Yoga, with its combination of meditative breathing and movements, is a holistic way to reduce anxiety, depression, and stress. Significant levels of stress and tension can cause irreparable harm to your life and well-being. Practicing yoga on a regular basis can help control your stress levels and stay calm.
Yoga can assist you in managing your bodies response to stress and anxiety. If you are in a stressful or anxiety-inducing situation, first and foremost, try to take slow, deep breaths. Breathe in through the nose and exhale through the mouth. Let the breath fill your belly.
Practicing yoga exercises consistently will help you control your breathing and relieve anxiety. Breathing can achieve this by regulating your blood circulation, slowing down your rapid breathing, and decreasing your elevated heart rate here are some of the yoga poses and sequences that can help you fight anxiety.
- “Balasana” or the Child’s Pose
Kneel while keeping your big toes in contact with the ground and the hips and knees parallel. Stretch your back and lengthen your neck. Stretch your arms on the ground, palms down and take deep breaths and try to stay in the pose for 30 seconds.
- “Janu Sirasasana” or the Forward Bend
Sit comfortably with your legs stretched out in front of you. Inhale deeply and bend a knee bringing the heel of a foot towards the inner thigh of the opposite leg. Exhale and try to hold the pose for a minute or two. Repeat with the other knee and its opposite leg.
- “Viparita Karani” or the Legs-Up-The-Wall Pose
Sit comfortably with your legs straight and press the right side of your body against a headboard or a wall. Exhale deeply and turn so that your back lies on the ground. Try to raise your legs so that your legs are pointed towards the ceiling.
Try to stay as close to the headboard or wall as possible. If you need support, place your feet flat against the headboard or the wall. Take slow and deep breaths and try to hold the pose for 5-10 minutes.
- “Baddha Konasana” or Bound Angle Pose
Sit comfortably on the ground and extend your legs towards the sides. Exhale deeply as you bring the flat of your feet together and try to pull them towards your pelvis. Try to keep the knees to the sides and touching the ground. Hold the pose and take slow, deep breaths.
- “Padangusthasana” or Big Toe Pose
Stand and widen your stance so that your feet are six inches apart from each other. Exhale and bend your knees while keeping the head, neck, and spine straight. Touch the big toes of the feet with your index finger. Inhale deeply and straighten your arms as you stretch your torso. Repeat the pose for another 10-15 breaths.
It may take some experimentation to discover the sequences and represents that turn out best for you. You should show restraint toward the cycle and keep on exploring different avenues regarding a receptive outlook. Yoga helps train the body and the mind to think and focus one’s energy. By controlling your focus, you can control your emotions, curb stress, and restrain your anxiety.
Using a Yoga Teacher
One of the easiest ways to learn these poses is to engage the services of a professionally trained Yoga teacher. They are trained to help you learn the right way to practice your yoga and correct any bad habits you may pick up. This is important because a wrong move could lead to injury.
Most yoga teachers however will hold both Professional Indemnity insurance and Public Liability insurance.
Professional Indemnity* will help cover them against losses claimed by a third party and defence costs due to alleged or actual negligence in their professional service or advice. Public Liability insurance* will cover them if a third party (ie a member of the public or a student) were to claim that their negligent business activities caused them an injury or damaged their property.
If your yoga teacher is not covered, BizCover may be able to offer Professional Indemnity and Public Liability insurance for their yoga practice. Once they are covered, start learning new poses with your preferred yoga teacher and get that extra peace of mind.
*As with any insurance, cover will be subject to the terms, conditions and exclusions contained in the policy wording. The information contained on this web page is general only and should not be relied upon as advice.
