normally due to the reduced day light. Daylight being the go to source of Vitamin D, which gives a great boost to the immune system.

Did you know that Vitamin D is actually a hormone rather than a vitamin? In fact, the final product of Vitamin D conversion in the body is considered a hormone. We can obtain Vitamin D from some foods such as oily fish, egg yolks and whole milk, however 90% of the Vitamin D we get is made by our bodies. The body makes Vitamin D from direct sunlight (particularly UV-B radiation) in the skin and the synthesis process continues in the liver and kidneys, until producing the final active form of the hormone.

Vitamin D is actually a hormone rather than a vitamin

Several different types of cells in the body, including immune cells, contain the receptor for Vitamin D, which means they can respond to Vitamin D molecules, triggering different reactions in the body. No wonder Vitamin D can affect so many aspects of health including bone health, cardiovascular health, immunity, autoimmune disease, type I diabetes, and mental health.

So, as well as soaking up as much sun as we can in the winter months with crisp winter sun walks and SAD lamps, how else can we boost our immune system?

how can we boost our immune system?

Yoga! A regular practice can really help the body in its maintenance and fight infection. When I say Yoga, I mean the lifestyle. Yoga is much more than the poses you see in magazines on social media. It involves practice daily, both on and off the mat. A combination of asana (poses), pranayama (breathwork), meditation, and a seasonal wholefood diet, will give a great foundation for the body to build its natural immunity.

We will share with you why:

It Helps To Keep the Respiratory System strong.

Colds, coughs, and similar infections are caused by bacteria that badly damage the upper respiratory system. If your immune system is not strong enough bring back balance, the bacteria can penetrate into the lungs and lead to pneumonia or bronchitis. Yoga is indeed the main tool for maintaining the health of our respiratory system. What’s more? Regularly practice of pranayama (breathing exercises) and asanas (yoga postures) conditions the respiratory tract and boosts the effectiveness of the lungs.

It Reduces the Stress Levels Naturally

A person who’s under stress is more likely to catch a cold or a fever when viruses invade the nasal passage. Also, the stress and anxiety seem to worsen or lift the risk of infirmities such as depression, gastrointestinal problems, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, Alzheimer’s disease, and asthma. To put it otherwise, yoga helps lower stress hormones and calms the nervous system, which is associated with the immune system.

It keeps Muscles and Joints in A Great Working Order

Whatever is your age, the joint and muscular pain doesn’t seem to discriminate, although the chance of it increasing as you approach middle age and onwards increases. This is due to the natural depletion of collagen within the body. Women experience this much earlier than men, as well as a reduction in bone density. A weak bone structure, lack of physical activity, and deficiency of essential nutrients in the diet can aggravate the situation. Moreover, Yoga asana helps to lubricate the joints with synovial fluid, stabilises the muscles through strengthening exercises, strengthens the bones due to the impact of the muscles supporting the body is holding a posture with bodyweight, which in turn help reduce the chance of osteopenia, arthritis, and general joint pain.

It Ensures the Optimal Functioning Of All Organs

Office jobs that require sitting for long hours and a sedentary lifestyle mean that our organs don’t get enough or adequate amount of blood flow, which in turn lead to blockages and build-up of toxins. Over time, this leads to breakdowns in the body system. If you continue Yoga on a regular basis, it can stimulate the lymphatic system, to remove the toxins from the body. In fact, there are various kinds of asana that ensure organs and glands receive fresh blood and are gently stimulated and massaged. The rise in the supply of oxygenated blood to organs ensures their optimal function. see the free yoga sequence below.

Yoga can bring many benefits to your immune system. Practice Yoga daily, even if it’s a few minutes of breath awareness or a little 5-minute sun salutation. Attempt yoga to stimulate and improve the functioning of your nervous system, digestive system, circulatory and endocrine systems. Attend a regular practice, and remember to incorporate it into your daily routine. It is such a wonderful gift!

Immune boosting worskhop Relax, replensish, restore

I have a wonderful workshop coming up soon.

