HYC is MoCo’s Home for Yoga Therapy!
Is a chronic condition keeping you from feeling healthy?
Do you wrestle with negative beliefs, feelings of disconnection and loneliness?
Is stress or trauma preventing you from experiencing calm and rest?
Try the transformative practice of Yoga Therapy.
Draw on the wisdom of your own body to help change your experiences, heal your conditions, and alleviate your suffering.
What is Yoga Therapy?
Yoga therapy is the "professional application of principles and practices of yoga to promote health and well-being" and is founded on the concept that holistic application of evidence-based yoga practices can affect positive change in the human condition. (IAYT, 2016). Yoga therapy is meant to empower YOU as the primary agent of change, and equip you with the tools to heal yourself.
What does a
Yoga Therapy session look like?
Yoga therapy sessions are offered one-on-one or sometimes in small groups, and they are facilitated by our certified yoga therapists who have training in both yoga and therapeutic techniques. For individual sessions,
each is as unique as you are, because they are customized and tailored to your individual needs and desired outcomes.
Meet Our Therapists
Here at the Happy Yogi Co-op, we are proud to have 4 different staff members who are Certified Yoga Therapists (C-IAYTs).
Dr. Monya Cohen
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Monya’s life changing yoga journey began more than 20 years ago. She discovered that a consistent yoga practice decreased feelings of depression and anxiety and eliminated her low back pain.
Monya is a licensed psychologist, registered yoga teacher and a certified Phoenix Rising Yoga therapist. Phoenix Rising is client centered and regarded as the yoga of self-discovery. She is dedicated to bringing a unique yoga therapy experience to her students. She believes in the healing power of yoga and the process of transformation as you embody awareness, acceptance, and activation of change. Monya coaches her yoga clients to focus on aspects of life awareness as they engage in yoga postures that take them to their edge.
Monya practices yoga with adults and adolescents of all ages and levels of mobility. She leads yoga workshops, teaches yoga and yoga therapy, and co-facilitates a yoga book club.
Monya is in private practice as a licensed psychologist in Maryland and is PSYPACT approved to provide virtual therapy across state lines. She is an adjunct faculty teaching trauma electives and coaching psychology graduate students at The Chicago School in Washington DC.
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Yoga therapy is the perfect antidote for depression, anxiety, trauma, and many other physical and mental barriers to achieving a fulfilling life. Yoga therapy provides a quiet space to slow down, notice the present moment, and stop all the doing; and simply be.
Yoga therapy sessions with Monya begin with a complete review of your health and mental health history as well as an assessment of your body’s strength and mobility. Assessment also includes your awareness of your physical body in space and your internal physiological sensations. While holding various gentle yoga postures, you will become more aware of sensation, feeling and emotions in the body. Together, you will create a plan to meet the needs of your body on and off the yoga mat.
As a student of yoga therapy, you will enhance the tools you already possess for living a more productive and satisfying life. You will become more skilled in self-inquiry, self-validation, breathing, body scan, journaling, and Yoga Nidra (guided sleep like meditation).
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E-RYT 200; C-IAYT; YACEP
BS in Psychology; MS in Social Work; Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology200-Hour YTT: Inner Axis Yoga
200-Hour YTT: Radiant Child Family Yoga
900-Hour Yoga Therapy: Phoenix Rising YogaOther Training:
Reiki Certification Levels 1 & 2
Level 1 iRest Yoga Nidra Teacher
Lisa Danahy
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Lisa Danahy is a registered yoga therapist (C-IAYT, MS-Yoga Therapy, BA-Psychology) and advanced trainer (IAYT and Yoga Alliance YACEP). Lisa specializes in making yoga an accessible and successful means for behavioral and emotional regulation, as well as physical and mental health. Her master’s thesis on Yoga for Polymyalgia Rheumatica and Secondary Osteoporosis was recognized at multiple research symposiums and won the MUIH Provost Award. Lisa has supported yoga therapy clients with a number of chronic health conditions and injuries. She regularly works with neurodiverse, disabled, and underserved children and young adults through her non-profit, Create Calm. She also provides evidence-based foundational and advanced child-centered trainings through Radiant Child Yoga to enrich the lives of educators, therapists, parents, and caregivers in practices of self-care and resiliency. Lisa is a published author and national conference presenter and is grateful for every opportunity she has to co-create healing and healthy living.
