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The word yoga has been derived from the Sanskrit word ‘yuj’, which translates to ‘‘being present”. It is a practice that brings the body and mind together and helps one develop self-awareness. Higher practitioners of yoga state that it helps them be aware of their true selves and regulate emotions better. If you are looking to find out why and how yoga affects mental health, read on.
A brief idea about what yoga is
Yoga may be an ancient practice, but it has several mental health benefits to offer its practitioners. Once, it was a marginal activity practiced by only a few people. But this is not true anymore. The practice has taken off and has gained mainstream popularity all over the world. The yoga Abu Dhabi can be a non-competitive space that lets you explore the body and the mind. Better health and flexibility, coupled with big benefits in the sphere of mental health can be expected.
The meditation techniques and the holding of postures or ‘asanas’ that yoga teaches enhance mental health when practiced regularly. Some ways how yoga positively affects mental health are as follows.
- Better Control Over Emotions
Medications and better verbal communication do help in emotional control, but they are often found lacking. If a person frequently cannot control her emotions, it may have to be dealt with in a deeper manner. Modern yoga is also a body-based therapeutic intervention that can help you deal with emotional problems better. The practice of meditation and deep breathing helps control the mind and get rid of the unnecessary thoughts that cloud judgment.
Having better control of emotions also means being less prone to quick anger, rage, and sadness. With yoga, you focus on your breathing patterns, which calms and soothes the mind.
- Learning Better Relaxation Techniques
Daily life can be taxing and taking some time every day for relaxing the mind and the body can be fruitful. Good mental health is about knowing when to work and when to relax. When you focus on your breath and practice the repetitive postures of yoga, you are learning new techniques of relaxation. Calming the mind while reaching a meditative state helps you cope with real-life better.
- ‘’Know thy self’’
Yoga classes in Abu Dhabi work on building self-awareness. Yoga practitioners who have been practicing for years reportedly are more aware of themselves and their feelings. Your sense of worth may be tied to your looks, what you do, how much you earn, and how big a house you live in. This can easily escalate into comparisons with others and cause low self-esteem. With yoga teacher training, you will be able to get a grasp of what you truly are.
Yoga is so much more than physical exercise; it is a binding of the mind and the body. Being aware of what your body can do and what it can achieve is wonderful. The centering of the self, a balanced ego will let you be in a mind space where you don’t have to prove anything to anyone.
- Learning The Art Of Speaking Up
A lot of mental health problems find their root in a person’s inability to speak up when needed. Yoga, with its focus on self-awareness, gives you the tools to be more courageous in your daily life. This helps you find the strength to speak up. Not being afraid of having difficult conversations is great for self-esteem. It gives you the wisdom to know that you are going to be fine no matter what.
- Enjoying Closer Relationships
Loneliness is an important cause of depression. Any long-time sufferer of depression will agree that keeping up and maintaining relationships is hard. With yoga, you get the opportunity to be more centered and at peace with yourself. This will help you view the people in your life with more compassion, love, and empathy. Strong relationships are the foundation of society and are a boon to mental health.
Whether it is a spouse, a friend, or a co-worker, yoga gives you tools to be better at relationships.
- Learning To Deal With Issues Of Family Of Origin
This means karma. A person cannot choose his family; rather, he is born into it. Yoga teacher training helps one get a grasp on how to own one’s family and its share of wounds. Taking on and owning family wounds instead of blaming others are an act of mindfulness and compassion. Understanding that it is only you that you can change is of paramount importance for mental health.
Controlling your actions and your behaviors is the only thing you can do and yoga, with its focus on building self-esteem and confidence, teaches you how. Consider the ‘Warrior Pose’: it tells you to rise to the occasion and give it your best.
- Helping Build A Sense Of Community
When a person is fighting depression and other mental health conditions, having a sense of community boosts recovery. When you take a yoga class, you are showing up at a particular place that gives you purpose. You also get to be with like-minded proponents of yoga, which can be a wonderful opportunity to make friends and have a community.
Yoga can be a tremendous choice for bettering your mental health. The myriad ways and techniques it teaches to have better control of the mind and the body will improve your life.
