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Veteran announces free trauma-informed yoga classes for local veterans, seeks VA referrals
Summary
John Alsop, a Muscatine resident and certified instructor with the Veterans Yoga Project, told supervisors he plans to offer free trauma-informed yoga locally and is finalizing a location and VA referral arrangements.
John Alsop, a Muscatine resident and certified instructor with the Veterans Yoga Project, told the Muscatine County Board on Monday that he is preparing to offer free trauma-informed yoga classes for veterans in Muscatine.
Alsop said he has taught at the local YMCA for nearly 10 years and completed trauma-informed yoga training through the Veterans Yoga Project, which is an accepted method of treating PTSD and trauma in some clinical settings. "I've been teaching yoga at the Y for almost 10 years. It'll be 10 years in July," Alsop said. He told the board he is finalizing a site and hopes to begin classes by Feb. 10.
Alsop said the VA clinic in Iowa City has finalized paperwork but not yet signed off; once the clinic accepts trauma-informed yoga through the Veterans Yoga Project as a treatment option, Alsop said he would be able to receive referrals from the VA clinic so veterans in Muscatine could access the program without traveling to Iowa City or the Quad Cities.
Why it matters: Trauma-informed yoga is being integrated in some veteran-care programs as a complementary treatment for PTSD and related symptoms. Local access would reduce travel burdens for Muscatine-area veterans who opt for this treatment.
Next steps: Alsop said he is closing on a location and plans both mat-based and chair-yoga formats, and that initial classes will be free to veterans. The county board thanked him for the information; no formal county action was taken.
