Sunshine OT and Yoga

15/11/2025

The 7- day somatic reset videos have been up for a month now! So Facebook will take them down as of tomorrow Monday 17th November - one by one.

So if you haven’t already tried these potent, short accessible trauma-informed somatic self regulation practices- 10-15 minutes to calm and soothe your mind and body- check them out now in the featured Posts, inside this group.

Theres still time to start with day one today and do a practice every day!

You will
- learn effective tools you can use straight away within client sessions
- reset and restore your nervous system to calm and grounded presence (great to start your day or in between as a reset)
- deepen your own awareness and mind-body connection
- let go and relax key areas of stress in your body
- tap into greater confidence and a compassionate, positive growth mindset

If you miss this here now, dont stress! You can access the full 7 reset videos - including download a full workbook PDF with practice guides, journalling prompts and the science behind the practices- for FREE on my website here: https://www.sunshineotandyoga.com.au/offers/X8agdBUN

Or ask to join the Somatic Embodied OTs facebook group, ifthat sounds like your kind of people! I share lots of free resources, practice tips and science of somatic regulation in there…

Enjoy! And comment, share, like to spread a ripple of somatic support out to those who need it in their living body right now…

Give yourself the gift of 7 days of embodied self-care — simple, powerful practices to restore your energy, calm your nervous system, and return home to yourself.

12/11/2025

What have you experienced in a yoga class?

We asked yoga students what happened during class that might make them not return. Following is what you answered.

11/11/2025

Are you feeling a bit stretched, stressed or in need of some rest and reset? I have just the thing for you this Friday 14th November!

Come join a small group for a relaxing, restorative day to reset your nervous system and replenish your energy, using evidence based somatic practices. Somatic Occupational Therapist Sarita, will guide you through gentle, accessible slow and restorative yoga, breathwork, creative meditations and guided relaxation, in a beautiful studio in Mt Tinbeerwah, overlooking the lotus lake and surrounded by tall gum trees.

Experience the nurturing energy of trauma-informed yoga, mindful, creative and joyful activities to nourish your soul, calm your body and mind, and restore your energy before the festive season!

10-3pm, Friday 14th November. $249 includes morning tea and all program, props and equipment provided. (Bring your own lunch or something for a shared lunch; Bring a caregiver or support person if you would like)

Contact Sarita on 0414898235 or sarita@sunshineotandyoga.com.au

We have a couple of spots left available- please reach out asap if you would like to join us!

05/11/2025

Last few spaces: Your Rest and Reset Day Awaits -

As the year begins to wind down, many of us are feeling that familiar mix of busyness and fatigue — tending to everyone else, and leaving our own rest for “later.”

02/11/2025

Women's Self-care, yoga and somatic rest, and reset day retreat- 14th November, 2025 in Noosa - only a few spots left- Book now and give yourself the space to restore before the silly season...With love, Sarita

02/11/2025

Your inner child needs to be seen, not saved...Your body's pain and numbness respected, not released...

What if your numbness isn’t something to fix — but something to respect?

So many of us approach healing like a renovation project: searching for what’s “wrong,” trying to repair, release, or replace the parts of ourselves that don’t feel how we think they should. The tightness in your chest. The lump in your throat. The bracing in your shoulders. The part of you that shuts down, goes blank, or people-pleases.

But what if these aren’t problems?
What if they’re intelligent responses — born from moments when your body had to keep you safe?

That numbness that dulls your feelings? It once protected you from overwhelm.
That tension in your belly? It may have been the armour you needed to survive.
Those inner parts that seem young, reactive, or afraid? They don’t need saving. They just need to be seen.

When we treat our patterns as something to fix, we send a subtle message to our system:
“You’re not okay the way you are.”
And our body hears that. It tightens a little more. It hides a little deeper.

But when we meet those same patterns with curiosity, respect, and acknowledgment —
something profound happens.
The body begins to soften.
The system feels seen.
Integration, not rejection, becomes possible.

Now, pause for a moment.

Bring awareness to your jaw — can you feel the quiet resolve that has been holding there, the instinct to fight back or stay strong?
This tension is not wrong; it’s your body’s way of keeping you ready, resilient, capable.

Breathe into your heart space — maybe it feels hardened, heavy, or distant.
That’s how it protected something precious in you when emotions once felt too big to hold.

