How Yoga Can Help You Take Control of Your Negative Emotions

You might only think of yoga as a way to keep your body lean while working on flexibility. The truth is that yoga has far-reaching benefits. Yoga is especially good for anyone who struggles with negative emotions and needs help learning to control them. 

Anger

It's normal to get angry every once in a while. Problems start when you can't seem to control your anger and it begins negatively impacting your life. Anger not only affects your life but also the lives of other people, especially when you're out driving as road rage can cause harm to others. Yoga teaches you to focus on the now and to scan your body and mind to check in. You then work to relax and release negative emotions, building more patience as you go. Unleashed, anger is toxic for your health and safety, and yoga gives you the tools to rein in your anger before it spirals into a dangerous rage.

Sadness

Feeling sad is sometimes necessary, but it's almost always difficult. Yoga doesn't force you to put away your feelings of sadness, especially if you are in a place of grief. However, it does help your body and mind naturally elevate to a better place where more positive emotions are available. Exercise releases feel-good endorphins that lift your mood naturally. The self-awareness involved in yoga also gives you a safe place to explore feelings instead of simply trying to run from them. Those who practice yoga often find clarity on the mat that lifts their spirits and offers them a more optimistic outlook for the future.

Shame

Living in a world where everyone can post their best moments on social media may leave you feeling ashamed simply because you assume everyone is doing things better than you are. This can lead to shame over your job, relationship status or parenting abilities. Shame is not effective at helping us change our behavior, and it often blinds us to the fact that no one's life is perfect. Yoga helps ground your body and mind and focuses on gentleness. There are modifications for moves, so you don't have to shame yourself for not being as flexible as someone else. You are taught in yoga to go on your own journey and seek out the divine in others as they seek it out in you. This is a perfect cure for shame.

Yoga offers physical and emotional benefits that can last a lifetime. Letting go of negative emotions is life-changing, and yoga can help you on that journey.

If you’re ready to start using yoga to start that journey, sign up for a class with us today and see the results for yourself.