Basic Methods of Motivational Interviewing in Yoga Therapy

Yoga therapy offers a holistic approach to healing that integrates the mind, body, and spirit. Combining this with the techniques of motivational interviewing can deepen the therapeutic relationship and enhance client outcomes.

Motivational interviewing (MI) is a client-centered approach aimed at eliciting behavior change by helping individuals explore and resolve ambivalence. In the context of yoga therapy, these techniques can guide clients toward self-awareness and positive change.

In this blog, we'll talk about the key methods of motivational interviewing which are open-ended questions, affirmations, reflective listening, and summarization.

Open-Ended Questions

Open-ended questions are essential in motivational interviewing because they encourage clients to express themselves more fully, providing insights into their thoughts and feelings.

In yoga therapy, open-ended questions help clients reflect on their emotional and physical states, deepening their connection with themselves.

Example:

Instead of asking a client, “Are you feeling better after practicing yoga?”, you might ask, “What sensations do you notice in your own body after today's session?” Such a question invites the individual to feel their experience further without being limited to answer yes or no.

Similarly, you can ask, “What inspired you to start practicing yoga?” or “How do you envision yoga supporting your personal healing journey?”

These questions open the door to self-discovery and empowerment, helping clients articulate their goals and challenges more clearly.

Affirmations

Affirmations are positive statements that recognize a client’s strengths, intentions, and efforts. In the context of yoga therapy, affirmations can be incredibly powerful because they reinforce the client’s sense of agency and self-worth.

Often, clients come to yoga therapy with feelings of self-doubt or uncertainty about their healing journey. Affirming their progress or qualities can shift their mindset.

Example:

After a client shares a challenge they're facing, an affirmation could be, “It’s great to see how committed you are to exploring new ways of healing,” or “I admire your resilience in coming to today’s session, even though things have been tough lately.”

These small, yet significant statements acknowledge the client’s inner resources and can motivate them to continue engaging with their practice. Affirmations are free and simple but often underused, even though they have the potential to create a lasting impact.

Reflective Listening

Reflective listening is a key element of MI and involves echoing back the client’s words, allowing them to feel heard and understood. It fosters a deeper connection between the therapist and client, which is particularly important in yoga therapy, where the mind-body connection is a focal point.

Reflective listening can help clients process their emotions, both positive and negative.

Example:

A client may say, “I know yoga is supposed to help me feel calmer, but I still feel overwhelmed.” As the therapist, you might reflect, “It sounds like you’re finding it difficult to manage the overwhelm, even though you’re trying.”

This approach validates the client’s experience and emotions, encouraging them to explore deeper insights and self-compassion. Reflective listening can soften resistance and help clients feel supported as they navigate their healing journey.

Summary

Summarizing is a specific type of reflective listening that helps the client understand the larger picture of what they’ve expressed. In yoga therapy, summaries can be used at the end of a session to recap key points, helping the client feel clear about their progress and next steps.

Summarizing reinforces important aspects of the conversation and highlights areas of ambivalence or motivation.

Example:

A well-structured summary might sound like this: “So today we discussed how yoga is helping you become more aware of your body’s signals, even though you still feel some anxiety at times. It sounds like continuing to explore breathing techniques might be a helpful next step for you. Does that feel right?”

By doing this, you encapsulate the key themes, acknowledge challenges, and invite the client to reflect on their next move.

Conclusion

Integrating motivational interviewing techniques into yoga therapy can enhance client engagement, self-awareness, and motivation. Using open-ended questions, affirmations, reflective listening, and summarization helps create a safe, non-judgmental space where clients can explore their emotions and work toward their goals.

Are you a yoga teacher or healthcare practitioner looking to incorporate yoga and mindfulness into your practice? Are you interested in learning more about Yoga in Healthcare? Please check out our annual Yoga in Healthcare Training - as well as our comprehensive yoga therapy certification at Prema Yoga Institute.

Please be advised that the content of this blog is not to be used as a substitution for the opinions and services of your licensed healthcare professional.

Yoga-Based Strategies for Intervention: How to Match Practices with Goals

In yoga therapy, the mind-body connection plays a crucial role in addressing emotional challenges and promoting physical well-being. For clients who are dealing with trauma, anxiety, or emotional blockages, chair-based yoga asanas can be a gentle way to promote healing.

In this blog, we'll explore 11 common emotional and physical challenges that clients face as well as the specific chair-based yoga postures designed to address them.

#1 - Feeling Frozen, Rigid, or Holding On (Hoarding, Constipation)

Many people experience physical and emotional stagnation, feeling unable to let go of past experiences or physical tension.

Goal: Letting Go

Chair-Based Asana: Forward Fold

The forward fold can help release tension and promote relaxation. This is a symbolical and physical release of the things the client is holding onto. In a chair-based version, this posture gently stretches the back, promoting circulation and calm.

#2 - Anxiety, Tension, Panic

These emotions can make it difficult to focus or feel grounded. Yoga therapy can help reduce the body’s stress response.

Goal: Decreasing Hyperarousal

Chair-Based Asana: Neck Stretches, Ratio Breathing, Belly Breath

Neck stretches relieve tension from the neck and shoulders, common areas where anxiety is held. Ratio breathing and belly breathing activate the parasympathetic nervous system, helping to calm the body.

