Yoga has very good benefits in reducing stress,weight ,extra fat and it helps to meet the spirituality .Yoga can change your life, its an art of living
Yoga is dubbed as an ancient form of healing due to its ability to integrate both your physical and mental health barriers. Thus, there are several practitioners to yoga who practice it for the sole purpose of enhancing their physical and mental health such that they are equipped with the tools to combat potential illnesses, whether it be physical or emotional. However, dealing with mental health issues offer more complication since it is difficult to pinpoint the causes and triggers. You can read more below to learn how yoga can be used as a tool to enhance your mental health.
Mental Aspect of Yoga
The state of your mental health is what governs all other functions in the body. Thus, it is of utmost importance to attain a balanced mental condition such that other aspects of your body are functioning normally. It is also crucial for personal growth and development, spiritual awareness, renewing purpose in life, and fostering relationships. In fact, it is recommended as a complementary treatment for therapies and other procedures done for mental care patients. However, attaining the full mental health benefits of yoga can be attained differently using varying methods, depending on the specific condition that one is faced with.
How Does Yoga Help With Depression?
Depression is a serious case of psychological or mental illness that need to be addressed right away, especially since it can affect you physically as well. When one mentions the word “depression” or “depressed”, it triggers a negative connotation on the mind of anyone who hears it. Not only that, there is a risk that someone with depression could end up in a downward spiral as they feel more alone and isolated. In some cases, they refuse to go out and would rather spend their time on their own, which further aggravates the symptoms of depression. The worst case scenario here is for someone to feel totally depressed as to consider the idea of suicide. In mild cases of depression, the symptoms are often temporary and can be healed using simple treatment methods. Indeed, it is normal for one person to be depressed about something, such as losing valuable things or loved ones, divorce, or getting fired. But in most cases, an individual is unable to recover from that depressed state such that it becomes even worse through time. The earlier you can detect the symptoms and diagnose depression, the sooner one is treated and avoid further complications. Some of the symptoms of depression that you need to pay closer attention to include appetite loss, intense fear or worry, helplessness, hopelessness, inability to concentrate, hallucinations, and even suicide. When one is depressed, performing yoga asanas could help reverse those symptoms. This will help boost flow of oxygen and blood supply in the body to produce a positive state of mind. It is therefore important that yoga asanas are combined with breathing exercises to enhance oxygen supply in the body. Some of the most recommended poses for individuals suffering from depression are Bridge Pose, Camel Pose, Sun Salutation Sequence, Full Backbends, Savasana, and many more.
Curing Anxiety Disorder Through Yoga
Anxiety disorder is a psychological condition that is triggered by various factors but is manifested through illogical fear, extensive amount of stress, insomnia, pessimism, and many other conditions that (like depression) could also lead to suicidal tendencies. As for the physical symptoms of anxiety disorder, it may include intense pounding of the heart, difficulty breathing, chest pains, palpitations, nausea, and physical and mental fatigue. Anxiety disorder is one of the most common condition affecting anxiety sufferers. Although mild cases of anxiety is considered to be beneficial to motivate and encourage you to exert your best effort, extreme levels of anxiety is unhealthy. The ability of yoga to ease your mind and stabilize the nervous system is therefore an effective treatment approach for anxiety disorder. Meanwhile, combining it with breathing exercises help build inner spiritual awareness, inner peace, and a positive state of mind to reverse the effects of anxiety disorder. And finally, performing regular meditation is helpful for anxiety disorder patients to gain a deeper understanding of the self, instead of being influenced by external factors that cause unnecessary worry or fear.
