Ep 119: What to Say When a Student Asks 'Will This Hurt My Injury?

The moment a student asks, "Will this hurt my injury?" can be one of the most anxiety-inducing experiences for yoga teachers. The fear of saying the wrong thing, of not knowing enough about their specific condition, of accidentally making something worse keeps many teachers trapped in silence or vague responses like "just listen to your body." But confident communication with injured students doesn't require knowing everything about every condition. It requires understanding what your actual job is, having a simple framework to rely on, and permitting yourself to be honest when you don't know something. This episode walks you through exactly how to talk to injured students with confidence, even when you're not familiar with their specific injury. I'll cover:

• Understanding Your Actual Job When Students Ask About Injuries
• Why These Conversations Feel So Scary for Yoga Teachers
• The Simple Framework That Works for Any Injury
• What to Actually Say When Students Mention Specific Injuries
• Permission to Say I Don't Know
• Building Confidence Through Practice, Not Perfection

Talking to injured students becomes one of the most meaningful parts of teaching when you understand what your job actually is and trust that you have what you need.

Resources Mentioned:

10 Questions to Ask Injured Students (FREE)  - Ten specific questions that give you the information you need to modify thoughtfully without requiring medical expertise

Transcript

Monica 3:59

Well, welcome back to the podcast. I'm Monica, and I'm so glad you're here. Here we talk about the anatomy, the injuries, the nervous system insights, plus all the real life knowledge you wish had been included in your yoga teacher training. Okay? You know that I'm a yoga teacher who specializes in teaching other teachers how to work confidently with students who have pain and injuries, right? So I wanted to focus this episode around specifically talking with students with injuries. Just imagine that you are teaching a class and one of your students tells you I have a rotator cuff injury, and then asks, do you think a particular pose will hurt it or make it worse? And in that moment, oh my God, you might feel like hesitant to answer because you're not entirely sure what a rotator cuff injury even involves. Let alone whether the pose you just cute or you plan on teaching in class is going to be safe for them. So you smile and you say something vague like, well just listen to your body. And then you spend the rest of class feeling like. An imposter, dare I say, if that scenario feels familiar, this episode is for you because today we're talking about what to say when a student asks you about their injuries, not just the words for you to use, but how to feel confident in those conversations, even when you don't know everything about their specific injury. By the end of this episode. You are going to have a framework that you can rely on. You're going to understand what your actual job is in these conversations, and you're going to feel so much more prepared the next time a student asks you a question about their injuries or about their pain. Now before we dive in, I want you to just take a breath, because I know that this topic can bring up a lot of anxiety for teachers. I know the fear of saying the wrong thing. The possibility of hurting your students. I know that maybe you worry that students will think you're not qualified if you don't have an immediate answer to their questions. And I want you to know that those fears are completely normal. You're not alone feeling this way, but I'm gonna help you realize that you already have everything you need to handle these situations and be confident about it. So let's start about why these conversations feel so scary. because understanding where the fear comes from can help you move through it. First, there's this belief that you need to know everything about every injury before you're qualified to work with injured students. And you think that if you can't explain the exact mechanism of a rotator cuff tear or the difference between a herniated disc and a bulging disc, then you have no business trying to help them. And that belief creates this overwhelming pressure to know more. Second, there is the fear of making something worse. I've had this fear. I, so I completely understand this. You worry that if you say the wrong thing or if you offer the wrong modification, you'll cause more pain or maybe even more damage. And that fear is because you care about your students. You genuinely want to help them, not hurt them. So you kind of hesitate. Because you'd rather do nothing than risk doing them more harm. Third, there's imposter syndrome. You compare yourself to physical therapists or other teachers who seem so confident and you think, well, they would know what to say and I don't, so therefore I'm not ready. and that comparison will keep you spinning in self-doubt for years instead of stepping into the conversations you are capable of having. And fourth teacher training doesn't usually prepare you for these conversations. You learned anatomy, you learned how to cue poses, but you probably didn't spend much time practicing. What to say when a student asks a direct question about their injury. So you're learning this skill in real time in front of students, which feels incredibly vulnerable. All of this to say if you feel anxious about talking to injured students, that makes complete sense. You're beginning to navigate something you haven't been taught how to do, and that's what we're going to change today. Here's the first big shift I want to offer you. You don't need to know everything about a student's injury to have a helpful conversation with them. Your job is not to diagnose what's wrong. Your job is not to explain the medical details of their condition. Your job is not to prescribe a treatment plan or tell them what will fix their injury. Your job is to create a safe environment where they can explore movement to offer options that reduce demand on the injured area While they're in your class and to