In this episode, we talk to Beena Patel, a physician assistant, holistic healer, and cancer survivor. Beena shares her personal journey with cancer at age 21 and how it led her to explore the limitations of traditional medicine. We discuss the importance of integrating the mind, body, and spirit for true healing, the benefits of individualized care, and how practices like yoga, Reiki, and somatic healing can bring about real transformation. 

• The limitations of traditional medicine
• Nervous system regulation in healing
• Exploring healing and somatic practices
• The importance of pausing and being present
• Misconceptions about somatic healing

MEET Beena Patel

Beena Patel is a Physician Associate, Yoga Teacher, Reiki Healer, and Health Coach who integrates modern medicine with holistic healing to support whole-body transformation. Through her brand The Yoga Movement, she blends science, soul, and ancient wisdom to help clients reconnect with their innate wholeness in order to live healthier lives full of vitality, purpose, and abundance.  A cancer diagnosis at 21 shifted her path and deepened her commitment to innovating a new form of healthcare that was more inclusive of some of the underrated aspects of holistic health, including faith and spirituality. Today, she provides holistic healing services, advocates for health equity, and empowers individuals to take ownership of their multi-dimensional well-being that includes the mind, body, and spirit. Currently living in the Blue Zone of Nosara, Costa Rica, Beena embodies the lifestyle she teaches—rooted in balance, nature, and healing from within.

Find out more at The Yoga Movement and connect with Beena on Instagram

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We also discussed the benefits of slowing down and how essential it is to individualized care. We explore how science, yoga, and somatic practices work together, not in opposition to create real transformation and why talk base approaches alone can only take us so far. If you've ever wondered what's possible when medicine meets movement and spirituality, this conversation will expand your vision of healing.

On today's episode of Yoga in the Therapy Room podcast, let's go.

So whether you're here to expand your skills, enhance your self care, or both, you are in the right place. Join me on this journey to help you be one step closer to bringing Yoga into your therapy room.

Bina began to question the limits of a mind only approach to healing. Her journey led her to create the yoga movement where she helps others reconnect to their body, nervous system and spirit, not just their symptoms. Bina embodies the lifestyle she teaches, rooted in balance, nature, and healing from within.

In this conversation, we explore what happens when science, yoga, and somatic practices come together and why talk alone is sometimes not enough for true transformation and healing. Welcome to the Yoga in the Therapy Room podcast. Bina. Thank you so much, Chris. I'm excited to be here today. Great. So can you share with listeners how you discovered yoga?

It was really helpful for me when I was in school, uh, doing my training and it might help you. And so I went to one class. I'd heard about it. I learned about different breathing techniques and, and things from YouTube. However, it was my first actual class that I went to, and I noticed that when I went to this class.

The teacher. This teacher, I wish I remembered her name. She was really powerful and very attentive to everyone in the class. And something she did with me that I have experienced several times, but not always in every class, is that when she instructed people, the students in the class to do different poses, she met each student where they were.

In that moment, I, I know I, I diverge a little bit because you asked how did you discover yoga? No, but that's interesting. That was my introduction and it left something in my heart after that. It wasn't like a typical, like, I love going to the gym too, but it wasn't. Like a typical gym class. It was like, like a fit

Chris McDonald: yoga.

Beena Patel: Yeah. It was like something shifted in my spirit.

Chris McDonald: Ooh, that's so powerful. I'm sure this person would love to hear that too. 'cause that's like, it's changing people's lives, isn't it? And but I wonder it's just like she was really there. She, I just had this thought like, she saw you, she was with you, and

Beena Patel: she was, and I think that's something that.

As teachers and practitioners become more advanced, and I know you know this too, as people become more advanced in their own training, then what we can offer also becomes enhanced. So I have a feeling that when she was doing it, it wasn't just to say, oh, I'm a teacher. She was really putting her heart into it to hold that space for students.

And, and you're right. I I really do appreciate that.

