Yoga Teacher | 1000 Hour Yoga Certification | Yoga Therapy Program

What is Yoga Therapy?

Yoga Therapy is a holistic approach to wellness, often done with one-on-one clients, that integrates the ancient principles of yoga with contemporary therapeutic practices to support individuals in managing their health and well-being. Yoga Therapy can be done in a studio class setting as well. At the core of yoga therapy is the understanding that the mind and body are interconnected, and improving the function of one can positively affect the other. Our program has been specifically designed with a trauma aware, trauma informed approach for healing and transformation.

What Does A Yoga Therapist Do?

All of the classes are taught in person, in our beautiful yoga studio located in Tempe, Arizona. Our program is 100% residential.
SWIHA is the only accredited yoga therapy program in Arizona offering a pathway toward certification with the International Association of Yoga Therapy (IAYT) which gives you world recognized credibility. We focus on you feeling both competent and confident in your abilities to work with others.
You will be trained to be trauma aware and trauma sensitive based on the most current research on trauma-informed care approaches. We are committed to providing a safe, secure, and predictable environment surrounded by a like-minded community as the foundation.

Why Study at the Southwest Institute of Healing Arts (SWIHA)?

Our program is 100% residential. All of the classes are taught in person, in our beautiful yoga studio located in Tempe, Arizona
Our program is accredited by the Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training (ACCET); our program is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education
SWIHA is the only accredited yoga therapy program in Arizona offering a pathway toward certification with the International Association of Yoga Therapy (IAYT).
Our program is trauma-informed, providing a safe, secure, and predictable environment surrounded by a like-minded community as the foundation of our program.

What is trauma-informed yoga?

Trauma-informed yoga teachers are trained to be conscious of trauma and understand how can show up in the practice of yoga
We educate our yoga teachers on the fact that 70% of adults have experienced some kind of traumatic event in their life, according to the National Council for Mental Wellbeing. We teach in a way that offers a space for healing from trauma, rather than triggering or reactivating it.
We strive to teach increased body awareness (interoception) in a safe and controlled way, which can promote feelings of physical, emotional, and psychological safety
We address nervous system dysregulation and the various fight-flight-freeze patterns that show up in people’s lives on and off the mat, which are common after experiencing trauma.

Rhonda Vroman
MBA, (RYT), E-RYT - 500, YACEP and C-IAYT

serves as the Program Director for our Yoga Therapy program. In addition to a distinguished corporate career, Rhonda has extensive training in Yoga Nidra and Yoga Therapy/ Yoga Body Psychology, plus Integral Breath Therapy. She brings a gentle, trauma-aware approach to her classes designed to help students feel at ease. Rhonda is deeply steeped in yoga philosophy, as well as all the Amrit I AM Yoga ™ therapies included in this diploma. She is passionate about introducing this practice to people, to support the healing journey of clients and students in learning how to guide in this modality.

Kamini Desai PH.D

has been offering her training residentially at SWIHA for over 13 years. She is the co-founder and curriculum developer of I AM Yoga Nidra, founder of I AM Yoga Therapy, and the former director of the 800-hour IAYT- Accredited I AM Yoga Therapy program. Kamini is the daughter of Yogi Amrit Desai, one of the original yoga masters who pioneered the popularity of yoga in the West, and the founder of Kripalu Center and Amrit Yoga Institute. She now serves as the Director of I AM Education featuring advanced studies and training in personal development and serves as a key advisor to SWIHA’s 1000-hour Integrative Yoga Therapy Diploma.

KC Miller E-RYT

is the founder of the Southwest Institute of Healing Arts and co-creator of the 1000-hour Integrative Yoga Therapy Diploma. For over 35 years she has been practicing yoga, training with Michael Lee of Phoenix Rising Yoga, as well as many other longtime yogis including Gurudev Shri Amritji Desai, Baron Baptiste, Mark Whitwell, Kali Ray, and Swami Sivananda Radha. She is a certified meditation teacher with the Radiance Sutra School of Meditation, studying with Loren Roche and from the Ananda Institute of Yogic Wisdom. KC is a massage therapist, Reiki Master Teacher, Polarity Practitioner, Life Coach, and author. Her passion is studying yoga sutras and translating them into current-day applications.

Who can enroll in this program?

Start from the beginning, in one of our upcoming 200-Hour Yoga Teacher training and pursue some of your Advanced coursework at the same time.
If you have taken your 200 hours of YTT training from SWIHA, you can transfer those hours towards the 1000-hour Yoga Therapy program.
Transfer your 200-hour training from another Yoga Alliance-approved program and begin your advanced yoga studies as soon as your schedule aligns.
Potential applicants of this program must be in good mental health and capable of holding a therapeutic space for themselves and others.