Why Gentle Yoga is Perfect for Highly Sensitive People

I felt the floor supporting me, and the weight of the blanket protecting me. I had moved and breathed and meditated, and my nervous system was ready to surrender to gravity. My breath was peaceful and fluid. Not a muscle had to work. For the first time I could remember, I felt truly content. I wasn’t sleeping - I was present. I wasn’t ruminating or planning - my mind was quiet. But the most amazing benefit? I felt no self-doubt or self-criticism! For that precious moment, I accepted myself. 

It was my very first yoga class, and I would spend years trying to recreate that fleeting feeling of contentment during deep relaxation. That pursuit started over 25 years ago, and led me on a quest through just about every yoga tradition, several continents, and an exploration of my nervous system. 

From birth, anxiety has influenced my life. Nobody knew about HSP when I was growing up, but by the time I was seven I’d developed a prickly shell of sarcastic wit and a handful of stress-induced symptoms that kept me home from school often, safely in bed with my books. I survived my childhood, and for a while that was good enough. I figured everyone felt the constant hum of hyper-vigilance, the clenched jaw and knotted gut - symptoms of my effort to ignore sensory overwhelm. 

That first yoga experience showed me that more was possible. 

I kept going back, because I had glimpsed self-acceptance. I witnessed what paying attention to my breath could do for my stress level. As I moved consciously, my body and mind momentarily partnered up. My mental chaos slowed, and underneath the chatter was a part of me who knew that more was possible. 

In time, yoga gave me the courage to leave a stressful, unfulfilling career, move across the country, and then backpack solo through Asia. When I finally landed, I had such a strong desire to lift suffering (mine and the world’s) that I sought training to become a yoga teacher. Now, I’ve absorbed the tools I need to support and regulate my highly sensitive nervous system. I teach empaths, HSP, and neurodivergent people how to regulate their own nervous systems.

Here's how YOU can feel at home in your highly sensitive nervous system with gentle yoga...

Gentle yoga combines slow, conscious movements with breath and awareness. It’s a forgiving form of exercise that’s appropriate for both beginners and seasoned practitioners seeking a somatic, less athletic practice. Rather than pushing ourselves physically into strenuous positions, we challenge ourselves to stay mindful and present with our bodies, and listen deeply. 

Of course, yoga is just one potential support for your body and mind. If you’re sure that yoga isn’t for you, there are many other somatic practices you can explore. But if you’ve gotten this far, keep an open mind! That stinky hot yoga class you hated back in college wasn’t designed with HSPs in mind.

Yoga Helps HSPs Relieve Anxiety, Emotional Contagion and Overstimulation

The desire to feel in control of our overwhelm can lead to overfunctioning, which eventually brings on burnout. Other related issues I’ve noticed in myself and my HSP clients are fatigue, sleep disturbances, gastrointestinal issues, people-pleasing, self-doubt, hyper-mobility, and chronic pain. If any of this resonates, you’re not alone. 

Gentle yoga encourages body autonomy, choice, and self-compassion. In short, you’ll be kinder to yourself. You'll shed the stress of holding it all together. Less stress means less inflammation, which can help relieve many of the above concerns. 

If you’re seeking some relief and peace, I encourage you to try gentle yoga. It can help your sensitive nervous system to gradually become more resilient. 

Gentle yoga can help regulate the nervous system, which is often overactive in HSPs. 

“High vagal tone is associated with a greater ability to recover from stress, as it promotes the activation of the PNS (Peripheral Nervous System). This helps reduce the physiological symptoms of stress, such as increased heart rate and muscle tension, and promotes a state of relaxation. 

“Conversely, low vagal tone is associated with heightened stress reactivity, a reduced ability to cope with stress, as well as with chronic stress. Enhancing vagal tone through practices such as deep breathing, meditation, and yoga can help improve stress resilience and reduce anxiety.”

-Lisa Keer, NBC-HWC, “The Vagus Nerve: A Key Player in Your Health and Well-Being”

Improved emotional regulation: 

Gentle yoga can help HSPs process and manage their intense emotions. If you're like most people these days, your nervous system is chronically hyper-aroused. You may feel like a tiger is chasing you even when you’re completely safe. We could all use practices to remind us what safety feels like, especially HSP. Bottom-up practices like breathing, vocalizing, gentle movement, self-massage, and even laughter employ our peripheral nervous system to tell our brains that we are safe. They're often a faster and more direct line to vagal toning than top-down practices like affirmations. 

Enhanced body awareness: 

Gentle yoga can foster a deeper connection with your body, leading to self-acceptance and confidence. When you feel less alone in your suffering, and learn to speak to yourself as you would your best friend, you’ll ride the inevitable ups and downs of life more smoothly. As you practice breathing through tolerable discomfort in a pose, your resilience will grow. You’ll begin to apply that resilience to your life as you set loving boundaries, speak up for your needs, and take compassionate action in the world. 

Befriend intuition: 

You’ll stop overriding your inner voice with judgment. While self-criticism may have been trying to keep you safe, as you practice gentle yoga and feel safer in your own skin, you’ll stop listening to the relentless chatter. You’ll tune into the quiet inner wisdom that is so strong in HSP, and celebrate that part of you. As you practice, your movement will become a gesture of your intuition, as if your body were your paintbrush. 

