Description
Because yoga therapy is inherently person-centred and responsive to individual differences, it can help fill gaps left by services that are not designed with autistic perspectives in mind. This eight-hour professional development training, delivered by Libby Walnus, a skilled yoga therapist autistic adult emerging as a leader in autism and yoga work, explores how yoga therapy can be made more accessible, inclusive, and attuned to the lived experiences of autistic adults without intellectual disability.
Drawing on years of lived experience and clinical practice, Libby offers a compassionate, evidence-informed, and person-centred approach. Participants will learn not only about autism and neurodiversity but also how yoga therapy can address sensory processing needs, anxiety, and self-regulation. The aim is not to “treat” autism, but to create environments that honour neurodiversity and strengthen wellbeing.
Why This Training Matters
Autistic adults without intellectual disability represent a large and increasingly visible population, yet they remain underserved in many healthcare and community settings. Many autistic adults:
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Experience significant stress and burnout from masking or adapting to social expectations
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Manage co-occurring physical or mental health conditions, alongside everyday adaptive challenges
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Encounter pathologising or uninformed approaches within healthcare
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Could benefit from the grounding, regulation, and self-acceptance supported by neuro-affirming yoga therapy
Yoga therapy aligns with approaches increasingly recognised as supportive for autistic wellbeing. Its emphasis on self-awareness, interoception, emotion regulation, and sensory supportive environments offers meaningful potential for reducing distress and enhancing agency. A neuro-affirming approach to autism and yoga allows professionals to create safer, more collaborative, and more empowering spaces for autistic adults.
Specialist education in this area remains rare. Many yoga teachers and therapists want to support autistic clients but feel unsure where to begin. This CPD responds directly to that gap, offering clear principles, evidence-informed guidance, and perspectives rooted in the lived experience of autistic adults.
Who This Training Is For
This training is designed for:
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Yoga therapists, yoga teachers, and mindfulness professionals
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Healthcare professionals who want to understand autism and yoga through a neuro-affirming lens
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Practitioners who would like to increase confidence, sensitivity, and inclusivity when supporting autistic adults
Participants will be invited to rethink assumptions, adapt methods, and build confidence when working with autistic adults.
What You Will Learn About Autism and Yoga Therapy
Rather than offering a fixed protocol for “yoga for autism,” this training introduces foundational knowledge and guiding principles for collaborative and person-centred work with autistic adults.
You will explore:
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Trauma-informed, disability affirming, and neuro-affirming approaches
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Autism through sociocultural and medical perspectives, highlighting diversity within the spectrum
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Current research on yoga therapy, mindfulness, and mechanisms relevant to autistic wellbeing
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Recommended adaptations for communication, sensory needs, and co-occurring conditions
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Traditional yogic frameworks, such as kosha, guna, and adhi vyadhi, and how these can support assessment and planning
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Insights informed by the lived experience of autistic yoga participants and clients
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Examples of adaptable yoga and mindfulness practices, with guidance for individual tailoring
Applying Neuro-Affirming Autism and Yoga Principles in Practice
While techniques can be helpful, it is the underlying principles of neuro-affirming, autism competent yoga therapy that allow practitioners to work safely and collaboratively with autistic adults. Once these principles are in place, suitable practices can be explored with each client in ways that uphold agency, dignity, and inclusion.
Participants will finish the training with a clear foundation and increased confidence in offering yoga therapy that aligns with autistic needs, strengths, and lived experience.
