There are many ways in which yoga works. Some ways – like improving the physical wellbeing, are more obvious than others; scientists are still coming up with hypothesis about yoga’s ability to improve social skills.
On the physical level, yoga can help tone the muscles, increase flexibility, and improve certain conditions and overall wellbeing and quality of life.
On the mental level yoga is believed to be beneficial for improving some mood-related disorders like depression, helping anxiety and stress by inducing the state of relaxation, and even improving cognitive skills.
On the social level, it was shown to improve social skills (please, see the studies below for more information on the above).
“In a 2007 study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (Vol. 13, No. 4), researchers at Boston University School of Medicine and McLean Hospital used magnetic resonance imaging to compare levels of the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) before and after two types of activities: an hour of yoga and an hour of reading a book. The yoga group showed a 27 percent increase in GABA levels, which evidence suggests may counteract anxiety and other psychiatric disorders. GABA levels of the reading group remained unchanged.”
“A series of experiments conducted by organizational behavior researchers at Stanford University and published in January’s Psychological Science (Vol. 20, No. 1) suggest that acting in synchrony with others—be it while walking, singing or dancing—can increase cooperation and collectivism among group members. “In a yoga class, everyone is moving and breathing in at the same time and I think that’s one of the undervalued mechanisms that yoga can really help with: giving people that sense of belonging, of being part of something bigger,” McGonigal says”.
“New research is also supporting yoga’s benefit for other mental illnesses. An as-yet-unpublished randomized control trial by Khalsa offers insight into how yoga may reduce insomnia. In this study, 20 participants who practiced a daily 45-minute series of Kundalini yoga techniques shortly before bedtime for eight weeks reported significant reductions in insomnia severity as compared with those told to follow six behavioral recommendations for sleep hygiene.”
“Focused breath equals maximizing oxygenation and movement increases blood flow to brain and body,” says registered nurse Graham McDougall Jr., Ph.D., the lead researcher of the report published in the June issue of the Journal of Neuroscience Nursing. Participants of the study saw significant gains memory performance and had fewer depressive symptoms as well.”
Pranayama is yogic techniques and exercises, usually in the form of breathing exercises, aimed at extending life force (also known as “chi” or “ki”). Here are some of pranayama’s health benefits:
“Oxidative stress is the burden placed on the body by free radicals due to metabolism and environmental toxins (air, food, water, etc.) and can contribute to accelerated ageing and disease.
Shatkarmas are also known as shatkriyas, and are part of kriyas. Shatkarmas are techniques aimed at the purification of the body. They include Neti (nasal cleansing), Dhauti (digestive tract cleansing), Nauli (cleansing of the organs in the abdominal region), Basti (large intestine cleansing), Kapalbhati (the technique aimed at mainly helping cranial sinuses; includes the following techniques: Vata, Vyuta, Sheta), and Trataka (gazing technique, includes gazing at the candle flame, crystals, sun, etc.).
Different therapists benefit from incorporating yoga in their client’s treatment programs, as well as their own wellbeing regime: “Psychologists may also benefit from using yoga and other forms of exercise for their own care, Greenberg says. In a 2007 survey of licensed APA members by the APA Board of Professional Affairs Advisory Committee on Colleague Assistance, 48 percent reported that vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue are likely to affect their functioning.