Episode 169 - Anissa Hudak - When Talk Therapy Isn’t Enough: How Anissa Hudak Turned Unimaginable Trauma Into a Blueprint for Healing

This episode: When Talk Therapy Isn’t Enough: How Anissa Hudak Turned Unimaginable Trauma Into a Blueprint for Healing.

Here’s what you’ll learn about:

Introduction and Purpose of the Podcast (0:00)

• Host Drew Deraney introduces the podcast and thanks Mike Wiener for introducing him to Guest Anissa Hudak.
• Drew discusses the linear nature of life and how external adversities can disrupt this linearity.
• He categorizes people into three types: those who ignore adversity, those who see it as a barrier, and those who see it as an opportunity for growth.
• Drew invites Anissa to share her transformation journey and how it impacted her personally and professionally.

Anissa's Personal Transformation Journey (2:06)

• Anissa recalls a yoga therapy class where she and her clients discussed the ineffectiveness of talk therapy.
• She shares her personal experience of being date raped multiple times and the subsequent years of talk therapy without resolution.
• Anissa describes her realization that she needed to work on herself before helping others, leading to her journey in yoga therapy and PTSD.
• She talks about being raped again in 2014-2015 and how she used her training in yoga therapy to help herself.

Creating a Support Community and Self-Care Master Plan (4:45)

• Anissa explains the creation of an online community for women to support each other without needing to discuss their issues.
• She discusses the lack of a comprehensive care plan for mental health and the need for a self-care master plan.
• Anissa highlights the importance of understanding the brain's role in processing trauma and the limitations of talk therapy.
• She introduces the concept of using DNA tests like GeneSite to find the most effective mental health medications.

Advocating for Mental Health and Self-Advocacy (6:24)

• Anissa shares her experience of advocating for herself and her son in getting the right mental health medications.
• Drew and Anissa discuss the importance of self-advocacy and understanding the medical system.
• Anissa emphasizes the need for patients to be advocates for themselves and not rely solely on doctors.
• Drew and Anissa discuss the challenges of teaching self-advocacy to children and young adults, especially those with special needs.

Anissa's Work and Client Success Stories (9:50)

• Anissa talks about her work with yoga therapy for PTSD and trauma, focusing on moving trauma out of the body.
• She describes a client success story where a woman had an emotional release during a yoga therapy class.
• Drew and Anissa discuss the benefits of yoga therapy and how it connects the brain and body.
• Anissa explains the different types of yoga, including fitness-based yoga and yoga therapy for specific conditions like PTSD.

The Science Behind Yoga Therapy (15:22)

• Anissa explains how yoga therapy helps the brain and body reconnect, especially in cases of chronic stress.
• She describes the muscle groups that hold trauma, such as the hip flexors, and how yoga therapy works to exhaust these muscles.
• Anissa shares a story about a yoga class for Kansas State University football players a...

Chapters

• (00:00:00) - Anissa Hudak on How to Heal From Trauma & The
• (00:03:16) - There Are Three Types of Women On This Show
• (00:05:07) - Anissa on her journey to recovery from date rape
• (00:12:02) - Mental health care: The Genesight Test
• (00:15:32) - Advocates for PTSD and healing
• (00:17:55) - Try new things first, then stick with them
• (00:20:39) - What was your biggest support system during ptsd yoga classes?
• (00:25:48) - How yoga can help with PTSD and TBIs
• (00:29:49) - Former yoga teacher talks about her work with PTSD patients
• (00:31:48) - How to Move Trauma Out of the Brain
• (00:35:34) - How to get the trauma out of your soul with yoga
• (00:37:29) - Anissa Hudak on How to Sleep After Trauma
• (00:38:52) - Listen to Your Gut
• (00:43:21) - Living the Life You Want to Live