Vital Warrior: Healing PTSD w/ Kundalini Yoga
I just watched this video of our friend Mikal Vega accepting a humanitarian award for his work in creating Vital Warrior – a non profit program for veterans. Vital Warrior’s mission is to educate and facilitate the healing of PTSD through non pharmaceutical methods. We first met Mikal a year and a half ago, just a few months after he retired from a 22 year career as a Navy Seal and Chief petty officer. He had gone to my husband Jai Gopal’s Kundalini Yoga class at Yoga West, and they had a lot in common (my husband is a West Point grad and former Army officer). I met Mikal a few months later in Grass Valley, CA at the Conscious Communication level two Kundalini Yoga course. He had jumped into the deep end of the Kundalini pool with that one. That course blew all our heads off.. in a very very good way. Anyhow, we all ended up staying at this uber cute house in the woods filled with teddy bears (for example : random detail – me and my husband’s room had a cartoon skunk and daisy theme) and would come back after doing the most intense self induced energetic surgery (only way I can think to describe it..) to make dinners and eat together. Mikal told us his story over the course of those meals that week. As the granddaughter of a career Navy officer (my dad’s dad) and CIA operative (my mom’s dad) , and my husband being a former military officer himself, it was refreshing for me to see Kundalini yoga and this intense training we were doing through his eyes a little bit. I feel like yoga as a whole is so diluted and mis understood, so when I see it being appreciated and utilized by the kind of folks that REALLY need it – our veterans – it is so exciting and inspiring. Plus Mikal is a genuinely nice person with a wonderful and noble vision that he is actively manifesting. Mikal went on to complete the Level 1 Kundalini training with Harijiwan and Tej in Santa Monica last year. He now regularly teaches Kundalini yoga to fellow veterans while also fulfilling his life long acting dream here in Los Angeles, which in turn supports his work with Vital Warrior.
Visit the Vital Warriors website (and facebook page!) for all the details on the 8 modalities used in the healing of post traumatic stress syndrome. Also check out Mikal’s IMDB and facebook page to be inspired and in touch with him.
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Very inspiring… we need to hear more stories of people making a difference. Taking pain and making something positive
thank you mom!
Thank you for posting this. We appreciate your help in getting the word out about Vital Warrior’s services. Your sharing is helping our goal to help our Veterans and anyone in need of alternative healing methods.
Maria Warnick
Vital Warrior
I’m so very glad to help in any way that I can Maria. Thanks so much for your comment
Jamila thank you so much for posting this and for being such a friend! Many blessings to you and Jaigopal Sat Nam!
really my pleasure Mikal! thank you so much for being such an inspiring force in the world. God Bless!
I am very interested in this approach to healing and helping veterans here in Texas. Do you know of any veteran groups that meet as Vital Warrior students in North Texas?
Hi Carol, Thanks for your question – I would suggest getting in touch with Vital Warrior directly, I am sure they would be very happy to hear from you. Maybe you could help start one if there isn’t already a group like that happening in North Texas. Best to you ~!