How a body-led approach to recovery encourages us to take back control over our lives
How a body-led approach to recovery encourages us to take back control over our lives.
“It could be said that trauma (and its symptoms) is largely a function of people not living the life they want to live because it is being dictated by the past, and therefore they are not determining their own futures.”
Yoga beyond the shapes
When people hear I teach yoga, many imagine warrior poses or headstands. The idea that yoga is about stretching into shapes is everywhere.
But yoga, in the way I practice and share, isn’t about performance or posture. It is about learning to live differently in our own skin. It is about how body, breath, senses and mind can work together in the present moment.
Why the body matters
When we have lived through trauma, our nervous system can remain on high alert. The past lives on in our body, in sensations, reactions and patterns of behaviour, long after events have ended.
Strategic and mindful physical practices can help us regulate the nervous system. They bring us back to the here and now instead of being pulled into rumination or worry.
In the present moment, something shifts. We can notice thoughts without being swept away. We can stand back from the torrent, see the patterns, and begin to choose how we respond.
Autonomy and choice
In Sanskrit, the word kaivalya describes autonomy. The recognition that we have agency, even when the past has shaped us.
This does not happen all at once. In my own life, I have had to peel away layer after layer of conditioning, noticing choices that kept me stuck, and slowly learning to make different ones.
It is not a one-time event. It is a practice. A steady return to responsibility, choice and presence.
As we build this capacity, something deeper unfolds. Sovereignty.
Sovereignty is about reclaiming authority over our own lives. It is not about transcending or escaping somewhere else. It is about being here in this moment and recognising our power to meet life differently.
From this place, new outcomes are possible. Healthier relationships. Steadier ground. Less struggle. Not because the postures themselves fixed us, but because we have reclaimed responsibility and authority over how we live.
Taking back our lives
This is what a body-led approach offers. Not a quick fix. Not a promise of happiness if you can just hold the pose.
But an ongoing embodied practice of choosing presence, of reclaiming autonomy, of exercising sovereignty.
And in that practice, we take back authority over our lives.
Here. Now. Moment by moment.
How does the idea of autonomy land with you? Do you recognise moments where you have taken back authority over your own life?
Further reading: RESEARCH INTO THE EFFICACY OF TRAUMA SENSITIVE YOGA
