GTY & Warriors at Ease
Guys Talking Yoga and Warriors at Ease have partnered for an eight-part series featuring former Executive Director, Christie Hickey, six veterans who’ve gone through the Warriors at Ease Teacher Training, and Dr. Vince Arnold, a chaplain specializing in holistic-oriented mindfulness-based pastoral counseling.
The mission of the series is to bring awareness to military men practicing yoga and their experiences of health, resilience, and connection. With the guests, Derek touches on topics such as resilience, restoration, integration, and health both mental and physical.
While these interviews are about how trauma-informed yoga can help post-combat veterans, the themes in these conversations are universal and we hope that all men who are interested in yoga will relate and learn something about how a yoga practice can help them live better lives.
Warriors at Ease
Warriors at Ease was established as a 501(c)(3) organization in 2011. The organization was founded by Robin Carnes, Karen Soltes, Colonel (ret) Pat Lillis, and Molly Birkholm. These pioneering co-founders were involved in some of the first clinical studies funded by Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) involving the use of yoga and meditation as an adjunct therapy for combat-related health conditions. In response to the success of these early studies at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center as well as VA Medical Centers in Washington D.C. and Miami, the founders developed a teacher training curriculum to meet the growing demand for specially-trained instructors who have the knowledge and skills to share yoga in a way that is safe, effective, and relevant for warriors and their families.
The multi-phased Warriors at Ease Teacher Training is designed to empower certified yoga and meditation teachers with the principles and practices necessary to support the health and healing of service members, veterans and families. Warriors at Ease has trained a world-wide network of teachers who share evidenced-based, trauma-sensitive yoga, meditation, and breathing practices with warriors and their families in clinical and non-clinical settings.