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In a yoga therapy session with Lisa, you can expect compassionate exploration, flexible pacing, and collaborative goal setting.
We will customize a home plan of care including mindful movement, breathing techniques, meditation, and lifestyle practices as they best serve your specific needs.
Your yoga therapy journey begins with a confidential, in-depth intake process. Together, we will assess the breath, musculoskeletal system, and nervous system, and how they currently and can support your overall health.
Our goals will include:
-eliminating, reducing, managing symptoms of suffering.
-improving function.
-helping to prevent the occurrence or recurrence of underlying causes of illness.
-moving toward improved health and well-being.
-finding more joy and harmony in every day.A unique part of the process of yoga therapy is that it calls upon you to be a self-advocate, to be open to the idea of change and its possibilities, and to provide feedback on what is working and what might not be right.
Lisa believes in the power of every person to heal and experience greater joy and well-being. Yoga therapy provides the ideal platform for real and substantive personal growth.
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MS Yoga Therapy
BA in Psychology
C-IAYT, E-RYT 500, RCYT, YACEP, MSDE & DCOSSE Approved Trainer200-Hour YTT: Pranakriya Yoga (Santa Fe, NM)
200-Hour YTT: Radiant Child & Family Yoga
800-Hour YTT: Maryland University of Integrative HealthOther Training
Foundation of Kundalini Yoga Therapy
Adhaya Therapeutic Yoga
Divine Sleep Yoga Nidra
Gentle Somatic Yoga
Pranakriya Prenatal Yoga
Kripalu Yoga in Schools
Radiant Child Trainer
Charlene Muhammad
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Charlene Marie Muhammad, a wellness practitioner, practicing yoga for over 30 years is a E-RYT500 yoga teacher. Since 2006, Charlene teaches weekly yoga classes for communities of color and facilitates YTT 200- and 300-hour core requirements workshops for YTT schools around the United States. She was the yoga interventionist for the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Disease clinical study Yoga as Self-Care for Arthritis in Minority Communities (NCT01617421). The study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of providing yoga to an urban, minority population with arthritis. Charlene has presented workshops and lectures at local, regional, national, and most recently international venues such as the keynote: Health equity and access to care: yoga’s important role in healing for the Global Yoga Therapy Day Conference (2021).
Charlene holds a Master of Science Degree in Herbal Medicine from Maryland University of Integrative Health (MUIH) and is a licensed dietitian and certified yoga therapist. She is a member of the Black Yoga Teachers Alliance (BYTA) Board of Directors, served as chair for the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Task Force for the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT), and provides mentorship for the Yoga for Arthritis teacher certification program and the Certified Nutrition Specialist certification program.
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Yoga therapy with Charlene begins with information-gathering about your health history, review of lifestyle factors such as diet and movement, and discussion of your current concerns. Together, we establish a goal for your future well-being.
Your individualized therapeutic Hatha Yoga protocol will focus on principles of physical alignment and strategies for pain relief if needed. As a practicing herbalist and licensed dietician, Charlene may offer dietary and supplementation strategies in addition to the individualized yoga practice.
After an initial consultation with Charlene, clients usually have two to three follow-up sessions to track health status goals.