Beena Patel: Yeah, I feel that yoga is really beautiful because when we're going into the asana marrying the breath and the movement, it's not really about how we look to other people. I know sometimes that you can come into play, it's like, am I doing this pose correctly? A lot of times if we surrender into the moment, surrender into the practice and allow ourselves to move.

Fluidly and not put so much pressure on ourselves as to how it looks. Then we're able to feel more grounded in our bodies. And when we do that, I generally feel intuition comes through more easily. It's easier to access because first of all, we feel safe in our bodies. We're grounded and rooted in our bodies.

Chris McDonald: Yeah, it just reminds me when I did my yoga training too, she talked about the differences between like fit yoga. And more subtle yoga, which I was trained in, and she says it's more, instead of exercise, it's innercise. So it's like internally, right? It's like doing the internal work, but we don't have to, right?

Go to a yoga class. We can do our own work at home.

Beena Patel: That's the bigger practice, I feel. It's not so much, I mean that the training has its own. Merit as well. 'cause we know that took a lot physically as well as mentally. We're learning so many different aspects of the philosophy and also about ourselves, but I think ultimately it's how we take what we learn, how we embody it, and then bring that out into our community.

Beena Patel: It's a good question. I'm just looking, I'm trying to think like where to start. Yeah, yeah. Take your time. So, 21, I had thyroid cancer and what really became prominent during that time was going from one doctor to the next and kind of feeling passed off.

Uh, when I shared my symptoms and. It just got to the point where someone was looking at their computer and when I was speaking about what I was feeling, I could just see this person rolling their eyes and they're like, this should, it shouldn't be like that. Or something like kind of minimizing what was experiencing.

And as I learn now, this all goes in line with the throat cha or will I get. I'll get into, and so at that time, just noticing different things and then obviously learning about doctor shopping firsthand because I was actually going through it at that time. And it's not a stab against doctors. It's more so again, coming to our own discernment and intuition, understanding, hey, I don't feel heard here.

And whenever I was mentioning it, they said, well, labs look fine, so we're just gonna keep the dose of the supplementation, which I've been on. It's the thyroid hormone. Everything looks okay. So there wouldn't really be any need to make tweaks from. The perspective of labs, but we know nothing is really textbook and so, or at least not many things.

And so noticing the symptoms myself and also gauging my intuition. I just knew that there had to be something more, but I didn't know words like dissociation. I didn't know words like soul fragmentation, which they talk about in shamanism. I didn't know things like brain fog, even though they tell you it could be a symptom or side effect after surgery, you don't really know what it is until you experience it.

There were times where I didn't wanna go to yoga because I felt, okay, some classes are really strenuous, like I don't actually want to be here. But it was that aspect of really helping me tune into my spirit and bring mind, body and spirit into alignment that I felt, okay, there's something going on. And so without me really knowing it, I believe that yoga and meditation, because I really love meditation as well, they were helping me.

To come back into the body and feel safe. And whether I knew it or not, there probably was some element of dissociation that happened at that time. And yoga was allowing me to feel at home in my body again. And so as I'm starting to learn this, you know how it is once you get into the world of holistic healing, one thing leads to another.

Chris McDonald: yes, it is. Yeah,

Beena Patel: so I learned, I started learning about different modalities and as I got trained in them and started practicing all myself, I could notice subtle shifts that were actually compounding.

They were adding up and leading to more bigger shifts, feeling peace in my days, feeling harmony and balance. And so I feel that that journey with the diagnosis and then understanding something is still off despite the standard clinical. Care. It's not to say that western medicine doesn't work, it just means that's one piece of the pie.

We're not looking at the whole picture. And so that was the shift for me.

Chris McDonald: Yeah, and I'm glad you said that 'cause I have had my own journey with some chronic illness and I have discovered how limited. Traditional medicine is, can you talk about that? As a physician assistant, what have you noticed and as a personal, as a person who's experienced some difficulty with illness?

