Welcome to Functional Yoga Therapy™Advanced Assessment Techniques. This program offering incorporates techniques of ancient yoga practices, while combining modern wisdom to identify imbalances and facilitate healing. With evidence-based modern learning, we maintain our inspiration from ancient tradition, primarily the classical yoga of Patanjali.

Functional Yoga Therapy is deeply rooted in self-awareness and self-care. This approach allows the practitioner to cultivate self-observation as well as provide the steppingstones for our clients to understand themselves as a fully integrative whole human being on their journey towards enlightenment. This curriculum continues to evolve without losing touch with its initial vision of empowering individuals in their progress towards improved health and well-being.

A new paradigm has opened across the world, mainly due to Covid-19 and its future implications of providing care.  In the world of Yoga Therapy, online virtual assessments and treatment are playing a more important role, in a manner consistent with the broader concept of Telehealth.  This concept is beginning to move rapidly through the complementary health modalities, including Yoga Therapy.  

Extending services as Yoga Therapists and Movement Specialists to a broader audience beyond just our local communities is a great opportunity.  It is also an opportunity to serve the rural areas around the world, who would like to receive alternative therapeutic formats of care; and a variety of other localities beyond where you live.  

Functional Yoga Therapy™ is now offering its signature advanced training in a virtual format once per year.  Within the virtual platform, we have re-created this large body of work to incorporate a very multi-dimensional teaching and learning environment.  The new teaching format for Functional Yoga Therapy Advanced Assessment Techniques will allow each student to be heard, be seen, have all of their questions and needs addressed.  In addition, we will continue to offer this signature advanced training “in-person” every other year. Please check the website for an updates on the schedule.

Upon completion of this training, each student should be able to grasp the field of knowledge related to Functional Yoga Therapy™, and also to understand how to use its techniques in a virtual environment as well as in-person with a client.  Your take-away will be a bigger market of employability.  

To replicate the depth of learning and personal connection we feel at in-person courses, we have organized the addition of more assistants and teaching faculty.  You will be assigned a mentor for your learning needs.  The mentors I have chosen are highly trained Yoga Therapy colleagues of mine.  Please note: these mentors will also be assigned to you for the in-person trainings.

In addition to the Virtual format, we will continue to offer the In-Person training format, in a hybrid format that includes preparatory work and videos on our learning system, and then an in-person component with Maria and other faculty.  This Hybrid format will also include working with a mentor.  

To go with both the virtual and in-person learning environments you will have access to a library of videos that address all of the various assessments, treatment techniques, and therapeutic tips.  Instead of just the intensive weekend (both virtual and in-person), you will note a compendium of preparatory work, divided into sections with easy to follow learning.  

Our time together in both the virtual and in-person classroom during the scheduled dates will be meaningful with a learning pace ideal to learning retention. With the addition of assigned mentors to help you with your questions as you complete the preparatory work prior to our virtual classroom time it is our hope that you will feel much more comfortable in taking this learning into your private yoga therapy practices.

There is a private virtual room via Facebook where you can interact with teachers, mentors and each other to clarify specific techniques, get your questions answered, and receive greater support as all of you move forward in this endeavor.  You will be sent a link to sign up for this private Facebook page.  If you do not get this link, please contact my assistant.

Just to clarify, here is what your training will provide:

• An extensive newly updated training manual, which includes Tele-health concepts and specific “how-to’s” of virtual assessment. 
• A set of preparatory learning modules to be done self-paced within the on-line learning system
• 1:1 session time with your assigned Functional Yoga Therapy Mentor.
• Live Zoom classroom with Maria Shamas and other faculty. 
• Access to the recording of each virtual classroom experience.
• Specialized learning modules in addition to all of the assessment and treatment techniques that Functional Yoga Therapy is known for:
  • Pelvic Floor Yoga Therapy
  • Yoga Therapy for Balance & other proprioceptive issues
  • Body/Jaw Alignment: learning the team approach for working with TMJ issues as a Yoga Therapist
  • Neurogenic Yoga Therapeutics and Trauma Release

• Access to the Online Teacher Training Portal, which includes Assessment and Treatment videos.   
• Access to our private intern/mentor/faculty Facebook group site for collegial conversation, clarification of concepts and techniques, and networking.  

Thank you for choosing Functional Yoga Therapy™.

Namaste.

Maria Shamas, RN, MS, C-IAYT
Director, Functional Yoga Therapy™
MariaAlive Therapeutics