​Inflammatory responses play a central role in the development and persistence of many diseases and can lead to debilitating chronic pain. In many cases, inflammation is your body's response tostress. Therefore, reducing "fight-or-flight" responses in the nervous system and lowering biological markers for stress can also reduce inflammation.
Typically, doctors prescribe medications to combat inflammation. However, there's growing evidence that another way to combat inflammation is by engaging the vagus nerve and improving “vagal tone.” This can be achieved through daily habits such as yoga and meditation—or in more extreme cases of inflammation, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA)—by using an implanted device for vagus nerve stimulation (VNS).
The vagus nerve is known as the "wandering nerve" because it has multiple branches that diverge from two thick stems rooted in the cerebellum and brainstem that wander to the lowest viscera of your abdomen touching your heart and most major organs along the way. Vagus means "wandering" in Latin. The words vagabond, vague, and vagrant are all derived from the same Latin root.
In 1921, a German physiologist named Otto Loewi discovered that stimulating the vagus nerve caused a reduction in heart rate by triggering the release of a substance he coinedVagusstoff (German for "Vagus Substance”). The “vagus substance” was later identified as acetylcholine and became the first neurotransmitter ever identified by scientists.
Vagusstoff (acetylcholine) is like a tranquilizer that you can self-administer simply by taking a few deep breaths with long exhales. Consciously tapping into the power of your vagus nerve can create a state of inner-calm while taming your inflammation reflex.
The vagus nerve is the prime component of the parasympathetic nervous system which regulates the “rest-and-digest” or “tend-and-befriend” responses. On the flip side, to maintain homeostasis, the sympathetic nervous system drives the “fight-or-flight” response.
Healthy Vagal Tone Is Part of a Feedback Loop Linked to Positive Emotions
Early anatomical drawing of the vagus nerve.
Source: Wellcome Library/Public DomainHealthy vagal tone is indicated by a slight increase of heart rate when you inhale, and a decrease of heart rate when you exhale. Deep diaphragmatic breathing—with a long, slow exhale—is key to stimulating the vagus nerve and slowing heart rate and blood pressure, especially in times of performance anxiety.
A higher vagal tone index is linked to physical and psychological well-being. Conversely, a low vagal tone index is associated with inflammation, depression, negative moods, loneliness, heart attacks, and stroke.
A 2010 study, “How Positive Emotions Build Physical Health: Perceived Positive Social Connections Account for the Upward Spiral Between Positive Emotions and Vagal Tone,” was published inPsychological Science. For this research, Barbara Fredrickson and Bethany Kok of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill honed in on the vagus nerve and discovered that a high vagal tone index was part of a feedback loop between positive emotions, physical health, and positive social connections.
Their research suggests that positive emotions, robust social connections, and physical health influence one another in a self-sustaining upward spiral dynamic and feedback loop that scientists are just beginning to understand. 
For this experiment, Frederickson and Kok used a Loving-Kindness Meditation (LKM) technique to help participants become better at self-generating positive emotions. However, they also found that simply reflecting on positive social connections and working to improve close-knit human bonds also caused improvements in vagal tone.  
In 2014, I wrote a Psychology Today blog post, “How Does the Vagus Nerve Convey Gut Instincts to the Brain?" based on findings by researchers in Switzerland who identified how the vagus nerve conveys “gut feelings” of anxiety and fear to the brain. Clinical and experimental studies indicate that stress and depression are associated with the up-regulation of the immune system, including increased production of pro-inflammatory cytokines.
When administered to patients or laboratory animals, cytokines have been found to induce typical symptoms of depression. Therefore some cases of low mood, low energy, and lack of motivation may be due to elevated levels of cytokine proteins.
Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) Dramatically Reduces Arthritic Inflammation
Source: Alila Medical Media/ShutterstockRecently, an international team of researchers from Amsterdam and the United States conducted a clinical trial which demonstrates that stimulating the vagus nerve with a small implanted device significantly reduced inflammation and improved outcomes for patients with rheumatoid arthritis by inhibiting cytokine production.
RA is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects approximately 1.3 million people in the United States and costs tens of billions of dollars to treat each year, according to the researchers. 
The neuroscientists and immunology experts involved in this study used state-of-the-art technology to map the neural circuitry that regulates inflammation. In one circuit—termed “the inflammatory reflex”—action potentials transmitted in the vagus nerve inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines.  
The July 2016 study, "Vagus Nerve Stimulation Inhibits Cytokine Production and Attenuates Disease Severity in Rheumatoid Arthritis," appears online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) and will be published in an upcoming print issue.
This is the first human study designed to reduce symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis by stimulating the vagus nerve with a small implanted device which triggered a chain reaction that reduced cytokine levels and inflammation. Although this study focused on rheumatoid arthritis, the trial's results may have implications for patients suffering from other inflammatory diseases, including Parkinson's, Crohn’s, and Alzheimer's.
In a statement, Paul-Peter Tak, the international principal investigator and lead author of the paper from the Division of Clinical Immunology & Rheumatology of the Academic Medical Center at the University of Amsterdam, said,
"This is the first study to evaluate whether stimulating the inflammatory reflex directly with an implanted electronic device can treat RA in humans. We have previously shown that targeting the inflammatory reflex may reduce inflammation in animal models and in vitro models of RA . . . which might be relevant for other immune-mediated inflammatory diseases as well."
These findings suggest a new approach to fighting diseases that are currently treated with relatively expensive drugs that have a host of side effects. VNS gives healthcare providers a potentially more effective way to improve the lives of people suffering from chronic inflammatory diseases.
Conclusion: VNS Is a Potent Drug-Free Alternative for Treating InflammationIn conclusion, co-author Kevin J. Tracey, president and CEO of the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research and the person who discovered the inflammatory reflex, said,
"This is a real breakthrough in our ability to help people suffering from inflammatory diseases. While we've previously studied animal models of inflammation, until now we had no proof that electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve can indeed inhibit cytokine production and reduce disease severity in humans. I believe this study will change the way we see modern medicine, helping us understand that our nerves can, with a little help, make the drugs that we need to help our body heal itself."
The emerging field of bioelectronic integrative medicine targets a variety of disorders traditionally treated with pharmaceuticals by using advanced neuromodulation devices. Stimulating the vagus nerve offers significant advantages to the use of drugs—such as lower cost and fewer side effects. Stay tuned for more on these exciting breakthroughs! 
To read more on the vagus nerve, check out my Psychology Today blog posts, 

• "The Neurobiology of Grace Under Pressure"
• "How Does the Vagus Nerve Convey Gut Instincts to the Brain?"
• "Cortisol: Why "The Stress Hormone" Is Public Enemy No. 1"
• "The Neuroscience of Calming a Baby"
• "Mindfulness Meditation and the Vagus Nerve Share Many Powers"
• "Psychotherapy Can Dramatically Improve Your Gut-Brain Axis"
• "Don't Panic! Stress Is Contagious"

© 2016 Christopher Bergland. All rights reserved.
Follow me on Twitter @ckbergland for updates on The Athlete’s Way blog posts.
The Athlete's Way ® is a registered trademark of Christopher Bergland.