help them feel supported rather than isolated in their experience. That's it. And you can do all of that without being an expert on their specific injury. Now, let me give you an example. One day a student tells you that they have plantar fascitis. Maybe you've never had plantar fascitis yourself. Maybe you're not clear on exactly where the plantar fascia is or what causes it to become inflamed. That's okay. You don't need to know all of that in order to have a conversation with them. What you do need to know is how to ask questions that give you the information you actually need. Questions like, when did this start? Are you working with anyone on it? Have you noticed specific movements that tend to aggravate it? Those questions tell you what you need to know to modify in your class, and they don't require you to be an expert on plantar fascitis. This shift from I need to know everything to, I need to know enough to help in this context is enormous. It takes so much pressure off of you. It allows you to show up with curiosity instead of being scared, and it actually makes you more helpful as their teacher because you're focused on them, the student right in front of you, rather than trying to prove some kind of expertise that you don't have. So let's get really clear on what your job actually is when a student asks you about their injury. Your job is to facilitate exploration, okay? It's not to fix them. You're creating opportunities for them to discover what feels okay and what doesn't. You're offering options and letting them choose based on their own experience. You're supporting them in rebuilding confidence in their body's ability to move. Your job is to gather information, not to diagnose. You're asking questions that help you understand what they're experiencing, so you can make thoughtful choices about what to modify, but you're not trying to figure out exactly what's anatomically wrong or what caused the injury. Your job is to modify intelligently, not perfectly. You're reducing demand on the area that's sensitive, while still offering meaningful movement. You're inviting them to try different variations and see what works, but you're not guaranteeing that every modification will feel perfect because bodies are complex and pain is influenced by so many different factors. Your job is to communicate clearly and with kindness not to have all the answers. You're being honest about what you know and what you don't know. You're using language that reduces threat rather than increases it, But you're not pretending to know things you don't know, just to seem more educated or more confident. When you understand what your actual job is, these conversations become so much more manageable because you're being a thoughtful movement teacher, and that's exactly what your students need from you. Now I wanna give you a simple framework you can use when a student asks about their injury. This framework works for almost any situation, regardless of whether you're familiar with their specific injury or condition or not. This framework has four parts. Acknowledge, ask, affirm, and offer. Let me walk you through each one. First, acknowledge what they've shared. When a student tells you about an injury, the first thing you do is simply acknowledge that you heard them and that you're glad that they told you. You might say something like, thank you for letting me know. I'm really glad you shared that with me. This creates safety. It tells them that you're not annoyed or you're not overwhelmed by their injury. It reinforces that you wanna know what's going on with them. Second, ask clarifying questions. This is where you gather the information you need to modify thoughtfully. You're asking when it started, whether they're working with anyone and what movements tend to aggravate it. These questions give you context without requiring you to know all the details of their condition, and they show this student that you care about their specific experience with their injury. Third. Affirm that you'll modify in class, This is where you explicitly tell them that you'll offer modifications throughout class. You might say, I'll offer some different variations for movements that might or might not feel good for your shoulder right now. This reassures them that they're not going to be left on their own to figure out modifications. It tells them that you are thinking about them, and it sets the expectation that you'll be offering options and not prescribing solutions. Fourth offer options during class. This is where you actually follow through on what you said when you get to a pose that might be challenging for their injury. You offer a couple of alternatives using invitational language. You say things like, if this doesn't feel good for your shoulder today, you're welcome to try this option instead, or you might explore this other option. You are giving them choices and letting them decide what works. That's the framework. Acknowledge, ask, affirm, offer, and you can use this framework even when you know very little about their specific injury. It doesn't require expertise. It just requires you to care and to be present. Now, let me give you a couple of examples of how this framework might sound in real situations. I'm gonna keep these brief because I don't want to overwhelm you. The point is to give you a sense of the tone and approach, but not to memorize any kind of exact phrases or statements or anything like that. So here's the first example. A student tells you that they have a herniated disc in their lower back. you say, thank you for telling me. I really appreciate you sharing this with me. When did this start? Are you working with a physical therapist or a doctor on this? They answer, and then you say, well, have you noticed any specific movements that tend to aggravated. they tell you that forward folds and twisting are uncomfortable, and you say, okay, I got it. I'll offer some different options for those movements throughout class. Please take whatever feels okay for you later in class. When you cue a forward fold, you might say, if forward folding doesn't feel good for your lower