Oncology is constantly advancing and there are things like gene therapies that can be curative for the disease. However, this is the piece. Disease is not necessarily just physical. We used to say that you need to, I mean, some people still say this, but. For a long time. For instance, my belief was that there's one root of any certain disease and something I'm learning is that if we are multidimensional, wouldn't the root cause of disease potentially be multidimensional?

The physical body is what allows us to be on earth and to do our work and to experience and feel, to intuit all these things. So it's very important, however, without tending to our spirit, our mind, our energy, then. To really understand our holistic health is limited in that regard, and so I feel that Western medicine does a good job of trying to understand what's going on physically, but doesn't cut into the deeper aspects.

For instance, if someone has high cholesterol, sure, it can sometimes be related to genetics, but when you ask about a patient's history with their diet, well, why are they eating the diet that they're eating? What are they avoiding? Are they experiencing loneliness and so they're eating extra carbohydrates or maybe fried foods to kind of fill in the gap?

What's your diet like? And just quickly going through it. As this questionnaire looking at people like they're a robot or that they're one and the same with everyone else, and that's not how people are. Everyone's so unique. Everyone has their own ancestral patterning, their own childhood wounding, whatever they have experienced in childhood, as well as from a cultural and societal perspective.

These different elements come into play, and this is where I think. We don't necessarily need to deny the western world. It's more about bridging and bringing both elements.

Chris McDonald: Yeah.

Beena Patel: Yeah.

Chris McDonald: And that's where yoga and therapy is so powerful too, to be able to bring the full self in. Yeah. 'cause that's what I've found in my experience, navigating through this, is so much that traditional medicine, they don't acknowledge or they don't know.

That's something to really think about.

Beena Patel: Yeah. Again, I've been pondering this for the last few months. I don't have the answer to that. And I don't wanna just like send out this claim. I'm looking at pieces of my own life because, but it makes sense,

Chris McDonald: doesn't it?

Beena Patel: There's so many elements to us, our, our psyche and the way that we experience our lives and just learning about people's psychology and how we're so different.

Two, people can experience something similar, but completely different perspectives. So how can we limit a root cause to any one defining moment? We can't.

Chris McDonald: And I think too, and that goes for mental health therapy too, because when we treat someone, like you said, we can provide the same service to someone, but.

And like you said, with that yoga class, right, to meet the mood. Right? What are you needing in that moment?

Beena Patel: That's beautiful.

Chris McDonald: Yeah. Yeah. Being able to really look at the nervous system regulation too. And I guess I wondered from, from your perspective, what role does nervous system regulation play in the healing process?

Beena Patel: I feel nervous system regulation, even though it's been talked about so much more often. Yes. I think it's become more popular. It's become so popular. I know. And I think it is really. It is definitely really important because you could be doing so many different healing modalities, but not be able to sustain.

Maybe the neighborhood wasn't really great. So she had a lot of situation that happened that will kind of make her not feel safe if she, if you just throw this person into a yoga class and they start experiencing more peace, they can experience that peace, but they might not be able to sustain it and carry it for a long period of time because they don't actually feel acclimated to.

That state, they're actually used to chaos. They're used to dysfunction, and so that actually has become normalized, and so it takes some time, and I think with nervous system regulation, incorporating things like breath work, meditation, pausing, there's so many things. Even EFT tapping, I found that personally helpful.

Whether that's more peace, more love, more harmony. It all starts again in the mind and body.

Chris McDonald: And I think that's why it's so important to bring the body into therapy. And that's the beautiful thing too, is, is the counseling world is changing and more somatic practices are coming out and more and more therapists are bringing the body in and that, and I think that we're gonna see a lot more healing.

People because of that, right? Therapists, are you wanting to bring yoga into your therapy room? But feel unsure what is allowed, what really works, and you wonder where to start. I hear you. I've put together a free guide just for you. The top 10 FAQs are frequently asked questions on integrating yoga into therapy, what every therapist needs to know.

