Phobias: Yoga in the Treatment of Extreme Anxiety- Part 2

Role of the chakras and nadis

If phobias are a product of repressed material, yoga suggests that the combination of genetic and environmental impressions is stored in the chakras, and in the flow or blockage of the nadis. These impressions form our karma, our emotional, mental and physical inheritance from past lifetimes, and samskaras, the knots or tensions in our unconscious mind. Overactivity or underactivity in the chakras or nadis causes disease. Mooladhara chakra, at the perineum or cervix, is the site of these karmas and knots, and is also the location of our primal energy. When unbalanced, fear, insecurity, low vitality and self-esteem, depression and fear of the future result. Swadhisthana, at the coccyx/pubic bone, is related to the subconscious mind, pleasure and the repression of pleasure. Manipura, at the navel, is the site of all power, the desire to control, and self-assertion, and is related to the stomach and the adrenals. Anahata, the heart centre, and vishuddhi, the throat centre, are related to love and communication respectively. Ajna chakra, the eyebrow centre, controls the activity of the brain.

Speculating, we can say that a phobia probably involves at least mooladhara – fear, anxiety, and manipura – the desire to control the anxiety, the fear of fear and need to control that characterizes panic and anxiety states. Ajna chakra, the site of mental worry and anxiety, is also involved, as are the heart centre – palpitations, and the throat centre – inability to speak. The unconscious fears at mooladhara may be related to repression of primal energy, or sexuality, as Freud suggested.

Of the nadis, ida and pingala are the most relevant here. Ida is linked to the left side of the body and the right side of the brain, moving in the left nostril, while pingala controls the right side of the body and left side of the brain and moves in the right nostril. Ida and pingala meet and cross at each of the chakras which are linked by sushumna moving in the central spinal column. Unhealthy ida is said to result in introversion, depression and paranoia, and ongoing mental tensions, while unhealthy pingala is related to lack of exercise, sedentary lifestyle and overeating. Since ida relates to the parasympathetic nervous system and pingala to the sympathetic nervous system, an imbalance in these nadis will reflect an imbalance in the systems, as in panic attack. The 'personality type' of a phobic person seems to be overactive ida.

Asanas and pranayama in yoga therapy

This brief analysis shows that the whole system from the unconscious mind, conscious mind, to the emotions and physical body is involved in phobic anxiety. Yoga treats each of these levels and the subtle interrelationships between them. Asanas are important in balancing the physical body, the endocrine system, and on a more subtle level, the chakras and prana in the body. Surya namaskara is of great benefit for all anxiety states because it works to balance the entire body and endocrine system. Shashankasana, marjariasana, ushtrasana, the trikonasana series, chakrasana and dhanurasana work on the adrenals. The shakti bandha series, spinal twists, paschimottanasana and bhujangasana are also recommended. The inverted poses: sarvangasana, vipareeta karani mudra, halasana and sirshasana can be practised by the more experienced student. The hatha yoga cleansing techniques are also advised. Kunjal is especially beneficial for releasing tensions held in the manipura area. Neti and shankhaprakshalana are soothing and work to tone and balance the body. Kapalbhati works to remove impurities and makes the mind calm, while trataka, working on ajna chakra, influences the pineal gland, the hypothalamus and the sympathetic nervous system.

Pranayama is an extremely important aspect of yoga therapy because it works to balance the nadis and chakras and, therefore, the physical body. Ujjayi, the 'psychic' breath, brings stillness, clarity and calm. Bhramari, the humming breath, is useful to alleviate mental tensions and worries. Nadi shodhana is especially beneficial because it works directly on the nadis, purifying the pranic system and bringing the whole body into balance. Since bhastrika revitalizes the sympathetic nervous system while kapalbhati tones the parasympathetic nervous system, these practices are complementary. People with anxiety will benefit from using these practices and determining which ones are most effective for general relaxation, and which, such as nadi shodhana, are suitable for use during a panic attack.

Yoga nidra and meditation

Meditation and yoga nidra are key practices in the management of phobic anxiety. Yoga is not designed primarily as a therapy, but to bring us to greater awareness and calm, even to transformation. Yoga teaches us to change the inner environment so that all our fears, anxieties and miseries will gradually lessen. Meditation can bring some spaciousness into that inner cage. An important aspect of the practices of yoga is self-acceptance. Phobic anxiety is characterized by fear of one's own nature and by a denial of what we are actually feeling, in other words, by aversion. Phobics often go to great lengths to hide their fears from others, and indeed, many phobias are related to anxiety about how others will perceive us, reflecting our self-hatred.

The practice of antar mouna, 'inner silence', allows us to watch the mind without judgement, allowing all thoughts to come to the mind and accepting all our experience as internally caused. 'External' conditions, such as sounds, are brought into the inner experience and we learn to observe our habitual reactions. Antar mouna is a beneficial technique to use when the mind becomes disturbed by a situation, since the reaction, rather than being pushed away or avoided 'with fear, dread, hatred or aversion' is steadily observed: we face the fear. Ajapa japa is also recommended for anxiety. This practice, which involves the repetition of a mantra so that it becomes spontaneous, effectively takes the attention from the situation which has triggered the anxiety. It may be more effective than antar mouna when the feeling of aversion is overwhelming, since it distracts the mind from the situation – a technique also used by therapists in anxiety management.

People experiencing phobias are often at a loss to explain why they are afraid of that object or situation. They know the anxiety is 'irrational', but cannot access the original causer, which may be deeply repressed. In my view, yoga nidra is probably the most powerful practice in the long term treatment of phobias and extreme anxiety. Not only does it provide the relaxation skills which are so helpful to the phobic person, it can also be used in the processes of exposure, desensitization and flooding. Once they are familiar with the yoga nidra state, the person visualizes going through the feared experience in the imagination, while remaining in the relaxed state: either beginning with the easiest situation (desensitization), or the most frightening one (flooding). Similarly, when in the actual situation, the person can use yoga nidra techniques to relax and 'stay with' the fear. Yoga nidra also acts as a 'tranquilizer' to balance the hypothalamus and relieve anxiety states.

Most importantly, the regular practice of yoga nidra gives access to the deep unconscious and subconscious forces which are the basis for the phobia and allows them to be released. In the advanced stages of yoga nidra, practitioners are asked to submit voluntarily to threatening emotions while preserving a state of deep relaxation and 'witness awareness' to the whole process. A specific program of yoga nidra, beginning with the basic technique and continuing into specific guided visualizations, should be constructed, with a teacher who can guide the person through this process. Therapy and yoga can work together well in this context.

Conclusion

A yogic approach to therapy for phobias and related anxiety states offers real benefits to the sufferer. Yoga shifts the emphasis from the external environment to the inner attitude, and from 'fixing' the mind or ego to a systemic transformation. Finally, it empowers the person to become their own healer, teacher and psychoanalyst!

Jigyasu Yogamrit (Ingrid Fitzgerald, Australia)

Bibliography

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