Yoga and the Stress Response
Stress has become a common catchword in our society to indicate a host of difficulties, both as cause and effect. The American Academy of Family Physicians has noted that stress related symptoms prompt two-thirds of the office visits to family physicians
i. Exercise and alternative therapies are now commonly prescribed for stress-related complaints and illness.
Even a recent issue of Consumer Reports suggests Yoga for stress relief
ii. Many books and articles claim, as does Dr. Susan Lark, that practicing Yoga will provide effective relief of anxiety and stress.
iii Is this an accurate promise?

Every human being longs for happiness and seeks it according to his or her own development. Some seek to satisfy the ever changing physical, emotional, and intellectual aspects of personality. Others, having learned from experience, seek a permanent happiness.
It has been taught by countless sages and saints throughout the ages that true and lasting happiness is our very own nature: what we seek is within us. This is the nameless One that has been given many names: the Indweller of all beings, the Self, God, Brahman, Jehovah, Cosmic Consciousness, Nirvana, the Kingdom of God within, and the Source of all Life.

Since it is infinite, it can be experienced only when we rise above the finite personality. Yoga is both this experience and the means to this experience.As one practices Yoga, the body, emotions, and intellect become perfected tools for service to humanity. At the same time, all obstacles to the realization of perfect happiness gradually drop away. Integral Yoga® is a synthesis of methods that develops all sides of the spiritual aspirant. It is a scientific system verifiable by anyone who practices sincerely.

The classical techniques of Yoga date back more than 5,000 years. In ancient times, the desire for greater personal freedom, health and long life, and heightened self-understanding gave birth to this system of physical and mental exercise which has since spread throughout the world. The word Yoga means “to join or yoke together,” and it brings the body and mind together into one harmonious experience.