What is Means to Be a Trauma-Informed Yoga Teacher

After 25 years of teaching yoga, I remain continually inspired by how much there is still to learn. I recently completed a 30-hour Trauma-Informed, Resilience-Focused Yoga Teacher Training through Brilliance Whole-Being Wellbeing, and am now a Certified Trauma-Informed Yoga Teacher . It was a very rich learning experience both personally and professionally.

The training provided an in-depth exploration of different types of trauma and how trauma affects the body, mind, and nervous system. We learned what it truly means to be a trauma-informed teacher. It's not just in the techniques we offer, but in the way we hold space for others.

At its core, trauma-informed teaching is grounded in six key principles:

1. Safety

2. Choice

3. Collaboration & Mutuality

4. Trustworthiness & Transparency

5. Empowerment

6. Cultural, Historical & Gender Awareness and Respect

Being trauma-informed means developing a strong understanding of the nervous system and recognizing how easily it can become dis-regulated, not only from past trauma, but from the daily pressures of our modern lives. The world we live in, the devices we use, the news we watch, all of it can be overwhelming to the nervous system. This training emphasized the value of offering many different pathways for students to self-soothe and find grounding — and reminded me that those tools don’t always have to look like traditional “yoga.”

What stood out to me was how some of the concepts and practices felt familiar — things I had touched on in my teaching without fully understanding their significance or connection to trauma-informed care. This training helped me recognize those elements more clearly and gave me a stronger, more intentional framework to build on. I also gained many new tools and insights that I have been weaving into my teaching.

The training was a powerful reminder that we all need to be kind to ourselves — and to our nervous systems. I'm grateful for this learning experience and for the opportunity to continue evolving as a teacher, holding space that is welcoming, supportive, and rooted in compassion.