back today, you're welcome to fold a little bit less, or take a supportive version with your hands on blocks. That's it. You didn't need to know the exact location of the herniated disc or the medical details of what's happening. You gathered information and offered intelligent options. The second example is a student who tells you that they have hip bursitis. And by the way, if you're curious about bursitis, I just recorded an episode on bursitis, so you could go back and have a listen to that. But if a student tells you this, you can say, thanks for letting me know. When did this start? They answer, and then you say, are you working with anyone on it? They tell you they're seeing a physical therapist and you say, that's great. Have you noticed any movements that tend to bother it? And they tell you that externally rotating their hip is uncomfortable. So you say, okay, well I'll offer some variations for poses that will practice today that involve external rotation. Feel free to take those or let me know if you need something different. Later, when you cue a half pigeon pose, you say, if external rotation doesn't feel good for your hip today, you might instead point your knee down the center of your mat instead of sweeping it open towards the side of your. Again, you didn't need to be an expert on hip bursitis. You asked what movements are sensitive and you offered an alternative. These examples are meant to show you how simple this can be. You're not giving a medical explanation, you're not promising healing. You're just creating space for them to participate in class safely. Remember, it's completely okay to say, I don't know. If a student asks you a question and you don't have an answer, you can be honest about that. You can say, that's a great question. I'm not familiar with the specifics of that condition, but let's talk about what movements you've noticed. Feel sensitive and we'll work from there. Or you could say, I don't know the answer to that, but I would encourage you to ask your physical therapist in the meantime, make sure you notice anything else that doesn't feel good. Being honest about what you don't know doesn't make you less qualified. It makes you trustworthy Students, respect teachers who are honest more than teachers who pretend to know the things that they don't. It sounds counterintuitive, but when you give yourself permission to say, I don't know, you actually become more confident because you're not trying to reach this impossible. Standard of needing to know everything. You're showing up right where you are as a human being, who cares and who's willing to learn alongside your students. That's a much more sustainable way to teach rather than trying to be the expert on every possible injury. Now, I'll be honest with you. Confidence in these conversations comes from practice, not from knowing all the anatomy. Every time you have a conversation with a student about their injury, you're building your capacity to handle the next conversation. At first, it might feel awkward. You might stumble over your words. You might realize during class that you forgot to ask a clarifying question. This is normal. Remember, you're learning a new skill, but each time you do it, it gets a little easier, I promise. You start to notice patterns in what students share with you. You get more comfortable with a framework. You realize that most students aren't expecting you to be a total expert. They just wanna know that you see them and that you'll help them move safely in class. And over time, these conversations that once felt terrifying. Start to feel routine. You develop your own language. You get more comfortable saying, I don't know. You trust yourself to offer options without having to know every single detail of their condition. That confidence comes from showing up, trying, learning from what happens and trying again, and you are a hundred percent capable of that. I wanna offer you a resource that's gonna help you feel more prepared for these conversations. It's called 10 Questions to Ask Injured Students, and it's completely free. This resource gives you 10 specific questions you can ask when a student tells you about an injury. These are the questions that give you the information that you actually need to modify thoughtfully without requiring you to know all the medical details. They help you gather context, understand what movements are sensitive, and figure out what support the student already has. It includes more than questions, though. It also includes the reasons why you would want to ask the question And how their answer informs your decision making. It's a thorough resource, so I hope you grab it. Having these questions in your back pocket will make such a difference. You will have a clear framework. You'll know what to ask and you can have a conversation and feel confident even if you have never heard of their specific injury. You can grab this free resource in the show notes below, look through the questions, maybe even practice them out loud so they feel natural when you need them. And this is a tool that will serve you in every single class that you teach. So let's bring all of this together. When a student asks you about their injury, remember you don't need to know everything about it to help them. Your job is to facilitate exploration, gather information, modify intelligently, and communicate clearly. You can use a simple framework, acknowledge, ask Affirm. An offer, and you can be honest when you don't know something. These conversations that feel so scary right now, they're gonna become some of the most meaningful parts of your teaching. Because when you show up for these students, when you create space for them to feel safe, exploring movement, when you help them feel seen and supported, that matters, this is the kind of teaching that changes lives. So the next time a student comes to talk to you, take a breath. Remember the framework. Trust that you have what you need, and know that you're going to handle it better than you think. Thank you for listening. I'm so glad you're here. You've got this. I'll see you next week. Okay. Bye.