The Yoga Pro Podcast: Trauma Informed Yoga for Marginalized Populations

Trauma Informed Yoga for Marginalized Populations

Jan 6, 2021

Summary:

Yoga outreach for marginalized populations is important and challenging work that requires a strong constitution and a background in trauma informed yoga. De Jur Jones, C-IAYT, has been a yoga devotee since 2001. She attended Loyola Marymount university's yoga therapy program and she teaches victim-centered trauma-informed yoga to those who are at-risk, under-resourced, and trauma impacted. She also teaches therapeutic accessible yoga to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated adults. She offers yoga therapy to populations in recovery, those unhoused, the mentally challenged, seniors, those trying to leave the life of sex trafficking, and foster youth.

Topics:

[2:23] De Jur describes how she found yoga

[5:31] What inspired her to work with incarcerated individuals

[7:53] De Jur talks about working with diversion programs

[9:05] What it is like to work in a prison

“Visually it is, yeah, everything I thought it would be, which is sometimes disturbing and eye-opening. But the people, the incarcerated people were very grateful”

[10:07] How she uses trauma informed practices to work with the prison population

“I ask them to remember the things that we're doing so that if their back is sore another day; [oh and we leaned forward a little bit, that felt, I felt relief from that]. So not just teaching, like, "hi, I'm here to give you some yoga and I'm on my way", but tools for future use when they don't have a teacher in front of them.”

[12:28] De Jur shares her insight on the difference between seva and free labor

[14:20] Knowing your role as a yoga provider in the prison system

[15:34] Mental strength it takes to work in a prison

“When I first turned and looked in this room and there's four human beings in cages, I got a little nauseous. But I'm in there now, and I cannot, I mean, I could have turned back and gone out, but you know, it took a lot for me to get on that fifth floor, so I'm not leaving.”

[16:35] De Jur shares a story of the impact that yoga had on one of her student’s life

[18:08] Facts about the prison system and capitalization

[24:51] De Jur’s favorite yoga tools for working with incarcerated people

[28:45] Why she doesn’t use a lot of yoga terminology

[32:12] An explanation of the different types of trauma

[39:09] What a trauma informed yoga class looks like

[42:23] Whether or not to use music

[45:51] Challenging perceptions of what a yoga teacher looks like

[47:41] Having integrity to refer other yoga professionals

[49:23] De Jur shares some of her favorite trauma informed pros and resources

Connect with De Jur:

www.idreaminyoga.com