World Mental Health Day: How to Overcome Pandemic Induced Stress

How to battle pandemic-induced mental health woes with yoga & spirituality

There’s no denying that the pandemic has unfolded unpredictably in a manner that has deeply affected us with symptoms of anxiety, isolation, job loss, and stressful disorders. The invisible sea change it has brought with it in one’s daily habits of food intake and sleep patterns –needs conscious efforts of reversal by us. Start your day with subtle body stretches. Prepare yourself to be on your mat non-stop for the next half-hour, then, start with 7 to 11 rounds of practices of Surya Namaskar. It contains 12 counts from the right side and the next twelve from the left side, with a total of 24 counts in its one cycle. Conclude by sitting down in Sukhasana, in Adi Mudra. Hands kept on your knees, eyes closed, and your focus on a soft and even breath. Such capsule, simple yet precise practices will help to carve outa perfect body-mind equilibrium.

Facing mental health woes? Here's how you can bounce back.

If you aim to bring about a change to your mental well-being, it demands simple behavioral changes, and then a good deal of patience -more than anything else. A pre-pandemic busy schedule never allowed you to indulge in self-care and a post-pandemic regime led to a void with no means towards filling that void mindfully and positively. Results are that one struggles to bounce back from the long-run devastation of the pandemic, with one thing to be done and dealt with at a time. Practices of Aarambh dhyan (Seed meditation) are your go-to tool. You can practice this technique on the fly, under any time, place, or circumstance. It will leave you to feel lighter, as you filter yourself from the unwanted and the unnecessary both.

Impact of the pandemic on mental health and how to tackle it?

As the devastation of the pandemic enters its second year, with institutions across all fields and age groups closed, everything has transitioned itself to a virtual instruction zone. Many of us may have adapted to it without realizing its long-term implications. Life has become more stationary, more indoors; we take in very little sunlight and lesser natural air, majority of our day passes in front of screens. Without our realization, our new normal pattern impacts our being from the inside out. It’s imperative that we realize the importance of bringing ourselves on the practice mats and get into a regular yoga practice regime. Yoga asana immediately works with your blood flow, channelizes your breath, and infuses a repowered, new source of energy. Its regular practices surely leave you happier and mentally nourished.

How to recover from pandemic-induced physical and mental issues?

If we were to list down the implications of a pandemic for mental health and physical issues, the sufferings and barriers created are a long list. Initial reported symptoms of stress and anxiety, if left untackled, get compounded to depressive disorders. Instances and counts of people refusing the vaccine due to fear or uncertainty stretch beyond necessary. Himalaya says bring yourself in perfect unison of self-care. The significance of yoga asana in restoring a healthy body needs to be understood like never before. Whether you practice in a flow or take your time to breathe and hold the postures for long, whatever you do, stay committed to it. Regular, repetitive practices should not be mistaken as mundane or boring, focus is the only way out of a disturbed lifestyle. Practices of Shakti Dhyan / Power meditation allow you to manifest this very mode of goodness. It opens the divine gates of blessings, once this happens, there’s nothing that can stop you.

(Inputs by Himalayan Siddha, Grand Master Akshar)