Regaining Emotional Control
When doing yoga for enhancing the mental state of mind or curing mental health conditions, your objective is basically to attain emotional control. Sometimes, when your emotion has overcome you, you lose the ability to stabilize your nervous system and the emotion is further intensified. This is one of the most basic components to every therapy suggested for mental health care patients. The cognitive function is altered to be able to see things at a new perspective. And to further nurture those benefits, body-based intervention is often needed for more effective results. To better understand the importance of emotional control in yoga, as part of caring for mental health patients, the anxiety or depressed feelings that one experiences trigger a chemical response on the body. When one feels overly stressed out, your muscles become tensed or stiff. Thus, yoga asanas are useful in relieving those stiffness to make you feel relaxed. Attaining relaxation also enables you to think clearly and rationally. And the more you practice yoga, the better able you become at controlling your emotional responses. Contrary to popular belief and misconceptions about yoga, it can also promote a social experience. The image that often pops out in one's mind whenever thinking about yoga is someone meditating in isolation. But the recent boom in the yoga industry has enabled more people to attend yoga classes that are fun and enriching at the same time. Thus, it creates a healthy social experience wherein you can meet fellow yogis and build a healthy relationship with them.
The most important benefit of yoga is physical and mental therapy. The aging process, which is largely an artificial condition, caused mainly by autointoxication or self-poisoning, can be slowed down by practicing yoga. By keeping the body clean, flexible and well lubricated, we can significantly reduce the catabolic process of cell deterioration. To get the maximum benefits of yoga one has to combine the practices of yogasanas, pranayama and meditation. Regular practice of asanas, pranayama and meditation can help such diverse ailments such as diabetes, blood pressure, digestive disorders, arthritis, arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, asthma, varicose veins and heart conditions. Laboratory tests have proved the yogi's increased abilities of consciously controlling autonomic or involuntary functions, such as temperature, heartbeat and blood pressure. Research into the effects of yogic practices on HIV is currently underway with promising results. According to medical scientists, yoga therapy is successful because of the balance created in the nervous and endocrine systems which directly influences all the other systems and organs of the body. Yoga acts both as a curative and preventive therapy. The very essence of yoga lies in attaining mental peace, improved concentration powers, a relaxed state of living and harmony in relationships. Through the practice of yoga, we become aware of the interconnectedness between our emotional, mental and physical levels. Gradually this awareness leads to an understanding of the more subtle areas of existence. The ultimate goal of yoga is to make it possible for you to be able to fuse together the gross material (annamaya), physical (pranamaya), mental (manomaya), intellectual (vijnanamaya) and spiritual (anandamaya) levels within your being. Physiological Benefits Physicians and scientists are discovering brand new health benefits of yoga everyday. Studies show it can relieve the symptoms of several common and potentially life-threatening illnesses such as arthritis, arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, diabetes, AIDS, asthma and obesity. Asthma
Studies conducted at yoga institutions in India have reported impressive success in improving asthma. It has also been proved that asthma attacks can usually be prevented by yoga methods without resorting to drugs. Physicians have found that the addition of improved concentration abilities and yogic meditation together with the practice of simple postures and pranayama makes treatment more effective. Yoga practice also results in greater reduction in anxiety scores than drug therapy. Doctors believe that yoga practice helps patients by enabling them to gain access to their own internal experience and increased self-awareness. Respiration Problems Patients who practice yoga have a better chance of gaining the ability to control their breathing problems. With the help of yogic breathing exercises, it is possible to control an attack of severe shortness of breath without having to seek medical help. Various studies have confirmed the beneficial effects of yoga for patients with respiratory problems. High Blood Pressure
