Teaching Yoga for Digestive Health

Exploring the content of her book Yoga Therapy for Digestive Health, Charlotte Watts leads this online course to explore the theory and practice for yoga teachers, yoga therapists, experienced practitioners and other body and movement workers. The course will cover the fascial, stress, trauma and sensory connections with digestive issues that are so relevant within yoga philosophy and practice.

What will be covered in this course?

This training will explore how yoga - with its focus on stilling the mind - can have profound effects through the gut-brain axis on conditions such as IBS, IBD, acid reflux, colitis, diverticulitis and more. Over three 4-hour online sessions (3 weeks apart, exploring 6 themes) we will explore the continual communications between the gut and the brain and the relevance of the fascia, vagus nerve, psoas-diaphragm connections, stress, trauma, interoception and proprioception in digestive health. Also how yoga philosophy focuses on accessing this central axis and recognising our need to listen to our visceral states. This is with a view to gaining understanding of digestive system health as the heart of our whole being, relating and health through all other body systems; and how coming back to a mindful asana practice with guidance from gut feelings can feed into an intelligent practice guided by the yamas and gunas. This will be practically applied for students’ practice and teaching approach, exploring how a range of practices (incorporating movement, meditation and breath) can support health through optimal digestive function. Charlotte’s book Yoga Therapy for Digestive Health (Singing Dragon 2018) is recommended supportive reading for the course.

Course Structure

Six Themes for the Live Online Sessions

There are 6 themes to cover the course content (outlined below) – these will be explored in pairs (2 themes per session) over the three live online sessions.

Detailed Study Materials

- A detailed presentation on an area of physiology and how the yoga system can support this. These are pre-recorded in two parts as both video and audio format (self-study) for you to refer back to. - A pre-recorded physical practice to support digestive health in different ways that relate to the week’s theoretical content; including modern anatomical, yoga philosophy and body psychotherapy, as well as stress and trauma links to digestive dysfunction – as video and audio format for you to be able to revisit and explore the practices (self-study). - A supportive practice as an audio resource to bring in other aspects of the yoga path or related, more modern, complementary techniques (self-study).

Practice + Group Discussion

A self-enquiry question around practice and teaching to bring to group discussion.

Theme 1 – Journey around the Digestive System The physicality of the digestive system, including what happens to the food we eat through each part of the digestive tract. Exploring how the gut is a sensory part of us and relationship with the nervous system and how stress and trauma can knock digestion off-course.

Theme 2 – Philosophy for the Modern Gut How key yoga philosophical concepts relate to the very physical realm of digestion, and beyond into our energetics. Exploring the links between nourishment at our centre and the subtle body concepts of nadis and agni, the doshas, the vayus and the koshas.

Theme 3 – Visceral, Subtle and Physical Anatomy How we are organised from the ground up and how the psoas muscle and fascia link movement patterns and held habits with digestive issues. Examining common modern postural issues and how sensitive and intelligent bandhas in yoga asana can help unravel (rather than exacerbate) issues of holding and visceral tightness from stress, trauma and inflammation.

Theme 4 – Body Psychotherapy and the Chakras Using the modern chakra system where body psychotherapy is enrolled, we look at the physical and emotional development of the body from the root up. Exploring this journey from birth to adulthood can help make sense of the contributing factors to digestive issues and how yoga and mindfulness can help unravel these samskaras.

Theme 5 – Specific Conditions Looking at the various digestive conditions from both medical and Ayurvedic perspectives, exploring which movement, meditative and other practices best support their relief. Including lifestyle issues, contributing factors from a naturopathic perspective and contraindications.

Theme 6 – Attitudes to Practice and Teaching Bringing together the previous content into the physical & subtle practices of yoga, both for your own exploration and for teaching others. Awareness, listening, compassion & where fluidity meets containment - for responding to the true needs of the Gut-Brain Axis.