UncensoredBlog 
TheIBS/SIBO-Psoas Connection and Why It’s Important for Highly Sensitive People
​MAY 28, 2015
Note to the reader – this is one motherload of an article. Grab some coffee and a low-fodmap cookie and let’s dive in.
In my personal experience with SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth), back and hip injury, and with my experience working with highly sensitive people (HSP) with similar issues, a pattern has emerged that feels much too important not to talk about. So far, I haven’t really seen anyone having this conversation (not to say that it isn’t happening, I just haven’t come across it yet) so here I go, in hopes of starting one.
My lens as both an Ayurvedic health counselor and an energy medicine practitioner is one of seeing the body holistically, of noticing how different parts of the physical body interact, how different parts of the subtle body interact, and how the physical and subtle bodies interact. When working with digestive issues like IBS and SIBO, taking a big picture look at how the systems of the body interact is important. Through my lens as a highly sensitive person I have come to see the nervous system and subtle body as the center of the highly sensitive world – the central point which governs everything and through which all issues or discomforts must be addressed.
Other HSP researchers, including Elaine Aron and Ane Axford, have noticed common physical issues that HSP’s, as a group, tend to share. These include things like connective tissue disorders, scoliosis and other spinal issues, pelvic issues (bowel, bladder, menstrual, low back), digestive issues (IBS, SIBO, food sensitivities, leaky gut), and gut flora imbalances. Because the nervous system is the main focus with high sensitivity, we must start here when seeing how these issues may be linked for the HSP. The nervous system is incredibly complex and literally connects everything in the body together through a system of communication. It is also through the nervous system that us HSP’s take in sensory information and process it. Deeply.  This very strong microphone of a nervous system, which connects to everything in the body, must be considered a central anchor in regards to physical and subtle issues in the HSP body.
If we think of the nervous system as the network of information that connects the body together, similar to our global information system, then we can start to see how the infrastructure through which the nervous system operates is important for the function of the whole system. Having a blocked infrastructure can cause problems with communication. Conversely, too much communication in the system (additional stress in the nervous system, for example) can short-circuit the infrastructure (kind of like running too much power through an energy circuit – you can flip a breaker). Consider using this metaphor as we look at the ways in which our muscle, connective tissue and digestive distresses are linked and how this can be a bigger problem for HSP’s.
In my Sensitive Self Intelligence course (soon being renamed as Flight School), we cover a lot of these connections. Here, I’ll mostly just be talking about the connections between IBS/SIBO and the Psoas.
Getting to Know the PsoasThe Illiopsoas Complex
Two muscles, the psoas major and the illacus, together make up what is known as the illiopsoas complex or simply, the psoas. This muscle group is one of the most important in the entire body, and especially so for the HSP body. Because of its location, it is one of the major muscles that allows us to stand upright, connecting our spine to our legs from the front. The psoas begins at the long head of the femur (thigh) bone and wraps up over the front of the pelvis. The illiacus then attaches to the inside of the pelvis, while the psoas major draws back and connects to the sides of our lumbar vertebrae. Functionally, this is the muscle that pulls our knees towards our chest. It is also one of the main core muscles involved in body’s “fight, flight or fetal” response. (*Note – this response is called the “Red Light Reflex” in the study of Somatics. I highly recommend reading Somatics by Tommas Hannah for more information).
Our body has a physical response to stress that prepares the body to fight, flee or go fetal – curl into the fetal position. The psoas is the muscle responsible for all three – readying our body in a fighting stance, driving our body forward in a run, or curling us into a tight ball.
Additionally, large nerve bundles (transmission lines) that supply the digestive system with nerve impulses (communication/information) must pass through the psoas muscle, giving it an even more important job – messenger muscle, or, referring to our metaphor – an environment through which our transmission lines run. Liz Koch, an expert in pelvic wellness, says:
Although the psoas has been thought to serve the spine as a guide wire creating stabilization, its main job is to message subtle changes in weight, location, and safety. The psoas bridges the belly enteric brain, central, and autonomic nervous systems. The large nerve ganglion located within the belly core going to the digestive and reproductive organs passes over, embeds into, and through the psoas. Serving as messenger of the core our psoas translates and transmits all expressions of safety, harmony, and integrity; signaling whether or not we are centered and congruent or encumbered and vulnerable.i
When the psoas muscle is constantly charged with feelings of fear, or it’s holding a past trauma, it may become chronically short, tight and dry. It can also react this way when there is dysfunction in the pelvis – the psoas will react to take up any slack in pelvic stability. So if the pelvis is weak from inactivity, singular repetitive movements or trauma, the psoas will step in and do the job of stabilization, while continuing its more primitive and important work as messenger.
Many HSP’s suffer from low back pain, scoliosis and other spinal problems. While there is no major research on the link between HSP back pain and the psoas, I see more HSP clients with psoas issues than any other sub group of yoga students.
Stress affects the psoas, shortening it and pulling the body forward. The psoas provides the basket in which the digestive organs sit.vIf you think of the psoas as the bowl in which our softest most primal organs sit, you can see that it forms a sort of foundational layer within our body. This foundation, related in energy medicine to our first, second and third chakras, are often the areas that HSP’s struggle with most – issues with survival and money, trouble in identifying like-minded tribe or family, in relating with others and in self empowerment. Physically, a tight psoas can affect how well we digest food, the comfort of our menstrual cycle and how well we eliminate and remove waste from the body. When looking at issues in the gut, including IBS/SIBO, I think the psoas may be a big contributor.
A bit about Connective TissueHSP’s tend to have more connective tissue disorders, or problems with the fascia, than hardy people. Fascia is a type of connective tissue that acts like a spiderweb or network in the body. Fascia surrounds all of our organs and covers all of our muscles, effectively connecting our innards together in a web-like sheath, kind of like plastic wrap. But different from plastic wrap is the way that fascia acts like a network of information, relaying nerve impulses and reacting to stress and tension in the body. When flexible, our fascia is healthy and unrestricted. When unhealthy, the fascia becomes restricted and sticky.
Mainstream medicine still considers fascia a relative mystery, and largely ignores it in treatments for physical pain. What is known, but not really understood, is that within the body, fascia has a slippery quality, holding the organs but allowing them to glide over one another – allowing what visceral manipulation practitioners call “mobility” of organs. When fascia is unhealthy, largely due to inflammation or injury, it becomes sticky and can form adhesions – areas of drier tissue, causing tension that you can imagine by stretching plastic wrap tight around an object, then pinching it on one side – it stretches and gets tighter in some areas to account for the pinch.
Many sources cause the inflammation that leads to adhesions, the most obvious being direct injury or trauma. Other factors include infection, repetitive movement, poor diet, toxins, poor posture and emotional stress. Because fascia provides the atmosphere through which nerve interactions happen, it responds to stress and tension. Additionally, during an injury, it’s common for fascia to constrict around the injury in order to provide structured protection, tightening the whole fascial system and potentially causing pain and discomfort in an area of the body not associated with the injury.
For HSP’s with digestive and/or other pelvic imbalances, considering inflammation or stress-induced adhesions may be an important factor for treatment and relief. As we’ll see as we look at IBS and SIBO specifically, the small intestine is really long and loops its way through the abdomen, connected to our insides through several connection points. There are many opportunities for small adhesions to bind up the small intestine and inhibit motility and mobility. For example, the right sacro-illiac joint is the attachment point for the end of the small intestine. When the sacrum is out of place, the end of the small intestine can’t empty properly into the colon – and this works both ways. Disruptions in the psoas can cause inflammation, leading to small internal adhesions anywhere in the gut, and likely in some of the meters of small intestine. This sticky connective tissue can pull on the side of the sacro-illiac joint, internally causing rotation.
The Digestive System-Nervous System ConnectionRemember that we are using the nervous system as an anchor or lens through which to link the psoas and digestive disturbances. I believe that a huge part of the reason HSP’s experience increased digestive discomfort (like IBS) is because of how the nervous system and gut communicate and because of the environment through which the transmission wires reach the digestive system. As stated earlier, the nervous system rules the roost; it plays a huge role in several digestive system processes. Some of the control the nervous system has over digestion comes from links between the digestive system and the central nervous system (CNS), however, the digestive system also has its own, local nervous system. This is called the enteric or intrinsic nervous system. We are only beginning to understand the complexity and magnitude of this immense nervous system – but we do know that it contains as many neurons as the spinal chord.ii
The enteric nervous system is part of the autonomic nervous system, along with the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. The enteric nervous system has two main networks of neurons (transmissions) embedded into the wall of the digestive tract from esophagus to anus. These exert control over the motility of the digestive tract (how well each organ moves of its own accord – primarily the act of pushing food and digestive juices through it) and in sensing the system environment in order to regulate blood flow and control cell function.
Within these plexuses are several types of neurons (communication centers) which receive sensory information from the mucosa and the muscle and respond both to the internal, chemical stimuli like digestive fluids and muscular stimuli like stress and tension. Other neurons respond to the motility and secretion of the digestive organs, and others integrate this information.
The enteric nervous system functions autonomously (without us thinking about it), but requires communication between this system and the CNS through sympathetic and parasympathetic fibers connecting the two (transmission wires). Through these links, the two systems can speak to each other. For example, when we see appealing food (sight is a sensory information coming in through the CNS), it signals the stomach to start secretions. Generally, sympathetic stimulation (usually a stress response, indicating activity) inhibits gastrointestinal secretions and causes the digestive tract to constrict or close down. Parasympathetic stimuli (our “rest and digest” system) stimulates digestive activities.
Stress and Digestion What this tells us is that when we are chronically stressed, we don’t digest food as well. Additionally, because us HSP’s continuously take in sensory information, when we eat, we aren’t just digesting the food – we are digesting the entire atmosphere of the room, including conversation, emotions and the look and feel of our location. Eating in a stress-free environment is SO important for proper digestion and absorption of food, especially for HSP’s. The first and easiest thing can do to reduce gut disturbances is to learn how to manage stress and eat undistracted in a calm atmosphere. 
When we experience chronic stress to the point that our fight, flight or fetal response is triggered, even at a low level, for long periods of time, the psoas muscle become short, dry and tight. Remember that the psoas is like the basket for our digestive organs and provides the atmosphere or environment through which our nerve transmissions run from our CNS to our enteric nervous system. If our psoas is short and tight, it signals to the CNS that we are somehow not safe, secure or calm. This information will be relayed to the enteric nervous system and be present as we eat. If we are continuously stressed or otherwise not managing our gift of high sensitivity well, our gut may be consistently receiving messages to shut the system down (so that we can run or fight or fetal).
The IBS/SIBO ConnectionIBS was once thought to be a diagnosis for gut disturbances that didn’t have any other cause. When flexible fiberoptic cameras became the rage in the endoscopy world, the whole practice shifted to focus on diseases that you could see with the naked eye. Patients whose problems couldn’t be identified via scope were often thought of as difficult because answers took effort and solutions were less lucrative; they were often diagnosed with IBS. Due to new research primarily being conducted by Dr. Mark Pimentel at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, we are now developing a new understanding of the causes of IBS.
Even though I just got done talking about digestion and stress, I want to clarify that I don’t believe that stress is the cause of IBS – in fact, it’s been proven not to be. However, especially for HSP’s, management of both the psoas muscle and stress-induced inflammation in connective tissue are a piece of the puzzle that remain important for healing and management, especially for those IBS sufferers who also deal with low back/hip/pelvis issues.
IBS is now thought to primarily be caused by bacterial overgrowth. The theory goes something like this: At some point, an otherwise healthy person gets food poisoning. Due to factors that are not yet understood (possibly genetics), the body does a poor job of completely eradicating the offending bacteria. This bacteria sticks around and its first order of business is to disrupt the cycle the regular cleansing waves of the digestive system. The digestive system must cleanse itself through peristalsis in order to move food through the system and repair. After these waves are disrupted (resulting in either too many or not enough), not only does food back up in the system but also the bacteria, colonizing in areas where few bacteria should live – namely, the small intestine (bacteria should primarily be found in the large intestine). Once bacteria have moved into the small intestine, they act as little thieves, stealing nutrients meant for the host and feeding on highly fermentable foods. Their by-product is methane. This whole process results in either too much or too little movement in the gut (diarrhea or constipation, or a combination of both) and severe bloating.
When people are diagnosed with SIBO, attention is usually put on the overgrowth of bacteria. While this is a problem, it’s not the main problem – the main problem is that the motility of the digestive organs is out of whack. The bacteria have messed with the nervous system impulses needed to keep the system moving. Yes, we must get rid of the bacteria, but only as a starting point. The real issue is in restoring motility so that the the whole problem doesn’t happen again.
In step one of SIBO treatment, an antibacterial drug or herbs are given. This is often the focus of treatment, but again, I want to reiterate that this is really just the starting point – this is how we wipe the slate clean in order to restore the system. Once the bacteria are gone, we can move into the important process of restoring proper digestion. This is where things like digestive enzymes, which work internally to restore proper digestive juices, come into play. One may also be prescribed an internal motility agent like small doses of erythromycin. This is also the phase of healing where management of stress as it pertains to the psoas and connective tissue comes into play.
Addressing Additional Causes of Poor MotilityWhile bacteria may have been the leading cause of poor motility within the system, there may be other factors. As HSP’s, there is a good chance that small adhesions within the fascia and/or a tight, dry psoas could be contributing to poor digestion and/or lack of motility. The primary ways I have found to address these is through regular (for me, this means monthly) trips to a good visceral manipulation therapist and through practicing constructive rest pose.
You can find a certified visceral manipulation therapist through the Barral Institute website. If you are in the Seattle area, I recommend Michael Hahn – he books out a month in advance but is well worth it.
Constructive Rest Pose 
Constructive Rest Pose
This position, coined by somatic educator Lulu Sweigard, is a position that uses gravity to release muscle tension in the psoas in order to support a neutral spine. Remember, tension in the psoas can build up over time and is often caused not just through physical activities, but through stress and feelings of tension, or lack of safety and security. Because of this, we are likely releasing tension that has been stored for a very long time.
CRP is done laying down with knees bent and feet on the floor. Place your hands just inside of your front hip bones to draw attention to the layers of muscle and tissue within the pelvis. If this is uncomfortable, place arms along your sides. If this position causes back pain, you may put your feet up on a chair or block, creating a 90 degree angle with your knees (not pictured). You may also put a small towel (no more than 1 ½ inches high) under the head.
Separate feet hip-width apart. Make sure your head is neutral and does not tip forward or back. Allow your eyes to gently close or remain soft but open. Rest for 10-20 minutes. As you rest, allow yourself to notice the sensations within the deeper layers of your tissue. Because the psoas will release excess primal energy, there is the potential for sensations of vulnerability, emotional pain or memory to flow through the body. Stay centered and allow for this release to happen. Notice what they are but do not become absorbed by them. Balance internal sensations by noticing sensations in your outer world, like air currents, warmth, comfort, sounds, smells, etc. Through moving between the inner releasing world and outer present-time world, you’ll create a balance of stimuli in the body.
If at any time your body spontaneously moves, flinches or changes positions, do not change it or tidy it up. Allow the muscles to guide their own release. You can do this pose any time. The best times are in the morning and before dinner, as it can help you release tension in the digestive system and energize you.
ConclusionCongratulations, you made it all the way through is thesis of a blog post. Whew! You better stand up and stretch your psoas and thank your body for getting you through it! But in all seriousness, the connections that I have laid out here just scratch the surface of connections that can be made between the nervous system and high sensitivity, IBO/SIBO, the psoas and connective tissue and stress. There is so much information to learn and to put together. My hope with this article is that I have made connections for at least one person who might be struggling to find that missing, elusive piece to their recovery. I know that understanding this piece has been critical in my road to recovery and in my continued healing.


