Yoga for the Winter Blues: Garland Pose

By: Virginia Iversen, M.Ed

In the Northern Hemisphere, it is quite common for Yoga practitioners to experience a downward turn in their mood as the days continue to grow shorter and shorter. With the brief amount of sunlight available to those of us in the Northern Hemisphere during the heart of the winter, a drop in mood is quite common as serotonin levels begin to diminish in the brain. Serotonin is one of the "feel good" neurotransmitters in the brain that helps to keep your mood bright and optimistic. 

If your serotonin levels drop in the winter due to a lack of sunlight, you may feel much less motivated to accomplish your goals and your mood may be much more pessimistic than usual. Chronically high levels of stress and anxiety can also substantially drop serotonin levels in the brain. This can be especially true during the holiday season. If you are overwhelmed, stressed, do not get enough exercise or sunlight; you may experience a substantial drop in your mood over the next couple of months.  

If you choose to practice Yoga several times a week, or even on a daily basis, you will improve you are strength, flexibility and peace of mind. You will also improve your cardiovascular fitness if the intensity level of your practice is in a moderate aerobic range. Many aerobic forms of Yoga, such as Power Yoga, will raise your heart rate substantially and help you to improve your strength and cardiovascular fitness. 

However, if anxiety and stress are exacerbating symptoms of depression or Seasonal Affective Disorder, incorporating Yin poses into your regular Yoga practice will help to balance your nervous system, allow your body and mind to release stress and tension and restore your vital life force energy. The practice of Yin Yoga poses is substantially different than the practice of vigorous Power Yoga sequences. Yin Yoga can be considered a softer, more passive and receptive form of Yoga. 

The practice of Yin Yoga utilizes the natural process of release and unfolding through the gravitational pull on the body. Many Yin poses are practiced in a restorative fashion with bolsters, blankets and blocks. These props help the body to unwind and release stress and tension without strain. By incorporating Yin poses into your regular Yoga practice, you will allow yourself to rest and unwind in a gentle fashion, which will help to mitigate the effects of anxiety and stress on your body and mind. 

* Malasana or Garland Pose 

Malasana, or Garland Pose, is very effective for increasing a sense of spaciousness in the front upper torso, elongating in the Achilles' tendons and for stretching out the shoulders, neck and lower back. If you are currently healing from a knee injury or a lower back injury, please practice Garland Pose carefully. If practicing Garland Pose causes you pain, please practice Cat-Cow or Extended Child's Pose instead. Both of these poses will also stretch out the front of your torso, neck, shoulders, and lower back. Garland Pose is usually practiced after a series of Sun or Moon Salutations and standing asanas. 

When you're ready to practice Garland Pose, lower yourself into a squatting position on your Yoga mat. Keep your knees hips' distance apart. Place your hands in Prayer Position and apply slight pressure to the inside of your thighs. At the same time, apply slight pressure to the outside of your elbows with your knees - If your Achilles tendons are very tight today, place of rolled blanket underneath your heels for support. In order to practice Malasana or Garland Pose in a Yin Yoga style, clasp your hands together and place them at the base of your skull. 

Gaze down at a point on your Yoga mat just in front of your feet and keep your elbows pointing down. Breathe deeply and fully, remembering to inhale and exhale smoothly and completely. Do not actively pull on the back of your head, simply allow the weight of gravity to release stress and tension throughout your neck, shoulders and lower back. Hold this Yin-style Garland Pose for three to five breaths. With your next inhale, release your hands and place them back into Prayer Position. With your next exhale, release the pose and move gently into Extended Child's Pose before continuing on with the rest of your Yoga practice.

Virginia Iversen, M.Ed, has been practicing and studying the art of Yoga for over twenty years. She lives in Woodstock, New York, where she works as a Yoga and health-related freelance writer and academic support specialist. 

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