Body-Based Therapies Program Evaluation

This research report outlines the establishment and integration of the 10-year body-based program to complement current psychotherapeutic interventions, within a specialist sexual assault service.

The foundational principle of body-based therapy (BBT) at WestCASA is that it is practice that is trauma-informed. Practitioners, therefore, are sensitive to how experiences of trauma contribute to current difficulties, and how this might affect engaging in a therapeutic alliance (Knight, 2015). The program included yoga and shiatsu.

The evaluation was conducted using a qualitative approach that comprised a literature review, pre-and post-program questionnaires with victim/survivors, and focus groups and interviews with shiatsu and yoga practitioners and counsellor/advocates.