NOTES
iKoch, Liz. Psoas, Instinctive Responses & The Healthy Pelvis.1 November 2011 <https://wholewoman.com/blog/?p=931> 16 February 2015
iiBowen, R. The Enteric Nervous System. Control of Digestive System Function.<http://www.vivo.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/digestion/basics/gi_nervous.html> June 24, 2006.

by Darou Wellness
​I read an article yesterday that has me extremely excited about the implications. The article is called “Hacking the Nervous System” by Gaia Vince (http://mosaicscience.com/story/hacking-nervous-system). In the article, the author describes the experience of a woman who suffered from severe, debilitating rheumatoid arthritis and her eventual treatment with a device which minimized inflammation by simply stimulating the vagus nerve. What this means, is that by activating the vagus nerve which works through the parasympathetic nervous system, we can greatly influence inflammation and the immune system. The role of the brain on body inflammation can be profound.
​ If you suffer from digestive complaints, high blood pressure, depression or any inflammatory condition, please read on. Let me explain the possible implications step by step.
What is the vagus nerve?First of all, the vagus nerve is the longest nerve in the body which originates in the brain as cranial nerve ten, travels down the from go the neck and then passes around the digestive system, liver, spleen, pancreas, heart and lungs. This nerve is a major player in the parasympathetic nervous system, which is the ‘rest and digest’ part (opposite to the sympathetic nervous system which is ‘fight of flight’).
Vagal toneThe tone of the vagus nerve is key to activating the parasympathetic nervous system. Vagal tone is measured by tracking your heart-rate alongside your breathing rate. Your heart-rate speeds up a little when your breathe in, and slows down a little when you breathe out. The bigger the difference between your inhalation heart-rate and your exhalation heart-rate, the higher your vagal tone. Higher vagal tone means that your body can relax faster after stress.
What is high vagal tone associated with?High vagal tone improves the function of many body systems, causing better blood sugar regulation, reduced risk of stroke and cardiovascular disease, lower blood pressure, improved digestion via better production of stomach basic and digestive enzymes, and reduced migraines. Higher vagal tone is also associated with better mood, less anxiety and more stress resilience. One of the most interesting roles of the vagus nerve is that it essentially reads the gut microbiome and initiates a response to modulate inflammation based on whether or not it detects pathogenic versus non-pathogenic organisms. In this way, the gut microbiome can have an affect on your mood, stress levels and overall inflammation.
What is low vagal tone associated with?Low vagal tone is associated with cardiovascular conditions and strokes, depression, diabetes, chronic fatigue syndrome, cognitive impairment, and much higher rates of inflammatory conditions. Inflammatory conditions include all autoimmune diseases (rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, endometriosis, autoimmune thyroid conditions, lupus and more).
How do we increase vagal tone?In the article above, vagal tone was increased through a device that stimulated the vagus nerve. The good news is that you have access to this on your own, but it does require regular practice. To some degree, you are genetically predisposed to varying levels of vagal tone, but this still doesn’t mean that you can’t change it. Here are some ways to tone the vagus nerve:
1. Slow, rhythmic, diaphragmatic breathing. Breathing from your diaphragm, rather than shallowly from the top of the lungs stimulates and tones the vagus nerve.
2. Humming. Since the vagus nerve is connected to the vocal cords, humming mechanically stimulates it. You can hum a song, or even better repeat the sound ‘OM’.
3. Speaking. Similarly speaking is helpful for vagal tone, due to the connection to the vocal cords.
4. Washing your face with cold water. The mechanism her is not known, but cold water on your face stimulates the vagus nerve.
5. Meditation, especially loving kindness meditation which promotes feelings of goodwill towards yourself and others. A 2010 study by Barbara Fredrickson and Bethany Kik found that increasing positive emotions led to increased social closeness, and an improvement in vagal tone.
6. Balancing the gut microbiome. The presence of healthy bacteria in the gut creates a positive feedback loop through the vagus nerve, increasing its tone.
The implications of such simple and basic practices on your overall health, and in particular on inflammation are far-reaching. If you suffer from an inflammatory condition, digestive upset, high blood pressure or depression, a closer look at vagal tone is highly recommended. We’ve known for years that breathing exercises and meditation are helpful for our health, but it is so fascinating to learn the mechanism by which they work. I hope this short article has inspired you to begin a meditation practice, as it has for me, and also to look for other means to manage the body’s inflammatory response.
References:
Forsythe P, Bienenstock J, Kunze WA.Vagal pathways for microbiome-brain-gut axis communication. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2014;817:115-33.
Kok, B, Fredrickson, B, Coffey, K, et al. How Positive Emotions Build Physical Health: Perceived Positive Social Connections Account for the Upward Spiral Between Positive Emotions and Vagal Tone. Psychological Science 2013 24: 1123
Source: darouwellness.com

You’ve probably heard a number of translations for the haṭha part of haṭhayoga.
“Forceful” is commonly cited. Others prefer a more esoteric take: they say that ha and ṭha stand for “sun and moon” or “inhale and exhale.” They propose that practice is aimed at the integration of opposing forces.

