There’s a lot of talk about trauma and what being trauma informed means these days. In many ways, this is great–we’re all finally talking about this stuff that has HUGE impacts on us, but in other ways it gets used so frequently, that it’s lost meaning. So many offerings are labeled as being trauma-informed, but what does that actually mean? Let’s start by defining what trauma is:
According to the APA, trauma is defined as:
Any disturbing experience that results in significant fear, helplessness, dissociation, confusion, or other disruptive feelings intense enough to have a long-lasting negative effect on a person’s attitudes, behavior, and other aspects of functioning.
Traumatic events include those caused by human behavior as well as by nature and often challenge an individual’s view of the world as a just, safe, and predictable place. Any serious physical injury, such as a widespread burn or a blow to the head.
So when we talk about being trauma-informed, we’re not just talking about major life events—we’re acknowledging the many ways the body and mind respond to overwhelm, both acute and chronic.
With that in mind, I believe it’s essential to approach Yoga and Ayurveda with a strong sense of curiosity and a willingness to make adaptations. Practicing curiosity allows us to stay grounded and maintain equanimity when unexpected things arise. Experiencing trauma can often cause us to disconnect from our bodies–a protective response that may have once helped us survive. Practicing Yoga and Ayurveda offer tools to gently reconnect with ourselves and our bodies, sometimes for the first time in a long while. As this connection deepens, we may begin to notice and feel sensations we’ve never felt before, including emotions that surface in the body. If we can stay curious, we create space to notice these experiences without judgment or attachment. This self-awareness gives us the insight we need to care for ourselves more intentionally. After all, both Yoga and Ayurveda are practices of self-inquiry—and of responding with compassion to what we find.
This body-based approach isn’t just spiritual or intuitive—modern science supports it, too. Our bodies remember things even when we don’t.
When we experience traumatic events, our bodies can hold onto them. For years, bodyworkers and those working in more intuitive or energetic traditions have said this—and now, thankfully, science is backing it up. When something overwhelming happens, your body goes into survival mode—fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. The sympathetic nervous system gets triggered, preparing to help you survive. If the experience isn’t fully processed, your system can spend a bit too much time in that state, making it hard to relax, feel safe, or fully connect. Additionally, trauma affects brain areas that help us manage fear, memory, and emotional regulation. This can lead to feeling on edge, disconnected, or reactive, even if we can’t pinpoint why. People who have experienced complex trauma might also experience changes to the prefrontal cortex, affecting executive functioning in ways that mimic ADHD.
So what does all of this mean in practice? How do we actually show up in a trauma-informed way?
Personally, my approach is rooted in harm reduction. What do I mean by that? Mainly, it means giving ourselves and others (including clients, students, etc.) some grace when we make messy or less helpful choices after trauma. We often develop coping strategies that aren’t ideal when we’ve experienced trauma, but we develop them for a reason: to help us survive. When I work with clients with a history of trauma, I encourage them not to shame themselves for these patterns. Instead, we thank the coping mechanism for the role it played in helping us in some way, then we gently work toward a replacement that feels more grounding and supportive. In my opinion, guilt and shame have no place in recovery and healing.
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