Do you find yourself feeling run down in autumn or winter? Do you tend to get sick often or experience low energy? Not only is autumn a time for transition, but as we ease into our new schedules, environments, or intentions, it can often be a time of illness. Yoga offers many unique tools to increase our body’s natural resilience, ease stress, and boost immunity in very tangible ways.

Join me for this special seasonal workshop to discover and practice some of the most useful yoga postures, breathing techniques, and acupressure points to not only help you avoid getting sick, but help to treat fevers, pain, and sinus congestion. You will receive practical knowledge to incorporate into your daily life as well as a written outline of a suggested yoga practice. Enjoy complimentary tea and immune-boosting aromatherapy while you practice!

Only several spots available; Preregister for £20 investment in advance to secure your space.

I hope to see you there!

Benefits of Hero pose – Virasana

Virasana is a wonderful remedy for tired legs at the end of a long day, as well as an alternative to posture for seated meditation.

Sanskrit

(veer-AHS-anna)

vira = man, hero, chief

The benefits of Hero Pose and the basics –

Benefits

Releases tension in the thighs, knees, and ankles
Strengthens the arches of the feet
Improves digestion and relieves gas
Helps relieve the symptoms of menopause
Reduces swelling of the legs during pregnancy (through second trimester) and Christmas shopping!
Therapeutic for high blood pressure and asthma

How to

To come into Hero pose or Virasana, begin in an all fours position on your hands and knees.
Bring your knees closer together and separate your feet slightly wider than hip distance apart
Press the top of your feet down and slowly lower your hips back until eventually sitting on the mat (or props) between the heels
Use your hands to roll the flesh of your calves away, draw your navel in and up, ground through your sitting bones and extend through the crown of your head
Stay for 5 to 10 breaths
Come out of the pose the way you came in, by placing the hands in front of you and lifting the hips back up to all fours

Beginners’ tips for Hero pose

Use as many props as you need to raise the hips up, and avoid any discomfort in the knees. Stacking cushions or blocks between your feet is a great option
You can practise the pose one leg at a time with one leg folded under and the other straight out in front of you before coming into the full pose
Gradually build up the length of time you stay in the pose.
If your ankles are stiff, place a rolled up blanket underneath to decrease the stretch
Keep pressing firmly through the tops of the feet and firm the inner ankles in

Variations

If you feel any discomfort in your knees, adjust the pose accordingly by elevating your hips by placing a couple of blocks or cushions between the feet to sit on.
Avoid in the case of ankle or knee injuries or recent knee op.
If your quads (front of thigh muscles) are very tight, come into the pose slowly and keep the hips higher by sitting on props such as yoga blocks or cushions. You should feel the stretch in the belly of the muscle rather than at the attachment points at the knees.

I enjoy poses that appear simple yet present us with a physical and mental challenge. At first glance, Hero Pose appears to be as easy as just getting down on your knees. However, the posture calls for a precise, deliberate alignment of your feet and knees. Depending on the structure of your calves, ankles, and quadriceps, you might need to modify the pose. You must practice inner and outer calm and sit with oneself in order to hold the pose.

I hope this break down on hero pose helps you to explore it further in your own time, and you are more than welcome to come along to one of my yoga classes in St Helens, or for an even deeper practice, one of my yoga workshops in Merseyside too!

Oh and speaking of yoga workshops…why not come along to my Spring Awakening Yoga Workshop. There is no better time to revisit our connection back to the cyclical nature of the seasons.

Spring’s energy is powerful and vibrant. It is the true beginning of a new year. In this yoga workshop you will be guided by trauma informed Yogatherapist Leanne Tipton, She will guide you through practices to embody your bodies energy and the environment around us, using yoga postures, breathing techniques, and meditation so that we can better support our energy, health and wellbeing this Spring time. A lovely afternoon of Spring awakening with mindful yoga, connection and time for rest, reflection and rejuvenation in a beautiful studio setting, accompanied by grounding essential oils. Ending the workshop with some nourishing goodies and a little gift to take home with you. All welcome to this workshop, including complete beginners.

BOOK YOUR PLACE FOR SOME MINDSPACE

CLICK HERE