Stress Relief Counseling – from darkness to light
Stress Relief Counseling: A Global Need
Today’s topic is a very appropriate topic. It’s about stress relief counseling. The International Sivananda Yoga Centers are offering a service of stress relief counseling for all, in 12 languages. So if you see the announcement, please share it with as many people as possible. Because the situation of suffering and stress due to the epidemic is a global situation. So we want people to be able to access the counselors who may be able to support them through this period of stress.
You can imagine the situation. There are all kinds of situations but you can summarize everything under the name of stress: from the person that is a frontline worker in the hospital, trying to save people’s lives; to a person caught up in their apartment living with a few people, unable to move; to a person who worries about the future and their livelihood; to a person that is sick, struggling, and in fear of death; to a person separated from family members in isolation. A very, very stressful situation that the world is going through.
If you don’t understand the stress phenomenon, you might aggravate your situation through a wrong kind of stress response. The body and the mind will adapt to that kind of stressful situation, affecting you physiologically, neurologically, and impacting your immunity. When the mind learns something, it keeps repeating the patterns. When stress has become numbing, it can become a mental health issue. In yoga, we want people to become balanced and clear, because that is how they connect with themselves.
Most of the reasons for doctor’s visits are caused by stress. We can trace many of our diseases back to stress because our immune system is weakened by it. Often, we are not eating properly, not sleeping properly (insomnia, nightmares), and not breathing properly. We hold our breath in tension or gasp for air because we don’t know how to use our diaphragm to breathe deeply, calmly, slowly, and in a relaxed way.
The situation of stress also causes difficulties in relationships, resulting in symptoms like fear, anxiety, irritability, grief, sadness, or even depression. We need to learn how to observe ourselves and the environment, and have a strategy to move from darkness to light.
What is Stress?
Our stress response is something built-in to our nervous and immune systems. It’s a mechanism that responds to perceived threats to our survival. Because the mind and body are tightly connected, whatever we perceive in our mind will affect our body organs, potentially developing psychosomatic diseases.
There are three different types of stress response depending on your constitution and personality:
- Fight: The fiery personality (Pitta in Ayurveda) has a tendency to fight or control when stressed.
- Flight: The airy personality (Vata) has a tendency to escape or run away from problems.
- Freeze: The water/earth personality (Kapha) has a tendency to become inert, paralyzed, and disappear so nobody notices.
The most important thing to understand is that stress is subjective. An objective stressor causes the stress, but your personal reaction is due to the habitual thoughts and emotions in your mind. The more rigid we are, the more stressed we are. The more open and flexible we are, the less stressed we are. How we perceive an event plays a significant role in whether the stressor triggers our stress response.
5 Causes of Stress and How Yoga Helps
1. Lack of Prana (Vital Energy) from Nature
People are more stressed when they don’t have prana (vital energy) to deal with challenges. Our modern, artificial lifestyle (noise, pollution, overuse of computers, poor diet) drains our prana. When a thought or perceived threat comes, we collapse because we are energetically in debt. You need to live in alignment with nature to build up prana—be in the sun, eat proper food, and practice yoga to recharge.
2. Negative Emotions
Unhealthy relationships, unfulfilled expectations, and deep-seated negative emotions create stress. Awareness is the first step. The moment you become aware of an emotion (like anger), you stop attaching to it, which allows for detachment. Yoga helps open the heart, withhold judgment, and reminds you of your true Self that is untouched, fulfilled, and free.
3. Adaptation Problem
Stress happens when there’s a failure of adaptation due to attachment. We attach to objects, past stories, dramas, and how we think things "should" be. Swami Sivananda says, "Adapt, adjust, accommodate. Bear insult, bear injury, highest yoga." We must practice detachment and train ourselves to have a flexible spine and a flexible mind to handle constant change.
4. Uncertainty and Existential Anxiety
Uncertainty and the fear of death or disease create immense anxiety. We have the illusion that we can control life, but life and the body are constantly changing. We must learn to see the Absolute—the level of ourselves that is immortal and untouched—while living in the world of relativity. Having faith in your true Self and the supreme intelligence helps alleviate existential anxiety.
5. Karma
We are born to experience the results of our past actions, thoughts, and desires. Stress is an indicator and a teacher. Instead of blaming others or denying the situation, we must do soul-searching, accept our karma, and learn our lessons so we don't repeat the same wrong thinking. We share collective karma right now, and we must bear the results of our collective actions together while trying to lift our consciousness.
The 3 Gunas (3 Qualities of Nature)
To help yourself and others move from darkness to light, you must understand the three Gunas: Tamas (darkness/inertia), Rajas (action/agitation), and Sattva (purity/balance). People respond to stress depending on these qualities. The ultimate goal is to break through Tamas, calm down Rajas, and cultivate Sattva.
Tamasic Stress Response
- Inertia & Laziness: Being slothful, disorganized, and saying "I don't care."
- Overindulgence: Eating anything, sleeping too much, escaping into drugs or alcohol.
- Passivity: Spending excessive time watching movies or news, becoming fearful, depressed, and losing grasp of reality.
- Victim Mentality: Complaining, living in the past, and refusing to take responsibility or stick to a routine.
Rajasic Stress Response
- Anger & Aggression: Becoming angry with the government, neighbors, or even turning violent (e.g., buying weapons out of insecurity).
- Selfishness & Greed: Hoarding materials, adopting a "me and mine" attitude, and taking advantage of others' suffering for profit.
- External Fixation: Breaking rules, refusing to practice social distancing, spreading misinformation, and relying entirely on external cocktails of medicine rather than holistic healing.
Sattvic Stress Response
- Clarity & Selflessness: Seeing the bigger picture, being charitable, and sharing what you have (e.g., landlords forgiving rent).
- Acceptance & Devotion: Surrendering to God’s will, forgiving others, and being prayerful.
- Healthy Routine: Exercising regularly, eating balanced meals, practicing deep breathing, mindfulness, and meditation.
- Positive Assertiveness: Setting healthy limits, asserting opinions without aggression, and engaging in helpful hobbies (like making masks for others).
Summary
Our journey is to transform ourselves from negative to positive; from restlessness to peace; from darkness to light. We always look for happiness outside and blame others for our problems. We have to keep remembering ourselves and keep practicing (Abhyasa Yoga). Know that the truth lies within, so turn inwards. The Sattva is the wisdom of acceptance: do whatever you can do, and accept what you cannot change.
"Fear not. Grieve not. Worry not. Your essential nature is peace. Thou art an embodiment of peace. Know this. Feel this. Realize this."
– Swami Sivananda
By understanding your own tendencies, you will know how to guide others and bring a different, peaceful perspective to their lives.