Increased self-care:

Many HSPs aren’t used to prioritizing our well-being. Especially if you’re a people-pleaser, fear may come up around prioritizing your needs. Private and small group gentle yoga classes provide the connection, encouragement, and loving accountability that can help us breathe through our emotional discomfort, and continue to honor our needs. Within that, there’s space and grace for stopping and starting again. Just like wobbling in a pose is an opportunity for self-compassion, so is noticing when we’ve fallen off the self-care wagon. 

Questions Highly Sensitive People Have Asked Me About Yoga

Q: How does yoga help HSP manage stress and anxiety?

A: Gentle yoga helps manage stress through breathwork and mindful movement. As much as we may live in our heads, we’re mammals with physical bodies. Breath is the one autonomic function we can control, and it impacts all our systems. Heart rate variability and vagal tone are some of the measurable markers we can influence through mindful movement and breath. In turn, vagal tone has a positive effect on cardiovascular, digestive, and immune health. 

Q: What type of yoga practice is most beneficial for HSP? 

A: The style of yoga that you enjoy and return to will give you the most benefits over time.

Q: What yoga poses help relieve stress? 

A: Below are a few relaxing postures to start with. As you befriend your body, you’ll learn what poses most soothe you. 

1. Supported bridge 
2. Reclined twist
3. Side legs up the wall 
4. Crocodile pose 
5. Child’s Pose

Hold each pose for the amount of time that feels good for you. To get the most out of this practice, involve your breath. Breathing exercises (pranayama) are remarkable tools for nervous system regulation. When we extend our exhale longer than our inhale, it tells our brain we're safe and able to rest. 

Getting Started with Gentle Yoga For HSP

When I say I’m a yoga teacher, many people volunteer that yoga isn’t for them. It often comes out that they tried one class and hated it, so they wrote off the whole system. I’m not a fanatic who thinks yoga is for everyone. But if you’re highly sensitive and curious about what gentle yoga can do for your nervous system, I encourage you to shop around a little. Be discerning about which yoga teacher you choose, what context you practice in, and how you establish boundaries in advance. 

Finding a gentle yoga class:

You may need to do some digging to find HSP-specific yoga classes. Look for words like: gentle, trauma-informed, therapeutic, candlelit, restorative, slow flow, mindful, meditative, hatha… 

Find an experienced teacher who will encourage your autonomy and offer variations that you feel comfortable with. Note: hours of training and certifications are nice, but they don’t equal experience with a variety of bodies. Even years of teaching doesn’t necessarily translate to the specific experience you’re seeking. Lived experience counts. A high proportion of yoga teachers are neurodivergent and hypermobile, and many came to yoga due to stress or pain, so that lived experience in their own body may inform their teaching. Still, levels of maturity and understanding vary. Shop around for a teacher whose voice soothes you, who offers accessible variations, and knows something about highly sensitive nervous systems. Read the teacher’s bio and, if you can, ask some questions. 

Questions to ask before attending a yoga class with a new teacher: 

• “What if I need to do my own thing during class?” Watch not just what they say, but how they say it. Ideally you would sense unbridled enthusiasm for body autonomy and inner exploration.
• “Do you touch students? How do you gain meaningful consent?” Look for certainty and understanding. A trauma-informed teacher won’t touch you unless requested. Especially if you’re a people-pleaser, saying no to touch when you’re in a vulnerable pose may be too hard. But being triggered or injured is harder. Establish boundaries in advance.
• “Are you familiar with HSP?” While yoga teachers are not clinically trained (and any medical advice would be out of our scope of practice), familiarity with hypermobility and chronic pain, for example, may mean they can suggest variations that have been helpful to similar students in the past. 

3 Strategies Helping Me Get The Most Out of My Yoga Practice as an HSP

1. Remember why you’re practicing: You’re not here to be the most bendy or have the best form. Drop comparison and remember your objective. Is it inner peace? Nervous system benefits? Begin each practice by setting your intention, listening to your body, and starting slow. Throughout your practice, return to your ‘why’. Remember, this isn’t about exercise or achievement. It’s about coming home to your body. 
2. Create or discover a calm space: A sensory soothing and comfortable environment will best support your yoga practice. Whether you practice in your own home (with an online membership perhaps), or in a studio, you’re likely to find a nurturing environment for HSPs. If you’re practicing at home you can create a just-right environment free from harsh lighting, scents, loud noises, or crowds. Once you’ve integrated the benefits of yoga into your body, you’ll take that calm space with you! Yoga doesn’t have to stay on your mat. In fact, the more it seeps into your life, the more confident and present you’ll be. 
3. Try different settings and formats: Broaden your expectations around where, how, and for how long you practice yoga.

Give online classes a chance: Practicing from the comfort of your home with yoga videos or live online classes can feel cozy and connected. Plus, you can learn from a broader pool of niche yoga teachers online, many with decades of specialized experience… like me!

Go analog: You can learn yoga from a book! Just keep it simple.

Go outside: If nature soothes you, find a gentle outdoor yoga class, or hire your favorite local teacher and gather a few friends for a weekly reset.

Conclusion: From Anxiety and Self-Criticism to a Cozy Blanket of Confidence

While I’m still highly sensitive, socially anxious, and vulnerable to my triggers, I don’t judge myself for any of it anymore, and I know my practice will support me. I’ve befriended myself. I feel at home in my skin. The benefit of yoga isn’t just a fleeting moment of confidence anymore. I carry that confidence with me everywhere I go, like a cozy blanket. I’m supporting other highly sensitive empaths in courageously taking up space and sharing their gifts, and I know my work makes a difference in the world. 

I’ve seen first-hand how gentle yoga can empower HSPs to lead more fulfilling lives. I hope you’ll give it a try.