Yoga Changes Your Brain
Let’s talk about yoga brain.
Did you know that you have the ability to rewire your brain? Our neural pathways are formed through experiences, thoughts, and behaviors. Some of these pathways are essential and keep us safe, while others hold us back. For example, if every time you step onto your mat you think I’m not flexible, your brain will create this idea to be a truth. Another example, remember all the times you’ve touched a scalding hot handle on a pot on the stovetop? Those painful experiences created a pathway that now guides you to remember to grab a potholder or towel, keeping you safe.
Think of neural pathways as your brain’s roadmap. When a particular road is traveled again and again (and again) that path becomes well-traveled, forming a habit or believed truth. Oftentimes, we act on these well-traveled pathways without even needing to think twice about it – think riding a bike or moving from Chaturanga to Urdhva Mukha Svanasana.
Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to form new connections, or roads, which can happen naturally over time. When we focus enough and remain consistent, we can rewire our brains.
Let’s move away from viewing this in relation to the physical benefits of yoga, such as increased range of motion and flexibility, and think now in terms of mental health.
Scientists have found “that depression is associated with reduced size of brain regions that regulate mood and cognition, including the prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus, and decreased neuronal synapses in these areas.” In short, the neural pathways typically associated with regulating mood are no longer traveled. Antidepressants work to boost neuroplasticity, rebuilding these neural pathways, among other benefits.
In a study conducted by the Indian Journal of Psychiatry, researchers found that increased neuroplasticity may be related to the therapeutic mechanisms of yoga, specifically in relation to depression. The study found that yoga produced similar effects for the brain as antidepressant effects.
In another study where participants practiced hatha yoga for roughly 45 minutes three to four times weekly, researchers found that a consistent yoga practice may be associated with the promotion of neuroplastic changes in the brain.
There are countless other studies that have found connections between yoga and brain health.
Yoga is about so much more than the surface level benefits from the physical side of the practice. The mental health benefits of a consistent yoga practice can be life changing, which I can fully attest to.
Depression runs in my family. Clinical depression, just like so many other challenges so many of us face in our daily lives, is not something that can be shooed away with “love and light”. Sure, a positive mental outlook can have an effect, but it’s not an end-all-be-all cure. Before I began my yoga journey, I suffered heavily from insomnia and anxiety, brought on by the state of my mental health. After I consistently made it onto my mat, falling asleep became easier and I was better equipped to move through my emotions.
I truly believe that yoga is life changing for one’s mental health and research has shown that yoga positively affects cognitive function.
Change doesn’t happen overnight, but with time you can rewire your brain. Ready to begin working toward this change? Download my free e-book Grounding During Times of Uncertainty to add to your mental health toolkit.
Have you noticed any changes in your mental health since trying yoga?