Yoga for Stress and Anxiety / Why is it good for us?

Stress and anxiety are everyday experiences for many of us.
When facing stressors, our bodies trigger a physical stress response that prepares us to either fight or flee the scene. The sympathetic nervous system drives this "fight-or-flight" response.

Our blood pressure, heart rate, breathing rate, and cortisol (the stress hormone) levels increase, the body sweats, the blood is shunted to the muscles of the limbs. It's beneficial for the short term if we need to get out of physical danger.

But most of our daily stressors don't require us to fight or flee. We are bombarded by the constant stressors, and many of us are experiencing prolonged and chronic stress - the constant deadlines, problems with finance, relationships, family, or the daily news from media.

The chronic sympathetic nervous system dominant can lead to high blood pressure, indigestion, poor sleep, low immunity, hormonal disruptions, autoimmune disorders, and many more chronic diseases.

Yoga and Meditation practice can trigger the Parasympathetic nervous system ("Rest-and-digest" nervous system) response, so we can restore our body and mind to a more relaxed state to bring homeostasis.
Growing studies on yoga's effect on our brain and body have shown it can boost the immune system, lower blood pressure, and decrease emotional reactivity to reduce the stress response.

No time to practice? For the next one minute, consciously slow your breath. Place your hands on your belly, beneath your belly button. Take a long inhale, gently expand your lower abdomen, slowly exhale, relax and deflate your abdomen. Do this several times throughout your day and notice the shift in your mood.

I have several short and sweet recorded live classes for restorative and meditation sessions.   Join our membership community to try unlimited Live Online Classes and recordings of the Live classes, as well as meditation class, or drop in for a single class.  I look forward to practicing with you!