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5 WAYS | How Yoga Can Positively Impact Your Mental Health

Published by Courtney Hall

Yoga is a “no-brainer” for people that do and don’t like to exercise!  Why? Yoga is like fitness, and it is not like fitness. It resembles fitness because it strengthens your body and tones it. It is not like fitness, because it is much more than that. Yoga is a system for the body that targets more than your muscles. The main focus of yoga is achieving mental and emotional balance through the movement of the body and the coordinated breath. Here are the mental health benefits of yoga.

Yoga Activates the Parasympathetic Nervous System

The sympathetic nervous system is all about the fight-or-flight reactions, and the parasympathetic nervous system is the one that rests and digests. Practicing yoga regularly will lower your cortisol levels. Cortisol is the hormone that is released as a result of stress and can have a damaging effect on the body when its release becomes chronic. As you breathe in deeply with yoga and perform the movement, the body’s stress responses calm down, and the whole nervous system is relaxed.  Related: http://www.organicauthority.com/  

 

Yoga Builds a Healthy Sense of Identity

Because yoga involves the body, it helps you cultivate a relationship with yourself over time. This means that you begin to be more aware of your body’s natural needs for healthy food and rest. Yoga is a time for you when you take care of yourself and give yourself the appreciation that you deserve. This helps with the self-confidence that is a basic asset of a healthy individual. No relationship is more important than the one you have with yourself.  Related:https://www.psychologytoday.com/us

Arthur’s Inspirational Transformation Through Yoga

Arthur Boorman was a disabled veteran of the Gulf War for 15 years, and was told by his doctors that he would never be able to walk on his own, ever again.

He stumbled upon an article about Diamond Dallas Page doing Yoga and decided to give it a try — he couldn’t do traditional, higher impact exercise, so he tried DDP YOGA and sent an email to Dallas telling him his story.

Dallas was so moved by his story, he began emailing and speaking on the phone with Arthur throughout his journey – he encouraged Arthur to keep going and to believe that anything was possible. Even though doctors told him walking would never happen, Arthur was persistent. He fell many times, but kept going.

 

Yoga Improves Your Other Relationships

When you are at peace with your own self, you will pass this on to your relationship with others. The way you are taking care of yourself is the way you will be compassionate and forgiving to other people. The calmness that you receive from yoga helps handle conflicts and hard situations without going off at the other person.  Related: https://www.mindbodygreen.com/

 

Yoga Enables You To See Your Weaknesses

Psychology knows that there are parts in the body that are the storage for certain tensions, negative emotions, and mental blockages. The moving of the different parts in yoga and their stretching allows the body to release these tensions instantly gradually. Once these blockages are released in the body, they will be released in the mind as well. And in addition, for addicts in particular, yoga can provide a sense of peace, quiet, and meditation.  Related: https://www.therecoveryvillage.com/

 

Take The Time to Slow Down

The most important asset of yoga is the meditative-like state that requires nothing but breathing and focusing the body into a certain position. The biggest reason for stress is the lack of time to just sit down and be present in the moment. Yoga is an ‘excuse’ for you to take that time for yourself to just be in the moment.   Related: https://www.yogajournal.com/  

 

Doing Yoga Everyday

While yoga can help at the moment, it is essential to do it regularly for stable results. The effects of it will build up with time, and the state of calmness and relaxation will become a permanent state of being. To encourage this, aside from also participating in support groups, consider enrolling in local yoga classes to help get a solid foundation and routine going. Plus, it might help you make some new like-minded friends as well.

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