Recent trends in yoga therapies for psychiatric disorders

Abstract

Yoga practices date back to ancient times. It is a mechanism that connects our mind, body, and soul consisting of different movements and poses performed in coordination with controlling breath, meditation, relaxation, and lifestyle. In recent years, yoga therapy has gained a huge amount of attention and shown promising results as a complementary treatment for psychological disorders and improving overall well-being. This review paper focus on understanding how yoga therapy has positive implications on psychological disorders, acknowledge the underlying mechanisms leading to its effectiveness, identify areas for research and also outlines how yoga therapy has addressed the cognitive impairment of an individual prior to the onset of psychosis and its relationship with panchakoshas, trigunas. The authors conducted a literature search using the following databases PubMed, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect and APApsycNet. The search strategy included phrases or search terms like “yoga,” “mental disorders,” “cognitive impairment,” “psychological disorders,” “panchakosha,” “Triguna,” and “yoga therapy.” The literature for a period of 10 years is covered from 2014-2024. Empirical studies have shown consistent results that yoga therapy with an integration of other forms of treatment reduces negative emotion, stress and improves cognitive functioning, symptoms of anxiety and depression. Secondly, yoga therapy develops self-awareness and relaxation in individuals. The results of yoga therapy may vary depending on several factors. From recent research it is also evidenced that the expression of gunas differs between individuals with psychological disorder patients and how therapeutic gain is established through yoga therapy.