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E-RYT 500, C-IAYT
MS in Herbal Medicine
CNS, LD200-Hour YTT: Yoga Center of Columbia
500-Hour YTT: Yoga Center of ColumbiaOther Training:
Certified Yoga for Arthritis Teacher
Carrie Vieira
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Carrie Vieira is a certified yoga therapist who has been teaching yoga, meditation, and mindfulness in the community since 2010. In addition to being certified with the International Association of Yoga Therapists, Carrie holds a 500-hour Yoga Alliance teacher certification, a Master's degree in Humanities and Social Thought, a mindfulness meditation teacher certification, and post-baccalaureate certifications in Educational Leadership and Equity in Education. Carrie has also spent time in India studying the ancient science of yoga so that she can more accurately integrate ancient wisdom with modern-day research and application. She currently serves in our public schools as a specialist in student behavioral health, fostering restorative learning communities that incorporate mindfulness and self-care practices. She specializes in the teaching of mindful movement, meditation, and breathing practices to help clients manage stress, process trauma, navigate difficult emotions, heal relationships, and connect with a deeper sense of life purpose. Additional areas of focus include anxiety, relationships, prenatal wellness, restorative parenting, and adolescence. The guiding principles of Carrie’s approach include (1) honoring our inner wisdom, (2) living in a balanced way, and (3) recognizing our interconnectedness with all of life. She uses a client-centered, individualized approach and works with adolescents and adults of all ages and levels of experience and mobility.
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Yoga therapy utilizes all eight limbs of yoga to help us discover the truth of who we are. Along the way, we get to release old hurts, heal relationships, relieve pain and stress, discover our capacity to love and be loved, and unlock possibilities we couldn’t even imagine when we first embarked on our journey of healing and self-discovery!
In yoga therapy sessions, we develop personalized practices that incorporate mindful movement, breathwork, meditation, and inner reflection to access healing, inner balance, peace, connection, well-being, and joy. Carrie’s work as a yoga therapist is rooted in the guiding principles of (1) honoring our inner wisdom, (2) living in a balanced way, and (3) recognizing our interconnectedness with all of life. Some of her specific areas of focus include stress management, anxiety, relationships, prenatal wellness, restorative parenting, and adolescence.
Carrie is personally driven by a passion to see humanity free itself from suffering and live fearlessly, joyfully, and lovingly. Her work as a yoga therapist is, ultimately, to collaborate with clients as they discover the knowledge, resources, and power they have within themselves to heal, evolve, and transcend.
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RYT 500, C-IAYT
MA in Humanities and Social Thought200-Hour YTT: Thrive Yoga
300-Hour YTT: Yoga Renew
800-hour Yoga Therapy: Purusha Yoga SchoolOther Training:
Meditation Techer Training at The Mindfulness Center (160 hr)
Book a Session
To begin, schedule an initial consultation by filling out the form below,
or by contacting one of our Yoga Therapists directly.
You will then be prompted to complete a confidential, personalized, comprehensive intake assessment to discuss your health goals and conditions, such as: your body’s mobility and flexibility, any chronic medical conditions, short-term illnesses or injuries, as well as symptoms of depression, anxiety, or trauma you are experiencing.
From there, through a process of collaborative goal setting, a customized plan of care will be developed for you which may include mindful movement, breathing techniques, meditation, and lifestyle practices.
Cost
60 min for $150
75 min for $170
90 min for $200
Please fill out the form below to inquire about booking a session with our of our amazing Yoga Therapists.
FAQs
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Yoga Therapists work with clients to develop and implement self-empowering therapeutic plans within a yoga therapy framework. Unless otherwise and specifically licensed to do so, Yoga Therapists do not diagnose physical or psychological conditions, recommend changes to a client’s nutrition, or apply physical manipulation. Yoga therapy professionals are governed by the standards of the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT).
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Your Yoga Therapist will draw upon current evidence-based yoga practices to provide services in a nondiscriminatory manner. She will work with the client to develop self-empowering therapeutic goals appropriate to the client’s needs and oriented around prevention and health promotion. She will be direct, honest, and clear in explaining practices and making recommendations, and will protect the confidentiality of information acquired in the course of care.
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A yoga therapy client is expected to be:
-a self-advocate and the primary agent of change;
-open to the idea of change and its possibilities;
-clear on his or her goals for yoga therapy and conducive to meeting those goals;
-responsible for engaging and maintaining routines;
-genuine and realistic in conversations; and
-able to tell his or her Yoga Therapist anything that does not seem or feel right.
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Yes! Yoga therapists are often part of a multidisciplinary team that collaborates to optimize care of the client. As certified and extensively trained specialists, yoga therapists maintain a network of and engage with other healthcare professionals as appropriate and use best practice referral and feedback processes to optimize client health and well-being outcomes.
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