Email*According to yoga scholar Jason Birch, the esoteric translation is probably a later addition to the early literature of haṭhayoga. "Forceful” is the older meaning.
But what kind of “force” were the originators of haṭhayoga describing? The answer has been muddy for centuries.
In his article, and via correspondence, Birch explains that nineteenth century European Indologists routinely “confounded haṭhayoga with extreme practices of asceticism (tapas) that appear in the purāṇas,” or epic literature. The confusion was understandable, because their Indian informants at the time were likely influenced by the views of contemporary renunciates, who to this day “equate tapas with haṭhayoga, and so they see haṭhayoga as a difficult, challenging practice.”
Whether the sources are indigenous, academic, or both, the notion that haṭha implies the force of violent exertion or demands self-mortification has cast a heavy shadow over the modern yogic imagination.
That shadow merges with the "no pain, no gain" heroism of the modern fitness era—and with the notion of moving, or being pushed by teachers, toward the "edge" of tolerance—usually at the end-range of a joint’s motion. The edge is typically viewed as a potential threshold of revelation, perhaps because its shadow is the threshold of injury.
But as Birch carefully points out, the consistent refrain of the early haṭhayoga manuals is that if practices are done śanaiḥ, śanaiḥ—"gently, gently"—spiritual awakening will inevitably occur. In other words, with enough gentleness in your practice, you'd be forced to wake up.
In fact, as Birch writes, “The interpretation of haṭhayoga as 'violent exertion' is, in effect, refuted by the haṭhapradīpikā (1.15), which includes exertion (prayasā) as one of the six factors that ruin haṭhayoga.”
Whether they know it or not, many modern practitioners and teachers are starting to flirt with this memory of “gentleness” more and more. Restorative practice is on the rise, and yoga therapy is becoming a better-defined field. Yoga nidra is gaining popularity, and more practitioners have become aware of the nurturing ethos ofayurveda. And J. Brown has coined a meme: “Gentle is the New Advanced.”
But not everyone wants to ride the gentle train. Force that drives toward the edge and beyond continues to be a valued currency in the modern yoga project. One reason is the near-complete integration of asana with athletics and body-image anxiety in the global market. But deeper roots lie in the transformative ambivalence of pain psychology, the un-gentleness of early modern yoga history, and the ongoing resonance of austere elements in yoga philosophy.
Basic Notes on Pain PsychologyIt is a counterintuitive fact that pain experienced in the relatively controlled environment of an asana class can be alluring to some practitioners. To the dissociated, it can offer re-embodiment. To the traumatized, it can offer the repetition of sensations within a scenario of greater autonomy. The pain you choose can be better than the pain that is forced upon you; you may be able to adapt to chosen pain with more clarity.
To those who had certain images emblazoned into their childhood brains—like that of the crucifixion, or of Hanuman tearing open his own chest to reveal Ram and Sita—pain might be tangled up with expressions of love or signs of enlightenment. If one was spanked as a child and told that it was for one’s own good, one may associate pain with re-admittance into the good grace of the parent.
Ariel Glucklich, a scholar of the religious use of pain, says that pain can give meaning to suffering that is otherwise difficult to express. Literary scholar Elaine Scarry emphasizes that pain transcends language altogether. It’s little wonder that pain is so easily associated with mystical experience—that mixture of the inexpressible and the silent.
If pain is one of the features of an "adjustment," it can also become a way in which teachers and students can explore the boundaries of consent and surrender. More darkly, pain given by the hand one trusts might reframe experiences of pain delivered in betrayal. If these dynamics are unconscious, of course, teacher and student may be simply re-enacting familiar scenarios of power or even abuse.
Most responsible teachers today will caution students away from pain. They know it should be left to qualified therapists to help students explore why they might be drawn to pain. They also know they're treading on dangerous ground if they try to interpret the meaning of pain for anyone but themselves.
Some HistoryThe roots of modern postural yoga are far from gentle. The early students of T. Krishnamacharya learned their art in the pressure cooker of a hyper-masculine, anti-colonial, physicalist movement. Corporal punishment was a standard mechanism of their training. The goal of waking up through asana practice was wholly subordinated to the goal of performing physical mastery through countless demonstrations that Krishnamacharya himself would later call "propaganda."
Through my research, I've come to believe that this brief and violent era has resonated disproportionately through the globalized yoga body ever since. It takes the forms of performance obsession, a manic drive toward physical mastery, and the persistence of invasive adjustment techniques. A good portion of yoga pedagogy continues to carry the unacknowledged shadow of authoritarian power dynamics that largely sought to shape and discipline children's bodies according to tense socio-political ideals. The most common—and seemingly benign—expression of this shadow is heard whenever a yoga teacher tells other bodies what they should do.
Every major advancement in global yoga pedagogy over the last fifty years—including but not limited to the therapeutic approaches of T. K. V. Desikachar, Vanda Scaravelli's spinal-wave theory, Erich Schiffman's "Freedom Style," Donna Farhi's writing on the student-teacher relationship, and the appearance of consent cards for adjustments—has emerged as either a conscious or unconscious reframing or rejection of the methods of the Mysore Palace. However, these developments remain at the fringes of mainstream yoga, which continues to be heavily influenced by the attitudes—if not the precise techniques—of Krishnamacharya's most famous students from the 1930s.
What Are Those Attitudes? (Two Brief Points on Philosophy)Firstly, the body is viewed as the instrument of the inner self’s journey, and a sign of worthy citizenship. It is to be molded, sculpted, softened, cleansed, and purified. It is given progressive sequences, mantras, juices, herbs, purgations, and enemas. It must be continually renovated—and deconstructed—to make the inner self more visible, and the outer citizen more respectable. Pain is often rationalized as an inevitable part of this process:
“Pain is weakness leaving the body.” “Pain is your guru." "Pain is real."
These three quotes come from the three most influential yoga teachers of the post-60's globalization period.
Point two can be grasped through the etymology of the word mokṣa: to “loosen,” “release,” or “liberate.” The word arises from millennia of literature that use metaphors of bondage to describe conditioned existence. Is it any wonder that most physical yoga practice emphasizes flexibility through the repetition of end-range motions?
The body can become strong through asana, but the embodied logic of mokṣa may, in the end, value that strength to the extent that it “unknots” the body—from the sinews to the chakras—as the very source of “attachment” to whatever essence needs to be released. This may be one place where the common notion that haṭha implies forceful action obtains its psychological currency.
Stated starkly, these attitudes may seem neither current nor attractive. But they radiate an older wisdom that contemporary fixations upon therapy, healing, and yoga vacations rarely approach:
The body is an ambivalent mystery, bound in time. It connects but separates. It throws off light by burning itself up. It is capable of confusing pain with pleasure under duress. It will become dysfunctional, it will die. It’s not surprising that attempts to improve or sanctify a body you feel might betray you can involve a certain impotent rage.
If pain is measured out by a method, experienced through the perception of consent, and narrativized as a path to realization, it can help some practitioners grapple with the existential strangeness of the body. They will likely continue to crave it.
What remains is for each practitioner to assess what the attraction to force costs over time. And perhaps to explore if and when the lessons of pain exhaust themselves to reveal a hidden memory of gentleness.