This guide gives you practical strategies to start your journey to integrate yoga practices with integrity. Get your free copy today@hcpodcast.org slash top 10 questions. That's TOP, the number 10 questions that hc podcast.org/top 10 questions. It's also in the show. Notes, get your guide today, because I think you talked about there's something missing, right?

If we're only even as a coach, if you're just talking thoughts that there's something missing if you're not bringing in the body. So talk to me about like the importance of bringing in the body more.

Beena Patel: Yeah. I think somatic healing is, is key with all of this. Whether it's yoga, reiki. Even different forms of breath work, because I'm learning that there's different kinds as well, like pranayama and different techniques.

So it's not necessarily just my gut. Sometimes I can feel things in my heart or what we will call the heart chakra, and similar things. I've seen similar things with my clients and students where they'll. Notice, oh, I'm having a sensation on my right arm, or I'm noticing this feeling around my feet. So when we tune into the energetics and understanding a person's emotional state, we also understand that it's not just the mindset or the thoughts that we think.

For other people, they can have massive breakthroughs, and suddenly they're crying, they're releasing, there's. Being released and it's, it's emotions, it's energy and motion. So I think somatic healing is really important because these things aren't just in our mind. It's also in the body. And I'm sure I'll ask you, but I'm sure you have read, uh, body Keeps the Score.

Yes.

Chris McDonald: Mm-hmm.

Beena Patel: Yeah. And it's, it's a beautiful book that shares different types of healing family constellation system, which is not necessarily somatic, but it's just different things that we can learn from to understand. That these patterns don't just live in the mind, they're also in the body.

Chris McDonald: Yeah. And we got, it's tuning into those messages, isn't it?

What do you notice as you say that in your body?

Beena Patel: I love that you, you said that because something I have to take over my journal a lot, which is helpful to Yeah. Yeah. All my thoughts. But every now and then, it's like we're just writing and writing and writing and it's like, okay, I know that this is enough, like this is done and it's time to move on to the next piece, which is somatic shaking, something to move the energy out.

And once that happens, usually there's a release and it's like, okay, yeah. Fullness of this experience rather than just half of it, which is writing, which is still helpful. It is, but it's not the whole thing. Yeah, it's

Chris McDonald: not the whole thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't know about you, but the world goes fast, right?

Beena Patel: I know and well, that's why I'm in Costa Rica.

Yeah. So I love that you live there, uh, because it's, you know, it's such a switch. For me personally, I was in New York for almost a decade. Oh, wow. And now, and then living there for a few years. And it's exactly what you said, it's a culture that's very much based on go, go, go, go, go, go. Hustling, grinding. And it's, it's thought of highly, it's not that.

It's not just that you're doing it's thought of highly and. Our world we know has run on external validation and constantly seeking approval. And I myself have been in that pattern. There's so many pieces I'm still dismantling in my life around that social media being one. Yes. So it's just like noticing all these things and now being in a place where there's a lot more nature.

Our bodies are really intuitive and wise, and for instance, I talk about burnout a lot. Obviously if you're in healthcare, you know, I think everyone's experienced some form of, of burnout If you are in a space where you provide care for other people, it doesn't have to be just healthcare, but I find it in healthcare, it's a big, it's a big piece.

And so. Sometimes you'll, you'll hear people say, oh, maybe you just need to go on vacation. Or maybe it's some disease, unknown etiology, things like fibromyalgia, which don't have a clear cause, and things just kind of get ruled out in that category. But the reality is people. Constantly go at things when the body's asking to rest.

Pause and remind one another that it's not always about doing. It's just like what you said. It's a balance. It's not that doing is wrong, it's that we, we gotta balance our doing with being. Yes.

Chris McDonald: Yeah. Because your body will be become out of balance too if you're not. Right. I want, can I bring up something you mentioned on, on my guess application?

