Nervous System Literacy for Yoga Teachers

What if the body is doing more of the talking than the brain? In this episode, we explore afferent and efferent signaling—the bidirectional communication pathways that allow the brain and body to constantly exchange information—and why this changes the way we understand yoga, nervous system regulation, and embodied practice. You’ll learn: -The difference between afferent and efferent fibers -Why t...

Heart rate variability — or HRV — has become one of the most talked-about metrics in wellness spaces, yet few people fully understand what it measures or how to interpret it meaningfully. In this episode, we unpack what HRV actually is, why it matters, and how yoga practices may influence the nervous system flexibility it reflects over time. We explore the relationship between HRV, the autonomic n...

Polyvagal theory offers a more nuanced map of how the nervous system organizes around safety and threat. In this episode, we explore the two pathways of the vagus nerve, the three-state hierarchy of the autonomic nervous system, and the concept of neuroception. For yoga teachers, this is not just theory. It’s a lens for understanding what’s happening in your students in real time, and how your voi...

The parasympathetic nervous system is often positioned as the goal—rest, relax, downregulate. But that framing is incomplete. In this episode, we re-examine the parasympathetic branch not as the hero, but as a moderator working in dynamic balance with sympathetic activation. Through the lens of anatomy, neurochemistry, and applied practice, this episode offers a more precise understanding of how t...

The HPA Axis: When the Alarm Won’t Turn Off Understanding the body’s slow-burn stress system In this episode, we move beyond the fast-acting sympathetic response and into the body’s longer-lasting stress system: the HPA axis. You’ll learn how this hormonal cascade shapes energy, mood, sleep, and recovery—and why chronic stress can linger in the body long after a moment has passed. What you’ll lear...

Episode 3 — The Sympathetic Nervous System: Your Body’s Accelerator Why Fight or Flight Is Only Part of the Story The sympathetic nervous system is often blamed for stress, anxiety, and burnout. But that story is incomplete. In reality, the sympathetic nervous system is the body’s activation system — the branch that mobilizes energy, sharpens attention, and prepares us to engage with challenge, mo...

Episode #2 The Autonomic Nervous System: Your Invisible Co-Teacher What’s actually running the room when you’re running the room Yoga teachers often interpret student behavior through the lens of effort or attitude. But much of what we see on the mat is actually the nervous system doing exactly what it’s designed to do. In this episode, we explore the autonomic nervous system (ANS) — the system th...

What if the yoga classroom isn’t just a room full of bodies — but a room full of nervous systems? In this opening episode, Kiara Armstrong shares the lived experience that led to the creation of Nervous System Literacy for Yoga Teachers . After years of navigating severe dysregulation and misdiagnosed Complex PTSD, Kiara began studying the nervous system from the inside out — learning to track reg...

Why does yoga regulate the nervous system — and why should teachers understand the biology behind it? In this introductory episode, I share the vision behind Nervous System Literacy for Yoga Teachers — a space where anatomy, physiology, somatics, and research meet the lived reality of teaching in a yoga classroom. We’ll explore the autonomic nervous system, vagal tone, co-regulation, consent, and...