#injury preventionMATTHEW REMSKI 
Matthew Remski has practiced meditation since 1996 and asana since 2000. He’s taught yoga, yoga philosophy, and ayurveda in Toronto and beyond since 2005. He maintains an active ayurveda consultation practice from his home, which he shares with his partner Alix, son Jacob, and someone else who's on the way. He’s authored several books on yoga and related subjects, and is working toward completing What Are We Actually Doing in Asana?—an examination of pain, injury, and healing in modern... ​

By:  Elise Museles
I’m writing to you from one of my favorite places on earth. It’s not a beautiful Italian villa, tucked in the Tuscan hills or a luxurious spa on a tropical island. This beloved vacation spot is dusty, remote and, well, it smells like horses.
Every summer for the past 11 years, my family spends a week riding horses, eating huckleberry pancakes, and breathing fresh mountain air at a dude ranch in remote Montana. Even though we are literally in the middle of nowhere, there’s a surprising amount to do—but none of it involves our phones, our email, or our Instagram accounts.
The ranch is completely out of cell phone range, and we can only connect to Wi-Fi from one spot. My teenage son turns his phone off for the entire week and doesn’t even take it out of his carry on! I actually get to look him in the eye. (Can you imagine?)
For me, on the other hand, I have a harder time powering down completely. (When you’re eating gorgeous, healthy food and surrounded by breathtaking mountain ranges, who wouldn’t be tempted to whip out the phone and post some snapshots on Instagram?!) But, since I spend almost the entire day out of range, I don’t have the urge (or choice!) to check my emails or scroll through social media.
In preparation for our annual vacation, my family and I warn everyone that we’re “disconnecting.” We can’t be reached. We’ll be incommunicado.
But the irony is, we spend these days more connected than ever—connected to each other, to nature, and to ourselves.Away from our beeping phones and ever-filling inboxes, we hit the hiking trails, spend time alone in nature, and linger over hot meals all under the huge Montana sky. We take time to remember the things we love doing—whether it’s re-reading our favorite books, or watching the clouds roll by while we picnic together outside. We connect in a way that just doesn’t feel possible when we’re tethered to our devices.
We return from these “disconnected” vacations more energized, relaxed, and connected. It’s a yearly reminder that life is what happens when you pull yourself away from your screen.
I realize, of course, that not everyone can spend seven days in the mountains away from their phones and obligations. And I also understand that this can be challenging for so many of us. (My hand is raised!) But we all can try to find some time (even just a few hours) to fit in a little “disconnection” into our overly connected lives.
Here are 4 ways take a mini-break from the screen and enjoy being fully present in your life:1. Next time you meet up with a friend, leave your phone in the car. So many of us intend to be present and give our interactions the attention they deserve. But then someone’s late or gets up to use the bathroom and out comes the phone…distracting us and taking us away from the moment. Remove the temptation and show up without it!
2. Actively choose tech-free activities. It’s hard to use any sort of Wi-Fi-connected device if you’re attempting to balance on a stand up paddle board (or a horse!). A lot of the things we like doing make space for our phones—we can scroll through Instagram while the movie trailers play and we can update Facebook while we’re waiting for our drink order. But when we choose active, outdoor, hands-on activities, we’re choosing to connect with our friends and bodies rather than connecting with the internet—which is a great thing!
3. Unplug your Wi-Fi for a day. If you can’t resist the siren song of your laptop, remove the temptation. Unplug your Wi-Fi at the wall and see if you can leave it unplugged all day (and try not to use your phone’s data plan!). Read a book, play a board game, use actual, paper maps, write a letter or a postcard. See if you still remember how to do all those things we use apps for!
4. Take a day trip somewhere that’s “off the grid.” As much as we love escaping to our favorite getaway spots, we likely can’t just pop over anytime we want. You can, however, bring your favorite book to a nearby cafe that turns its Wi-Fi off every day at 6 pm. Or head out for a hike where cell service is spotty or out of range. You can’t “check” your phone if you don’t have coverage! When you finally put away your to-do list and your devices for a few days (or hours!), you just might find that intentionally disconnecting will actually make you feel more connected—to yourself and to your surroundings. Give it a try!
Reprinted with permission from kaleandchocolate.com.


Elise Museles is an attorney turned Certified Eating Psychology & Nutrition Expert. She helps women stuck in a motivation-to-frustration cycle adopt a more joyful & positive approach to nourishment that starts with the food on the plate, but ultimately extends to all areas of life. When she’s not sharing the merits of nutritious food and inspiring people to delve into their food stories, you can find her whipping up beautiful meals with all the guys in her family, romping in the woods alongside her adorable Golden Retrievers, or turning upside down on her yoga mat. Enter a delicious world full of freedom, ease, and fun at Kale & Chocolate. For daily inspiration (and mouth-watering photos!), join Elise on Facebook and follow her on Instagram.
Photo used with permission from Robert Sturman.

​October 21, 2015
by Nora Benian    Posted in Restorative Yoga, Therapeutics, Yoga.

The desire for a day of rest is warranted and actually very much needed in our very busy lives. After all, if a car ran non-stop and never rested it’s life would definitely be much shorter. But how can we make this day of rest happen? Let’s be realistic, it isn’t easy to drop everything, even for a day, without worrying about falling behind in our tasks. But we can start with small increments.

If a full day is impossible, find a morning that’s yours alone, or an hour that you can dedicate to stillness and rest. Be patient, experiment. Be open to each moment and what it has to offer. Sometimes we get stuck in our progress at work; that’s a good time to walk away and do something non-work related. Every effort, has merit and brings you closer to creating more space for being, rather than doing, for rest instead of activity, and for reflection instead of relentless, busy action.

Carving time out for yourself can be fun, like a self-date. Make it a ritual with lighting candles or burning incense or making a cup of tea and just sitting with it as a spiritual practice. Give yourself the time to reflect and be still. You can begin the rest period with a chant, of OM or any other chant you are drawn to. Or even hum a little happy tune. And turn off the ambient electronics, TVs, radios, computers and white noise. Don’t be afraid of silence.

Stillness doesn’t mean mourning, although it will make you see the parts of you have chosen to ignore. That’s a good thing though, all of you deserves your attention otherwise it goes back into hiding and sulks for another eon. Look for a light touch, whether it comes instinctively or not. Strive to see what’s good about you instead of pointing out what needs fixing or improving. Take a break from the inner critic that’s so sharp-eyed and harsh. Ease is its own kind of prayer and it has its own reward.

Make breathing a focus, whether your practice includes formal meditation or simple introspection, make time to breathe consciously and listen. Geshe Michael Roach, a tibetan monk of 30 years plus, wrote in one of his books, “The Diamond Cutter” that we need to unplug from our normal activities for at least 1 hour a day, 1 day a week, and for 2 weeks a year with no stimulation. This gives the nervous system time to catch up processing information and finally rest. The nervous system is sensitive and can be overwhelmed. It isn’t a system that repairs easily. It doesn’t heal like a torn muscle. It requires complete dedication to rest without much stimuli and many years to recover even a little. The way we live in this modern world keeps us going non-stop even while we sleep so prevention of a nervous breakdown is the ultimate goal.

On your self-date you could take the time to make a special meal. Prepare it with intent, as something that will honour and enrich your rest, and eat it slowly, with pleasure. Healthy oils like coconut oil and grounding foods like root vegetables are most helpful for inducing relaxation. Being alone is helpful too if it can be done. You really get to hear yourself think. Sorting through your thoughts is how we clean out the clutter and make room for fresh inspirations. It’s like an automatic review of the week, and a fearless welcome for the days that lie ahead.

Get out of your head and into nature; take a walk. And that doesn’t necessarily mean a hike, or power-walk. Think Slow! Move gently through your yoga practice, with greater ease. Be generous to yourself; the idea is to see where you are, feel your body in space, and move organically, letting life happen.

You’d really benefit by coming to Restorative Yoga at least once a week but twice or more would be even better. ‘Undoing’ all the tension in the body caused by all the ‘doing’ that we do and particularly in the state of mind we are in while we are doing it, is the cause of all our tension. A 75 minute Restorative Yoga class gives the body time to relax quite deeply, allowing the brain and nerves to slow down the communication and feedback between them inducing a state of peace and tranquility. Practicing Restorative Yoga regularly trains the body and mind to come to this peaceful state much more easily in times of stress. It is the practice of just BEING.

Committing to these practices is like making sure you are looked after in the most important ways possible. It’s like loving yourself in the deepest way imaginable. You are the care-giver to yourself. And only you know what you really need at each moment to find inner balance. There will be weeks when the demands of work or life will seem too great to set aside. These are the times you can remind yourself of the promise you made to renew and replenish by doing nothing. And remember, a tranquil moment in a sea of activity is no small achievement at all.

On Tuesday I'll be guest-hosting CNBC's Squawk Box, a program that bills itself as the show that "brings Wall Street to Main Street." As well as discussing Cyprus and a possible euro-crisis, we are going to discuss the growing trend in corporate America of taking steps -- meditation, yoga, mindfulness trainings -- to reduce stress and improve health and creativity.

One of my guests will be Mark Bertolini, CEO of the third-largest health insurer in the country with 30,000 employees insuring 17 million people. In 2010, Aetna partnered with Duke University's School of Medicine and found that regular yoga substantially decreased stress levels and health care costs. Following this, Bertolini made yoga available to all Aetna employees nationwide and has a much bigger mission: to make sure there is research available to facilitate private as well as state and federal coverage of yoga and mind-body therapies.

Even a quick look at what's happening in the American workplace shows that it's a seriously split-screen world. On the one hand, there's the stressful world of quarterly earnings reports, beating growth expectations, hard-charging CEOs, and focusing on the bottom line -- the world that is the usual focus of CNBC and Squawk Box. On the other hand, there's the world populated by the growing awareness of the costs of stress, not just in the health and well-being of business leaders and employees, but on the bottom line as well.

There is a growing body of scientific evidence that shows that these two worlds are, in fact, very much aligned -- or at least that they can, and should, be. And that when we treat them as separate, there is a heavy price to pay -- both for individuals and companies. The former in terms of health and happiness, and the latter in terms of dollars and cents. So yes, I do want to talk about maximizing profits and beating expectations -- by emphasizing the notion that what's good for us as individuals is also good for corporate America's bottom line. To do that, I'll be featuring guests who have had great success at bringing these two worlds together and putting what at first might seem like abstract or esoteric concepts to very productive use in the workplace.