'cause you said that you believe that yoga can be beneficial practice, not just in trying times, but as a lifestyle and a way of being. So can you share more about that?

Beena Patel: Yeah, so I think this goes back to the piece that we talked about earlier, which is that sometimes with mainstream yoga it becomes, you know, these fancy poses.

People are very proud that they can do headstand. All that is great. But the deeper work when it comes to yoga is actually being a yogi, so to speak. It's, it's how we interact with our world. It's who we are being essentially. So it becomes this constant practice of balancing our inner feminine and masculine.

Sometimes you might notice emotions arising in that moment. It could be easy to just lash out at them, and we all do this, like we've all had moments, but the greater work is in pausing. Then noticing how we feel, not denying what we feel, noticing what's coming up in our sensations, taking some deep breaths, breathing into that, and then also, if possible, opening up a healthy conscious dialogue to come up with a peaceful resolution, obviously.

Things don't always happen like this, and life isn't always so how to describe it. It's not always as easy as A, B, and C. Like, okay, yeah, I've, I've mastered the art of becoming a yogi and now I'm just at peace. That's not how life works. We're constantly being presented different opportunities that actually can help us deepen our own practice.

And that speaks even louder than anything you can read or or teach from a book. People can feel this shift in our being.

Chris McDonald: Ooh, that's something. Food for thought. I love it. Oh, that's amazing. Yeah, and I think that that's something too, that's. For a therapist listening to think about with teaching clients is too, and, and I have a spiel.

I tell my clients too that, you know, I'm gonna teach you some yoga practices and, you know, these are gonna land in session. They may, you may feel calmer, you may feel more energized, whatever it is. But the important work is what you're doing outside of session. And I think that's the other key component with this.

Beena Patel: I, I agree with that. And I would also just like to clarify what I said before, which is that some of us. For instance, I do feel that I've been on this spiritual path since the first initiation into yoga.

It's felt to be something deeper than just, okay, I'm interested in yoga and I, I sense it might be similar for you too. Mm-hmm. So on some level, so it's

Chris McDonald: something more right than just, Hey, I got yoga class tonight.

Beena Patel: Then I'm done. Then we learn about things like self-talk and emotional mastery, and I think sometimes we can get tied into this idea of perfectionism.

Like, oh, I've made it. I can just sit with every trigger. But the reality is life presents conflict from time to time. And challenges.

Chris McDonald: Yes,

Beena Patel: challenges. And it not necessarily because your. Out of balance or that you were exuding something that attracted, I don't necessarily believe that. I believe that sometimes we're presented opportunities to help strengthen that anchor from deep within and to strengthen our mastery.

So it's a beautiful, yeah.

Chris McDonald: Yeah, absolutely. So what do you think are some misconceptions about somatic healing? You might have seen some on Instagram or

Beena Patel: some misconceptions. I think that, I don't know if it's a misconception, but I feel that in the world of somatic healing, because it's becoming a lot more prominent, um, you might've seen.

There's a lot more talk about divine feminine and yes, you know, this is part of divine feminine healing and many people are sharing incredible wisdom. I think, again, I don't know if this is a misconception, but I think there's this competition that one. Healing is better than the other.

Chris McDonald: Agreed,

And why I say that is because in different parts of your journey, you might need different things. For instance, if I'm in a really. If I'm in a really tense place, sometimes I just need to be there with the emotion, even though it might make a lot of sense to shake and to do somatic shaking and move the energy out so quickly.

Sometimes I need to be present because of emotion is that charge. What I found in my experience is that if I'm really feeling the charge of an emotion, it is trying to teach me something. Something has been out of alignment and. My body's asking for me to be present with it so I can better understand.

So I feel that instead of saying to people, you know, this is what you need, this is what's gonna help, again, I don't even push yoga on people and say, this is the must, like you need to do this. It could be different and, and people, there's also different styles of yoga that people can benefit from as well.

