By Alexis Neal

Studies have shown that it has helped in numerous illnesses and stepped in when regular medical science could not complete the healing task itself. It has worked with the elderly, children and mental issues like depression and anxiety just to name a few. I personally have had years of struggling with severe anxiety and the inability to cope with stressful situations. I do not support the use of medications the majority of the time but was pushed by the medical field and after two and a half years on numerous medications that seemed to only make me worse, I reached out for spiritual help. After one meditation session, which lasted two hours, I felt a tremendous difference. I was able to do things that I could not do before like enter a crowded store. Though the healing is taking its time to get me back to 100% it is a much smoother healthier ride than the medications. Medications seemed to lower my concentration level and cloud my thoughts making daily tasks difficult. With daily Yoga and meditation I have not only felt clarity but have been able to take a stressfull situation and analize it rather than react to it. This is something that I have never been able to do in my life.

I have decided that I need to share this amazing power with every individual that I meet and that is why I enrolled in this school. To give a timeline, it was the end of April when I made this change and went from no energy and sleeping through most days to surfing and bicycling daily. I sleep a normal schedule and because of the intense improvement my doctors have agreed to remove me from all medications. Unfortunately, this is not an instant process and the lower my doses become-the more my body aches and the less I feel I can endure. This just assures me even more that they were not good for my body and probably did more harm than good. I can feel Yoga healing me daily.

In this economy, there is a tremendous amount of stress and you can feel it with each person you pass….and I live on an island so if you can’t relax here…there needs to be changes made. I am very glad to hear that with all the studies performed, health insurance companies are finally seeing the benefits of this exercise and adding it to their coverage for card holders. I have also heard that massages were added as well. I hope people take advantage of this great opportunity while they can. Unfortunately, most people don’t realize the signs of stress until their body starts ailing to get their attention. If a person is practicing Yoga and/or meditation regulary then when a stressful event comes along they will not only be able to recognize it but will be able to deal with it with deep breathing exercises and calming the mind. It is very difficult to wait until you are in a stressful position to then start Yoga because your mind is racing a hundred miles an hour and meditation would be almost impossible. I think Yoga needs to be practiced and learned to the best a person’s body will allow first before it is needed in such ways.

Yoga helps in other ways besides stress and anxiety issues, it helps with the lubrication of joints. My Nana used to get eight cortizone shots in each knuckle every day just so she can move her fingers because of severe arthritis and was still in tremendous pain. I worked with her for a month doing Tai Chi at a local senior center and she no longer needed the shots. I feel that Yoga will help the elderly with that as well as with the daily stiffness they wake up to or end up at the end of the day with. This would give them the ability to become more active in life…allowing more exercise rather it be soly Yoga or more and I believe would prolong their life by lifting their emotional mood. The saying “you are only as old as you feel” is true. If Yoga can take them back ten years where they can enjoy things they thought they could never do again then that would have to be a tremendous lift in emotions and spirit. To be able to give that gift to someone would be so rewarding there are no words to describe it.

Yoga is being taught in nursing homes and rehabilitation centers now and psychiatrists are even recommending it now as alternatives to medications. Of course, there are still doctors out there that just write prescriptions like its a race and truly don’t understand what they are doing nor do they believe in anything spiritual like Yoga. I hope one day everyone will see the benefits.

Yoga has been brought into the lives of children as well. I have watched it taught in preschools. It helps with the new child obesity problem in the United States right now for one. Overweight children usually just sit down during play time but this is not treated like free time, they make it mandatory to participate. Also, children that have been diagnosed with ADD or ADHD have been tested with Yoga and relaxation techniques and it had helped a significant percent, though not all. I believe with patience, these children could get off the horrible medications for those disorders if they were persistant with the Yoga techniques. It also teaches straight posture before slouching becomes a habit. Studies are now being done on mental patients with schitsophrenia, OCD and bi polar disease. The testing results are still inconclusive last I checked but they did see signs of calming with the movements and the combination of relaxing OM music.

Health and Balance says “Among yoga’s anti-stress benefits are a host of biochemical responses. For example, there is a decrease in catecholamines, the hormones produced by the adrenal glands in response to stress. Lowering levels of hormone neurotransmitters — dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine — creates a feeling of calm. Some research points to a boost in the hormone oxytocin. This is the so-called “trust” and “bonding” hormone that’s associated with feeling relaxed and connected to others. That may be why so many romances start in the yoga studio. “

Yoga has been proven to aid in the healing of asthma, back pain, arthritis, lower blood pressure, slow heart rates, depression, multiple sclerosis, insomnia, memory, self esteem, self acceptance, body strength, flexibility, delaying ageing, harmonizing the mind and body, emotional balance, self enlightenment, balancing metabolism, highering pain tolerance, balance, body awareness, help with sexual impairments, moods like stress, anxiety and depression, self control, positive outlooks on life in general, improvements on social skills, lower cholesterol, increasing red blood cells, there is a lower risk of injury as compared to other exercises, eye hand coordination, more oxygen intake, increased range of motion, increased reaction time, depth perception, osteoporosis, alzheimers, type II diabetes, carpel tunnel syndrome, muscular dystrophy, migraines, less nausea during chemotherapy, arthritis, asthma, epilepsy, constipation, allergies, improve alignment and menopause just to name a few. Studies are being done every day to see what else this exercise can aid in.

