During this trying time, people all over the globe are feeling high levels of anxiety and stress due to the outbreak of COVID-19. Many have lost their jobs, the opportunity to graduate with their peers, and their loved ones or time with their family members. Now more than ever, it’s time to begin de-stressing from the world around us. Stress doubles your chances of getting sick by weakening your immune system, putting you at a disadvantage to the virus.
Washing your hands and maintaining 6 feet from those around you does help slow the spread, but that isn’t the only way to stay healthy during the pandemic. Yoga and meditation bring together breath work, exercise and stress reducing tactics that help us build resistance and clear the mind. Yoga can benefit different areas in the body such as the respiratory system, vital organs, muscles and joints, and of course, the mind. According to William Mitchell, a Seattle practitioner “there are specific yoga positions such as any inverted poses or bending forward that will alleviate congestion and sinus issues.” Some of the poses that he recommends are: the child pose (decongest and relaxes the mind), the bridge pose (opens the heart and promotes blood circulation) and the plow pose (strengthens the nervous system).
Through practicing breath work, we can condition our lungs and help administer oxygen throughout the body to the organs, muscles and joints that need it the most. The best way to practice your breathing is through meditation; taking a sacred moment to breathe in and out, letting go of the stress and the seemingly never ending chaos that is happening around us. Meditation helps quiet the “monkey mind,” using each breath to keep us in the present, ignoring the past and the future and pushing aside thoughts of work, the kids, or what’s for dinner tonight. Taking just 20 minutes a day for meditation increases endorphins, decreases cortisol levels and creates a positive state of mind and better health.
Join us throughout May for our complimentary meditation classes for our Meditation May special. Our talented and professional instructors can help you learn new poses that will ease the stress of COVID-19 and build your meditation skills.