When we separate these two worlds, the costs come in two forms. First, there are the direct costs due to stress and its associated medical conditions, and, second, there's the cost of lost creativity and diminished performance and productivity.

According to the World Health Organization, the cost of stress to American businesses is as high as $300 billion. And unless we change course, this will only get worse. Over the last 30 years, self-reported levels of stress have increased 18 percent for women and 25 percent for men.

This has huge consequences, of course, because of the role stress plays in a wide array of illnesses. Like high blood pressure, which afflicts nearly 70 million, and which costs $130 billion a year to treat. Or diabetes, which 25 million Americans have.

The CDC estimates that 75 percent of all health care spending is on chronic illnesses like these that can be prevented. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, two-thirds of visits to the doctor's office are for stress-related conditions. As a panelist on health care at the World Economic Forum put it this year, what we have right now isn't health care but "sickcare." And sickcare is a lot more expensive than real health care. Especially for businesses.

As business professors Michael Porter, Elizabeth Teisberg, and Scott Wallace wrote in the HBS Working Knowledge, studies show that U.S. employers spend 200 to 300percent more for the indirect costs of health care -- in the form of absenteeism, sick days, and lower productivity -- than they do on actual health care payments. Theirrecommendation: that companies "mount an aggressive approach to wellness, prevention, screening and active management of chronic conditions."

Though awareness is growing, there are still too many companies that don't yet realize the benefits of a focus on wellness. "The lack of attention to employee needs helps explain why the United States spends more on health care than other countries but gets worse outcomes," wrote Jeffrey Pfeffer, professor at Stanford's Graduate School of Business. "We have no mandatory vacation or sick day requirements, and we do have chronic layoffs, overwork, and stress. Working in many organizations is simply hazardous to your health." And thus to the health of your company as well. "I hope businesses will wake up to the fact that if they don't do well by their employees, chances are they're not doing well, period," Pfeffer said.

One company that did wake up was Safeway, whose experience is described in therecent documentary Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare. CEO Steve Burd recounts that in 2005 Safeway's health care bill hit $1 billion and was going up by $100 million a year. "What we discovered was that 70 percent of health care costs are driven by people's behaviors," he says. "Now as a business guy, I thought if we could influence behavior of our 200,000-person workforce, we could have a material effect on health care costs."

And so they did -- in the form of incentives for employees to lose weight, control their blood pressure and cholesterol levels. It was a huge success. "You allow and encourage your employees to become healthier, they become more productive, your company becomes more competitive," Burd says. "I can't think of a single negative in doing this." He concludes: "Making money and doing good in the world are not mutually exclusive."

One of the best -- and cheapest -- ways to become healthier and happier is through mindfulness exercises like meditation. Mark Williams is a professor of clinical psychology at Oxford, an expert in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, and the co-author of Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Finding Peace in a Frantic World. According to Williams, after nine weeks of training, participants in a mindfulness program had "an increased sense of purpose and had fewer feelings of isolation and alienation, along with decreased symptoms of illness as diverse as headaches, chest pain, congestion and weakness."

In fact, the health effects of meditation can be even more dramatic -- a matter of life and death. Williams points to a National Institutes of Health study that showed a 23 percent decrease in mortality, a 30 percent decrease in death due to cardiovascular problems and a big decrease in cancer mortality as well. "This effect is equivalent to discovering an entirely new class of drugs (but without the inevitable side effects)," they write.

The effects of stress reduction techniques are equally dramatic on our productivity, creativity, energy and performance. And that's because these tools change the way we think so dramatically that they can be measured biologically. Dr. Richard Davidson is a professor of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin and has used MRI machines to study the brain activity of Tibetan monks. As Fortune's Oliver Ryan reports, "The brain functioning of serious meditators is 'profoundly different' from that of non-meditators -- in ways that suggest an elevated capacity to concentrate and to manage emotions. [Davidson] calls meditation a 'kind of mental training.'"

This can make an equally profound difference in our work lives. As Tony Schwartz, author and CEO of the Energy Project writes, it's not about the quantity of time we put into a task, but the quality:

It's not just the number of hours we sit at a desk in that determines the value we generate. It's the energy we bring to the hours we work. Human beings are designed to pulse rhythmically between spending and renewing energy. That's how we operate at our best. Maintaining a steady reservoir of energy -- physically, mentally, emotionally and even spiritually -- requires refueling it intermittently.

In short, happiness and productivity are not only related, they're practically indistinguishable. According to the iOpener Institute, in a company with 1,000 employees, increasing happiness in the workplace:

• Reduces the cost of employee turnover by 46 percent.
• Reduces the cost of sick leave by 19 percent.
• Increases performance and productivity by 12 percent.

And the happiest employees, compared with their less happy colleagues, spend 40 percent more time focused on tasks and feel energized 65 percent more of the time.

Happier employees also take six fewer sick days a year, and remain in their jobs twice as long.

That last one is another way of saying that mindfulness is an antidote to burnout, which often leads to companies losing their most talented employees. Marie Asberg, professor at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm describes burnout as an "exhaustion funnel," which we slip down as we give up things not conventionally deemed "important." As Mark Williams and Danny Penman note in Mindfulness: An Eight-Week Plan for Finding Peace in a Frantic World:

Notice that very often, the very first things we give up are those that nourish us the most but seem 'optional.' The result is that we are increasingly left with only work or other stressors that often deplete our resources, and nothing to replenish or nourish us -- and exhaustion is the result.

One occupation known for burnout is physicians. Studies show that anywhere from a third to half of them suffer from it. But a 2009 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that doctors taking part in mindfulness exercises were less burned out. Even more dramatic was the fact that many of the improvements continued even after the year-long study concluded.

This is why more and more companies are realizing that their employees' health is one of the most important predictors of the company's health. Along with sales reports, market share and revenue levels, in those all-important Wall Street conference calls business analysts should be quizzing CEOs about their employees' stress levels: "Yeah, I see your net profit numbers, but how burnt out are your employees?"

One company that "gets it," and has since its inception, is Google. One of the most popular classes it offers employees is known as S.I.Y., short for "Search Inside Yourself." It was started by Chade-Meng Tan, engineer, Google employee number 107, and the author of Search Inside Yourself: The Unexpected Path to Achieving Success, Happiness (and World Peace). The course has three parts: attention training, self-knowledge, and building useful mental habits. "I'm definitely much more resilient as a leader," Richard Fernandez, a director of executive development who took Tan's course, told the New York Times. "It's almost an emotional and mental bank account. I've now got much more of a buffer there."

But the trend goes way beyond Silicon Valley and companies like Google. Janice Marturano founded the Institute for Mindful Leadership after she left General Mills, where she set up a popular mindfulness program -- and a meditation room in every building of their campus. "It's about training our minds to be more focused, to see with clarity, to have spaciousness for creativity and to feel connected," she told theFinancial Times' David Gelles. According to the company's research, it worked: 80 percent of participants said they felt it had improved their ability to make better decisions.

Joining General Mills are one-quarter of all U.S. companies -- including Target, Apple, Nike, Procter & Gamble. And, I'm happy to say, The Huffington Post and AOL.

And while the benefits of mindfulness are important no matter where you are in the company org chart, it's especially vital for the hard-charging managers and leaders who tune into CNBC every morning. "The main business case for meditation is that if you're fully present on the job, you will be more effective as a leader," says William George, Harvard Business School professor, former CEO of Medtronic, and a guest on Tuesday's show. "You will make better decisions."

So although, at first glance, mindfulness and wellness might seem like "soft" topics for CNBC, in fact it's as much about the bottom line as Squawk Box's usual morning fare. There's nothing touchy-feely about increased profits. This is a tough economy, and it's going to be that way for a long time. Stress-reduction and mindfulness don't just make us happier and healthier, they're a proven competitive advantage for any business that wants one.

"There is no work-life balance," says Janice Marturano. "We have one life. What's most important is that you be awake for it."

Follow Arianna Huffington on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ariannahuff

Newly published research from Norway suggests that a comprehensive yoga program rapidly produces internal changes on a genetic level.The results help explain the well-documented health benefits of this ancient practice.

“These data suggest that previously reported (therapeutic) effects of yoga practices have an integral physiological component at the molecular level, which is initiated immediately during practice,” writes a research team led by Fahri Saatcioglu of the University of Oslo. The team’s study is published in the online journal PLOS ONE.

Researchers first reported five years ago that practices such as yoga which elicit the “relaxation response” may have a long-term effect on gene expression. That’s the scientific term for whether a specific gene is “turned on,” meaning its protein or RNA product is being made. This latest study confirms those findings, links them to the body’s immune system, and suggests this effect may be instantaneous.

The University of Oslo experiment featured 10 participants who attended a week-long yoga retreat in Germany. For the first two days, participants spent two hours practicing a comprehensive yoga program including yogic postures (asanas), yogic breathing exercises (in particular Sudarshan Kriya), and meditation. For the next two days, they spent that same time period going on an hour-long nature walk and then listening to either jazz or classical music.