#3 - Defensiveness or Avoidance of Intimacy

Those who struggle with intimacy may feel the need to protect themselves, often leading to defensiveness.

Goal: Opening Boundaries

Chair-Based Asana: Sun Breath

Sun breath involves raising the arms overhead while inhaling, opening up the chest and inviting vulnerability. This posture encourages openness to connection while grounding the body.

#4 - Dissociation

Dissociation occurs when an individual feels disconnected from their body or surroundings, often in response to trauma. Although yoga therapists do not diagnose, we can help our clients manage mental states.

Goal: Grounding

Chair-Based Asana: Mountain Pose, Noticing Feet on the Floor

By practicing a seated version of Mountain Pose and focusing on the feet’s connection to the ground, clients can re-establish a sense of presence and awareness in their bodies.

#5 - Feeling Off-Balance or Conflicted

When emotions are in turmoil, the body often mirrors this imbalance. Restoring a sense of physical balance can help bring emotional clarity.

Goal: Centering

Chair-Based Asana: Seated Twists, Seated Triangle, Seated Eagle, Balanced Movements

These postures engage the core and focus on balance, which fosters both physical stability and emotional equilibrium.

#6 - Emotional Overwhelm and Vulnerability

Feeling emotionally overwhelmed or unprotected can make daily functioning difficult. Creating a sense of containment is essential.

Goal: Containment

Chair-Based Asana: Child’s Pose (Modified as Needed)

A modified Child's Pose performed in a chair helps the client retreat into themselves, promoting feelings of safety and protection.

#7 - Stuck, Unable to Make Decisions or Defend Self

Feeling stuck can manifest as an inability to take action, leading to frustration and helplessness.

Goal: Unfreezing and Reorganizing Active Defenses

Chair-Based Asana: Movement-Based Postures

Incorporating movement-based postures helps clients release pent-up energy, reorganize their defenses, and encourage decision-making and action.

#8 - Somatic Dissociation or Emotional Numbing

When the body feels disconnected, it becomes difficult to access or process emotions. A yoga practice can help folks ground in their senses with practice.

Goal: Bringing Awareness to the Body

Chair-Based Asana: Mindfulness Practice, Brushing Hygiene Practice

By introducing mindfulness and brushing practices, clients can slowly start reconnecting with their bodies, heightening awareness of sensations and emotions.

#9 - Reenactments or Revictimization

Survivors of trauma may unknowingly reenact past experiences, leading to cycles of revictimization. *As always, a yoga therapist should work in tandem with a client’s healthcare providers.

Goal: Creating Boundaries

Chair-Based Asana: Sensing Body, Creating Physical Boundaries

Incorporating practices that involve sensing and honoring the body’s space can help clients create healthier emotional and physical boundaries.

#10 - Feeling Helpless or Disempowered

Feelings of helplessness can create a disconnect from the core, leading to physical and emotional stagnation.

Goal: Empowerment (Feeling Core Power)

Chair-Based Asana: Lengthening Spine, Leg Lifts, Standing Postures

Engaging the core with spine-lengthening movements and leg lifts promotes feelings of strength and empowerment. These movements encourage the body to reconnect with its natural sense of power.

#11 - Emotional Numbness, Shutdown, Lethargy (Low Energy)

Low energy and emotional numbness often signal a state of hypoarousal, where the body shuts down in response to overwhelming stimuli.

Goal: Decreasing Hypoarousal

Chair-Based Asana: Activating Postures (Standing), Breathwork

Incorporating activating postures, such as standing and breathwork, stimulates energy flow and brings the body back into balance.

Conclusion

Yoga therapy, especially through chair-based practices, offers a powerful way to address emotional challenges while supporting physical well-being. These gentle, accessible asanas allow clients to work through complex emotions at their own pace, offering them the opportunity to reconnect with their bodies and empower their healing journey.

By integrating these practices into your yoga therapy sessions, you can offer a holistic approach to mental, emotional, and physical health, fostering resilience and inner strength.

Are you a yoga teacher or healthcare practitioner looking to incorporate yoga and mindfulness into your practice? Are you interested in learning more about Yoga in Healthcare? Please check out our annual Yoga in Healthcare Training - as well as our comprehensive yoga therapy certification at Prema Yoga Institute.

Please be advised that the content of this blog is not to be used as a substitution for the opinions and services of your licensed healthcare professional.

What does Pride mean to me?

As a little boy growing up, my family would always encourage me to be my most authentic self as long as I wasn’t being hurtful to others. Looking back on my upbringing, I see it meant that I was able to be friendly, curious, unafraid, loving, expressive, creative, open and adventurous.  It meant that I was able to self define, it meant that I was able to show the world who I was.

Later on, outside of my home and my family, other people and forces tried to define me. To this moment outside forces are still trying to define me. However, because my foundation was so strong, I know fundamentally that the most important defining voice in my life will always be my own.  

Pride means being able to show who you are, without fear, to be able to stand in the light of your truth (Satya), and to know that being your most authentic self, without hurting others, is one of the greatest gifts you can share with the world. Working in the world of therapeutic yoga, I would like to inspire pride in my clients and colleagues because this kind of pride, this freedom, honesty, and self-love practice, can only make you stronger, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.  Practice Pride! Happy Pride!

Dorian Shorts
E-RYT 500
YACEP
Yoga Therapist Candidate 
DorianShorts.com