Can Yoga cure mental illness?

July 11, 2019 / BIOON / - if you happen to have been to a big city in the past 10 or 20 years, you may notice a health trend: yoga The thousands of year old Indian psychotherapy has entered gyms, universities and even religious centers around the world Every week, new yoga centers appear, advertising new yoga styles and releasing new health statements Interestingly, yoga is not only seen as an entertainment activity, but also as a way to improve and maintain health: according to the national survey, about 31 million American adults (more than 13% of the total population) practice yoga for health reasons Clinical trials have shown that Yoga improves pain by stretching muscles and adjusting posture, lowers blood pressure by balancing the autonomic nervous system, and reduces inflammation by regulating chronic stress In recent years, yoga is not only considered by more and more people as a way to reduce stress and improve physical quality, but also to overcome mental pain This is not surprising: Patanjali, the "grandfather" of modern yoga and a sage of India, defined yoga as "controlling the fluctuation of thoughts" about 2000 years ago "Mental fluctuation", contemplation or uncontrollable thoughts are the main symptoms of several mental disorders Photo source: http://cn.bing.com when Hillary Clinton reported on "alternate nostril breathing" - a classic yoga breathing technique - how to help her recover from her election defeat, and how to help her give up her lifelong dream of becoming president of the United States, the potential of yoga to control unnecessary trance reached a huge success However, in addition to rumors and anecdotal evidence, there are also some solid scientific facts and clear mechanisms that can help Yoga treat mental symptoms: post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a major public health problem affecting up to 6% of the world's population PTSD originates from a large number of traumatic experiences, and is more common among veterans, survivors of war or natural disasters, and victims of violence The syndrome is characterized by re experience, avoidance and awakening PTSD is associated with a brain structure called the amygdala, which links memories of specific experiences to emotions By reducing stress, yoga can increase the activity of the parasympathetic nerve, which is a relaxation response, thus directly reducing the activity of the amygdala This seems to be mainly due to yoga breathing, such as alternate nostril breathing From a psychological point of view, PTSD is characterized by anxiety about the future, even though traumatic events occur in the past This is mainly due to the over generalization of past experience, the negative evaluation of their own behavior, and the negative reaction of others and life prospects Yoga involves all aspects of mindfulness, which is an open concern and recognition that does not judge even unpleasant emotions or memories This can increase emotional regulation rather than avoidance It is believed that in yoga practice, conscious awareness of the transience of a person's short-term physical, sensory and emotional experience can lead to changes in self-assessment, thus reducing the symptoms of PTSD Photo source: http://cn.bing.com clinical trial shows that yoga can reduce PTSD symptoms: veterans and other trauma patients were recruited from north and South America and Australia, and yoga intervention was randomly assigned to the control group that lasted for weeks or even months or was not treated or received non-specific health consultation In a meta-analysis of these studies, the researchers demonstrated that participants who practiced yoga experienced stronger, clinically relevant symptomatic relief - even if the style of yoga was not specifically designed for PTSD patients The goal of other studies on fear and anxiety is anxiety disorder Anxiety is a normal response to a particular situation or event Without anxiety, human beings can't survive However, excessive fear or anxiety may be a sign of anxiety For example, in generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), the increase of anxiety level related to health, interpersonal relationship, work and economic problems will lead to a variety of physical symptoms and behavior changes In the United States, it is estimated that more than 4% of the population in the United States only suffer from generalized anxiety disorder The physical symptoms of anxiety, such as palpitation and arrhythmia, are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease Interestingly, treating anxiety is one of the main reasons people practice yoga Once again, mindfulness seems to play a key role here: people with generalized anxiety disorder have been shown to be less "mindfulness" than the general population, suggesting that mindfulness's physical activity, breathing and meditation can help here - perhaps by "controlling the flow of thought"? Interestingly, anxiety disorders are more common in patients with respiratory disorders (such as asthma or COPD), and respiratory retraining has become an important part of many cognitive behavioral approaches to anxiety disorders Not surprisingly, yoga breathing is often seen as a major part of yoga's treatment of mental illness, rather than as a well-known yoga pose The effect of yoga on a series of anxiety disorders including generalized anxiety and phobia has been studied The researchers analyzed these studies in a further meta-analysis Although the results are positive, most of the studies are relatively old and do not meet the requirements of modern science, so there is an urgent need for replication It's obvious that yoga can relieve anxiety symptoms of healthy individuals - whether it's daily fear, test anxiety, or performance anxiety of musicians It's not clear whether alternate nostril breathing alone can actually alleviate mental pain But it is certain that yoga can help treat trauma related symptoms and anxiety, and breathing exercises are its main mechanism Needless to say, people with mental disorders should not try yoga on their own, but should consult their psychiatrist and psychotherapist For mild daily anxiety, simple yoga breathing techniques may be worth a try as a self-care strategy Reference: [1] can yoga help treat mental illness? 【2】Cramer H et al Prevalence， Patterns， and Predictors of Yoga Use： Results of a U.S Nationally Representative Survey Am J Prev Med 2016 Feb；50(2)：230-5 doi： 10.1016/j.amepre.2015.07.037 Epub 2015 Oct 21 【3】Holger Cramer et al Yoga for posttraumatic stress disorder - a systematic review and meta-analysis BMC PsychiatryBMC series - open， inclusive and trusted201818：72 https：//doi.org/10.1186/s12888-018-1650-x 【4】T Descilo et al Effects of a yoga breath intervention alone  and in combination with an exposure  therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder  and depression in survivors of the 2004  South-East Asia tsunami Acta Psychiatr Scand 2009： 1-12.DOI： 10.1111/j.1600-0447.2009.01466.x 【5】 THE WHO WORLD MENTAL HEALTH SURVEY：  GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES ON THE EPIDEMIOLOGY  OF MENTAL DISORDERS 【6】F R Schneier et al Social anxiety disorder and alcohol use disorder co-morbidity in the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions Psychological Medicine DOI： https：//doi.org/10.1017/S0033291709991231 【7】 Psychosocial Wellbeing of Patients Diagnosed with Coronary Artery Disease