| This phenomenological study highlights the importance of the use of the spiritual somatic practice of Kundalini Yoga in actively and consciously healing our bodies, clearing our minds, and reconnecting us to our spirits, thereby empowering ourselves to transform our lives. The particular focus was a mindful inquiry that explored the lived outcomes of participants' experience of healing trauma through Kundalini Yoga.;The research context included a review of literature on the impact of trauma on survivors, including neurobiological and psychosocial effects. I also reviewed studies on the use of somatic and mindfulness methods for treating trauma, as well as studies related to somatics, yoga, and phenomenology. For further contextualization I reviewed the different types of yoga, and presented a description of the history and practice of Kundalini Yoga.;Twelve Kundalini Yoga practitioners in the greater Los Angeles area, who claimed they experienced healing of personal trauma through their yoga practice, were interviewed in order to uncover the answer to the research question: What are the lived outcomes experienced by practitioners who claim healing of personal trauma through the practice of Kundalini Yoga? .;Their embodied descriptions were analyzed using Edmund Husserl's eidetic method to reveal the essences of life in the aftermath of trauma and life after having experienced healing through the practice of Kundalini Yoga. Data gathered through in- depth interviewing served to clarify and illuminate what is described in prior research as symptoms such as poor body awareness; difficulty feeling, identifying, and regulating emotions; negative self-perceptions; difficulty connecting to both internal and external experiences; experiencing uncertainty, as well as lack of meaning and purpose in their lives.;The central emergent concept was "awareness" as expressed through six themes: (a) acceptance, (b) agency, (c) authority, (d) allowing, (e) appreciation, and (f) authenticity. Without awareness, there was no growth, healing, or transformation. The findings suggested that daily practice of Kundalini Yoga not only provides healing in mind, body, and spirit for trauma survivors, but is also a growth-fostering intervention.;My research supports the call for including body and spirituality in healing practice in order to foster post-traumatic growth, a conception present in prior research. In addition, the results resonate with Maslow's qualities of self-actualization.;Key words: yoga; Kundalini yoga; awareness; posttrautmatic thriving; awareness; trauma healing; acceptance; agency; authority; allowing; appreciation; authenticity; transformation; mind, body, and spirit healing, mind-body-spirit healing, phenomenology. |
