Slow Down: How Yin and Restorative Yoga Can Help You Beat Stress

I honestly don’t know where I’d be if the practice of yoga hadn’t entered into my life when it did. I was unknowingly walking around in a perpetual state of fight-or-flight for years. Unaware of what was at play within me, I believed it was perfectly normal, and necessary…to be afraid of everything, and everyone, all the time.

Now, I can write this article with a smile and catch myself before I get too deep into a spiral of stress and fear. I know we each have our own path, and I cannot promise that yoga will “save” anyone, or be “the answer.” But, in my studies and my experience, I’ve found invaluable depth in this practice. It’s given me so much more freedom and space in my life.

One of the reasons that I teach yoga is because I want to help alleviate the burden of stress in our world. 

With the development of technology, social media, and the internet over the past few years, our culture has become incredibly stressful. We are expected to multi-task, be extremely efficient, and remain in a constant state of alertness and activity. This vigilance causes continual wear and tear on our bodies, our minds, and depletes the amount of energy that we have available to contribute to our quality of life. This heightened state within the body is often unconscious; a lot of us are walking around in a state of “fight-or-flight”, or a stimulated nervous system response, without even realizing it, because it has come to feel normal. The human nervous system and the stress response has been functioning the same way for millions of years; however, many of the perceived stress in modern-day society is left unresolved, and the nervous system remains in a heightened state of “fight-or-flight”, rather than naturally returning to balance when the danger has subsided.

Stress is often accompanied by several adverse side effects. The more stress that we experience, the more its effects compound within us. When stress becomes chronic, there is an accumulation of stress hormones in the body, and this residue can lead to disease.

How our nervous system works

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is a division of the peripheral nervous system that influences the function of the body’s internal organs and systems. The autonomic nervous system acts largely unconsciously, and regulates bodily functions such as the heart rate, respiratory rate, and digestion. This system is the primary mechanism in control of the fight-or-flight response: the body’s response to stress.

The autonomic nervous system has two branches: the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). The sympathetic nervous system is often considered the “fight or flight” system, and the parasympathetic nervous system is often considered the “rest and digest” In many cases, both of these systems have opposite actions where one system activates a physiological response and the other inhibits it. When we are functioning in a healthy way, the PNS will kick in and inhibit the stress response, and our body will return to balance. The PNS is actually our natural state; it brings the body to homeostasis and invites feelings of relaxation and contentment.

The good news is, if we notice that we are in a state of chronic stress, there are practices to help calm the nervous system, stimulate the PNS, and alleviate some of the effects of compound stress.

Dr. Herbert Benson identified the “Relaxation Response”:

“A physiological state characterized by a slower heart rate, metabolism, rate of breathing, lower blood pressure, and slower brain wave patterns.”

This state can be induced through relaxation and breathing techniques. A consistent yoga or meditation practice can help strengthen the PNS, and minimize the body’s tendency to activate the PNS.

Yin and Restorative Yoga

While all styles of yoga build awareness and help to balance the systems of the body, I’ve always been drawn to the slower paced practices. Yin and restorative yoga provide a much needed contrast to the constant activity, stimulation, and demands on the body that can occur as a result of a busy life by inviting the body to slow down. When I include Yin or Restorative yoga as a regular part of my practice, it’s both a nurturing and energizing experience, allowing me to continue with other more active and demanding activities in my life with a clear and consistent focus.

While both styles involve releasing into stillness, using supportive props, and remaining in the postures for a period of time, there are some fundamental differences in the intention and effects of each practice. 

In a Yin Yoga class, practitioners place a healthy and deliberate amount of stress on the more dense tissues of the body to encourage them to remain healthy and strong. This practice facilitates gradual lengthening and release in the fascia and deeper layers of connective tissue. The fascial web of the body is one seamless network, one connected system. It holds the shape of our bodies and carries the stories, memories, and patterns from our lives. Working with the fascial network can lead to lasting release of chronic holding and a powerful shift of the body and mind. While the yin practice is ultimately relaxing, the stimulation from holding poses can occasionally be mentally challenging. 

In a Restorative Yoga class, props are used to completely support the weight of the body, which invites the nervous system to shift from a sympathetic response to stress (“Fight-or-Flight”) into a parasympathetic response (“Rest and Digest”). Unlike yin, the restorative practice is not about stretching connective tissue (or any other tissue!), but is designed to restore a natural state of balance to the nervous system. Over time, restorative yoga can help alleviate the effects of chronic stress by eliciting a deep state of relaxation. The deep state of rest that is accessible through restorative yoga can enhance the health of the nervous system, lymphatic system, endocrine system, and organ function. 

If you have not yet tried one of these styles, consider adding yin or restorative to your yoga menu. They might begin to change your definition of how it feels to be “relaxed”…

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