Immediately before and after each of the four sessions, the researchers drew blood from each participant. They then isolated and analyzed peripheral blood mononuclear cells, which play a key role in the body’s immune system. The researchers found that the nature walk and music-driven relaxation changed the expression of 38 genes in these circulating immune cells. In comparison, the yoga produced changes in 111.

Fourteen genes were affected by both exercises, which suggests “the two regimens, to some degree, affect similar biological processes,” the researchers write. That said, they note that yoga’s impact was far more widespread, which indicates the practice “may have additional effects over exercise plus simple relaxation in inducing health benefits through differential changes at the molecular level.”

So, if your yoga mat has been gathering dust, this research provides an incentive to take it out of the closet. It suggests that, as far as the immune system is concerned, walking in nature is good—but yoga might be substantially better.

- See more at: http://yoganonymous.com/newly-published-research-genetic-evidence-of-yogas-impact-on-the-immune-system/#sthash.6a5fUlvw.dpuf

09/18/2011 | 3 Comments

Learn: This Is Your Brain on Meditation
Science is demonstrating how meditation restructures your brain and can train it to concentrate, feel greater compassion, cope with stress, and more. Kelly McGonigal tells us about the latest research—and how to put it into practice. This article originally appeared in Yoga Journal.


Yoga citta vritti nirodhah.
 Yoga is the ending of disturbances of the mind. (Yoga Sutra, I.2)

Nothing is quite as satisfying as a yoga practice that’s filled with movement. Whether you prefer an intense and sweaty vinyasa practice, a gentle but deliberate Viniyoga practice, or something in between, all systems of hatha yoga provide a contented afterglow for the same reason: You sync your movement with your breath. When you do, your mind stops its obsessive churning and begins to slow down. Your attention turns from your endless to-do list toward the rhythm of your breath, and you feel more peaceful than you did before you began your practice.

For many of us, accessing that same settled, contented state is more difficult to do in meditation. It’s not easy to watch the mind reveal its worries, its self-criticism, or its old memories. Meditation requires patience and—even more challenging for most Westerners—time. So, why would you put yourself through the struggle?

Quite simply, meditation can profoundly alter your experience of life. Thousands of years ago, the yoga sage Patanjali and the Buddha both promised that meditation could eliminate the suffering caused by an untamed mind. They taught their students to cultivate focused attention, compassion, and joy. And they believed that it was possible to change one’s mental powers and emotional patterns by regularly experiencing meditative states. Those are hefty promises.

But these days, you don’t have to take their word for it. Western scientists are testing the wisdom of the masters, using new technology that allows researchers to study how meditation influences the brain.

The current findings are exciting enough to encourage even the most resistant yogis to sit down on the cushion: They suggest that meditation—even in small doses—can profoundly influence your experience of the world by remodeling the physical structure of your brain. Read on to find out how, and then put each finding into practice with meditations by yoga teachers Christopher Tompkins, Frank Jude Boccio, and Kate Vogt.

How Meditation Trains Your Brain

Using a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine, Eileen Luders, a re-searcher in the Department of Neurology at the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine, looks for evidence that meditation changes the physical structure of the brain. Until recently, this idea would have seemed absurd. “Scientists used to believe that the brain reaches its peak in adulthood and doesn’t change—until it starts to decrease in late adulthood,” Luders says. “Today we know that everything we do, and every experience we have, actually changes the brain.” Indeed, Luders finds several differences between the brains of meditators and nonmeditators. In a study published in the journal NeuroImage in 2009, Luders and her colleagues compared the brains of 22 meditators and 22 age-matched nonmeditators and found that the meditators (who practiced a wide range of traditions and had between five and 46 years of meditation experience) had more gray matter in re-gions of the brain that are important for attention, emotion regulation, and mental flexibility. Increased gray matter typically makes an area of the brain more efficient or powerful at processing information. Luders believes that the increased gray matter in the meditators’ brains should make them better at controlling their attention, managing their emotions, and making mindful choices.

Why are there differences between the brains of meditators and nonmeditators? It’s a simple matter of training. Neuroscientists now know that the brain you have today is, in part, a reflection of the demands you have placed on it. People learning to juggle, for example, develop more connections in areas of the brain that anticipate moving objects. Medical students undergoing periods of intense learning show similar changes in the hippocampus, an area of the brain important for memory. And mathematicians have more gray matter in regions important for arithmetic and spatial reasoning.

More and more neuroscientists, like Luders, have started to think that learning to meditate is no different from learning mental skills such as music or math. Like anything else that requires practice, meditation is a training program for the brain. “Regular use may strengthen the connections between neurons and can also make new connections,” Luders explains. “These tiny changes, in thousands of connections, can lead to visible changes in the structure of the brain.” Those structural changes, in turn, create a brain that is better at doing whatever you’ve asked it to do. Musicians’ brains could get better at analyzing and creating music. Mathematicians’ brains may get better at solving problems. What do meditators’ brains get better at doing? This is where it gets interesting: It depends on what kind of meditation they do.

Over the past decade, researchers have found that if you practice focusing attention on your breath or a mantra, the brain will restructure itself to make concentration easier. If you practice calm acceptance during meditation, you will develop a brain that is more resilient to stress. And if you meditate while cultivating feelings of love and compassion, your brain will develop in such a way that you spontaneously feel more connected to others.

Improve Your Attention

New research shows that meditation can help you improve your ability to concentrate in two ways. First, it can make you better at focusing on something specific while ignoring distractions. Second, it can make you more capable of noticing what is happening around you, giving you a fuller perspective on the present moment.

Some of the most fascinating research on how meditation affects attention is being conducted by Antoine Lutz, PhD, an associate scientist at the Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, in collaboration with Richard Davidson and the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin. Their work has shown that concentration meditation, in which the meditator focuses complete attention on one thing, such as counting the breath or gazing at an object, activates regions of the brain that are critical for controlling attention. This is true even among novice meditators who receive only brief training. Experienced meditators show even stronger activation in these regions. This you would expect, if meditation trains the brain to pay attention. But extremely experienced meditators (who have more than 44,000 hours of meditation practice) show less activation in these regions, even though their performance on attention tasks is better. The explanation for this, in Lutz’s view, is that the meditation training can eventually help reduce the effort it takes to focus your attention. “This would be consistent with traditional accounts of progress in meditation practice. Sustaining focus becomes effortless,” Lutz says. This suggests that people can immediately enhance concentration by learning a simple meditation technique, and that practice creates even more progress.

The researchers also looked at whether vipassana meditation training can improve overall attention. (Vipassana means “to see things as they really are,” and the meditation techniques are designed to increase focus, awareness, and insight.) Researchers label our inability to notice things in our environment as “attentional blink.” Most of us experience this throughout the day, when we become so caught up in our own thoughts that we miss what a friend says to us and have to ask her to repeat it. A more dramatic example would be a car accident caused by your thinking about a conversation you just had and not noticing that the car in front of you has stopped. If you were able to reduce your attentional blink, it would mean a more accurate and complete perception of reality—you would notice more and miss less.

To test whether meditation reduces attentional blink, participants had to notice two things occurring in rapid succession, less than a second apart. The findings, published in PLoS Biology, reveal that the meditation training improved the participants’ ability to notice both changes, with no loss in accuracy.

What explained this improvement? EEG recordings—which track patterns of electrical activity in the brain, showing precise moment-by-moment fluctuations in brain activation—showed that the participants allocated fewer brain resources to the task of noticing each target. In fact, the meditators spent less mental energy no-ticing the first target, which freed up mental bandwidth for noticing what came next. Paying attention literally became easier for the brain.

As a result, Lutz and his colleagues be-lieve that meditation may increase our control over our limited brain resources. To anyone who knows what it’s like to feel scattered or overwhelmed, this is an ap-pealing benefit indeed. Even though your attention is a limited resource, you can learn to do more with the mental energy you already have.

Reduce Your Stress

Dhyana heyah tad vrttayah.Meditation removes disturbances of the mind. (Yoga Sutra II.11)

Research also shows that meditation can help people with anxiety disorders. Philippe Goldin, director of the Clinically Applied Affective Neuroscience project in the Department of Psychology at Stanford University, uses mindfulness meditation in his studies. The general practice is to become aware of the present moment—by paying attention to sounds, your breath, sensations in your body, or thoughts or feelings—and to observe without judgment and without trying to change what you notice.

Like most of us, the participants in Goldin’s studies suffer from all sorts of disturbances of the mind—worries, self-doubt, stress, and even panic. But people with anxiety disorders feel unable to escape from such thoughts and emotions, and find their lives overtaken by them. Goldin’s research shows that mindfulness meditation offers freedom for people with anxiety, in part by changing the way the brain responds to negative thoughts.

In his studies, participants take an eight-week mindfulness-based course in stress reduction. They meet once weekly for a class and practice on their own for up to an hour a day. The training includes mindfulness meditation, walking meditation, gentle yoga, and relaxation with body awareness as well as discussions about mindfulness in everyday life.

