Do More Together Wellness Series Session 1: Restorative Yoga

Our community is often overwhelmed and traumatized by the ongoing news reports of senseless, vicious, and arbitrary murders of unarmed Black people. Research in the area of racial harassment and racial discrimination demonstrates that harm can result in debilitating stress for people who have racial encounters that are memorable, out of their control, sudden and are deeply emotionally painful with lasting impact – i.e. race-based traumatic stress injury (RBTSI).

Restorative yoga and meditation uses the tools of meditation and physical relaxation to manage the stress, fear and vulnerability associated with race-related trauma. To avoid stimulating the nervous system and minimizing stress and tension, we practice in complete stillness. We use the breath to activate the parasympathetic nervous system - the part that supports relaxation, and restoration. The relaxation response is the opposite of the stress response, by lowering the heart rate, rate of breathing, blood pressure, and slower brain wave patterns. In this state, yoga creates the condition for the body to heal itself, and shed layers of stress and tension within a sense of safety in stillness.

The first session in this  wellness series is a lesson in self-care through restorative yoga & deep meditation.