yoga for anxiety and stress relief
![Foto](/uploads/1/7/8/5/17856503/editor/20200629-200144-0000.png?1597909853)
A corageous translation of yoga is a TOOL, something you can use to do so many different things. And I use it as a psychological tool.
Nothing to hide about: in my experience YOGA is a BIG part of a strategy to control the beast you can call stress. After years of practice and studies results are huges: migraine, depression and anxiety are in quiet total control, few years without big attacks and a real turn to the bright side of life. Of course no one like me can say about himself that he's healed, but I experience daily practice as a formidable tool, a winning strategy against my dark side.
After months of silence, maybe about covid mood, is time to share someting positive and REAL, so the next posts may touch some points about that strategy and how I use the Yoga TOOL.
Nothing related but yes, Tool are also a band I love.
Nothing to hide about: in my experience YOGA is a BIG part of a strategy to control the beast you can call stress. After years of practice and studies results are huges: migraine, depression and anxiety are in quiet total control, few years without big attacks and a real turn to the bright side of life. Of course no one like me can say about himself that he's healed, but I experience daily practice as a formidable tool, a winning strategy against my dark side.
After months of silence, maybe about covid mood, is time to share someting positive and REAL, so the next posts may touch some points about that strategy and how I use the Yoga TOOL.
Nothing related but yes, Tool are also a band I love.
![Foto](/uploads/1/7/8/5/17856503/published/20200701-183906-0000.png?1597910020)
As every strategy against 'stress expression' like depression, anxiety and migrain, Yoga have different main points. In my experience they are: discipline/detachment, pov, blocks remover, sociality and healing power.
First one: discipline (abhyasa) + detachment (vairajia) or as in the Y. S. the two pillars of the practice. Practically that means you have an easy roadmap: daily practice, even if you are tired or feel bad. With time I understood wich gift is to practice with migrain, or in a very bad mood: just observe yourself, I discovered so many things. Vairaja means practice regardless, without a practical target, (Niskamakarma if you prefer a sanskrit cute word), without competition with others or with yourself. Only deep your breath, strenghten your focus, yourSelf will appear, to know who you are, nothing more.
First one: discipline (abhyasa) + detachment (vairajia) or as in the Y. S. the two pillars of the practice. Practically that means you have an easy roadmap: daily practice, even if you are tired or feel bad. With time I understood wich gift is to practice with migrain, or in a very bad mood: just observe yourself, I discovered so many things. Vairaja means practice regardless, without a practical target, (Niskamakarma if you prefer a sanskrit cute word), without competition with others or with yourself. Only deep your breath, strenghten your focus, yourSelf will appear, to know who you are, nothing more.
![Foto](/uploads/1/7/8/5/17856503/published/20200719-202512-0000.png?1597910102)
Every strategy need some theory behind, that can here be a new POV - point of view - about yourself. Yoga has a philosophy structure as theorical background that can radically change your idea about who you are. Different levels of your body (yes, the five koshas), a deep model of your mental level ( Virya, ahamkara, asmita, buddhi, chitta, manas... as a beginning) and a mix of detachment and dis-identification as foreground. You are not your body, not your emotions, not your mind, also not your spiritual body. And with that kind of background the practice on the mat grow inside. That create a separation beetween you and all the stress related problems, that will no more be a part of you. So you can begin to look from another pov (Point Of View) and finally loose all that shit away from you.
![Foto](/uploads/1/7/8/5/17856503/published/20200722-150840-0000.png?1597910247)
As a strategy here Yoga can be a great (and better) way than psychology: a real block remover. You have only to practice without aspectations, (yes, abhyasa & vairaja leads here) and you will remove every kind of toxins, as emotional nor physical, and make prana flow. Our western psychology work on the same level as the problem that want to solve, trying to investigate, understand and maybe work on the blocks, but that is just brood. In yoga reason of and behind the emotional blocks are not significant, 'cause you have only to go over, to trespass that level (yes, wich is manomayakosha) to find a deeper level where you live your true and natural life, wich is a joyful bliss, (yes, it is anandamayakosha). From that different level the block is no more present, no more active on your life. In other words with yoga you burn your karma, or just changing your bad habits. And that's also named as yogachittavrittinirodha the state of yoga where there is no space for trauma and emotional blocks.
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Sociality: Yoga practice is a paradise for introvert people: you are close to other people, you feel their presence and energy but don't have to interact. Better, you have to be focused on your inner self practice, but you're not alone. In mysore ashtanga practice is also a way far: you don't have to follow a teacher, but your sequence, just as your breath lead. At the same time your teacher is there to help and adjust you without words. There is no competition, no contact with other practicioners, no eye contact, but presence. Also on the entrance/exit of the practice you are on your own with the mantra, just you... among your yoga friends. If you want you can have a little sociality outside the shala and then you understand how nice people are there, people that try to be better, just like you.
![Foto](/uploads/1/7/8/5/17856503/published/20200727-195413-0000.png?1597910477)
Yoga chikitsa, that's the first definition for yoga practice and means 'healing yoga'. All physical postures, breath practice, body energy poses (ok, asana, pranayama & mudra) were encoded to heal (purify) our body, mind and soul. And yes, it works! Just only control your breath can change in a better way every medical level of your body (from metabolism to heart pressure). And is easy to understand how a healthier body positively affect your brain, your mental level, and from here to your mood is just a breath far away. A better posture affect also your psychological level, is a way to open your soul with your body (something that A. Lowen can explane better) and that also work! And what about a more focused and steady mind, that also have a big role on your mood. Yes, yoga have a big healing power.
![Foto](/uploads/1/7/8/5/17856503/published/20200801-201407-0000.png?1597910804)
Last strategy point: fixed mind, or focus; in Y.S. that's dharana, (yes, dhyana isn't so far from here) that you experience practicing the trishtana system. That's peculiar in ashtanga and is a way to train your mind to be focus using three tool: the gaze (drishti), the contraction (bandhas) and the breath (ujjai). When you train yourself doing that for two hours every damn day (yes, that's tapas and abhyasa) the result is that after few months you have a better control on your mind also in daily life, and that's a gift when your stress is growing. You have a better observation of yourself, you can react better and understand when is time to leave.
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