Supporting Anxiety & Depression - the 3 Gunas - Aspects of Nature

Supporting Anxiety & Depression Through Yoga Therapy

As we enter another lock-down due to COVID-19, the angst in the air is palpable. I have heard from many this week that this time around, they are just not sure how they will cope. With the holidays coming up, it is a new experience this pandemic can add to its long resume. I wanted to offer a case study on how Yoga Therapy can help support our mental health. This is my way of contributing to my community, and the world. I feel called to share.

Jessica* is navigating life in her 20s and all the changes that can come in this youthful, yet sometimes tumultuous decade. She is sweet and speaks softly and presents with a calming, grounding demeanor, although that is far from how she explains her inner experience. Jessica’s goals for seeking Yoga Therapy are to support her anxiety and depression, as it changes each day. She also hopes to feel more connected to her body and feel a sense of belonging to herself.

Jessica can clearly describe where in her body she feels anxiety; chest and belly, neck, face, and eyebrows. and the way depression presents; feels like general heaviness in her body. She also reports feeling a disconnection to her body over-all. Her biggest life challenges right now are recovering from traumatic experiences, unemployment, and navigating medical leave from school. Jessica attends silent retreats of the Vipassanā tradition. She finds the retreats very challenging, but also life changing. I notice Jessica often closes her eyes, even while talking.

 One of the tools of Yoga Therapy is educating the client in yogic philosophy. The intention is to empower one with ancient knowledge and to offer new language outside of the labels of anxiety or depression.

The emphasis is always to first meet ourselves where we are at and then invite in the other quality to balance. 

The Gunas

The Gunas are natures 3 fundamental forces. All the qualities of the world contain the Gunas: Rajas, Tamas, and Sattva. Rajas is the quality of energy, wakefulness, and movement. Tamas is the quality of inertia, stillness, and sleep. Sattva is harmony, balance, transcendence. Sattva arrives when the balance of rajas and tamas is met in each unique being. It is the goal of Yoga. Just like the ever-changing state of energy, Sattva too is always shifting. What brings us balance at one point, may not always. That is why present moment awareness is so important on our journey of wellbeing.

When one experiences both anxiety and depression, an understanding of the Gunas can help them to understand themselves. It gives them a way to check in with the aspects of nature present in their own being each day. From there, their Yoga practice and daily choices can reflect the state of energy they are currently in and what may help bring them to balance.

Excess rajas leads to overwhelm, stress, insomnia, anxiety. Excess tamas leads to lethargy, resistance to change, excessive sleeping, and depression. I explain to Jessica how one may experience excess rajas in the mind and tamas in the body and vice versa. When we feel excess rajas, we want to bring in tamas to balance. When we feel excess tamas, we want to bring in rajas to balance. The emphasis is always to first meet ourselves where we are at and then invite in the other quality to balance. 

Jessica’s Practice       

One session, Jessica let me know she was feeling very tamasic so she decided to have a cup of coffee. That led to her feeling stressed, overwhelmed, jittery, and rajastic by the time she came in to see me. At other times she has come in feeling lethargic (tamas) in the body, and anxious and fearful (rajas), in the mind. Yoga Therapy invites us to practice Swadhaya (self-study) to observe how anxiety and depression can shift and present in an individual on any given day. From there the practice can vary depending on what mood is most predominant.

Slow, yet dynamic flowing movements with even breathing are best when someone is feeling more anxious and the energy needs to integrate. When I notice Jessica’s movements and breath becoming more even and fluid, I invite in static holds for 3-5 breaths. At the end of the physical practice forward folds invite in the energy of tamas to ground. If Jessica was feeling more tamasic that day, I would offer her a restorative back-bend to bring in Rajas to balance. The utilization of props in either case helps to prevent strain on the body and shift the focus on calming the mind. During longer held forward folds the mantra “I am here” supports anxious or depressed minds. I guided Jessica to inhale to the crown of the head, saying silently “I am”, and to exhale to the seat: “here”.

 Silent meditation is usually not recommended for those coping with anxiety and depression. Guided meditations that may include mudras or mantras may be more useful in order to “throw the mind a bone”.  Otherwise, silent meditation can feel overwhelming for one whose thoughts are racing or who tend towards negative self-talk.  We began practices with guided visualization, mudras, or guided breath awareness. A practice such as Breath of JOY with the sound LAM is a staple in Jessica’s Yoga Therapy plan. Breath of Joy is an active breath-centered breathing exercise meant to uplift and energize.

