A yoga teacher may expect that yoga therapy training will give them the skills to “fix” a client’s back pain, anxiety, or insomnia.
But the goal of yoga therapy isn’t to offer a quick fix for a client’s problems.
Yoga therapy isn’t primarily about curing disease or removing dysfunction. It’s about something far greater.
The Goal of Yoga Therapy: Easing Suffering, Not Fixing Symptoms
Yoga therapy practices can lead to enormous changes in the client’s experience of suffering. Yes, the reduction of suffering might also include symptom relief. A tailored yoga therapy program might lead to a reduction in shoulder pain or an improvement in sleep but that isn’t the primary focus of the yoga therapy program.
In yoga therapy, we start with the understanding that the client is whole – not broken.
When the yoga therapist has this approach and understanding, they are less likely to fall into the trap of trying to ‘fix’ the client by eliminating symptoms or curing disease and dysfunction.
As leading Yoga therapy educator, Sal Flynn reminds us, “It is the Yoga practice itself that provides the support and help for clients to find their way to reducing their suffering. Again and again, I see the power of the simplest of practices that lead to change in the clients that goes well beyond symptom relief.”
The goal of the yoga therapist is to carefully assess the needs of their clients based on a deep understanding of the human condition that comes from Yoga’s deep wisdom. Then the yoga therapist recommends practices to meet those needs.
Yoga Therapy in Practice
To understand what this looks in practice, consider yoga therapy client, Greg. He had been living with Parkinson’s Disease for seven years. He experienced a profound shift in his life by working with Yoga Therapy Institute graduate, Victoria Sutton over a period of thirteen months.
Greg provided feedback to Victora. “Parkinson’s no longer dominates my thoughts. Parkinson’s will not dominate my life. I have found a freedom in yoga that I never expected. I am unencumbered. I have taken command of Parkinson’s and I am free from the burden of my diagnosis.”
Greg’s transformation went beyond his diagnosis. Through his work with Victoria, he began to embrace a deeper journey of personal identity. Greg/Sophie began the process of finding himself/herself. She explored the initial possibility of being gay, then moved through transvestism and considered living full time as a trans lady.
During this time Greg / Sophie shared with Victoria these words –
“I feel like my DNA strands have finally revealed their true selves. I have been able to finally cross that bridge of trust and acceptance about everything that I am. I am the happiest I have been in a long, long time. I have been laughing most of the week at the silliest things. My entire attitude has changed”.
As Victoria Sutton said, “Yoga therapy has changed Greg from a cowering, weak, closed, and frightened person, to someone who is open, laughs often, and is excited about life. Sophie is enlightened and is on an amazing journey of how wonderful life can be.”
As Sal Flynn, leading yoga therapy educator astutely observes, “We see clients finding their way back home to themselves in a new relationship to their experience that very often includes symptom relief, but so much more as well.”
Beyond the Initial Issue: A Holistic Lens
Clients often present with one issue (e.g. anxiety, sore knee, poor sleep, chronic disease diagnosis). But when the yoga therapist assesses the client holistically and considers all layers of the person’s being, a range of interconnected factors emerges. For example, anxiety may stem from lack of sleep, hormonal issues, or lifestyle factors like vaping.
The yoga therapist then guides their client to prioritise their issues and educates the client that not everything can be addressed at once. Instead, a tailored, evolving yoga practice addresses key concerns over time and sets the foundation for ongoing wellbeing.
As Sal Flynn explains, it is up to the yoga therapist to educate the client that Yoga therapy is not a technique to fix a problem. Sal says, “A yoga therapist works with the immediate issue, but also with the deeper root causes. This holistic approach addresses the initial concern and also reduces the risk of it recurring and may help related challenges gradually fade into the background.”
Why this Matters for Yoga Teachers
For yoga teachers, this is a profound shift.
It’s not about leading group classes or applying one-size-fits-all techniques. It’s about stepping into the role of yoga therapist – a skilled professional who can assess, guide, and empower clients on a journey to living their best life.
Your clients will experience transformation that goes far beyond symptom relief and your yoga therapy career will be more impactful, sustainable, and satisfying.
If you want to find out more about how yoga therapy training can help you support your clients more deeply, CLICK HERE>
Author:
Trina Bawden-Smith is the founder and director of the Yoga Therapy Institute, which has trained over 420 Yoga therapists. She has been overseeing the development of the Yoga Therapy Institute’s Accredited Yoga Therapy Certification since 2012, has conducted 8 Yoga therapy conferences and directed numerous professional development programs for Yoga therapists and Yoga teachers since 2003.