Did you know stress produces mental as well as physical symptoms? Apart from the fact that stress makes us short tempered and irritable, it also causes muscle pain and tension, headaches, tiredness, indigestion and loss of libido. So, there are very good reasons for all of us to find ways to lower and remove stress from our lives. As a mind-body system of wellness, yoga is one of the foremost natural and positive ways to combat stress. Let’s understand why stress is bad for us and how yoga helps counter it.
Stress has very real consequences
When you’re in a stressful situation, you may have experienced sweating, increased heartbeat and negative emotions such as feeling out of control and the desire to lash out at people around. Sometimes this can escalate to panic attacks, the feeling of persistent sadness and habitual irritability. Obviously, stress can be bad for your relationships, for your professional life and your health. Even kids are known to have stress, which can have far-reaching consequences.
Chronic stress is known to weaken the immune system and increase risk of depression, heart disease and obesity. To combat stress, people often turn to overeating, gambling, drinking, substance abuse and/ or other risky behaviours. So stress isn’t just impacting your health right now, it is going to harm your health, your wellbeing and your relationships in the long term too.
Yoga and stress
Numerous studies have demonstrated that regular practice of yoga helps to trigger the body’s relaxation response and hence reduces stress. The combination of physical exercise, breathing techniques and meditation helps calm the mind and enhances wellbeing. It is seen to lower blood pressure and the resting heart rate. And the great thing about yoga is that anyone can do yoga in accordance with their age and fitness level. So basically yoga is suitable for everyone.
So how can yoga help you fight stress? Well firstly, commit fully to yoga. Prioritize that one hour of yoga and you will find that it does wonders for your mental and physical wellbeing. When you commit to this fully and do yoga being 100% present and mindful of the motions, your breath and your mind-space, you will automatically find the stress melting away.
As I always say, don’t chase a goal. Rather change your attitude to yoga. So, instead of thinking that you have to do yoga to improve relaxation and lower stress in your life, tweak your attitude a little bit. Concentrate only on doing your yoga with full concentration and commitment. When you perform an asana, do it with self-awareness. Be aware of each inhalation and exhalation; visualise yourself as firm steadfast, and stay in the moment.
As you focus fully on the practice of yoga, you will find yourself becoming calmer, more focused and relaxed. At the end of your yoga session you not only feel calmer but also more positive and energetic. Of course you cannot expect to reap the benefits overnight. Make sure you commit to yoga fully and prioritize it in a way that you always make time for it. Once you do this, you will find the stress melting away – without you even trying to reduce it!