Curriculum

9 Chapters · 63 Lessons

1
Welcome
1. (Included in full purchase)
  Welcome to the Course
2. (Included in full purchase)
  Course Schedule and Content
3. (Included in full purchase)
  Introductions - please say hello here!
4. (Included in full purchase)
  Course reading and referral text
2
Dates and Zoom Links
1. (Included in full purchase)
  Dates of live sessions
2. (Included in full purchase)
  Further Resources from Charlotte
3
Theme One - A Journey Around the Digestive System (in prep for session 1)
1. (Included in full purchase)
  What's Coming Up for Theme 1
2. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: A Journey Around the Digestive System
3. (Included in full purchase)
  MAIN PHYSICAL PRACTICE: Moving from the Belly
4. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - Moving from the belly
5. (Included in full purchase)
  SUPPORTIVE SHORT PRACTICE: Simple Inner Massage
6. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - Simple inner massage.pdf
7. (Included in full purchase)
  Multiple choice questions
8. (Included in full purchase)
  Live practice: CRP to Z-legs to side-lying savasana
9. (Included in full purchase)
  Bonus practice: chair practice into belly, diaphragm, ribs and sacrum
4
Theme Two: Philosophy for the Modern Gut (in prep for session 1)
1. (Included in full purchase)
  What's Coming Up for Theme 2
2. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Philosophy for the Modern Gut
3. (Included in full purchase)
  MAIN PHYSICAL PRACTICE: Embodying Yoga Philosophy - somatic practice
4. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - Embodying yoga philosophy - somatic practice
5. (Included in full purchase)
  SUPPORTIVE SHORT PRACTICE: Embodying Yoga Philosophy - standing practice
6. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - Embodying yoga philosophy - standing practice
7. (Included in full purchase)
  Multiple Choice Questions
5
Theme Three: Visceral, Subtle and Physical Anatomy (in prep for session 2)
1. (Included in full purchase)
  What's Coming Up for Theme 3
2. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Visceral, Subtle and Physical Anatomy
3. (Included in full purchase)
  MAIN PHYSICAL PRACTICE: Visceral, Subtle & Physical Embodiment
4. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images: Visceral, Subtle & Physical Embodiment - Practice Sheets
5. (Included in full purchase)
  SUPPORTIVE SHORT PRACTICE: Lying Spine Undulations
6. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - Lying spine undulations.pdf
7. (Included in full purchase)
  Multiple Choice Questions
8. (Included in full purchase)
  Live class: Z-legs to all-fours, moving from the belly
9. (Included in full purchase)
  Bonus practice: Live class session 2: chair practice into z-legs, supported inversion
6
Theme Four: Body Psychotherapy and the Chakras (in prep for session 2)
1. (Included in full purchase)
  What's Coming Up for Theme 4
2. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Body Psychotherapy & The Chakras
3. (Included in full purchase)
  MAIN PHYSICAL PRACTICE: The Lower Chakras - restorative practice
4. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - The lower chakras - restorative
5. (Included in full purchase)
  SUPPORTIVE SHORT PRACTICE: The Lower Chakras - standing practice
6. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - short practice - The lower chakras - standing
7. (Included in full purchase)
  Multiple Choice Questions
7
Theme Five: Specific Conditions (in prep for session 3)
1. (Included in full purchase)
  What's Coming Up for Theme 5
2. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Specific Conditions 1. Overview of addressing digestive issues
3. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Specific Conditions 2. Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
4. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Specific Conditions 3. Constipation
5. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Specific Conditions 4. Diarrhoea
6. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Specific Conditions 5. Inflammatory Bowel Disease
7. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Specific Conditions 6. Indigestion & reflux
8. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Specific Conditions 7. Diverticuli & haemorrhoids
9. (Included in full purchase)
  Live presentation: overview of the territory & conditions
10. (Included in full purchase)
  MAIN PHYSICAL PRACTICE: Therapeutic Digestive Practices
11. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - Therapeutic digestive practices
12. (Included in full purchase)
  SUPPORTIVE SHORT PRACTICE: Therapeutic Digestive Practices - prone
13. (Included in full purchase)
  practice images - short practice - Therapeutic digestive practices - prone
14. (Included in full purchase)
  Multiple Choice Questions
15. (Included in full purchase)
  Live class session 3: chair to standing to supported inversion over a bolster
16. (Included in full purchase)
  Live class session 3: overview presentation
8
Theme Six: Attitudes to Practice and Teaching (in prep for session 3)
1. (Included in full purchase)
  What's Coming Up for Theme 6
2. (Included in full purchase)
  PRESENTATION: Attitudes to Practice and Teaching
3. (Included in full purchase)
  MAIN PHYSICAL PRACTICE: Teaching Considerations for Digestive Health
4. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images - Teaching Considerations for Digestive Health
5. (Included in full purchase)
  SUPPORTIVE PRACTICE: Somatics - Central Axis & Skull-sacrum Polarity: Reach & Twist
6. (Included in full purchase)
  Practice images- supportive practice - Central Axis & Skull-sacrum Polarity_ Reach & Twist
7. (Included in full purchase)
  Multiple Choice Questions
9
Final assessment - email your work to [email protected]
1. (Included in full purchase)
  End course assessment - class plan
2. (Included in full purchase)
  End course assessment - case studies

What people are saying

Hear from past participants of the Yoga for Digestive Health course:

”

Charlotte is one of the best teachers I have met. She has very deep and thorough understanding about interconnectedness of different body systems and how yoga therapy can help to heal from inside out. Her approach is gentle but deeply effective which is not only easy to understand but also integrate in our daily routine. I would highly recommend Charlotte for her inspiring and deeply informative courses and her health webinars.”

Kinjal P.