The relaxation and exercise components of yoga have a major role to play in the treatment and prevention of high blood pressure (hypertension). A combination of biofeedback and yogic breathing and relaxation techniques has been found to lower blood pressure and reduce the need for high blood pressure medication in people suffering from it. Pain Management Yoga is believed to reduce pain by helping the brain's pain center regulate the gate-controlling mechanism located in the spinal cord and the secretion of natural painkillers in the body. Breathing exercises used in yoga can also reduce pain. Because muscles tend to relax when you exhale, lengthening the time of exhalation can help produce relaxation and reduce tension. Awareness of breathing helps to achieve calmer, slower respiration and aid in relaxation and pain management. Yoga's inclusion of relaxation techniques and meditation can also help reduce pain. Part of the effectiveness of yoga in reducing pain is due to its focus on self-awareness. This self-awareness can have a protective effect and allow for early preventive action. Back Pain
Back pain is the most common reason to seek medical attention. Yoga has consistently been used to cure and prevent back pain by enhancing strength and flexibility. Both acute and long-term stress can lead to muscle tension and exacerbate back problems. Arthritis Yoga's gentle exercises designed to provide relief to needed joints had been Yoga's slow-motion movements and gentle pressures reach deep into troubled joints. In addition, the easy stretches in conjunction with deep breathing exercises relieve the tension that binds up the muscles and further tightens the joints. Yoga is exercise and relaxation rolled into one - the perfect anti-arthritis formula. Weight Reduction
Regular yoga practice can help in weight management. Firstly, some of the asanas stimulate sluggish glands to increase their hormonal secretions. The thyroid gland, especially, has a big effect on our weight because it affects body metabolism. There are several asanas, such as the shoulder stand and the fish posture, which are specific for the thyroid gland. Fat metabolism is also increased, so fat is converted to muscle and energy. This means that, as well as losing fat, you will have better muscle tone and a higher vitality level. Yogic practices that reduce anxiety tend to reduce anxious eating. In addition, yoga deep breathing increases the oxygen intake to the body cells, including the fat cells. This causes increased oxidation or burning up of fat cells. Yogic exercises induce more continuous and deeper breathing which gradually burns, sometimes forcefully, many of the calories already ingested. Psychological Benefits Regular yoga practice creates mental clarity and calmness, increases body awareness, relieves chronic stress patterns, relaxes the mind, centers attention and sharpens concentration. Self-Awareness Yoga strives to increase self-awareness on both a physical and psychological level. Patients who study yoga learn to induce relaxation and then to use the technique whenever pain appears. Practicing yoga can provide chronic pain sufferers with useful tools to actively cope with their pain and help counter feelings of helplessness and depression. Mental Performance A common technique used in yoga is breathing through one nostril at a time. Electroencephalogram (EEG) studies of the electrical impulses of the brain have shown that breathing through one nostril results in increased activity on the opposite side of the brain. Some experts suggest that the regular practice of breathing through one nostril may help improve communication between the right and left side of the brain. Studies have also shown that this increased brain activity is associated with better performance and doctors even suggest that yoga can enhance cognitive performance. Mood Change And Vitality Mental health and physical energy are difficult to quantify, but virtually everyone who participates in yoga over a period of time reports a positive effect on outlook and energy level. Yogic stretching and breathing exercises have been seen to result in an invigorating effect on both mental and physical energy and improved mood. Spiritual Benefits When you achieve the yogic spirit, you can begin knowing yourself at peace. The value of discovering one's self and of enjoying one's self as is, begins a journey into being rather than doing. Life can then be lived practicing "yoga off the mat".
Pride Pride, and especially anxiety about pride, is something which Hatha Yoga seeks to diminish or eliminate. To one who has been dejected because he cannot do his work properly when he becomes tired, irritable, or haggard, any degree of refreshment may be accompanied by additional degrees of self-respect. Furthermore, one who has benefited from yoga may be moved to help his friends who are obviously in need, he may instruct others and be rewarded with appreciation due a to teacher. But if one succeeds in achieving skill which provides health and self-confidence, one may justly raise his self-esteem simply by observing himself living the improved results as an achieved fact. Knowledge Yogic theory and practice lead to increased self-knowledge. This knowledge is not merely that of the practical kind relating to techniques, but especially of a spiritual sort pertaining to grasping something about the nature of the self at rest. Knowing the self at rest, at peace, as a being rather than merely as an agent or doer, is a genuine kind of knowledge which usually gets lost in the rush of activities and push of desires. The value of discovering one's self and of enjoying one's self as it is, rather than as it is going to be, is indeed a value as well as a kind of knowledge.
