What Is Yoga Therapy?

Yoga therapy is a specialized practice that goes beyond traditional yoga classes. It’s designed to address specific health conditions by using targeted yoga healing techniques that not only improve bodily function but also provide relief from stress. When clients pursue yoga therapy, they engage in a customized healing journey aimed at alleviating symptoms and enhancing overall wellness.

The therapeutic benefits of yoga have been proven through centuries of practice and modern scientific research. Yoga therapy taps into proven yoga healing modalities to reduce or manage symptoms, improve bodily function, restore balance, manage emotions, and help cope with chronic mental and physical conditions.

Yoga International describes the role of the yoga therapist as follows:

“[Yoga] therapists are trained to assess clients through listening, questioning, observing, and appropriately touching. Therapists look for ways to help their clients reduce or manage their symptoms, improve their function, and help them with their attitude in relation to their health conditions. After assessing clients, therapists establish appropriate goals, develop a practice intervention, and then teach clients to practice that intervention. In this sense, therapists choose yoga techniques in relation to how they will specifically benefit individual clients.”  — Gary Kraftsow, Yoga International

How is Yoga Therapy Different from Standard Yoga Practice?

Think of yoga therapy as a prescribed remedy within a treatment plan.

Yoga therapy is for anyone who wants to address a health or relationship issue through the healing power of yoga. Unlike a typical yoga class that focuses solely on poses and techniques, a yoga therapy session is a focused, therapeutic intervention designed to support a pre-identified set of health issues.

Dr. Atoosa uses yoga therapy as an adjunctive treatment to help children, teens, and adults dealing with anxiety, insomnia, ADHD, chronic pain, asthma, post-COVID syndromes, digestive issues, menstrual challenges, injuries, and acute or ongoing stress. She also offers prenatal yoga for those adjusting to bodily changes and the emotional transition to parenthood.

Note: While yoga therapy is a primary treatment tool for some conditions, Dr. Atoosa typically uses it in combination with other treatments and as part of an interdisciplinary care team. It is not a substitute for the diagnostic and therapeutic approaches of allopathic and integrative medicine.

Personalized Yoga Therapy Solutions for Lasting Wellness

Dr. Atoosa, a board-certified yoga therapist, blends her medical expertise with the time-honored art of yoga therapy to create personalized treatment plans. Her sessions incorporate specialized yoga healing techniques designed for stress relief and overall health improvement. Whether you’re coping with anxiety, insomnia, or chronic pain, her individualized approach offers a powerful complement to traditional treatments—helping you achieve sustainable wellness and renewed vitality.

An avid yogini since her teens, Dr. Atoosa began prescribing yoga poses and breathing techniques in a clinical setting. She has guided injured athletes with gentle therapeutic poses and supported teenagers through calming breath practices and meditation. Dr. Atoosa is certified to teach:

• Hatha Yoga (Viniyoga, the parent lineage of yoga therapy)

• Kundalini Yoga (Radiant Child Teacher Certification)

• Pre- and Post-Natal Yoga

She has completed advanced studies in yoga anatomy, alignment, pranayama, and meditation, and is certified as a yoga therapist through Yoga Alliance.

Harnessing Yoga Healing for Stress Relief and Holistic Health

Yoga for stress is more than just a series of poses, it’s a comprehensive approach that integrates mindful movement, breathwork, and meditation to restore balance.

During a yoga therapy session, Dr. Atoosa, a certified yoga therapist, assesses your individual needs and tailors practices to reduce anxiety, ease chronic pain, and promote emotional resilience. This time-tested form of yoga healing, supported by modern scientific research, addresses both physical and mental aspects of well-being.

When clients seek out Dr. Atoosa as a yoga therapist, they are not coming solely to learn yoga but to get relief from symptoms or health conditions. In most cases, the focus is on how tailored yoga techniques can help them feel better and improve function.

WHEN I WAS PREGNANT WITH MY FIRSTBORN, ATOOSA NURTURED ME SO MUCH. SHE WOULD COME TO MY HOUSE AND LEAD ME IN PRENATAL YOGA. AFTERWARDS I WOULD FALL INTO A DEEP, HEALING SLEEP. THROUGH GUIDED MEDITATION SHE HELPED CALM MY MIND AND BODY. WHEN I EXPERIENCED BACK AND PELVIC PAIN, SHE GAVE ME TIPS ON HOW TO MOVE MY BODY MINDFULLY—FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN GETTING OUT OF THE CAR, TAKE BOTH LEGS OUT AND THEN STAND UP RATHER THAN TWIST AND STAND IN ONE MOVEMENT. THESE TIPS HELPED SO MUCH!

Work with Dr. Atoosa as a Yoga Therapist

• Personalized Yoga Therapy Treatment: Receive an individualized treatment plan with a prescribed block of one-on-one sessions based on your specific needs.

• Private Classes, Workshops and Retreats: Enjoy tailored sessions for individuals or groups covering topics like yoga basics, managing repetitive stress injuries, and prenatal yoga for anxiety.

• Wellness Programming for Corporations, Organizations and Schools: Benefit from customized programs addressing stress reduction, meditation, focus, performance, cognitive enhancement, burnout mitigation, and more.

Schedule a consultation

Use the contact form below to schedule a free 20-minute consultation with our team to learn how yoga therapy could benefit you, your community, or your workplace.

Practice yoga and breathwork with Dr. Atoosa

Experience the centering guidance of Dr. Atoosa as she demonstrates meditative breathwork and healing yoga routines.