Christiane Brems YogaX Stanford Psychiatry

Dr. Brems is licensed as a psychologist in several US states and board-certified as a clinical psychologist by the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP). She is an experienced Yoga Alliance registered yoga teacher (ERYT500) and Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Provider. She is also a certified C-IAYT yoga therapist and advanced Professional Development Provider. Dr. Brems is certified in Interactive Guided Imagery and in the Buteyko Method of Breathwork. Since 2019, Dr. Brems directs YogaX, an innovative yoga school and special initiative in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University’s School of Medicine. YogaX provides specialized training for aspiring yoga teachers and qualified healthcare providers who wish to bring therapeutic yoga and yoga therapy into clinical settings. Dr. Brems began her career in academia at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. She then served on faculty at the University of Alaska Anchorage for 23 years, where she held a variety of leadership positions, including as (Co-Founding) Director of the Center for Behavioral Health Research and Services, (Co-Founding) Director of the PhD Program in Clinical-Community Psychology, and Interim Vice Provost for Research and Dean of the Graduate School. She served for nearly six years as Dean and Professor of the School of Graduate Psychology at Pacific University Oregon. At Pacific, she developed a therapeutic yoga clinical initiative and a therapeutic yoga research team. Dr. Brems worked for decades as an applied researcher and clinical practitioner with particular interests in health promotion, rural healthcare delivery, and all things yoga. Her work was funded by grants and contracts from the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Dis. Control and Prevention, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration, and local and State of Alaska funding sources. She has shared her work extensively in over 120 peer-reviewed journal articles, 100s of technical reports, and several books, including Therapeutic Breathwork, and a series of three volumes on teaching and clinical application of yoga, namely, Integrated Holistic Yoga Psychology, Integrated Holistic Yoga Movement, and Integrated Holistic Inner Practices of Yoga.Dr. Brems integrates yoga, mindfulness, breathwork, and guided imagery in her work as a psychologist, teacher, researcher, mentor, supervisor, consultant, author, administrator, and service provider. As an integrated holistic yoga teacher, she incorporates all eight limbs of yoga in her practice and teachings. She grounds her work in yoga psychology, based on ancient and modern texts, as well as in current research, especially in psychology, neuroscience, and interpersonal neurobiology. She honors trauma-sensitive teaching practices and cultural sensitivity, inclusivity, and humility. She encourages individual tailoring of yoga to contexts and needs of each practitioner, offering variations and adaptations that make yoga accessible to all. She values these practices as crucial aspects of her day-to-day professional and personal life and seeks to enhance access to these practices for all who can benefit. She integrates yoga, mindfulness, and other healthy living strategies (e.g., healthful nutrition, good sleep hygiene) in her own life and credits these practices with contributing to her nearly 30-year recovery from cancer.