Chris McDonald: Yeah. And we have that in, in the therapy world too, that, oh, if I use EMDR as the best modality, or I do use brain spotting as the best or whatever it might be.

But I think if I am more integrated, I pull from different areas. 'cause not everybody needs the same thing and healing comes. In so many different ways.

Beena Patel: It does. And also people are not always ready for certain mod. Yeah,

Chris McDonald: exactly.

Beena Patel: Instance breath work can bring up a lot of emotions for people. Yes. However, I question sometimes when a person experiencing such a big release mm-hmm.

Healing can be gentle even though it comes in waves. There used to be a time where I used to think that, oh, some places are just murky and maybe they just bring about a lot of suffering and, and all this stuff comes up. And it's not to say that those moments aren't valid. It can happen and that could be part of someone's journey.

It's just like what you said. Everyone's healing journey is different. However, I think when. The practitioner has become evolved enough and also allowing, seeing the person that they're helping in their power, that tends to be a better healing experience because when we see people in their power, then they can make wiser decisions whether something is right for them versus if it's not.

Chris McDonald: That's it too. They have to be in the right space, right place. And a lot of thick clients that come to me in therapy, 'cause they know I bring yoga in, they're ready. They've tried lots of different traditional talk therapy and they're like, I've only come so far and I wanna go deeper. You know? And I think that's, that's where we are.

We do have to meet our clients where they're they're at too, and what they're open for. I agree. Yeah. Yeah, a hundred percent. What's a favorite yoga practice that has helped you over the years?

Beena Patel: I love restorative and yin yoga. A lot of what I teach is haha. Yoga. I do teach occasionally restorative. However, restorative is one of my favorites because I feel that for any of us who are doing this work, we're so used to giving and restorative is a beautiful way of.

Fall asleep. Just like that.

Chris McDonald: Exactly. Yeah. It's like, yeah, that giving back to yourself and

Beena Patel: the beautiful act of self love and self care, which I think everyone can use right now.

Chris McDonald: Oh yeah, exactly. So do you have a personal yoga practice at home you like to do?

Beena Patel: I practice haha, occasionally, um, at home, but a lot of it is walking on the beach for me right now.

I love walking and um,

Chris McDonald: you have beautiful video on your website as well, walking on the beach. It's just like

Beena Patel: I'm right there with her. It's like a mini vacation to watch. Yeah. So I've been, I've been walking a lot and um, I still do some yoga, but I would say there's been other things. Even dancing. I love dancing, so

Chris McDonald: Oh yeah.

That's somatic too.

There's a lot.

Chris McDonald: Yeah. It's like that internal tuning, isn't it too? And I love what you said, um, just to go back what you said about what is the body need, right? And, and that can shift over time. 'cause what you might've need last year may be different now.

Beena Patel: And being open to listening, listening to the body's wisdom, which can only come from stillness.

Chris McDonald: Yeah, exactly. So what's the best way for listeners to find you to learn more about you?

Beena Patel: They can find all my information on my website, the yoga movement nyc.com. I'm also on Instagram at the yoga movement, and then also if they wanted to contact me through my contact form. But all my offers and programs are on the yoga movement.

It's called Top 10 F EQs Frequently asked Questions, integrating Yoga to Therapy, what every therapist needs to know. Inside, you'll find clear, practical answers to the most common questions. So that you can feel confident, ethical, and grounded as you begin weaving yoga into your sessions. This guide is designed to support your growth and help you ensure you're offering yoga informed care with intention and integrity.

It's given with the understanding that neither the hosts, the publisher, or the guests are giving legal, medical, psychological, or any other kind of professional advice. We are not responsible for any losses, damages, or liabilities that may arise from the use of this podcast. Yoga is not recommended for everyone and is not safe under certain medical conditions.

Always check with your doctor to see if it's safe for you. If you need a professional, please find the right one for you.