Ever have that uncomfortable feeling like something is about to go wrong? That is your body’s stress response system at work preparing you to face the threat ahead. Stress activates your body’s fight or flight response system to keep the stressor away from it.
In the majority of cases, once you deal with the threat the body returns to its normal calm state.
Unfortunately, if this fight or flight system remains activated beyond its need, it can cause enormous damage to your mental and physical health.
The question begs –
Is Stress Harmful?
If you take the earlier human history into consideration, stress did help our hunter-gatherer tribe to survive the elements and numerous threats to their life. Therefore, if stress can help you avoid an accident, meet a deadline, or come out of a tricky situation without any harm; it is good.
Moreover, stress also varies from one person to another. What is stressful for one person might not be something to worry about for another.
What is important is that stress should be a temporary state of affairs. After you are through with the situation, the heart rate and breathing should return to normal. It is here that stress relieving yoga comes into action.
What About Stress Hormones?
Once you sense danger, the hypothalamus located at the base of your brain reacts. It sends nerve signals to the adrenal glands for releasing hormones including Adrenaline, also known as Epinephrine.
To help you counter a dangerous situation, Adrenaline works by;
- Increasing your heartbeat and breathing rate
- Making it easier for the muscles to use Glucose
- Contract blood vessels to direct it to the muscles
- Inhibit Insulin production
- Stimulate perspiration
Unfortunately, if the flow of Adrenaline goes out of control, it leads to;
- Damaged blood vessels
- Hypertension
- High risk of stroke or heart attack
- Anxiety
- Headache
- Insomnia
- Weight gain
This is where stress-relieving yoga comes into the picture to help you keep all the above-mentioned problems at bay.
Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation going around regarding stress. Read further to know the myths surrounding stress.
3 Misconceptions About Stress
Given below are the three most common myths you are likely to hear regarding stress.
Stress is Bad
Not all forms of stress are bad. Your body reacts to stress to prepare it for the danger ahead which increases your heart rate and is a bit necessary for good health.
Stress is Unavoidable
Yes! Whether it is examinations, going on the first date, or planning to tie the knot; there will be stress at some point in your life. Fortunately, you can keep stress away by making stress-relieving yoga a part of your daily routine.
Stress Triggers are Same for Everyone
Everyone’s way of dealing with stress is different. You should keep in mind that everyone’s symptoms and duration of stress are different for every individual. In other words, you cannot compare what stresses out one individual and the next.
Luckily, you have yoga to take care of the issue. Let us now check how yoga helps you keep stress at bay.
3 Ways How Yoga Keeps Stress At Bay
As is clear from above, stress is a part of everyone’s life at one point or another. It is chronic stress which makes it difficult for you to sleep, eat, and relax.
That said, given below are three ways in which stress-relieving yoga can help you keep stress at an arm’s distance.
Relaxes the Body
If done the right way, yoga provides your body with a gentle and soothing massage that helps you let go of all stress and tension in the physical body. There are some yoga asanas like forwarding bends and inversions that provide a calming effect to your whole body.
Helps You Breathe Effectively
Stress-relieving yoga brings your breathing under control. It helps you utilize the diaphragm effectively and increases your lung capacity. Practicing the different Pranayama techniques like Nadi Shodhana and Ujjayi Pranayama can increase your breathing capacity.
Develops Mind-Body Connection
The more your body and mind are connected, the more peaceful you become. During stress, your body sends signals to the brain that something is wrong. Yoga provides you the ability to respond to this signal on time to ensure greater well-being and good health in the long run.
However, to experience these life-changing benefits of yoga, you must practice the right stress-relieving yoga exercises.
Yoga Exercises to Beat Stress
Everyone suffers from stress at one point of time in their lives. In some cases, it is mild while in other it is unbearable.
To help you keep this problem away, yoga experts have come up with three powerful yoga exercises.
Cat-Cow Pose
If you want to practice a yoga asana that connects your breathing with body movements, do the Cat-Cow pose. It keeps your mind calm under stressful conditions and helps you release stress.
Child’s Pose
This stress-relieving yoga exercise helps you focus inwards and restore spent energy. It also provides you with complete mental and physical relaxation.
Cobra Pose
The best yoga asana that helps you find relief from asthma. At the same time, it is also the best yoga exercise to get rid of unnecessary stress.
Therefore, this is how yoga can help you keep stress at bay.
Conclusion
Is stress making it hard for you to sleep peacefully at night? You should learn all about stress relieving yoga by enrolling in a certified yoga school.
