STRESS: A YOGI'S GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING IT.
Stress has existed since the dawn of humanity. The ancient sages recognized the effect of everyday life's tumult on the mind and body.
Yoga may help you separate your thoughts from this turbulence and confront the consequences of stress with calmness.
- We are exposed to stress from birth and spend our lives adapting to it.
- For a number of reasons, some of us manage better than others.
- It may be due to a person's personality, surroundings, or physical state.
- But, at some point or another, everyone must cope with the consequences of stress, and in order to do so, they must develop and discipline their intellect, physical body, psychological body, and spiritual body.
- With different degrees of effectiveness, we all develop methods of dealing with stress, monitoring and limiting its effects.
Yoga is one of the most complete and effective ways to address this issue.
- Stress isn't a new phenomena; it's been there for a long time.
- Even if our forefathers did not face the same pressures as those of us who live in contemporary, technologically sophisticated societies, even mundane occurrences may create inner anguish.
- Since the dawn of civilization, people have looked for ways to relieve stress.
Because of Patanjali's knowledge of stress, the Yoga Sutras begin with the statement "Chittavritti niruddha."
- This translates to "managing the stress-inducing thought waves or mental swings."
- He goes on to explain how yoga may assist in coping with difficult circumstances.
THE REASONS FOR STRESS.
We all seek temporary solace in fleeting pleasures.
Our wants, needs, and demands are never-ending.
We are often pushed in two ways:
- On the one hand, the external world entices our minds and draws our attention inexorably to it.
- On the other hand, we want to gaze inside, to uncover our inner selves and the essence of our existence.
- This struggle entangles us in a web of want, discontent, and wrath, manifesting as pain, fatigue, and shortness of breath.
THE SENSES WHEN CONTROLLED.
The mind has direct influence over the senses. To control the senses, you must first master the intellect.
- We may separate our senses from the intellect by relaxing them and directing them inside.
- The senses are under control when a person is tranquil and in a meditative frame of mind.
- External events no longer create stress at this stage.
- Only then can one reflect on the emotional forces at work in one's life and choose what should be discarded or changed.
Yoga brings your body and mind into balance.
- Breathing at a steady speed and rhythm calms the body and detaches the mind from the stresses of the outside world.
- When regular tasks are completed efficiently and effectively, this therapeutic impact may be felt in your daily life.
The dynamic energy of a calm individual does not diminish.
- There are no typical stress symptoms like migraines, tiredness, or hypertension while you're in this condition.
- Regardless of the external circumstances, the mind stays calm and collected, and the body remains disease-free.
OUR COLLECTIVE HABITAT - THE WORLD OF TODAY.
The contemporary world's technical and scientific advancements do not guarantee happiness.
- People are unthinkingly caught up in the chase of money, success, and worldly pleasures, which has resulted in higher levels of stress in contemporary life.
- More knowledge is currently available than ever before thanks to the information explosion.
- Surprisingly, rather of reducing stress, such scientific and technical advancements have exacerbated it.
Financial security demands, the need for fame and achievement, and the desire for worldly pleasures all contribute to a state of worry and hurry.
- Our spiritual life, mental tranquility, and physical health will all suffer as a result.
- You lose your capacity to see reality clearly if you are caught up in a whirlwind of continuous challenges and rivalry.
- You may unconsciously distort the truth to fit your own personal objectives, missing out on friendliness, honesty, and compassion in favor of deception, dishonesty, or pride.
A mind that is disconnected from the heart is an uncultivated mind.
- To enable the emotional center to arise, the head's intellect must be regulated.
- Peace of mind, stability, and happiness can only be attained when the brain and the heart are in harmony.
- Egoism and pride lead a person to lose touch with their emotional center.
- You must grow emotionally as well as intellectually to attain a completely integrated personality.
Only then will you be able to manage the pressures and strains that sometimes throw you off balance.
Stress will emerge physically and emotionally via tightened bodily muscles, stiff facial expressions, and unpleasant behavioral patterns as long as your heart and mind stay apart.
CHANGING FORMS OF NOURISHMENT, DIETS AND FOOD
The food we consume and the environment we live in must both promote stress-free life.
We will be on our way to a healthy lifestyle if we increase our consumption of fruits and vegetables and feed our senses with soothing smells, sounds, and sights.
Food is divided into 16 categories in the Upanishads, ancient Indian texts written between 300 and 400 BCE.
