Yoga is Cheaper than Therapy

Yoga is definitely cheaper than psychological therapy but will it work? The answers from research say it will, either on its own or with the help of psychological therapy. If you are just mildly depressed going to yoga/meditation classes will definitely help. It is exercise, so you reap the benefit of getting those endorphins running as well as getting the relaxation and socialization. These are all beneficial for depression and anxiety.

Yoga provides a definitive mental freedom, a feeling of mental ease and comfort that is experienced at the end of a class; may not last long but it is real and soothing. The immersive concentration factor of yoga provides works as a helpful tonic for anxious and obsessive people. Yoga can be a great distraction from the worries of every day life since it forces the mind to focus on the body and the breathing; the being in the moment. Yoga techniques that promote relaxation, self-soothing and body awareness skills such as Kundalini or Hatha yoga, are a good fit with cognitive behavioral therapy.

A small but intriguing study characterized the effect of yoga on the stress response. By reducing stress and anxiety, yoga appears to decrease physiological arousal, such as reducing the heart rate, lowering blood pressure and easing respiration. Researchers at the University of Utah presented preliminary results from a study of varied participants’ responses to pain. People who have a poorly regulated response to stress are also more sensitive to pain. Their subjects were 12 experienced yoga practitioners, 14 people with fibromyalgia (a condition many researchers consider a stress-related illness which is characterized by hypersensitivity to pain) and 16 healthy volunteers.

The three groups were subjected to thumbnail pressure and were given functional MRI’s which showed that the people with fibromyalgia had the lowest pain tolerance and the greatest activity in the areas of the brain associated with pain, in contrast the yoga practitioners had the highest pain tolerance and the lowest pain-related brain activity present in the functional MRI. The study underscores that the value of techniques, such as yoga, can help a person regulate their stress and therefore, pain responses.

A study conducted in Germany shows preliminary evidence that suggests yoga is quite beneficial in improving mood and function. 24 women who described themselves as “emotionally distressed” took two 90 minute yoga classes a week for three months. Other women were placed in a control group; they maintained their normal activities and were asked not to begin an exercise or stress-reduction program during the study period.

Though these women were not formally diagnosed with depression, all participants had experienced emotional distress for at least half of the previous 90 days. They all scored one standard deviation above the population norm for perceived stress (measured by the Cohen Perceived Stress Scale), anxiety (measured using the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) and depression (scored with the Profile Mood States and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scales).

The women who took yoga for three months reported improvements in perceived stress, depression, anxiety, energy, fatigue and well-being. The depression scores were improved by 50%, anxiety scores by 30%, and overall well-being scores increased by 65%.

Controlled breathing which is one of the practices in yoga also known as pranayama significantly helps reduce stress. A type of controlled breathing with roots in traditional yoga called Sudarshan Kirya yoga (SKY) involves several types of cyclical breathing patterns, ranging from slow and calming to rapid and stimulating.

One study compared 30 minutes of SKY breathing, done six days a week, to bilateral electroconvulsive therapy and the tricyclic antidepressant Imipramine in 45 people hospitalized for depression. During a four week treatment period, 93% of those receiving electroconvulsive therapy, 73% of those taking Imipramine and 67% of those using the breathing technique had achieved remission. It’s amazing to think that 67% of this group, of severely depressed people was able to recover with nothing other than a yogic breathing technique.

Yoga can potentially help people who suffer from Post-traumatic stress disorder, (PTSD) since yoga can tone down maladaptive nervous system arousal. One randomized controlled study examined the effects of yoga and a breathing program in disabled Australian Vietnam veterans. The veterans were heavy daily alcohol drinkers and were all taking at least one antidepressant. Participants were evaluated at the beginning of the study using the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), which ranks symptom severity on an 80-point scale. Six weeks after the study began the yoga and breathing group had dropped their CAPS scores from averages of 57 points (moderate to severe symptoms) to 42 points (mild to moderate). These improvements carried through at a six-month follow up. The control group, consisting of veterans on a waiting list for the CAPS program, showed no improvement.

Researchers at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. are offering a yogic method of deep relaxation to veterans returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. Dr. Kristie Gore, a psychologist at Walter Reed, says the military hopes that yoga based treatments will be more agreeable to the soldiers and less disparaging than traditional psychotherapy. The center uses yoga and yogic relaxation in post-deployment PTSD awareness courses and plans to conduct a controlled trial of their effectiveness in the near future.

There are many different mental illnesses that can be helped by yoga including ADD/ADHD. There are an estimated 2.5 million children between the ages of 4-17 diagnosed with ADD/ADHD on Ritalin,
Adderall XR, Strattera as well as other prescribed medications for this disorder. Will yoga be the next and much better prescription for children that have ADD? The concerns of having children on these medications with all their side effects have lead parents to find some alternative method of helping their children cope with the disorder. Researchers in Australia and Germany have found that children with ADD/ADHD find relief and have improved focus by practicing yoga. “Yoga can be a lifetime friend” says Pauline Jensen, coauthor of a 2004 study published in the Journal of Attention Disorders. “It increases concentration, promotes mental and physical discipline and induces confidence.” Though parents in Jensen’s research reported the 8 – 13 year old boys who practiced yoga once a week for five months was less hyperactive, the finding did not conclude that a yoga practice could replace drug therapy.

The German study done in 2006, however, found that children undergoing drug treatment for ADHD can greatly benefit from a yoga practice and that forward bends in particular are most effective. “Forward bends increase exhalation by lengthening and deepening the breath” says the study’s coauthor, Nicole Goldstein, M.D. “This is crucial in developing concentration.”

Unfortunately, most of the children will grow up and continue to deal with their ADD/ADHD disorder. There are also a number of young adults who develop ADHD in adulthood. Yoga can be a great alternative to medication. Yoga includes deep breathing exercises that will enhance relaxation and improve self-control. In a typical yoga class, teachers offer detailed and frequent instructions about muscle and joint awareness. Adults and children, both, will fundamentally develop greater attention and the ability to concentrate which are qualities that are deficient in children and adults with ADHD. Yoga also will help reduce depression, anxiety, anger and neurotic symptoms.

Some of the main issues with people who suffer from ADD/ADHD disorder are impulsivity and hyperactivity; they often describe feeling like they don’t have control over their own bodies. They may find themselves speaking before thinking their thoughts through and often regret their words. They are fidgety and unaware that their bubbling energy can be disruptive to others in work and social situations. Yoga can help people with ADD/ADHD learn how to forge a mind-body connection that promotes self-awareness and self-control. Those who practice yoga are taught deep breathing and relaxation techniques that help center the mind in the present moment. They are also taught positions, known as asana in yoga and they hold the asana for an extended period of time while breathing calmly and deeply. The asana promote stretching, strengthening and balancing, as the deep breathing promotes relaxation and mental awareness.

An ADD/ADHD yoga practitioner should find a yoga class that doesn’t move too fast or that focuses heavily on strength training; as they will not reap the intended benefits and may find themselves overwhelmed. You should talk to a yoga teacher at a yoga studio to get a class that will fit your needs. Yoga should help ADD/ADHD people feel calm, centered, in control and in touch with their bodies. When practicing yoga regularly a person suffering from ADD/ADHD will find that yoga is a powerful mental and physical refresher that they can retreat to when feeling out of control or overwhelmed.

Yoga is cheaper than therapy and in some cases can be better than medication. If you are currently being treated by a physician or psychologist/psychiatrist speak to them about yoga. It may help you more than you would think. Always check with your doctor first before starting any exercise program including a yoga regimen. If you are just a bit blue, take a class and see how it will lighten your spirit and give you back that bounce in your step.

Namaste