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<\/h3>\nBy: Chrys Kub, PT, C-IAYT<\/strong><\/h3>\nFirst, I am a physical<\/strong> therapist.\u00a0 That however, does not define my practice with my patients as only addressing the physical body.\u00a0 Our approach to healthcare has evolved greatly and we know to have any success at all, we must treat the person, not the disease or symptoms.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0My first experience with yoga was in a group class back in 1999.\u00a0 I remember feeling like it was very familiar to physical therapy and wondering if I could apply some of the yoga poses to my work with neurological patients.\u00a0 Although I did start with using poses to help my patients with strength and flexibility, over the past 19 years I have discovered the tools of yoga that can offer much more to my patients on many levels, not just the physical.\u00a0 Through mentorship with a leading physical therapist in the integrative yoga field, Dr. Matthew Taylor<\/a> PT, \u00a0and a blend of yoga studies and training in the personal practice and\u00a0 therapeutic applications of yoga, my approach and practice of physical therapy was literally transformed.\u00a0 In case you have been living under a rock the past twenty years, yoga is now mainstream!\u00a0 Research is now supporting the use of yoga as a tool to help persons with chronic health issues.\u00a0 (Schmidd AA, 2015)\u00a0(Groessll EJ, 2015)\u00a0\u00a0 Functional Medicine, wellness and preventative healthcare is not just the future, it is happening NOW.\u00a0 If you want to be on the cutting edge of healthcare and rehabilitation, instead of just learning dry needling, manual therapy and myofascial release, consider learning more about yoga as rehabilitation to improve your outcomes and transform how you practice.<\/p>\nOne of the most challenging things about modern physical therapy practice has been the decrease in time with the patient.\u00a0 While our time with our patients may now be limited due to insurance constraints, how we interact with them is under our control.\u00a0 In the end, what we do is not as important as how we do it.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0The key to our success as a therapist is \u201crelationship\u201d.\u00a0 If you create a relationship with your patient, all the rest will take care of itself.\u00a0 Matthew Sanford<\/a> , Iyengar Yoga Instructor, person with paraplegia.<\/p>\nAt this point you are probably thinking, how in the world can having my patient practice a downward dog pose do anything more than stretch his hamstrings?\u00a0 The first answer is:\u00a0 Yoga isn\u2019t what you think it is! (Taylor, 2018 ) Here are just a few of the tools you can incorporate with your patients.<\/p>\n
\n- Breathing:\u00a0 We know that abnormal breathing patterns are a part of or contribute to our patient\u2019s symptoms.\u00a0 Learning proper breathing (described as Transversus Abdominus thoracodiaphragmatic breath TATD) can improve dynamic stability for movement, postural awareness, optimal arousal state, mental health and social engagement. (Garner, 2016)<\/li>\n
- Mindfulness: We now know that pain is an output of our nervous system, not always a sign of tissue damage.\u00a0 It has been repeatedly found that through mindfulness meditation practices, one can learn to attenuate pain. (\u00a0(Taylor, 2018 ): (Zeidan)) \u00a0Learning how to help our patients practice simple mindfulness techniques can assist them to mitigate their pain symptoms so they can practice the movements (physical therapy) and attain the function they desire.<\/li>\n
- Movement: Yoga poses are movement with awareness.\u00a0 Through application of techniques such as Feldenkrais Method we know mindful movement is effective for rehabilitation. (Patricia Buchanan, 2013)\u00a0 Yoga postures incorporate breathing and mindful movement in addition to strength and flexibility training.\u00a0 This allows us to help our patients on many levels at once and motivates them to continue after their discharge from physical therapy to maintain a healthy lifestyle.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Physical therapy is an art and a science.\u00a0 We need to remember that our patients are not just their diagnosis but people, just like us, who are suffering.\u00a0 They come to us seeking guidance.\u00a0 If we can work with them together towards healing, we may not find the cure, but we can help them learn to live with what is.\u00a0 Take the time to find out about their lifestyle, their mindset and how they view the world.\u00a0 As you build relationship, you create trust.\u00a0 Together you can come up with a treatment plan which helps them on all levels, physically, emotionally and mentally.\u00a0 I know that when I got into this profession, it was not to treat an \u201cACL\u201d or a \u201cbrain injury\u201d, but to treat people.\u00a0 If that was your intention as well, then consider integrating yoga therapy into your practice.\u00a0 To learn more about integrating yoga into rehabilitation, look for our upcoming course in the Spring of 2019,\u00a0 “Yoga Tools for Rehabilitation.”<\/p>\n
First, I am a physical<\/strong> therapist.\u00a0 That however, does not define my practice with my patients as only addressing the physical body.\u00a0 Our approach to healthcare has evolved greatly and we know to have any success at all, we must treat the person, not the disease or symptoms.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0My first experience with yoga was in a group class back in 1999.\u00a0 I remember feeling like it was very familiar to physical therapy and wondering if I could apply some of the yoga poses to my work with neurological patients.\u00a0 Although I did start with using poses to help my patients with strength and flexibility, over the past 19 years I have discovered the tools of yoga that can offer much more to my patients on many levels, not just the physical.\u00a0 Through mentorship with a leading physical therapist in the integrative yoga field, Dr. Matthew Taylor<\/a> PT, \u00a0and a blend of yoga studies and training in the personal practice and\u00a0 therapeutic applications of yoga, my approach and practice of physical therapy was literally transformed.\u00a0 In case you have been living under a rock the past twenty years, yoga is now mainstream!\u00a0 Research is now supporting the use of yoga as a tool to help persons with chronic health issues.\u00a0 (Schmidd AA, 2015)\u00a0(Groessll EJ, 2015)\u00a0\u00a0 Functional Medicine, wellness and preventative healthcare is not just the future, it is happening NOW.\u00a0 If you want to be on the cutting edge of healthcare and rehabilitation, instead of just learning dry needling, manual therapy and myofascial release, consider learning more about yoga as rehabilitation to improve your outcomes and transform how you practice.<\/p>\n One of the most challenging things about modern physical therapy practice has been the decrease in time with the patient.\u00a0 While our time with our patients may now be limited due to insurance constraints, how we interact with them is under our control.\u00a0 In the end, what we do is not as important as how we do it.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0The key to our success as a therapist is \u201crelationship\u201d.\u00a0 If you create a relationship with your patient, all the rest will take care of itself.\u00a0 Matthew Sanford<\/a> , Iyengar Yoga Instructor, person with paraplegia.<\/p>\n At this point you are probably thinking, how in the world can having my patient practice a downward dog pose do anything more than stretch his hamstrings?\u00a0 The first answer is:\u00a0 Yoga isn\u2019t what you think it is! (Taylor, 2018 ) Here are just a few of the tools you can incorporate with your patients.<\/p>\n Physical therapy is an art and a science.\u00a0 We need to remember that our patients are not just their diagnosis but people, just like us, who are suffering.\u00a0 They come to us seeking guidance.\u00a0 If we can work with them together towards healing, we may not find the cure, but we can help them learn to live with what is.\u00a0 Take the time to find out about their lifestyle, their mindset and how they view the world.\u00a0 As you build relationship, you create trust.\u00a0 Together you can come up with a treatment plan which helps them on all levels, physically, emotionally and mentally.\u00a0 I know that when I got into this profession, it was not to treat an \u201cACL\u201d or a \u201cbrain injury\u201d, but to treat people.\u00a0 If that was your intention as well, then consider integrating yoga therapy into your practice.\u00a0 To learn more about integrating yoga into rehabilitation, look for our upcoming course in the Spring of 2019,\u00a0 “Yoga Tools for Rehabilitation.”<\/p>\n\n