Meditation, yoga keys to beat stress
YOGA fanatics have long spruiked the benefits of the pastime to their mental health.
Now new research has confirmed meditation and yoga successfully reduce stress and can help ward off health problems.
Joint research by Victoria University and Queen’s University in Belfast found meditation and yoga influence brain activity related to stress, anxiety and depression.
Lead research author Michaela Pascoe said that the findings highlighted largely unknown links between the endocrine system – glands that produce hormones regulating the likes of metabolism, growth, sleep, and mood – and wellbeing.
“It seems that yoga and meditation can decrease stress and have a direct impact on stress as a result of that,’’ she said.
“When people learn meditation or mindfulness skills they learn to do things like metacognition, which is the ability to observe our thoughts and have some distance or separation from them.
“So instead of feeling really angry, you can say ‘ OK, I can see that I’m feeling angry’ and just the act of watching that emotion instead of being in that emotion can help with how reactive we are to that particular situation.’’
With persistent stress contributing to cardiovascular disease, stroke and mental illness, Dr Pascoe said meditation and yoga had “psychological, physiological, neurobiological’’ changes on brain structure and function.
Mates4mates is a trauma sensitive yoga class for veterans dealing with mental health issues as well as physical injuries in Townsville.
Exercise physiologist Lauren Kelly said the classes were an additional treatment to help the recovery process of trauma-related illnesses.
“Through these classes, many of our members have found news ways to assist with their recovery and improve overall wellbeing,” she said.