The basic neuroscience behind yoga-therapy-for-anxiety

The primary role of the nervous system is communication. The autonomic nervous system is a branch of the nervous system that manages emotional and mental equilibrium. There is one function of the autonomic nervous system that we can choose to consciously alter - our breathing.  And it turns out, if we control our breath, we can indirectly impact other areas of the autonomic nervous system such as heart rate and whether we are in “rest and digest” or “fight or flight” mode. Through performing specific breathing practices you can tell your body to activate either the sympathetic or parasympathetic nerves.

Feelings of anxiety are a common and often useful human state. However, on occasions, they can be severe and debilitating and we can frequently have trouble managing our anxiety.

Anxiety manifests itself both physically and mentally, with common symptoms being shortness of breath, racing thoughts and elevated heart rate. This occurs because our body perceives a threat - real or imaginary - and sets itself into “fight or flight” mode. This is a normal response to a threat. But if perceived or real threats become excessive, we can slip into chronic response mode with uncontrollable symptoms including racing thoughts and shallow breathing. 

So where does this “fight or flight” response come from?

The Nervous System can be divided up into two main components: the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system

The peripheral nervous system is divided into two further branches: the autonomic nervous system and the somatic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system is the part of the nervous system responsible for control of the bodily functions not consciously directed, such as breathing, the heartbeat, and digestive processes. The peripheral nervous system has nerves that travel from the brain to the body and from the body to the brain. This means we send messages both ways.

The autonomic nervous system has two sets of nerves, parasympathetic and sympathetic. Being in a state of “fight or flight” is where our parasympathetic nerves are activated and “rest and digest” where our sympathetic nerves are activated. Humans should naturally move between these two states, but unless there is a perceived threat, the most natural state to be in is in the sympathetic “rest and digest” state.

We cannot directly control which of these states we are in, we cannot tell our bodies to go into “fight or flight” or “rest and digest”, in the same way we cannot consciously tell our hearts to beat faster. 

So, if we consciously regulate our breathing then we can regulate our emotional and mental state.