What Yoga Has In Common With Anti-Anxiety Meds

Have you ever had your mind take you to an unfamiliar, scary place? I'm not referring to what happens when you think about the Blair Witch sequel; I'm talking about anxiety.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, more than 18 percent of American adults have an anxiety disorder. The Anxiety and Depression Association of America says that anxiety disorders cost the country more than $42 billion a year. About half of this cost is from people seeking treatment for symptoms that mirror physical medical conditions.

Anxiety can range from mild to severe, and it can come on at any time in your life. It can prevent you from connecting with friends or feeling comfortable with your children. Medication can help, but many users say that it blunts their emotions. It can be hard to find the ideal medication and dose that alleviates symptoms with few side effects.

What if you could relieve current anxiety—and prevent it from rearing its ugly head in the future—by putting on comfortable clothing, breathing deeply, and moving your body with purpose? Yoga as therapy is an official thing. There is even a website for it!

The International Association of Yoga Therapists was created to establish yoga as a recognized and respected therapy for medical and mental conditions. Yoga therapy is a method of giving individuals the power to improve their health and well-being through yoga practice and philosophy.

You might have heard that exercise is good for your mood.

Diminished activity in the brain's GABA systems has been found in people with anxiety disorders. Medications that increase activity in the GABA systems are often prescribed for these individuals. Yoga also increases GABA levels in the brain.

One study1 found that people who practiced yoga for an hour experienced a 27 percent rise in GABA levels compared with no growth in a control group of people who simply read for an hour. Another study found that individuals who did three one-hour yoga sessions per week experienced a greater improvement in mood and reduction in anxiety than people who walked for exercise for the same amount of time.

Do you ever wake up in the middle of the night, your breath rapid, your heart racing, and sweat soaking the sheets? Do you find it impossible to go about your daily routine without having a stressful response to just about everything your kids do?

When you do yoga, you often perform controlled breathing, mindfulness, and meditation. Research shows that all of these practices can lower anxiety.

Poses that free blocked energy in the hips can help you let go of deep-seated emotions that may be triggering your anxiety. In yoga, there is a strong body and mind connection. The mind, body, and spirit are unified. Therefore, everything that you experience mentally can have physical results. In the yogic philosophy, the hips can hold on to emotions and trauma for years. Hip openers can bring about a surge of emotional release that can help you move forward if you're dealing with anxiety.