Introducing Yoga for Teenagers at Our Residential Treatment Facility

Yoga is incredibly beneficial for teenagers’ mental health. Through our yoga for teenagers program, adolescents learn to connect their bodies, emotions, and thoughts, developing greater self-awareness and emotional regulation. Regular yoga practice can help adolescents effectively manage substance use disorder in addition to stress, anxiety, and depression. Combining physical movement, breathing exercises, and mindfulness techniques helps calm the mind, reduces racing thoughts, and promotes relaxation and inner peace.

The practice of yoga encourages self-compassion, acceptance, and gratitude, which can enhance self-esteem and overall mental well-being. With this in mind, Lotus Behavioral Health has welcomed Erica Ramirez to lead yoga for teenagers classes at our residential treatment program for adolescents managing their addictions.

Connecting Wellness and Behavioral Health with Yoga for Teenagers

Lotus Behavioral Health provides adolescents with diverse avenues for self-discovery, growth, and lasting healing. As part of our comprehensive behavioral health treatment plan, wellness is prioritized for sustainable substance abuse management. We take a comprehensive approach to supporting adolescents recovering from substance abuse disorder, offering robust activity programming that incorporates various therapeutic modalities such as art therapy, recreational sports, and music therapy. Adolescents can explore their emotions, process their experiences, and develop coping skills through these activities by implementing mindfulness. Lotus Behavioral Health is committed to promoting mental, emotional, and physical well-being with healthy leisure activities.

Erica Ramirez is a certified yoga teacher from Orlando and has been practicing yoga for nine years and teaching for four years. She turned to yoga to alleviate her back pain and help her fight her battle with depression at a young age, and it transformed her life. Through her mental health journey, she has found the practice of yoga has helped her become more present in her life and understand that we are not our thoughts.

She shares, "I wanted to start teaching and share it with others because of how much it helped me. I want to help people return to their true selves. We’re not just doing poses, but we are being mindful of our bodies and energy."

Erica specializes in beginner's yoga and slow-flow vinyasa classes. Her approach focuses on exploring basic poses of yoga and breathwork, moving in sync with the body and breath. She explains, "Dance between the body and the breath. Yoga brings us out of our mind and into our body, get out of mental chatter." Her classes aim to help participants find inner peace and quiet in their constant streams of thought.

One of the places where Erica teaches is Tribe Yoga Studio in Maitland. She also leads Goat Yoga sessions at Alaska Farms, providing a unique and playful experience for participants. Additionally, she brings the benefits of yoga to children at a Montessori school in Orlando. Erica's passion for teaching is evident when she says, "I'm good at making people do yoga."

In her yoga for teens program, Erica emphasizes the importance of providing students with an hour of peace. This practice allows adolescents to take a break from everything they are dealing with and discover the inner peace we all have access to. Erica guides students in separating themselves from their thoughts and finding solace through mindful breathing.

Supporting Lasting Healing

Yoga provides a safe space for adolescents to release external pressures and expectations, fostering a positive and non-judgmental mindset. By cultivating mindfulness and promoting mental clarity, yoga equips adolescents with valuable tools to navigate the challenges of being a teenager, promoting resilience and emotional balance. A study by the University of Virginia in 2019 found that yoga helps individuals with stress relief, self-care, and emotional regulation.

Erica holds class once a week for the teenagers at Lotus Behavioral Health, with her teaching schedule starting at the beginning of May. Through her dedicated practice and teaching, Erica Ramirez brings the transformative power of yoga for substance abuse to Lotus Behavioral Health’s residential program in Winter Springs, Florida.

Hope. Love. Heal.

If your teenager struggles with addiction and needs professional mental health support, text or call Janelle Adorno at 321-622-0182. Our Director of Business Development will give you access to more information regarding our residential treatment program for teenagers, ages 12 to 17. You can begin this process by visiting our Admissions page, where you can view more information about a complementary brief assessment to determine eligibility.

For more information, contact Lotus Behavioral Health for an intake consultation at (833) 948-2273 or visit our website.