Feel into your belly and pelvis — the seat of your deepest survival instincts.
This is where your body’s intelligence kept you safe from pain, shame, and overwhelm.

Now, meet the younger part within — the one who didn’t have the resources you have today.
If it’s angry, let it be angry.
If it’s numb, let it be numb.
It has every right to be exactly as it is.

It did what it could with what it had.
And perhaps, what it most needs now is your recognition.
A simple inner whisper:
It was too much. You were too young to hold that. I’m so sorry.

And notice how your body responds to this kind of respect.
For some, there may be a softening, a gentle release, a quiet ease.
For others, the tension may increase — and that too is wisdom.
Some systems may not yet trust promises of safety; they have good reason to be cautious.
Safety, after all, is something the body learns slowly, over time.
And some may not notice much at all — and that, too, is completely valid.

All responses are welcome.
All are wise information from your body’s inner landscape.

Healing isn’t about changing what’s wrong.
It’s about honouring what was wise.

When we bow to the brilliance of our body’s adaptations — the holding, the numbness, the bracing, the silence —
we create space for settling, integration, and wholeness.
We see not weakness, but strength.
Not brokenness, but survival.

And from that deep respect, the body begins to remember what safety feels like.
It begins to unfold, naturally, toward repair and possibility.

Maybe the parts you’ve been trying to change are actually the ones that got you here —
and they deserve your deepest gratitude.

01/11/2025

A beautiful practice for restoring your energy and honouring boundaries

01/11/2025

Have you ever worked with a client who flips from anxiety and overload… straight into shutdown or numbness? There doesnt seem to be much space for feeling OK, for being in the "Window"...

They say things like “I can’t calm down,” “I don’t like breathing exercises,” or “Nothing feels good or relaxing.”

And as a therapist, you’re left thinking: How do I help them regulate, when calming doesn’t feel safe for them? Or maybe you can even relate to this experience yourself?

This is more common than we talk about — especially for people with trauma histories, PTSD/C-PTSD, neurodiversity, or very narrow windows of tolerance.

For these clients, calming or soothing can actually feel threatening. Being still, closing their eyes, or noticing their body might trigger old survival responses. Calm is not “safe” — it’s unfamiliar. But we don't have to throw out the "yoga" altogether-

Instead of pushing relaxation, we need to start somewhere else:
- With mapping their arousal states (hyper, hypo, or in-between)
- Helping them build interoception slowly and safely (“What am I noticing in my body — not what should I feel?”)

And using organising sensory inputs — not sedating or overstimulating — to help them access the middle zone of regulation

These are things like:
- Gentle rhythmic movement (walking, rocking, tapping to rhythm)

- Proprioceptive input (pushing into a wall, weighted items, resistance bands)

- Neutral sensory anchors (warm drink, fidget, steady beat, gentle hum)

This isn’t about making someone “relax” — it’s about helping their body feel steady enough to stay here. Then you can start to work towards regulation tools that move them up or down arousal states...and they might be resourced enough to start therapy like EMDR.

This is exactly the kind of work we learn, practise, and translate inside the Embodied OT Program — how to make somatic nervous system science practical, body-based, trauma-aware, and still aligned with occupational therapy.

If you’d like to explore this more or learn how to use somatic tools safely and effectively with your clients, you’re welcome to check out the Embodied OT Program or book a connection call with me.
https://www.sunshineotandyoga.com.au/the-embodied-ot-program

27/10/2025

Happy OT Week! A Gift for You — Free Somatic Reset Practices -

Whether you’re supporting clients, running sessions, writing reports, or simply trying to refill your own cup — this is your reminder: you make a difference every single day. Your Presence Matters!

27/10/2025

1 day retreat: to relax and reset your nervous system - sound like just what you need? -

Happy OT Week 2025! This week we celebrate International OT day and OT in Action - celebrating the wonderful work that we get to do as Occupational Therapists. I would love to hear from you- What does OT mean to you? How has OT impacted your life? I love that I get to help 100s of people, both OT pr...

25/10/2025

I can do hard things!

10/10/2025

1 day retreat: to relax and reset your nervous system - sound like just what you need? -

Join me on Friday 14th November, 10am–3pm, for Rest, Reset & Rise — a one-day Yoga and Self-Care Retreat designed to restore your energy, regulate your nervous system, and reconnect you home to yourself.