Statistics has never been my favorite subject. In college it was a required course for my psychology degree, but I was never a fan. Lately however I have been paying attention to a certain group of statistics: how many people in America are taking prescribed medication. It's hard not to pay attention!
I quote: “Aside from the dramatic rise of medications to treat ADHD over the past decade, the use of antianxiety drugs soared between 2001 and 2010. In children up to age nineteen , the use of antianxiety medication increased 45 percent in females and 37 percent in males...In 2010, the most recent data indicated that more than one in five adults was on at least one medication, up 22 percent from 10 years earlier. More than a quarter of the adult female population is on these drugs …..Eleven percent of Americans over age twelve take antidepressants...the number of women in their forties and fifties who have been prescribed antidepressants is a whopping 23 percent.” David Perlmutter, MD in Grain Brain.
We are in a national crisis and it seems only some seem to notice!
So what can one do besides taking a pill to relieve stress, cure insomnia, gain control over anxiety or diabetes and combat depression? Well both Yoga and Judaism would look to a Mind-Body solution.
Both Kaballah and Yoga see the human being in a wholistic way, mind and body connected, one affecting the other, so movements of the body effect the mind and thoughts and beliefs of the mind affect the health of the body.
Judaism teaches that corresponding to 248 limbs of the body, are 248 positive actions that the body was created to do in the world. Each body part has been created to help the human fulfill his or her purpose, for example the mouth was given to articulate prayer and blessing, the ear to hear specific holy sounds etc.
Corresponding to the 365 arteries and veins in the human body are 365 negative commandments, instructions we fulfill by not doing, i.e. holding back from an action. All of these negative commandments correspond to something that might engage our passion or instinct…. we don’t commit adultery or we hold ourselves back from stealing….these desires correspond to the blood pathways or passions and instincts of a person.
So one form of investigation regarding out of control stress or anxiety is to look at one’s actions and try to ascertain if they are in keeping with one’s higher purpose…. are we not sleeping at night because we feel unfulfilled regarding our actions during the day…. are we stressed because we feel ambivalent about the value or morality of our actions ?
Another method of engaging the body to solve issues of the emotions or the psyche is YOGA and Yoga Therapy.
By engaging the body in conscious movement and in breath work, we can relieve stresses and tensions we may be experiencing even if we don’t fully understand the causes of them.
Some people have spent years in conventional therapy and are simply either tired of talking about their problems or are finding that talk therapy is no longer helpful or is just not addressing the issue at hand. Yoga therapy can be a very helpful alternative.
Many clinical trials have shown and proven that Yoga and Meditation can be even more effective in treating many of the conditions mentioned above than medication.
While exerting ourselves physically and taking our mind off our problems and getting connected to our breath and movement , we release the stress and tensions that have lodged themselves into our bodies
For me personally I feel Yoga has been my own “medication of choice”. In order to combat the stresses of everyday life, Yoga always leaves me feeling more relaxed and less stressed than when I began.
For many, a regular yoga class may be all that one needs to get the varied benefits of Yoga, however for some suffering from more complex issues, or those contemplating taking a medication for stress, anxiety or insomnia, (just to mention a few examples) , a yoga therapy session with a qualified and dedicated Yoga Therapist may be just the thing needed!
Call for a free consultation:
917 821-0694
Bracha Meshchaninov,
RYT 500 and Certified Yoga Therapist.
For a list of all classes check :TiferetMovement.com
No comments:
Post a Comment