As we hold ourselves and breathe steadily through the challenge of a an ‘asana’ (the Sanskrit word for the postures that are a characteristic component of Yoga), and mindfully witness the sensations in our bodies caused by the posture, and any feelings or thoughts that arise as a result of those sensations, we can hone the power of our interoception. That’s our ability to be aware of sensations from deep within our bodies – not just from the muscles but also from the organs themselves.

Recent research has found that it is at least as important as the external senses, cultivating a strong embodiment that is foundational to our subjective sense of Self. Just cultivating, over time, an awareness of what homeostasis (internal balance) actually feels like can generate feelings of calm, peace and satisfaction, and a decreased desire to pursue externally rewarding stimuli (like addictions). And such signals can guide decision making – we can more easily ‘listen to our gut’ and discern our innermost needs.

When sensations become strong as we hold a posture for a little longer than is easeful, and our mind is telling us that we can’t hold any longer, but we still do and feel our strength; or on the other hand, when we decide within practice to take gentler, modified versions of postures instead of following a habitual tendency to force, strain or constantly ‘achieve’ as we perhaps would in life or other pursuits, we start to carve new neural pathways in our brain via the phenomenon of neuroplasticity. This is the ability of the brain to change in relationship to new experiences by reorganising its structure, function and connections.

These new pathways start to imprint an enduring sense of - “I can choose how to respond to the situation.” This reinforces calm persistence, focus and observant stillness – even in the face of provocation – on the one hand, or a newfound willingness to honour our needs rather than doing something that hurts us or makes us uncomfortable. And then, away from our practice, we are less often held hostage by our past as we respond differently in the present.

Stress and trauma cause imbalance in the function of our autonomic nervous system, which controls involuntary vital processes like heartbeat, blood pressure, digestion and breathing, often leaving the process that pumps activating stress hormones into our bloodstream stuck in the ‘on’ position. This can mean we are constantly anxious, or on edge, or may feel angry or feel overwhelmed and can be at risk of developing chronic conditions like heart disease.

Yet breathing is the only aspect of our autonomic nervous system that we can consciously control. Bringing awareness to our breath, deepening it and lengthening it, calms down our nervous system, and helps us to flip that switch off. This enables our body to relax and our mind to quieten, so that we can find our way towards greater ease, even when life is challenging. It also nourishes our cells with the oxygen they need for healthy metabolism–which enables us to thrive at every level of our being.

We learn to find greater ease with stillness and hold physical space, a calm physiological container, for deeper subconscious material to come up, whether as thoughts, sensations, or thoughts that produce sensations, and be compassionately seen. The hidden patterning of our past nervous system emergencies, triggered by challenging or painful experiences, starts to reveal itself. And we develop the capacity to remain separate, anchored by our breath in the present moment, holding ourselves apart from becoming caught up in the worrisome stories our minds would like to thrust at us, or unhelpful beliefs about ourselves, or impulses to distract.

We are increasingly able to experience ourselves as a witness watching the stream of mental content. And we start to understand - not just intellectually but experientially - that these urges, moods and emotions are passing events that happen to us. They are not fundamentally who we are. We stay. They go.

We can learn to use body and breath to change mind. The Tantrik Yogis, long ago, understood that mindfully moving the body in certain ways, combined with conscious breathing, could have very specific and intentional effects on what they called our ‘energy body’ and what we now refer to as our nervous system. They understood that trying to control the mind directly by just sitting down and focusing on clearing our thoughts, which may be negative and distressing, is very difficult, but that changing our ‘energy’ was an easier way to change the mind indirectly.

So, they developed lots of posture-based practice and breathwork that could be used bring about specific changes to the body - mind that would support physical balance and vitality, cool things down mentally, and bring about an inner stillness and focus that made meditation – our ultimate tool for effecting psychological wellbeing - much more accessible. These practices are alive and well and just as effective today and can empower anyone to manage their own healing.

Neuroscientists have now extensively studied the physiological benefits of meditation and mindfulness practice. Among other things, areas of the brain associated with self-awareness, interoception, planning complex cognitive behaviour, emotional regulation and empathy thicken, strengthen, and develop more neural connections with regular meditation. In addition, the part of the brain responsible for threat perception and triggering our stress response - the amygdala - gets smaller in those with mindfulness practices.

Day to day implications of these physical brain changes include reducing and managing symptoms including anxiety, depression, poor sleep, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and auto-immune and psychosomatic illnesses, such as chronic pain or bowel problems, which may often be symptoms of chronic stress or trauma. In addition, improved mood-regulation and greater compassion for ourselves and others; improved focus and attention; and increased awareness of unconscious triggers and/or rigid, repetitive patterns of thinking about ourselves and the world that keep us unconsciously repeating unhelpful patterns of behaviour, including in relationships. The increased disconnection from - or shedding of - our mental content as our only concept of reality, can help us to connect with a deeper sense of our innate Self.