Jessica explains that Yoga Therapy has helped her get to know herself more, connect with her body and mind, and to empower her to find practices and activities that help support her in creating more balance in her mood.

Bhramari (bee breath) with Shanmukti mudra is sattvic breathing practice Jessica really enjoyed. When she was feeling more tamasic (depressed), 1:1 even ratio breathing helped uplift. Even breathing supports balanced energy. When she was feeling more rajastic (anxious), 1:2 ratio breathing was supportive. The longer exhale is more calming. Tradak meditation on a candle flame was a practice I chose for Jessica to invite her to engage with her surroundings with eyes open. Jessica was surprised at how helpful Tradak mediation was for her, since she typically practices silent meditation with eyes closed. She reported it helped her feel focused and centered. Since Jessica’s primarily practice is silent meditation, I often ended with just a few moments of silence together.  This provided her with something familiar.

Moving forward:

Jessica explains that Yoga Therapy has helped her get to know herself more, connect with her body and mind, and to empower her to find practices and activities that help support her in creating more balance in her mood. She looks forward to continuing to attend silent meditation retreats with the new knowledge and tools of breath work, mantra, and movements to prepare to sit silently. She also reports that even if she does struggle with her silent meditations, she now feels that there is not something wrong with her, she just may be out of balance!  

Amy Gaster C-IAYT, RYT 500, practices Yoga Therapy with individuals and small groups through-out New Haven County, CT and from anywhere online via Zoom. Amy works with individuals to support them in their experience of chronic pain, mental and emotional well-being, and back pain, utilizing a client-led approach incorporating accessible tools of Yoga. Find her in Instagram, facebook, and her website: yogawithamylauren.com

*Name has been changed to protect the client’s privacy.

The Yogic Kosha Model and Mental Health

The Pancha Maya Kosha Model

This is the framework we follow in Yoga Therapy to support individuals in their physical, mental or spiritual well-being. We are multi-dimensional beings made up of many different, yet interactive levels.

My intention is to introduce this model so that one may get an idea of what to expect in Yoga Therapy AND to educate others in the many ways we can approach our well-being. Perhaps you have tried talk-therapy and it was not enough for you (disclaimer: I believe in and personally benefit from talk therapy). The Kosha model reminds us that we are more than our mental and physical bodies. It teaches that there are other layers to who we are, and therefore other ways to “enter” our healing path.

The Pancha Maya Kosha Model: Pancha means five - 5 layers. Maya is illusion or that which separates. Kosha can be translated as sheath or layers.

1) Anna Maya Kosha- The Physical body. Anna means food. This is our “food sheath”. The part of us nourished by what we eat and consume physically. Our physical body is our most familiar aspect of our being. This is the body we can touch and feel. The body we feed, move, sleep, rest, exercise, and do Yoga asanas (postures). Many people report feeling better after exercise. Even a short walk can provide a mood boost and soothe anxiety. Physical Yoga classes often leave people feeling more grounded and uplifted. “In a large US sample, physical exercise was significantly and meaningfully associated with self-reported mental health burden” This is one way “in”

2) Prana Maya Kosha- The Energy body. Prana translates as energy or life-force. It is the energy that flows through and creates life in all of our systems. Breath is the most physical manifestation of Prana. Breath contains Prana and is the most accessible way for an individual to influence their Prana. Prana can get stuck and stagnant and create lethargy or depression. It can also get scattered or uncontained and create feelings of anxiety. Breath awareness and breathing practices, called pranayama, increase and facilitate the flow of prana in the body and balance the flow of the life force to all the physical systems. I always like to say, if one can breath one can do Yoga. Creating even breaths in and out supports depressive feelings. Lengthening the exhalation calms the nervous system and supports anxiety. Here is an article about breath and mental health by BetterHelp (an online resource for finding a therapist). This is another way “in”

3) Mana Maya Kosha- The Mental-Emotional body. Manas means mind, and the Manamayakosha is the layer of our being expressed as mind, emotions, and feelings. These are our thoughts and emotions. The way we interpret our thoughts and emotions and those of others. This layer is responsible for processing input through our 5 senses of the physical body. It often takes on a bigger role then it may have been intended by creation. Many benefit from processing emotions and mental patterning through Talk Therapy. Some resources: https://www.betterhelp.com & https://www.psychologytoday.com/us This is a way “in”.

