Yogatherapy Chikitsak
What is Yoga Therapy?
“Yoga therapy is the process of empowering individuals to
progress toward improved health and well-being through
the application of the teachings and practices of Yoga.” –
IAYT
Yoga therapy, derived from the Yoga tradition of Patanjali
and the Ayurvedic system of health care refers to the
adaptation and application of Yoga techniques and practices
to help individuals facing health challenges at any level
manage their condition, reduce symptoms, restore balance,
increase vitality, and improve attitude. – Gary Kraftsow
Yoga therapy is the facet of the ancient science of Yoga that
focuses on health and wellness at all levels of the person:
physical, psychological, and spiritual. Yoga therapy focuses
on the path of Yoga as a healing journey that brings balance
to the body and mind through an experiential
understanding of the primary intention of Yoga: the
awakening of Spirit, our essential nature. – Joseph LePage
Yoga therapy adapts the practice of Yoga to the needs of
people with specific or persistent health problems not
usually addressed in a group class. – Larry Payne
Yoga therapy is the adaptation of yoga practices for people with health challenges. Yoga therapists prescribe specific regimens of postures, breathing exercises, and relaxation techniques to suit individual needs. Medical research shows that Yoga therapy is among the most effective complementary therapies for several common ailments. The 21 challenges may be an illness, a temporary condition like pregnancy or childbirth, or a chronic condition associated with old age or infirmity. – Robin Monro
Yoga therapy aims at the holistic treatment of
various kinds of psychological or somatic dysfunctions
ranging from back problems to emotional distress. Both
approaches, however, share an understanding of the human
being as an integrated body-mind system, which can
function optimally only when there is a state of dynamic
balance. – Georg Feuerstein
Above all definitions are very important and clearly
indicates that Yoga Therapy is one of the main therapies for
wellness of mankind. Whereas in most parts of the world
Yoga Therapy is treated as an alternative therapy but is not
an alternative therapy because first it treats the mind and
majority of diseases arise from the mind.
Yoga Therapy has the best available treatments for invisible
diseases.
Yoga Therapy and modern medicine may be
complementary to each other. Once Yoga Therapy starts
and giving results, then patient himself/herself will
observe the effect of Yoga Therapy and then the doctor
can reduce or change or stop taking the prescribed.
Yoga therapy is not a competitive path for modern medical science but both are complementary to each other.
medicine.
Yoga Chikitsa (Yoga Therapy) is one of the oldest known
tradition for health and wellness.
Modern medical science is more active towards visible
diseases and has discovered more than 5000 types of
surgeries. Still modern medical science finds its limitations
towards invisible diseases.
Whereas Yoga Chikitsa is closer to invisible diseases.
How does Yoga Therapy help and How will it work?
Research and Clinical Studies?
For starting effective Yoga Therapy, one can understand its
phases. These are four Phases for Yoga Therapy:
1. Preventative phase
2. Curative phase: As per individual requirements and
disease
3. Corrective phase: Lifestyle – if you correct yourself
and learn from your mistakes you are living a yogic
lifestyle e.g. overeating at a party, regretting it the
next day, not doing it again. It increases awareness
and correct habits
4. Information phase: If, you are doing Trikonasana
and you get a pain in your hip (pain = information)
so you go and get a check-up from the Dr and find
out what is wrong.
Yoga informs you about what imbalances or internal
problems are present. You must correct the lifestyle and go
to the root cause of your diseases for your health to improve
.Diseases – treatment through Yoga Therapy
With thousands of years history as well as modern research
and studies, it evident and very clear that many diseases can
be cured through right, suitable and appropriate Yoga
Therapy. A list / categories of few of the diseases which can
be treated through Yoga Therapy techniques: These are as
follows:
1. Physical ailments /disorders:
1. Heart diseases
2. Lungs diseases
3. Body pains
4. Back Pain
5. Musculoskeletal problems
6. High Blood Pressure
7. Parkinson’s
8. Asthma
9. Cancer
10. HIV
11. Alzheimer’s
12. Brain Injury
13. Multiple Sclerosis
14. Autoimmune Diseases
15. Insomnia
16. Arthritis
17. Osteoporosis
2. Psychiatric disorders
1. Anxiety
2. Stress
3. Tension
4. Depression
5. Obsessive compulsive
6. Mental retardations
7. Mental imbalances/ disorders
8. Phobia, etc.
9. PTSD
10. Schizophrenia
11. Eating Disorders
12. Addiction
13. Post-Natal Depression
3. Psychosomatic disorders
1. Asthma
2. Diabetes
3. Hypertension
4. Epilepsy
5. Headache
6. IBS (Irregular bowel syndrome)
7. Metabolic disorders
8. Autism
4. Musculo-skeletal disorders
1. Spondylosis
2. Sciatica
3. Lumbago, etc.
5. Metabolic disorders
1. Obesity
2. Metabolic syndrome
3. Thyroid
4. Endocrine disorders
5. Gastritis
Other health conditions, some time, unable to be treated bymodern medical science can be studied and guided proper
Yoga therapy
RESEARCH
Clinical Reports shows many benefits of Yoga and hence yoga is said to be preventive medicine or an Intergrative medicine.
A Comprehensive Study with respect to Health Conditions can be studied in the following link:
Research
Clinical Trials and Biomedical Psycophysiology of yoga practices have shown posit9ive out comes on various health conditions of patients.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/?term=yoga
