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Yoga has been shown to have many benefits on all levels of our being - physical, physiological, biochemical, psychological, and spiritual (West, p. 33). The research over the past decade or two has demonstrated what yogis have known for millennia - that yoga works. But how it works is something we have only begun to clarify somewhat recently. So, I’d love to share some of the ways that yoga helps us as well as what we know about how it does that.
The word “yoga” is derived from the Sanskrit root “yuj” which means to yoke or union. Thus yoga means to bring together or connect. What is it connecting? Yoga seeks union between our individual self and a higher power, universal consciousness, or God (Iyengar, 1999, p. 19). So do I have to believe in God or a Higher Power for yoga to work? No, not exactly. If you don’t believe in a Higher Power, you might think of yoga as a way to connect with your Highest Self.
While the exact origins of yoga are unknown, we do know it is a practice that has existed for thousands of years originating out of India. However, the way we practice yoga now, particularly in the West, is quite different from the original practices. In fact, most of the postures or shapes that make up yoga asana today - the physical practice we often think of when we hear the word “yoga” - were developed only over the past 50-100 years. Further, yoga in a more traditional sense not only involves asana, but also breath work and meditation as well as other aspects such as studying the yogic texts (as in jnana). The yoga that has been studied more recently tends to be yoga asana with some studies involving breath work and/or meditation as well.
So now that we know what yoga is, how does it help us? There are a large number of positive shifts we may experience with a regular yoga practice. Some of these benefits (West, 2011) may include (but are not limited to):
Mental Health Related Benefits
And this is just to name some of yoga’s touted benefits!
You might ask, how can yoga do all of that?
LET’S GEEK OUT ON BRAIN STUFF!
As we grow in our understanding of the brain through the development of the field of neuroscience, including fMRIs, the answer to this question has become more clear. What we know right now is that yoga impacts three parts of the brain of note (among others*):
1. Periaquaductal Grey:
This is a small tube shaped region in the midbrain. It is an innate alarm system, engaging in passive vs. active defensive responses and is crucial in basic emotional systems. There are two subdivisions (1) fight/flight response (active defensive responses) (2) freeze/shutdown (passive defensive response). Note that in people who are not trauma survivors, the periaquaductal grey is not connected to much. However, in trauma survivors it is connected to many areas including brain regions involved in emotional reactivity and defensive responses so that the PTSD brain is never really at rest.
2. Insula or Insular Cortex:
The insula plays an important role in mapping somatic (body) states and in empathy; it helps us differentiate between different emotional states. It provides emotional cognition to physiological experiences. For example, if there is pain in any part of your body then it is insula that identifies this pain as an unpleasant feeling. The insula gives us a perception of Self.
The thalamus relays sensory impulses from receptors in various parts of the body to the cerebral cortex. It acts as a gate filtering which information from various channels is allowed to be relayed by it for processing.
To briefly explain why these parts of the brain are important, allow me to briefly explain how they are supposed to work versus how they work in a brain with PTSD, for example.
When our brain is healthy and has experienced little to no trauma, the periaquaductal grey isn’t connected to much so we are not constantly “on guard”. We have a relatively clear sense of Self and we are able to identify our emotions and both notice body sensations and connect them to our emotions (i.e., our insula is working). Further, we have an ability to integrate sensory information and respond appropriately for the present moment situation (i.e., our thalamus is working).
In the PTSD brain the periaquaductal grey is quite active in its role as the innate alarm system, constantly “on guard” so that the PTSD brain, in order to keep you safe, is never at rest. Further, there can be difficulty taking in, interpreting, integrating, and responding to present moment experiences congruent with what is happening the present. There can also be difficulty accessing body sensations (sometimes a complete disconnect) and/or emotions. Further, there can be less clarity around a sense of Self or some confusion around identity.
Still with me? Sometimes that brain stuff can be a lot.
Now that we know some of the pieces of the brain involved, let’s look at how yoga helps us.
HOW YOGA WORKS (as far as we know right now)
Regulation of our Autonomic Nervous System
Through yoga practice, we notice the periaquaductal grey is positively impacted. This means that through yoga practice, the PTSD brain may be able to rest since there is a decrease in emotional reactivity and defensive responses. Why is this? Well, there are a couple of pieces that seem to be at play.
In the practice of yoga asana, we are often encouraged or at least invited to breathe consciously. In the short term, this practice of movement with breath can help us shift out of the fight or flight response into the calmer ventral vagal response**.
As we do this over time, we (re)learn how to shift out of a defensive response into the ventral vagal response as needed, staying only in the defensive responses temporarily when they turn on to do their job and then returning back to the ventral response. It’s not that we don’t ever want to be in our fight or flight response (sympathetic nervous system response) or the shutdown/freeze response (dorsal vagal response). Instead we want to be able to use those responses as needed based on the present moment and then being able to shift ourselves back to the calmer state of the ventral vagal response.
However, in order for us to be able to shift out of these states when they are not needed in the present, we need to have enough Self-awareness to be able to see that we are in a defensive state AND we need to be able to accurately perceive and pressing sensory information. The cool thing is, yoga helps with this too. More on that later.