- Ten parts are considered waste, five parts influence mental energy, and one component is essential for intellect.
Food may have both good and bad impacts in this system, depending on the surrounding environment, geographical and climatic circumstances, and a person's constitution.
Food has three characteristics according to yogic science: sattva, rajas, and tamas:
- Sattva is the well-balanced and contemplative element;
- Sattvic cuisine is clean, healthy, and fresh, and contains fruits and vegetables.
- Rajas is the energy that wants to accomplish, achieve, or create;
- Onions, garlic, and pungent spices, which are found in Rajasic cuisine, are stimulants.
- Tamas is the energy of lethargy and decay.
- Heavy and enervating substances, such as alcohol and meats, are said to be tamasic.
- Junk food is a relatively recent word, but its characteristics are unmistakably tamasic.
Every action in our contemporary society is quick, including activities involving food and how we consume it.
- Junk food, as well as food from cans and packets, has a significant detrimental effect on the human body.
The mind is as alert after a meal of sattvic food as it was before it was eaten, while the mind becomes dull and sluggish after meals that are mostly rajasic or tamasic in character.
It is equally essential to maintain a healthy mind and a well-nourished body.
- The eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin are the five sense organs that lead to the mind.
- The senses need proper nutrition in order to have greater mental control.
- The mind is nourished by soothing music for the hearing, soft, natural light for the eyes, or beautiful, tranquil landscape for the eyes, and fresh clean air and the smell of flowers for the nose.
- The tongue requires meals that are nutrient-dense and finely flavored.
- It is necessary to keep the skin clean, smooth, and supple.
Finally, the mind must be nourished by cultivating mental clarity.
STRESS, BOTH POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE
Individuals who are stressed are more likely to generate innovation and strive for success. This is a good kind of tension.
- Negative stress may cause health problems, sadness, and inaction.
- Yoga teaches you how to turn negative tension into a pleasant experience.
The cumulative impacts of stress may be harmful to your health and mental well-being.
- Today, there is a rising understanding that stress is harmful to one's health.
- It has the ability to paralyze you and make you feel disjointed and unbalanced.
Stress, on the other hand, may increase desire to create and accomplish.
- This kind of stress may be both beneficial and not so beneficial in the long run.
STRESS IN ITS MANY FORMS.
Positive and negative stress must be distinguished properly.
- Negative stress makes it difficult to cope with sickness or emotions of insecurity.
- It may be latent, like other illnesses, but it can cause physical signs like tremors or labored breathing.
Every individual must discover a method to convert negative stress into good energy, which can then be used to cultivate a healthy mind and body.
1. Physical, physiological, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual stress have an impact on the mind, body, and emotions.
2. The consequence may be tight or stiff muscles and joints, skeletal bone atrophy, body system slowness, or essential organ sluggishness.
3. Continuous stress produces muscular contraction, severe muscle and joint pain, and stiffness in the jaw or face muscles, which are all linked to emotional and physical strain.
4. Indigestion, irritable bowel syndrome, headaches, migraines, a sensation of tightness in the diaphragm, dyspnea, and sleeplessness are all symptoms of stress.
THESE ARE THE WAYS WE REACT TO STRESS.
Varying individuals have different degrees of intensity when confronted with a stressful circumstance.
- Some people get enraged, while others become confused or sad; in the end, stress causes disease, premature aging, and even death.
- The link between the body, mind, and emotions has been proven by the study of psycho-neuro-immunology, but ancient yogis understood it millennia ago.
- The health of the mind is mirrored in the body, according to yogic science.
- Psychological stresses put a strain on all of the body's systems.
STRESS REDUCTION.
The body and mind must be treated as one in order to decrease stress.
The muscles, the diaphragm, and the neurological system store the tension associated with stress.
Stress is lessened when these regions are relaxed.
- Physically, stress affects the organs of perception and the central nervous system.
- Yogic deep relaxation techniques have a significant impact on all bodily systems.
- When a portion of the body is tense, blood flow to that region of the body is reduced, which lowers immunity.
- Yoga focuses on that region to release stress and increase blood flow throughout the body, which helps to keep the heart rate and blood pressure in check.
- Rapid, shallow breathing becomes deep and slow, enabling the body and mind to take in more oxygen and eliminating tension.
You may also want to read more about Yoga and Holistic Healing here.
You may also want to read more about Yoga Asanas and Exercises here.