You don't have to be good at yoga for yoga to be useful.
You don't have to be flexible. You don't need expensive leggings. And you definitely don't need to know what you're doing before you walk in.
Therapeutic yoga at Instar Healing isn't about perfecting poses, getting a workout, or turning yourself into a calmer, more enlightened human being. It's an opportunity to slow down enough to notice what's actually happening inside you—and experiment with what your body might need.
For women who spend a lot of time thinking, doing, managing, anticipating and taking care of everyone else, that can be surprisingly unfamiliar territory.
This Isn't Another Thing to Get Right
A lot of the women I work with are really good at pushing through. Tired? Keep going. Stressed? Get more organized. Overwhelmed? Make a better list. Body telling you to slow down? Apparently the body hasn't seen your calendar.
That ability to keep functioning can be incredibly useful.
Until it isn't.
Therapeutic yoga gives us a different place to practice: noticing rather than overriding, experimenting rather than performing, and responding to your body instead of automatically asking it to cooperate with whatever your brain has planned.
Trauma-Sensitive Therapeutic Yoga in Farmington, CT
In person in Farmington, CT & online throughout Connecticut and New York
Individual therapeutic yoga for stress, anxiety and nervous-system regulation
Your Nervous System Doesn't Always Need to Calm Down
This is one of my favorite misconceptions to challenge.
We talk constantly about “calming the nervous system,” but calm isn't always what you need.
Sometimes you're anxious, keyed up and overstimulated and need help settling.
But sometimes you're exhausted, disconnected, foggy or shut down.
In that case, more relaxation may not be particularly helpful.
That's why we can experiment with both down-regulating practices that support rest and settling and up-regulating practices that support energy, engagement and activation.
The goal isn't to live permanently in some perfectly regulated state.
It's developing more awareness of where you are—and having more options for what you do next.
Who Is Therapeutic Yoga For?
You might be interested in this work if you:
Live with anxiety, chronic stress or burnout
Spend most of your time in your head
Feel disconnected from your body
Have difficulty resting without guilt
Tend to push yourself even when you're depleted
Have experienced trauma and want a gentle way to reconnect with your body
Find traditional yoga classes intimidating, overwhelming or too performance-focused
Want practical nervous-system tools you can actually use outside of a therapy office
Are simply curious about how movement, breathing and mindfulness affect you
You don't need a diagnosis, or a dramatic reason, to want a different relationship with your body.
What Does a Session Actually Look Like?
We start by checking in.
How are you feeling today? What's happening in your body? How's your energy? Is anything sore or injured? What sounds tolerable—and what absolutely doesn't?
From there, we'll build the session around you.
We might use gentle yoga postures, breathing practices, movement, grounding, mindfulness or meditation. I may explain a little about what we're doing and why, particularly as it relates to stress and the nervous system.
And throughout the session, I'm going to encourage you to notice.
Does this feel good? Annoying? Energizing? Boring? Comforting? Too much?
Do you want to keep going—or stop? That isn't you failing to do yoga correctly.
That's the work.
Trauma-Sensitive Means You
Have Choices
If you've experienced trauma, being told what to do with your body can be complicated.
So choice matters.
I use trauma-sensitive language and invite rather than demand. You decide what feels okay. You can modify something, skip it, sit down, open your eyes, change your mind or tell me that you hate the thing I just suggested.
I can handle it. The purpose isn't for you to comply with me.
It's for you to practice listening to you.
Yoga and Therapy Can Complement Each Other
Sometimes we understand something emotionally long before our bodies catch up.
That's one reason body-based practices can complement traditional therapy, EMDR, Brainspotting and other trauma-focused approaches.
But therapeutic yoga doesn't have to involve processing your trauma. Sometimes we're simply practicing noticing tension before it becomes overwhelm. Or learning that rest doesn't have to be earned. Or discovering that taking a deeper breath actually makes you more anxious, and finding something else that works better.
Small observations can change the way you respond to yourself.
Therapeutic Yoga in Farmington, CT
I'm Jenn Hoffman, LCSW and a trauma-sensitive yoga teacher (TI-CYT 200) with more than 20 years of experience as a therapist.
I bring my clinical understanding of trauma, anxiety and nervous-system regulation into individualized yoga sessions without turning yoga into another hour of talk therapy.
Sessions are available in person at The Bridge Healing Arts Center in Farmington, Connecticut, with virtual options available.
You don't need to be flexible. You don't need yoga experience. You don't even need to own a yoga mat. You just need to be willing to notice what happens.
Schedule a free consultation to see if therapeutic yoga feels like a fit.
You spend enough of your life trying to get things right.
This can be a place where you don't have to.
Schedule a free consultation to see if therapeutic yoga might be a good fit.
Curious Instead of Perfect
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Start with a free consultation. We’ll talk about what you’re looking for, what you’d like help with, and whether an individualized therapeutic yoga session makes sense for you.
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Not at all. You don’t need to know the poses, be flexible, or have any idea what you’re doing. Sessions are individualized to you, your body, and how you’re feeling that day. There’s no keeping up with a class—and no one to impress.
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Wear something comfortable that you can move in. You’re welcome to bring your own mat if you prefer, but you don’t need to. I have the basic props and equipment we’ll use in the office.
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No. Therapeutic yoga uses movement, breath, mindfulness, and nervous-system practices rather than traditional psychotherapy. Because I’m also a licensed clinical social worker and trauma therapist, my clinical background informs how I approach the work—but you’re not signing up for talk therapy on a yoga mat.
If you’re already a therapy client, we may also incorporate some of these practices into our work when they’re useful.
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That’s important information, and we’ll talk about it before we begin. Everything can be adapted, and you’re always encouraged to listen to your body and skip or modify anything that doesn’t feel right. Therapeutic yoga isn’t medical treatment or physical therapy, so certain conditions may require clearance from your medical provider.
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Therapeutic yoga sessions are generally a private-pay wellness service rather than a psychotherapy service and aren’t billed to insurance as mental health treatment.
If your HSA or FSA allows reimbursement for the service, I can provide documentation of payment, but coverage varies by plan and isn’t guaranteed.
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Yes. Virtual therapeutic yoga sessions are available, so you can participate from home. You’ll just need enough space to move comfortably and a device positioned where I can see you.
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Then we stop doing it.
Seriously. You’re not supposed to like every breathing technique, movement, or meditation. Part of this work is learning to notice what actually helps you, rather than deciding you’re doing something wrong because a supposedly relaxing practice makes you want to crawl out of your skin.