This COVID-19 pandemic, horrifying results, and the feeling of powerlessness takes its toll on our mental health. The whole world is trying to protect itself from the Coronavirus and is looking for the best way to do it. Yoga is a proven method that can help us calm our minds, thoughts, and anxiety when we’re a little more upset than usual. Yoga can also be an effective tool for improving mental structure and breathing.
It’s well known that the physical yoga practice (asanas) calms our mind, and meditation (dhyana) is an integral part of yoga practice, so the combination of these two things can have tremendous power. By practicing the yoga postures (asanas) and staying in them for a longer amount of time, we can learn how to remain persistent and patient in any stressful situation like the current one caused by COVID-19. By practicing meditation, we can learn to live in the present moment and not to get anxious about the future. Also, we can learn how to control our thoughts when they start to become negative.
Here are a few asanas that are good for improving immunity, relieving stress, anxiety, depression, and increasing our energy level. Especially at a time when we’re threatened by various viruses including influenza and COVID-19, these asanas will help strengthen our immune system, our most important line of defense and remove the anxiety and fear brought by the epidemic and its consequences.
- Trikonasana (Triangle Pose),
- Shalabhasana (Locust Pose),
- Ardha Matsyendrasana (Half Lord of the Fishes Pose),
- Salamba Sirshasana (Headstand),
- Garudasana (Eagle Pose),
- and Bakasana (Crow Pose).
Pranayama is another integral part of yoga and consists of exercises and ways of proper breathing. Because the Coronavirus attacks the respiratory organs, as a precaution, it’s advisable to practice certain breathing exercises that will help strengthen our respiratory organs such as:
- Exercise for abdominal (diaphragmatic) breathing
Lie on your back, and relax the abdominal muscles. Place your palms on your stomach. Breathe through your nose while lifting your stomach. Keep the chest flat. When you exhale, try pulling your stomach towards the spine.
- Chest breathing exercise
The position is the same as in the previous exercise. Relax your chest and place your palms on the front, sides of the chest. When inhaling, the chest expands and raises as much as possible, and when exhaling, the chest relaxes. Keep the stomach flat.
- Combo breath
Start to inhale through the abdomen, then fill your chest and try to hold your breath for a few seconds. Start exhaling slowly, first empty the chest, then relax the abdomen. Breathing like this will enrich the blood with oxygen and will fill the lungs with air and life energy.
Breathing exercises can also be done by healthy people to strengthen the lungs.
We can conclude that engaging in yoga practices helps relieve the stress and anxiety caused by the Coronavirus. At the same time, yoga lowers high blood pressure and improves lung capacity, acting on the overall immune system. So, even if this isn’t the cure, it’s a way to start the Coronavirus fight and to pay more attention and care to our well-being, so that in the future, we’ll have a stronger immune system, which will decrease the chances of getting sick.
Reference:
https://www.healthshots.com/preventive-care/self-care/we-got-a-cardiologist-to-share-why-yoga-can-improve-your-chances-against-covid-19/
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/latest-on-coronavirus-outbreak/yoga-boosts-immune-system-fight-against-covid-19-guru/1884546
