The specific core concept for this module is to shine light upon the clients healing journey, showing greater comfort and ease of movement and healing. The restorative poses used to release areas of tightness and gentle yoga poses are utilized to build strength and mobility.

The goal for implementation with the client is to reduce lower back pain and hamstring tightness by exploring restorative poses and sharing tools that the client can take with them and perform on a regular basis. We'll explore the 'Connect and Let Go' sequence.' We meet once every other week for about an hour each session.

Male, 26 year old, mild scoliosis, no injuries, frequents the gym and loves to weight lift. Client is relatively healthy and maintains an active lifestyle. The main areas of pain arise at the lower back and hamstrings. Patient has a history of mild scoliosis and has vocalized his main need is to release the tightness in his lower back. Frequently does deadlifting and squatting with heavy weights at the gym which makes his back feel "super tense and locked in place" afterwards.

Prior to meeting the client, I anticipated moving through the poses with a brief grounding practice to start and finish. My plan was to weave in the teachings for the mind and body throughout the practice by relating it back to his experiences, but this went much deeper than I anticipated. My goal is to give him tools that seem manageable enough for him to keep up with on his time and give him a short stretching routine for pre and post workouts.

The branches used throughout the session include Hatha Yoga and some supporting elements from Raja Yoga. We also experienced some brief Japa Yoga to a little open and close the session. Hatha Yoga was used for the physical asanas and poses as well as in the gentle yoga experienced in each restorative pose. Hatha Yoga was also utilized in the deep relaxation and pranayama portions of the session. These branches of yoga help create a safe space for healing to take place allowing the client to relax and soak in the benefits of the practice. They also physically support the body through the props and gentle movement to enable the reduction of pain and discomfort.

Client was very open and will to try new poses and enjoyed the use of props to deepen into the poses. New to and not as comfortable with the breathing practices and guided meditations although he was still very open to trying them.
Clients goals for the session primarily include physical wellbeing - would like help in finding ways for his muscles to relax and recover and prevent injury.
Excited to have a routine that he can use on his own time to relieve hamstring tightness and lower back pain.
Expressed gratitude to have a space where he can relax his mind and take care of himself and his body.
Works desk job - sitting at computer for long hours throughout the day and also experiences back pain after a long day at work. - Suggestion to experiment with gentle yoga poses when seated for long periods of time at work to utilize when he begins to feel aches and pains in the lower back.

Follow up suggestions included various videos to watch and follow along with either before a workout, in the morning before work, or the in evening after work. These practices will enable him to maintain progress and manage pain. Suggestion to watch videos, observe which practices stick out to them and then do their best to incorporate one of the teachings/poses from the videos or that he experienced during our session to turn into a daily practice. And then the next time we meet we will discusses his explorations, discoveries, and personal practices. I also mentioned if there are any questions, concerns or feedback after our session to please feel free to email me.

Yes, for the most part I was able to apply the intended plan once I met with the client. Although he is not fully where he hopes to be just yet we have made significant steps toward achieving his goals. Throughout the session, the client did feel a reduction of pain and discomfort and was feeling that they were more "open" generally and had slightly increased there ROM in the hips. I was also able to share a few resources for the client to experiment with in the time between sessions.

I did adapt the guided meditation during the final relaxation pose to accommodate the areas that were grabbing his attention during the body scan at the beginning of the session, which we did briefly prior to the first breathing practice. Although prior to the session he mentioned hamstring tightness, the primary focus of this session was the lower back and relaxing mental stress caused by work life. Through the adaptations I learned that the session itself can be a bit more fluid and that there is space to adjust and tweak the session (mid-session) to accommodate the clients needs.

If I faced a similar situation again in the future, I would have emphasized the mental wellbeing and focused on relieving that stress a little more. Although I did touch on the subject by using pranayama and subtle suggestions from the teachings, I didn't go into great detail or probe further questions. I stayed in the comfort zone of the poses therefore for future sessions I would like to explore that mental aspect of his pain and discomfort a little more and how that relates to what he's experiencing in the body. For this session, I primarily focus on the physical body and how that effects the mind, not vice versa. For future sessions, I hope to explore the subtle body and how that affects the body on a gross level. Overall, I would like to work on feeling more comfortable and confident adapting the sessions on the spot to the clients needs.