Before and after the intervention, participants have their brains scanned inside an fMRI (or functional MRI) machine, which looks at brain activity rather than the structure of the brain, while completing what Goldin calls “self-referential processing”—that is, thinking about themselves. An fMRI scanner tracks which brain areas consume more energy during meditation and, therefore, which regions are more active.

Ironically, the brain-scanning sessions could provoke anxiety even in the calmest of people. Participants must lie immobilized on their back with their head held in the brain scanner. They rest their teeth on dental wax to prevent any head movement or talking. They are then asked to reflect on different statements about themselves that appear on a screen in front of their face. Some of the statements are positive, but many of them are not, such as “I’m not OK the way I am,” or “Something’s wrong with me.” These are exactly the kinds of thoughts that plague people with anxiety.

The brain scans in Goldin’s studies show a surprising pattern. After the mindfulness intervention, participants have greater activity in a brain network associated with processing information when they reflect on negative self-statements. In other words, they pay more attention to the negative statements than they did before the intervention. And yet, they also show decreased activation in the amygdala—a region associated with stress and anxiety. Most important, the participants suffered less. “They reported less anxiety and worrying,” Goldin says. “They put themselves down less, and their self-esteem improved.”

Goldin’s interpretation of the findings is that mindfulness meditation teaches people with anxiety how to handle distressing thoughts and emotions without being overpowered by them. Most people either push away unpleasant thoughts or obsess over them—both of which give anxiety more power. “The goal of meditation is not to get rid of thoughts or emotions. The goal is to become more aware of your thoughts and emotions and learn how to move through them without getting stuck.” The brain scans suggest that the anxiety sufferers were learning to witness negative thoughts without going into a full-blown anxiety response. Research from other laboratories is confirming that mindfulness meditation can lead to lasting positive changes in the brain. For example, a recent study by Massachusetts General -Hospital and Harvard University put 26 highly stressed adults through an eight-week mindfulness-based course in stress reduction that followed the same basic format as Goldin’s study. Brain scans were taken before and after the intervention, along with participants’ own reports of stress. The participants who reported decreased stress also showed decreases in gray -matter density in the amygdala. Previous research had revealed that trauma and chronic stress can enlarge the amygdala and make it more reactive and more connected to other areas of the brain, leading to greater stress and anxiety. This study is one of the first documented cases showing change ocurring in the opposite direction—with the brain instead becoming less reactive and more resilient.

Together, these studies provide exciting evidence that small doses of mental training, such as an eight-week mindfulness course, can create important changes in one’s mental well-being.

Feel More Compassionate

Maitryadisu balani The cultivation of friendliness creates inner strength. (Yoga Sutra III.24)

We typically think of our emotional range as something that is fixed and unchanging—a reflection of the personality we’re born with. But research is revealing the possibility that we may be able to cultivate and increase our ability to feel the emotional state of compassion. Researchers have found that feeling connected to others is as learnable as any other skill. “We are trying to provide evidence that meditation can cultivate compassion, and that you can see the change in both the person’s behavior and the function of the brain,” Lutz says.

So what does compassion look like in the brain? To find out, Lutz and his colleagues compared two groups of -meditators—one group whose members were experienced in compassion meditation, and the other a group whose members were not—and gave them the same instructions: to generate a state of love and compassion by thinking about someone they care about, extend those feelings to others, and finally, to feel love and compassion without any specific object. As each of the participants meditated in-side the fMRI brain scanners, they were occasionally interrupted by spontaneous and unexpected human sounds—such as a baby cooing or a woman screaming—that might elicit feelings of care or concern.

All of the meditators showed emotional responses to the sounds. But the more experienced compassion meditators showed a larger brain response in areas important for processing physical sensations and for emotional responding, particularly to sounds of distress. The researchers also observed an increase in heart rate that corresponded to the brain changes. These findings suggest that the meditators were having a genuine empathic response and that the experienced meditators felt greater compassion. In other words, compassion meditation appears to make the brain more naturally open to a connection with others.

These meditation techniques may have benefits beyond the experience of spontaneous compassion. A study by psychology professor Barbara Fredrickson and her colleagues at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and the University of Michigan, found that a seven-week lovingkindness meditation course also increased the participants’ daily experience of joy, gratitude, and hope. The more participants meditated, the better they felt. Participants also reported a greater sense of self-acceptance, social support, purpose in life, and life satisfaction, while experiencing fewer symptoms of illness and depression. This study provides strong evidence that chipping away at the illusion of separation can open us up to a far more meaningful connection to life.

Commit to Change

As the evidence for the benefits of meditation grows, one of the most important outstanding questions is, How much is enough? Or, from the perspective of most beginning meditators, How little is enough to see positive change?

Researchers agree that many of the benefits happen early on. “Changes in the brain take place at the very beginning of learning,” Luders says. And many studies show change in a matter of weeks, or even minutes, among inexperienced meditators. But other studies suggest that experience matters. More practice leads to greater changes, both in the brain and in a meditator’s mental states. So while a minimal investment in meditation can pay off for your well-being and mental clarity, committing to the practice is the best way to experience the full benefits.

Luders, who was a lapsed meditator when she started her research, had such a positive experience being around seasoned meditators that she was motivated to come back to the practice. “It’s never too late,” Luders says. She suggests starting small and making meditation a regular habit. “The norm in our study was daily sessions, 10 to 90 minutes. Start with 10.”

If you do, you may discover that meditation has benefits beyond what science has revealed. Indeed, it will take time for science to catch up to the wisdom of the great meditation teachers. And even with the advances in brain technology, there are changes both subtle and profound transmitted only through direct experience. Fortunately, all you need to get started is the willingness to sit and be with your own body, breath, and mind.

Engage the quads. Straighten the arms. Bend the knee. Now straighten the knee. Straighten the knee more! Reach, press, stretch, lengthen—more! Power vinyasa and hot yoga were my go-to for years. Just the stench of the hot room made me feel accomplished and I loved seeing myself in the mirror kicking some yoga ass. It felt good. I felt strong and flexible. I felt capable and every once in a while that feeling spilled over into my life. I had a lot of physical tension masking my emotions and baby, I was burning through it.

One day I went to class and the teacher mentioned that we’d be doing a restorative sequence. “What?!” I thought. “That s**t was not on the schedule!” We did a total of four poses over the course of one and a half hours and the whole time I was thinking: “Did I really just pay for this? I mean, we aren’t doing anything.”  I was not a happy yogi.

Fast forward to a few years later and a myriad of stress-related life events left me feeling broken and exhausted. Every time I went to yoga, I flung open my mat and laid down. I prayed the teacher wouldn’t make us get up.
When I look back on those moments, I realize my central nervous system was in overdrive. I needed less pushing, less stretching, less muscle engagement, less effort. I needed a space where I could soften, surrender, open and rest.
I needed to be nurtured and I needed to feel safe. I started dabbling more in restorative work and slowly finding a soft place to fall. Every time I left class, I felt a little more normal and at the time, that was a huge relief.

Several years later, I got my first yoga teaching gig and thought I’d take a stab at teaching restorative yoga.
“I mean, how hard could it be, right? It’s just a few poses.” Humility set in when I realized that the people I was attracting through this practice were overworked athletes and hospice caregivers, cancer thrivers and the newly diagnosed, people healing broken spines and people healing broken hearts. But even more important, these people weren’t just sick trying to get better. They were on the wellness train—working hard to to prevent further illness, balance the effects of chronic stress and optimize their potential as human beings. These very wise students were giving this very “green” yoga teacher a lot to learn about this practice.

With a ton of studying, training and many mistakes along the way, I now try my hardest to offer a nurturing, open space where people can practice resting (I intentionally use the word “practice” ‘cause learning to rest ain’t easy, folks).
And even though someone passing by might see a restorative yoga class as adult nap time (which would be completely wonderful, by the way), I know these students are doing way more.
They are courageous enough to get quiet and potentially uncover physical and emotional states that are often masked by overbooked schedules and never-ending checklists.
They are aware enough to know that they must take responsibility for their own healing if they expect to be well. They are trusting enough to know the body can do amazing things when we get out of our own way and allow ourselves true rest. And over time, as each student has come and gone, I’ve come to a clear realization that even though I’ve never seen them do a standing pose, restorative yogis are warriors.

Now don’t get me wrong, I still love a good sweaty yoga class. However, now I inwardly laugh at the intensity and seriousness with which I used to practice active yoga poses. Instead, when I’m needing to fill up on strength, I take it to the bolster and know that the notion “support equals release” has metaphorical implications that go way beyond the mat.
I’m practicing unclenching my jaw and softening my belly, so my body can teach my mind to stop. I’m practicing becoming aware of how I actually feel, so I know what I actually need.
I’m practicing noticing what is and accepting it, not with the intention to give up but with the intention to be honest about what is happening in my life and move forward with more authenticity.
And to me, that is some seriously power(ful) yoga.

Apprentice Editor: Bronwyn Petry / Editor: Renee Picard     Photo: Daniela Vladimirova, Flickr Creative Commons