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Introduction – Benefits of Yoga for Mental Health
“Yoga does not just change the way we see things, it transforms the person who sees.” – B. K. S. Iyengar
Yoga is an ancient practice and a spiritual discipline rooted in Indian philosophy. As practiced in western countries, yoga typically incorporates three main aspects of the classical, original version: breathing techniques, physical postures, and meditation. Although it originated as a spiritual practice, yoga has grown in popularity as a way to boost physical and mental well-being. In fact, yoga and meditation are considered holistic mind-body practices and effective stress reduction techniques.
Depression, anxiety, chronic stress, and other mental health issues are highly prevalent in the United States and are considered serious health conditions alongside cancer and heart disease. At the same time, given the “on the go” busy lifestyle that most westerners lead, our nervous systems are in a chronic state of hyperarousal. This means our fight-flight-freeze response (i.e., sympathetic nervous system) is overactivated. At its core, stress is the body’s normal, necessary, and natural defensive mechanism against predators and danger. Stress floods the body with chemicals like cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine. These chemicals prepare our nervous system to escape or confront danger. As a result, physical symptoms like increased blood pressure, sweating, and alertness follow. As you can imagine, the constantly triggered, overactivated nervous system wears us down both emotionally and physically, hence chronic stress and a weak immune system.
According to the American Psychological Association (APA), stress is not only highly prevalent but is even considered a “major health problem in the U.S.” The American Institute of Stress reported that about “77 percent of people experience stress that affects their physical health, and 73 percent of people have stress that impacts their mental health.”
In general, our bodies are built to withstand stress. However, while stress can be a natural and reasonable response to various events, being chronically subjected to it can be harmful. For example, constant stress may raise a person’s risk of developing type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease. In addition, when stress becomes chronic, depression, anxiety, and other mental health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), may emerge. It can even result in suicide, aggressive behavior, a heart attack, or a stroke.
While there are many self-soothing spiritual disciplines for stress reduction and well-being, yoga has an advantage as one of the most well-researched and studied practices. Studies using MRI scans and other brain imaging technologies have shown that people who practice yoga have a thicker cerebral cortex (the area of the brain responsible for information processing) and hippocampus (the area of the brain involved in learning and memory) compared to those not practicing yoga.1 These brain areas typically shrink as you age, yet the older yoga practitioners showed significantly less shrinkage than the average person. The study suggests and even partially proves that yoga counteracts age-related declines in memory and other cognitive skills.
According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health studies, yoga has possible benefits for several aspects of wellness, such as stress management, mental/emotional health, promoting healthy eating/activity habits, sleep, and balance.2 In fact, research suggests that yoga may help relieve chronic pain, help people lose weight, quit smoking, and even ease menopause symptoms.
Studies have shown that yoga is effective due to the perfect combination of breathing, exercise, and meditation. Such a combination produces significant changes in your brain. It affects not only your cognition but the entire body and the way you process emotions, anxiety, and stress, which results in a healthier, happier life.3
Let’s break down the three main aspects of yoga to better understand its benefits, especially for mental health:
Breathing
“A yogi measures the span of life by the number of breaths, not by the number of years” – Swami Sivananda
In a typical yoga class, we are often taught to breathe deeply, retain our breath, and breathe consciously. But, besides the fact that breathing is involuntary (it simply keeps us alive) what significance does it have in the context of yoga and meditation?
First of all, connecting with your breath and becoming conscious of it is a method for being present. At its core, breathwork is a tool for physical relaxation. Although we breathe automatically, still breathing is something we can choose to control. Each discipline of yoga has its own set of breathing exercises meant to help the mind concentrate and the body re-energize. Certain yoga practices may include a 15-minute relaxation time during which people sit cross-legged and focus on their breathing and thoughts while their eyes are closed. Other practices may even devote 60 or 90 minutes to such breath-centered relaxation.
During such relaxation, your brain releases chemicals that help lower your stress and anxiety levels including, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), oxytocin, dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins. The “cocktail” and mix of these “happiness hormones” help the body to calm down and feel content.
Exercise
We have all heard, countless times, that any kind of exercise is good for mental health. In fact, physical activity is one of the most beneficial tools for people struggling with depression and anxiety. However, yoga might be the most effective one out of all kinds of physical exercise. As mentioned above, yoga helps release the tension stored in your body. Such tension makes you struggle mentally and makes your body feel tight, sometimes even causing pain. The stretching techniques of yoga help release tension from problem areas, including the shoulders and hips.
Holding postures, being flexible, and focusing on breathing strengthens physical stamina and mental endurance. The exercise and postures of Yoga help modulate the stress response in our bodies, reduce heart rate, and lower blood pressure, which could increase pain tolerance and mental resilience.
Meditation
Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years. Initially, it was meant to help deepen understanding of life in general, especially the mystical, spiritual side. Today, it is mostly used for mental and physical well-being, stress reduction, and tranquillity.
Meditation helps you focus and eliminate the stress of crowded, chaotic, and jumbled thoughts. Most importantly, it provides a sense of peace, calm, and balance – which is crucial for emotional/mental wellbeing.
Summary
If you need to decide concretely which physical activity is the most optimal for you, especially to keep both mental and physical health in check, Yoga is your perfect solution. Especially because it is scientifically proven to be such. As mentioned above, Yoga can relieve stress, improve sleep, regulate your appetite, improve libido, boost your health, and enhance your quality of life, which creates a solid foundation for mental resilience and strong mental health.
References
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6971819/
- https://www.nccih.nih.gov/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3193654/
Featured Image Credit: Natalie (Pexels)
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