Crisis Stabilization Unit partners with Project Yoga Richmond for holistic therapy
Project Yoga Richmond has teamed with our Crisis Stabilization Unit (CSU) for the past year to teach kids how to cope with their emotions through yoga. Yoga activities help offer a holistic approach to treatment by reinforcing the impact of physical health on mental health and increasing self-esteem.
Yoga therapist Carolyn Keller Sells volunteers at the CSU each week. “By the end of each class all the kids seem to have a more peaceful energy,” she said. “Just one hour of yoga can begin the transformation from being anxious or depressed to calm and relaxed.” Even kids who “don’t do yoga” have recognized that it calms them down and say they would do it again.
CSU staff have also engaged in self-care with the help of Project Yoga. Sells provided the team with a session of “Laughter Yoga” that combines laughter exercises with yoga breathing, bringing more oxygen to the body and increasing energy levels. “Yoga has helped the CSU with team building and emphasized the importance of taking care of ourselves as mental health professionals,” said Christa Koshock, Program Manager.
The CSU is a 24/7 six-bed facility for children ages 5-17 in mental health crisis. Learn more about it here.