How a Yoga Retreat Helps Keep Your Mind Healthy
Everyone needs to take a break from their daily routine every once in a while. Going on a yoga retreat is the perfect way to rejuvenate your mind and reintroduce balance into your life, even if you haven’t tried yoga before.
Here are a few reasons why you should try this special kind of getaway.
To disconnect from technology
The so-called ‘digital detox’ was covered in our article ‘Why Try a Yoga Retreat’ post, and is one of the main benefits of this specific type of getaway.
Being surrounded by technology 24/7 can be mentally suffocating. After all, it can be very difficult to avoid work emails, as well as ‘social media noise’. These habits can cause stress, anxiety, or even insecurity. Removing yourself from cyberspace for a few days can help you curb your appetite for technology and help you start appreciating the simpler things in life like rest and relaxation.
To make new social connections
Yoga may be a personal practice, but it’s also a growing community of like-minded individuals. On a yoga retreat, you interact with people who share your passion or who are looking for the same thing as you. You’ll develop a sense of connectedness, which Everyday Health notes is a source of comfort, contentment, and emotional strength. There are millions of yoga practitioners from all over the world and it only takes one yoga retreat to get to know some of them.
To meditate
Meditation is more focused during a yoga retreat compared to a typical studio class. You’ll spend hours with your own thoughts and hopefully, boost your creativity and mental clarity in the process.
To eat healthier
Yoga retreats usually come in the form of a package including a whole host of healthy and nutritious meals. It’s great for people who are developing healthier eating habits as it can affect your mental state. Psychiatry professor Drew Ramsey points out that healthy food, which mostly consist of whole food plant-based ingredients, fight inflammation. He adds that inflammation can lead to mood swings and low energy levels, which is why you also feel mental fatigue when you don’t eat proper meals.
In the kitchen at Sewall House
To reconnect with nature
With homemade rolls and pickles
The majority of yoga retreats are done in relative isolation and offer side trips to beautiful nature-filled destinations. Doctor Jimmy Johannes of Long Beach Medical Center explains that fresh air can be good for relieving stress, which is often hard to come by in urban settings. Getting some sunshine can also be beneficial, so take advantage of the retreat’s excursions. Better yet, roll out your mat an engage in some outdoor yoga.
To refocus your mind
Whether it’s school, work, or your personal life, sometimes it can get a bit too much and become overwhelming. It’s not uncommon to get affected psychologically, and become demotivated or lose focus because of the pressure to keep up. However, Maryville University emphasizes the importance of psychological wellbeing whether it is to do work or academic performance. It is ironic because you need a clear headspace to attend to things that can overwhelm you in the first place. A yoga retreat helps a lot because it allows you to take a step back and refocus on the important aspects of your career or personal life.
To deepen your practice
Yoga retreats vary in difficulty and length and are perfect for yogis and yoginis who want to deepen their practice. During the program, you can learn more about the principles of yoga that you normally don’t get in an hour-long class. Find out how you can take your practice to the next level so that you can continue nourishing your mind through yoga.
Written by Alyssa Cristina
Exclusive for sewallhouse.com