Betsy Shandalov – Yoga for Therapeutic Rehabilitation: Learning New Tools & Expanding Your Practice

Outline

Why Yoga as a Therapeutic Modality?

• What is yoga?
• Understand Integrative Medicine
• Review body systems and how they work together
• Understand types of yoga and how yoga therapy aids body systems
• Neuroplasticity of the brain and eye, and brain exercises for adults and kids
• The Nervous System and pain control
• How yoga comforts pain clients

Anatomy of Therapeutic Yoga: Cardiopulmonary System

• Review pulmonary anatomy (case study)
• Proper breathing and its benefits
• Types of pranayama
• Breathing exercises
• Therapeutic breathing and your adults and kids
• When to use pranayama for adults and kids
• Define breathing and positioning
  • upright
  • side-lying in bed
  • wheelchair
  • standing
• Case study with group practice of pranayama, seated and standing pose demo

Anatomy of Therapeutic Yoga: Musculoskeletal System

• Posture and nerve and muscle communication
• Anatomy of the shoulder and hip joints
• Opening the joint door: muscle and body balance
• Practical applications for diagnoses
• Secondary disabilities and their consequences, dissecting the mechanics of movement
  • spasticity
  • hypotonicity
  • muscle imbalance
• Yoga as medicine for adults and kids from dependent clients to active clients

Asana Application and Treatment

• Asana poses
• The science of restorative vs. active poses and the body’s response
• Decide between restorative vs. active poses for treatment
• Case studies in a variety of settings from hospitals to schools
• Perform active poses

Poses: Props and Our Patients

• Perform restorative poses
• How do resting poses help clients with disabilities? (client with cancer case study)
• The importance of elongation and extension of the body and how props assist your clients
• Pictures of supported and active yoga poses for clients with a variety of disabilities
• Props for therapeutic use with spasticity, abnormal tone, weakness, or imbalance
• How do you decide if your client needs resting or active poses and how much?
• Is the client prone, supine, or in a wheelchair?

Pose Lab and Case Study Presentations

• Practice poses and experience the therapeutic benefits of a restorative pose vs. an active pose
• Using props through visuals and poses
• Examine 5 different case studies and determine what poses are best for your clients
• Therapeutic benefits of each pose for each diagnosis and their contraindications
• What props to use for each pose and why

Yoga and Expanding Client Treatment

• In your setting: acute care, inpatient, outpatient, home health, and hospice
• Throughout the lifespan
• Giving the client a gift in the community
• Recent studies in medicine and yoga
• Yoga and its future in health care
• Yoga and the Integrative Medicine team