Yoga makes you aware of your body so that you can sense an issue before it becomes a serious health issue….basically learning how to listen to your body and know what it is telling you rather than waiting until you are ill. Yoga can be practiced anywhere and that is something that most people do not know. They believe that they need the cute little mat in its case like Madonna is so often seen with but in actuality it can be done anywhere. If a person gets anxiety in the dentist office, heavy traffic, etc. then deep breathing exercises can help. I personally hate the laundromat so I sit on the washing machine and meditate with my headphones on to pass the time and ease my anxiety of knowing that I am stuck there for two hours with screaming children and machines that take your money. Oddly enough, on a few occasions women have jumped up on washers next to me and joined in…saying that I just glowed positive energy and that they just wanted some of it. That is when I decided to teach Yoga.

Yoga also teaches the right way of living. Practicing a lifestyle of calmness, a person is less likely to get into a verbal argument or altercation because they will think twice about it. A Yogi will feel the stress coming and stop it or control it before it rises keeping anything from happening and hopefully calming the other person(s) through their positivity. Also, if you just left a Yoga class and you feel rejuvenated and reborn so to speak…you will be less likely to stop for fast food on the way home of smoke that cigarette after class because it almost causes a feeling of guilt not to mention you feel like you wasted time in Yoga if you are going to continue harming your body. Yoga will promote healthier eating habits as most exercising does. According to Swami Sivananda: “About the last thing one should expect from yoga is wealth. Yet, when certain facts are pointed out, it becomes obvious that here is a value not to be overlooked.

First of all, as Swami Sivananda argues, “Health is wealth…. If you do not possess good health you cannot prosper in any walk of life” (Yogic Home Exercises). As we can see from the factors listed under Physical Health and Mental Health, yoga does affect our ability to deal with the problems in our businesses and professions. Many factors affecting our day-to-day and long-range; capacities for achieving business and professional goals may be influenced by yogic endeavors. One can hardly calculate results, but still can easily sense the significance of improved health for business success.Not only may one acquire more financially from good health, but he need spend less upon measures to alleviate illness. By reducing anxiety and desirousness, yoga tends to diminish our desires and the expenditures we make trying to satisfy those desires. A person who achieves peace with himself, even if only part of the time, has less motive for spending money to win the battle for satisfaction of his cravings. Yoga is less expensive than most other methods of attaining and maintaining health and relaxation.”

Yoga is both a physical and spiritual discipline and not an easy thing to jump into. It should be taken slowly like any exercise. I would want my students to come to me after class and tell me if they do not feel relaxed and calm after a class and then work with them on a one on one basis to see what is happening with them or running through their minds during the exercises when there should be nothing on their minds. They might require noisy headphones on like I do in order to drown out how easily I am distracted.

Today Yoga classes are offered almost everywhere, from small studios in shopping centers to hospitals and clinics. The more opportunities that become available I believe the more people will attend and see the benefits for themselves. At that point we can only hope that they pass that experience along because odds are most people have a child who could benefit, a sressed out spouse or an ailing relative, all of which could benefit greatly. This could also be a great bonding experience for either family members, friends, or co-workers. Yoga cannot be discussed in aspect to one benefit because there are just so many and the list gets bigger each day. I believe that it could benefit every situation. I am living proof that it heals and I hope to spend my life helping others heal themselves.

I have expressed and stressed the health benefits of Yoga but it also is very beneficial spiritually. I believe that is why women are more prone to take Yoga because we are more spiritual or rather require it in our lives. When a group of women are in close proximities there is an overwhelming energy and to be able to use that energy together in harmony will be extreme. I believe that my classes will be even more beneficial and spiritual because I will be doing them directly on the beach rather than inside a studio or airtight building with an ocean wave sound cd playing in the background. The sand is so much easier to ground yourself upon than a mat and women have this special connection with the ocean from birth so I think the benefits of having the classes there will be higher. I also think that just being at the beach…the smell…the sound…the peace…is almost meditation without even trying and will help those uncomfortable with trying something new or those who cannot clear their head long enough to benefit from meditation or breathing techniques. I look forward to the many health benefits Yoga will instill upon me and helping others achieve their goals.

Alexis Neal teaches Yoga classes on South Padre Island, Texas.