About Trauma Informed Kickboxing

This is no ordinary combat class. We don’t do dark spaces and stark lighting. We don’t push members past their limits and shout to make ourselves heard. We provide a light, welcoming space that puts you at ease and in control. We respect boundaries and choices. We listen and learn.

Our trauma-informed martial arts programs are evidence-based and draw on lived-experience. By teaching combat in a conscious way, guided by trauma-informed principles, we aim to help people expand their window of tolerance.

Window of Tolerance

Your window of tolerance is your capacity for resilience. It’s a state of being where we can think rationally and make decisions based on multiple pieces of information. We all have a window of tolerance, and we all exit it sometimes. Have you ever been so upset that being told to ‘calm down’ makes you angrier? That’s hyperarousal and it happens when we step outside our window of tolerance. 

On the flip side, when faced with a danger we can freeze or dissociate from our bodies. Repeatedly numbing as a safety response is known as hypoarousal and can become a learned behaviour used whenever we exit our window of tolerance.

Trauma Responses

Sometimes, after experiencing trauma our window of tolerance shrinks, and things that weren’t triggers before, now send our nervous system into overdrive. In the case of childhood trauma, our window was narrowed early on in life and we may never have known any other way of responding to triggers.

Some of the ways to expand your window of tolerance include spending time close to the edges (but not outside), developing tools to help you return to your window of tolerance and becoming conscious of the physical sensations your body expresses right before you exit your window. 

Staying inside your window of tolerance

The key to staying inside your window of tolerance is choice. If you have genuine choice in how you participate in combat sports, you can choose to take a break or change the practice to suit your needs before your nervous system is overwhelmed. This is why in our club, we use invitations instead of demands or shouts of encouragement. We respect your boundaries and won’t push you to do anything you don’t want to do. 

Noticing when you’re about to leave your window of tolerance

The ability to notice sensation in your body is known as interoception. This skill can be disrupted by trauma, and our modern digital world. Like all skills it can be improved with repetition, which is why our classes include invitations to notice sensations such as your shoulder fatiguing as your punch.

As your interoception improves you get better at noticing what your body feels like when you’re exiting your window of tolerance, and you can take a break or use a regulation strategy.

Returning to your window of tolerance

You’ve probably practiced emotion regulation techniques before: breathing exercises, body scans and noticing sensations are some common ones. The problem is that most people can use these techniques when they’re calm, but not once their fight or flight response has taken over. At the Conscious Combat Club we practice ‘Pound & Ground’, an exercise designed to help you bring your heart rate down between rounds of exercise. This simulates stress in your body and makes it more likely that you use a regulation technique next time you're triggered.

FAQ's

Read below to find out some of our most frequently asked questions

What is the cost of your Melbourne classes?

All our classes are offered on a membership of $30 per week. You can stay for just the 8 beginner sessions or make kickboxing part of your regular practice for years. No lock in contract.

We offer partial scholarships for anyone experiencing financial hardship, which bring the membership to $20 per week.

Private lessons are $120 per session. $324 for 3 private lessons. $510 for 5 sessions.

I'm covered by the NDIS, can I work with you?

We are not registered with the NDIS. While we would love to be registered, registration is expensive. The good news is, it is still possible to access funding for the conscious combat club through the NDIS! To access this program through the NDIS, you’ll need to either self manage your NDIS plan, or use an NDIS Plan Manager. If your plan is NDIA Managed, you can only access NDIS registered providers.

We are happy to assist with further information around NDIS funding. Please email or call us and we will provide further information about line items, service agreements and invoicing.

Phone: 0414 512 122

Email: georgia@consciouscombat.club

I'm putting together a VOCAT/FAS application, how do I include Conscious Combat Club?

Please email georgia@consciouscombat.club the following details:

  • Your full name
  • The type of sessions you'd like to access (online or melbourne, group, private or a combination)
  • The amount of sessions you'd like to apply for (for example 12 months of group sessions)

We will reply with a quote and an information booklet you can add to your application. If you need anything else we are very happy to help in any way we can.

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