Trauma-Informed Yoga Therapy

A 4-day online training for yoga therapists, yoga teachers and professionals who want to work with trauma more safely and compassionately.

“When people experience safety, choice and connection, the body can begin to trust again.”

Are you ready to meet your students where they truly are?

You probably know how to guide movement and breathing.

But what happens when someone suddenly freezes?
When a student disconnects from themselves?
When emotions arise that cannot be solved with another posture?

Many yoga teachers and therapists encounter these moments and wonder:

“Am I responding in a way that truly supports this person?”

If you’ve ever wanted to feel more confident, grounded and trauma-sensitive in these situations, this training was created for you.

Rather than learning techniques to “fix” people, you’ll learn how to create the conditions in which people can reconnect with themselves—at their own pace, through safety, choice and compassionate presence.

A practical and experiential training

This four-day online training introduces you to the principles of Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY) and shows you how these principles can enrich your own teaching or therapeutic work.

Together we’ll explore how trauma affects the nervous system, the body and relationships, and how yoga can become an invitation rather than an instruction.

The training combines theory, experiential practice, reflection, discussion and real-life case examples, allowing you to integrate what you learn into your own professional setting.

This training is for you if you are

• A Yoga Therapy trainee (for example through The Yoga Therapy Institute)
• A yoga teacher who wants to offer more trauma-sensitive and inclusive classes
• A healthcare professional, bodyworker or therapist with a basic grounding in yoga
• Curious to deepen your understanding of trauma and embodiment

Whether you’re just beginning this journey or already have experience working with trauma, you are very welcome.

During the training you’ll learn

• The foundations of Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY)
• The neurobiology of trauma and its impact on the body
• How invitational language, interoception and choice support nervous system regulation
• How to recognize and respond to dissociation, hyperarousal and shutdown
• The difference between trauma-informed and trauma-specific practice
• How power, relationship and cultural awareness influence feelings of safety
• How to facilitate yoga with people rather than to people

Training format

• Four live online training days
• Small group learning with plenty of interaction
• Experiential practices
• Reflection and personal feedback
• English spoken
• Self-study assignment between training days
• Access to the online learning platform

Dates

Fall/Autumn 2027 (Online)

Friday 17 September 2027
Saturday 18 September 2027
Sunday 19 September – Self-study day with live online check-in
Friday 24 September 2027

Time: 09:30 – 16:30 CET

Recognition & Accreditation

This training is officially recognised by the Center for Trauma and Embodiment (Brookline, Massachusetts) and is eligible for continuing education with several professional organisations, including:

• International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) – 18 Contact Hours
• Yoga Alliance – 20 Contact Hours

Investment

€500 (excluding 21% VAT)  – total €605 including VAT

An invoice will automatically be provided after registration.

Meet your trainer

Esther van der Sande is a therapist, trainer, mentor and educator specialising in trauma-sensitive yoga and embodiment.

For many years she has worked alongside people recovering from trauma, combining clinical knowledge with a deeply compassionate and person-centred approach. Her teaching style is experiential, practical and relational. Rather than focusing on “doing yoga correctly,” she supports professionals in creating spaces where participants can rediscover agency, choice and connection with themselves.

Esther believes healing doesn’t happen because someone tells us what to do—it happens when people feel safe enough to notice, choose and reconnect in their own way.

This training is organised in collaboration with The Yoga Therapy Institute.

Questions?

If you’re wondering whether this training is right for you, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. I’d be happy to answer your questions or help you explore whether this training fits your learning journey.

You’re warmly invited

If this training resonates with you, I’d love to welcome you. Together we’ll explore how trauma-sensitive yoga can become a practice of safety, dignity, and empowerment—for the people you work with, and for yourself as a practitioner.

With warmth,

Esther van der Sande