🧘 Quieting the Overthinking Mind – Yoga Therapy for Inner Stillness
📅 2-hour live online session (Zoom or other platform)
👥 Small group (interactive & supportive)
🎯 Objective: Slow mental chatter, cultivate mindfulness, and embrace inner stillness through yoga therapy.
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🌿 Workshop Flow & Agenda (120 minutes)
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0:00–0:20 — Opening Grounding Practice
🌀 Simple Breath Awareness (3 min)
• Settling into body and breath
💬 Check-in & Intentions (10 min)
• Brief introductions: why they joined, current mental state
• Set group agreements (Yamas and Niyamas)
📖 Reflection Prompt (Chat or Journal)
• Yoga Sutra 1.2 YOGAS CITTA VRTTI NIRODHAH: “Yoga is the stilling of the mind”
• Prompt: “What does inner stillness feel like to me?”
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0:20–0:35 — Understanding the Overthinking Mind
🧠 Brief Teaching
• “Overthinking is when the mind gets stuck in repetitive loops—trying to solve, predict, or control something—often without reaching a resolution.”
• Why the mind overthinks: habit loops + stress response
• Link to nervous system (fight/flight)
• Introduce witness awareness
📝 Mini Reflection
• “When does your mind tend to spiral most?”
• “What does it feel like in your body when your mind is busy?”
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0:35–1:00 — Grounding the Body to Settle the Mind
Gentle, slow yoga therapy sequence:
• Cat–Cow (3 slow, breath-led movements)
• Sphinx
• Heart Opening
• Yogi Squat
• Mountain (Extended Samas Tithi)
• Table Top
Focus:
• Lengthening exhale
• Interoception (feeling from within)
Cueing Language:
• “Move at 70% effort”
• “Let sensation anchor your attention”
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1:00–1:05 — Bio Break
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1:05–1:25 — Breathwork for Mental Quieting
Introduce simple, accessible practices:
• Box Breathing (4-4-4-4) – balances nervous system
• Nadi Shodhana (Alternate Nostril Breathing) – balances hemispheres, settles mind
Notes:
• Longer exhales → signal safety to nervous system
• Breath = bridge between body and mind
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1:25–1:40 — Kirtan Kriya Meditation (12 min)
🕉 Objective: Steady the mind, cultivate focus, activate inner stillness
Setup:
• Comfortable seated position, spine long, shoulders relaxed
• Fingers in Kirtan Kriya mudras (thumb to each finger in sequence)
Mantra & Tapping Sequence:
• Chant Sa, Ta, Na, Ma
• Tap each finger in order with the thumb
• Start slowly → gradually settle into rhythm
• Focus on breath, mantra, and finger tapping rhythm

• Journal prompt
• “Notice the space that remains when the mind quiets.”
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1:40–1:55 — Restorative Stillness & Reflection
Supported rest Progressive Muscle Relaxation
• Optional props: pillows, blanket
• Cue: “Nothing to fix, nowhere to go”
• Mudra: Adhi Gesture of Primordial Stillness
• Affirmation: “Like a statue softly breathing, I rest in the perfect stillness of my being. In absolute stillness I experience the peace and serenity of my true Being.”
Reflection & Optional Sharing:
• Journal prompts:
o “What did you notice when you stopped trying to control your thoughts?”
o “What helps your mind feel quieter?”
• Gentle, optional group sharing
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1:55–2:00 — Closing
• Key takeaway: Stillness is something we return to, not achieve
• 3 minute Mind Reset daily practice
• Gratitude + closing breath