Mental Health, Brain Science, and Yoga

For everyone, especially mental health professionals, Yoga teachers, Yoga therapists, and healthcare workers.

During this online workshop, learn about integrating Yoga and mental health through research, theory, and practice sessions. Research has shown that mindfulness, meditation, and Yoga practices have the ability to positively impact mental and emotional health. Yoga, neuroscience, and mindfulness powerfully influence resiliency, emotional health, and healing related to anxiety, depression, stress, trauma, and mood states. 

Explore concepts of well-being and health through the lens of brain science, neuropsychology, and Yoga practices. Learn how chronic stress and trauma influence behavior and mood states as well as the influence of the vagus nerve and vagal toning on healing. 

The workshop will include:

• A review of polyvagal theory, stress, and Yoga
• How yogic practices influence our neurobiology, brain, and hormones
• Research on Yoga practices and healing 
• The importance of the vagus nerve and vagal toning.
• Neuro-therapies for healing by both practitioners and for self-healing
• Practices that rewire the brain and positively impact mood states
• Research on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) and how trauma affects mental health and physical health outcomes

Live sessions on weekdays at 11 am–1 pm and 4–6 pm, and on Saturday and Sunday at 11 am–2 pm and 4–6 pm ET.

Attendance at live sessions is required for certification. The live sessions will be recorded and the recordings are usually posted within one day for program participants to review. Recordings will be available for review for 8 weeks after the program ends, until September 28.

Students will be asked to keep their cameras on  and be face to face to the camera during the live online sessions.

In addition you will have access to recorded Ashram meditations and hatha classes, and inspiring talks with Sri Swami Satchidananda. You will also have access to an online social community to connect and communicate with other participants about this course.

Continuing Education (CE) Opportunities

• Yoga Alliance (YA): Approximately 30 contact hours.
  You can input your contact hours using your YA login information.
• Integral Yoga Teachers Association (IYTA) can provide you a CE certificate with your program’s total contact hours for a $10 fee (free for IYTA members.) For more information, email ce@iyta.org.
• International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT): Approved Professional Development (APD) course eligible for IAYT continuing education credits. (It is the students’ responsibility to request a certificate of completion and submit all required documents, hours, syllabus, etc. on the IAYT website.)

Testimonials

These two women are powerhouses of information, passionate about their fields, and compassionate— they are great together. This was very informative for my personal as well as professional life. I will always consider taking classes when these two are the presenters either alone or together. As much as I would have loved to have been at the ashram for the training, the zoom format allowed me to do this whereas it would have been too time and monetarily restrictive if it had been just in person. Thanks for offering the zoom format! I highly recommend any trainings from Yogaville. In addition to fabulous expert speakers, you will enjoy the sangha of community and getting to know other enthusiastic life long learners as well as the addition of meditation, hatha yoga classes, and lunchtime talks. Dr.s Mala and Amy make a great team. Loved my training with them on Mental Health, Brain Science and Yoga— so good— not enough words! — Susan Shanthi Polk

This course, Mental Health, Brain Science, and Yoga with Dr. Mala Cunningham and Dr. Amy Wheeler was extraordinary. Both of them shared their expertise, experience, compassion, and empathy with all of us in attendance. The research they presented on yoga practice and yogic breath, on yoga and the brain and mental health, was particularly convincing and reaffirming. All in all, the course was life-transforming for me personally and in a very practical way. The presenters were extremely professional, knowledgeable, personable, helpful, reassuring and supportive for the whole 7-day training session. — Susan Grabara

What an informative and engaging course! I couldn’t have asked for anything more. Both Dr. Amy and Dr. Mala were superb. Their expertise and delivery were second to none. What a beautiful partnership. As a yoga therapist in training, the content of this course was of particular interest to me. I wanted to learn more about how to share the beautiful tools we have in yoga, and also be able to provide my clients with the scientific knowledge to support these sacred teachings. This was such a transformative course. Being able to support the sacred teaching of yoga with scientific evidence for healing will just be so beneficial in helping to bring yoga to a broader audience. I am beyond grateful for Dr. Amy and Dr. Mala for giving us the tools we need to not only take our own personal yoga practices to the next level, but to also be able to confidently share these beautiful tools and ancient wisdom with others on their own journey towards healing. —A. Baric