First, it is important to note that yoga also helps increase a measure called heart rate variability (HRV). Heart rate variability is a measure of the variation in time between each heartbeat; it is controlled by our autonomic nervous system. It works regardless of our desire and regulates, among other things, our heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, and digestion. The healthier the autonomic nervous system, the faster you are able to switch gears, showing more resilience and flexibility. Over the past few decades, research has shown a relationship between low HRV and worsening depression or anxiety. It is also common for trauma survivors to have low HRV as well. Since yoga helps regulate the autonomic nervous system, it helps improve HRV. It is likely that the component of yoga that helps most with this is the breath practices or breath in yoga asana, since biofeedback, which is a kind of breath work, also improves HRV.
Increased Accuracy of Perceptions of the Present Moment and their Interpretations
One of the main parts of Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY) is interoception, noticing how something feels in your body (e.g., if your head is tilted to one side, you may notice sensation in your neck). This practice may also be included in other types of yoga as well, depending on the style and teacher. At any rate, through the practice of TCTSY, studies have shown improvements in the insular cortex, the part of the brain responsible for a perception of Self as well as for integration of thoughts, sense, and emotions. So as we start to pay attention to our inner experiences, we build our awareness and thus our ability to notice when we are acting in a way incongruent with the present moment.
Another part of the brain that seems to be positively impacted by yoga practice is the thalamus, responsible for relaying sensory input from receptors throughout the body to the cerebral cortex so it can be processed. I suspect both the breath and interoception to be at play here. The breath with movement seems to regulate the nervous system; to properly perceive and assess sensory input, we need a regulated nervous system. Then, in order for us to have awareness of and integrate our thoughts, senses, and emotions we need the insula to be working as intended, something that studies have shown improvement in through TCTSY, likely related to the practice of interoception.
Essentially, yoga helps us live in the present, more accurately perceiving our world, and from what we know now, interoception and breath with movement seem to be key in our ability to be in the present with more accurate perception.
Building a Sense of Agency
Specific to TCTSY is the practice of choice making and invitational language, something that has been shown to increase a sense of agency (an ability to identify and take action), something often missing in survivors of complex trauma. It is possible that the insula and thalamus also come into play here as we need to have a sense of Self and from that be able to take in sensory input, processing it as appropriate.
Physical and Physiological Benefits of Yoga
Note that the insula also regulates autonomic function. To understand how that is important, consider this.
When our nervous system is regulated, that is, when we primarily hang-out in a calm, more ventral vagal state with an ability to return there after addressing a short term need to shift into a defensive response, our systems function optimally. When we are in our defensive responses, our secondary systems (immune, digestive, reproductive) essentially shutdown. Think of it this way, if a tiger is chasing you (such that you are in your fight or flight response), you no longer need to digest the food in your belly, fight off the flu bug, produce off-spring, or do other secondary functions; ALL of your body’s energy needs to go towards getting away from the danger the tiger presents.
Now think of all of the invisible tigers (to borrow Peter Levine’s words) that you experience throughout your days, those things that trigger you into your fight/flight response (e.g., anxiety, anger, irritability, etc.) or your shutdown/freeze response (e.g., numb, depressed, disconnected, dissociative). If after those triggers, you struggle to regulate back to the ventral vagal response and instead find yourself chronically in the fight/flight or shutdown responses, you may not only notice problems with your mental health like anxiety or depression, but also problems with your digestion, your immune system, and/or your reproductive system.
However, as you are able to calm your body, decrease your defensive responses and return to a regulated state more quickly from defensive responses, you provide an opportunity for your other systems (i.e., everything not working to protect you from danger) to come back online and start to work optimally again.
So it isn’t that big of a mystery that with yoga being a practice of regulating our nervous system that we would then see improvements in many systems of the body as mentioned above.
Further, yoga increases our Self-awareness and present moment awareness which can impact our ability to be reflective and responsive instead of being reactive. More plainly put, we have space to notice what is happening, we can take it in, interpret it within the context of the present moment, and decide if it truly requires a defensive response. This doesn’t mean there will be a long pause when we do need to react (e.g., driving, walking in a cross walk with a car coming, animal chasing us). It just means we get better at perceiving if we are actually in danger.
Okay, so that was a lot, and so much more can be said. But truth be told I am out of time so I will leave it at this for now. For more information about Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga in general go to www.traumasensitiveyoga.com.
For information on upcoming Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga class with Jen, go to pathwaysuniversitymn.com/tctsy.
* We know that in the case of PTSD, the amygdala, medial prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and anterior cingulate cortex are also negatively impacted. Details about these parts of the brain are outside of the scope of this article.
** For a deeper discussion on the autonomic nervous system, including the three primary responses, read my previous article that explains it in greater depth. https://www.pathwaystowellnessllc.com/blog/connect-fightflight-freeze-how-our-nervous-system-helps-us
Iyengar, B.K.S., Evans, J.J., & Abrams, D. (2005). Light on life: The yoga journey to wholeness, inner peace, and ultimate freedom. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Books.
West, J. I. (2011, September). Moving to Heal: Women’s Experiences of Therapeutic Yoga after Complex Trauma. BOSTON COLLEGE Lynch School of Education. https://dlib.bc.edu/islandora/object/bc-ir:101480
This blog is for information only. Reading this blog or interacting with it is not medical advice and does not constitute a therapeutic relationship. This blog is not a substitute for mental health care. Please be sure to seek out mental health care as needed.