4) Vijnana Maya Kosha- The Wisdom body. Vijnana means knowing, and this sheath represents the higher mind, intuitive wisdom, a sense of knowingness. Believe it or not- we ALL have this layer. Here we approach the subtle body. This is the wisdom that lies behind the processing, thinking, and reactive mind above. Think of our mental/emotional body like a shout, and the wisdom body like a whisper. When we are in touch here we are able to trust our higher wisdom, see the bigger picture of our lives and the world around us, & access higher levels of integrating our lives & living in our truth. Practicing meditation, Yoga Nidra, and Journaling are some ways to nourish this layer. I love the free app “Insight Timer” for guided meditations and relaxations. This is a way “in”

5) Ananda Maya Kosha- The Bliss body. This is the fifth and final sheath of our being. Ananda means bliss, - an expanded, unbounded experience of reality. Bliss in the yogic sense, is not the way we typically describe it in our modern language. The experience of bliss is steady without high-highs or low- lows. It is an everlasting contentment - the experience of the soul itself. Again, we ALL have this layer. It is the core of our being beneath the other 4. So it makes sense that it can be hard to sense or access. You may have experienced this feeling of deep contentment before - even if it was fleeting. One can access this “layer” through any of the 4 above.

Here is where I would like to explain what I mean when I say “in” . I am speaking of the Bliss body. The deepest part of ourselves that comes with us when we leave our physical bodies. When we are in touch with this part of ourselves; knowingly or unknowingly, we feel the ultimate connection to source. I believe, this is what we are seeking all along.

These sheathes are not separate or linear. They integrate with each other. For example, it is not unusual to feel connected to your higher wisdom body during exercise, or perhaps talk therapy. The purpose of the intellectual understanding of our different layers is to understand that there are many ways to find support for our unique needs.

My hope is that this has helped you acknowledge the multi-dimensional human you are & learn ways to advocate and take care of you.

I am here to be a guide on that journey.

~ Amy

Setting Boundaries for emotional health

Setting boundaries is a common topic in the spiritual community these days. It is for good reason. Setting boundaries is an important contribution on the journey to emotional well-being. When we do so we are standing our ground and affirming that we are worthy enough to ask for what we need, and say No to what we do not. 

My top 3 thoughts on Boundary setting: 

Boundaries are so hard to establish. Trust me, I know. Establishing boundaries is much more difficult then it may seem. First, we must get clear on our own personal limitations. We each have our own personal limits in our personal lives, relationships, friendships, and in our professional lives - i.e: deadlines, obligations we place on ourselves or allow others to place upon us. Everyone has there own limit. Our limit or edge is the place where if we push further we loose our peace and don’t show up the way we would like to for ourselves and for the people you love. It can also contribute to a host of other things such as anxiety, panic, depression, insomnia. Learning our limitations occurs through Self-Awareness. In Yoga we refer to this as Witness Consciousness. Practice by simply pausing and noticing through-out the day. How do you feel when you overextend yourself and where is the place right before you do so? You can also journal on it or talk to a friend about there own limitations to get an idea of a place to start.  

Second, we must obtain confidence in the fact that we are enough and worthy of boundaries. We are enough even when we say No, or I prefer this - respectfully. Most people will accept your boundaries with open arms. If they don’t, pretty high chance they have blurred boundary lines as well. We must not let this sabotage our own growth. Practicing Yoga and meditation builds our confidence and helps instill a belief that we are worthy of our space in this world. 

3rd is practice. Practice establishing a clear boundary. Because it simply does get easier with practice. It becomes your new norm. For example: “I would love to stay and talk with you longer, I so enjoy it, but I must get going.” Or: "I would love to take on that additional task at work, but I feel I work best and most affectively with the current workload I have already". Then once you are in a different setting with yourself, check in. How does it feel? Maybe strange at first. Maybe freeing. Once you are grounded in your boundaries, you will know when they are being crossed and you can take action to set them. Your health, emotional wellbeing, and loved ones will all benefit when you create boundaries. It is not selfish. It is an inspiration for others to do the same.

May we all continue to strive for freedom and wellbeing because we deserve nothing less.