Fighting Childhood Depression and Anxiety with Yoga

With future quarantine mandates and lockdowns looming, now is the time to address these conditions and minimize the devastating long-term effects associated with them to help children live happier, healthier lives now and in the future.

Transcript

1. Fighting Childhood Depression and Anxiety with Yoga
2. Introduction Unsurprisingly, emerging research findings have pointed to an escalation in the global prevalence of child mental health issues during the COVID-19. Around the world, children of all ages have experienced severe disruptions in their daily lives, from school closures, reduced peer interaction, elevated family stress and overall fear of what the future may hold.
3. Introduction Depression and anxiety are cited as the most frequently mental health concerns, with 1 in 4 children experiencing clinically elevated depression, and respectively 1 in 5 experiencing anxiety symptoms. With future quarantine mandates and lockdowns looming, now is the time to address these conditions and minimize the devastating long-term effects associated with them to help children live happier, healthier lives now and in the future. Children’s Yoga teacher training is getting popular.
4. Table of Contents  Consequences of depression and anxiety  Benefits of children’s yoga  Difference between children’s yoga and adults yoga  Treatment options  Conclusion
5. Consequences of depression and anxiety Depression and anxiety are difficult to manage at any point in life. Even more so for children who lack the necessary knowledge to understand the experience fully, as well as the tools to form coping mechanisms. The consequences of untreated depression and anxiety can oscillate from mild to severe and become harsher and more damaging later in adulthood.
6. Consequences of depression and anxiety Some of the most common long-term effects include difficulty in keeping and maintaining healthy relationships and higher risk of involvement in abusive relationships, overall decreased social functioning, fewer financial and educational achievements, increased risk of criminal activity and reckless behaviour, substance use and abuse, and recurrent depressive episodes, often accompanied by self-harm and suicidal thoughts.
7. Benefits of children’s yoga One of the most versatile and affordable, yet less known ways to help children better manage and overcome mental health issues is yoga. Besides the physical benefits, children’s yoga is proven to make a sustainable difference in mental health and overall wellbeing. This multifaceted ancient practice has been shown to reduce symptoms associated with anxiety and depression though combinations of all four yogic elements - posture, breathing, meditation, and relaxation.
8. Benefits of children’s yoga For example, yoga employs slower, deeper breathing which in returns physically calms the nervous system, alleviates feelings of anxiety and reduces the levels of stress hormones. Specific poses can encourage a type of calmness, helping children to disconnect momentarily from the noise of everyday life.
9. Benefits of children’s yoga So what better time to start learning the specifics of children’s yoga than today? Future and current parents as well as already established yoga practitioners and teachers have the opportunity to learn a new approach to positively impacting the lives of children and there are no rules around who can embark on this mission. All it takes is dedication to bettering mental health at a key point in one’s childhood.
10. Difference between children’s yoga and adults yoga There are a number of fundamental ways in which children’s yoga differs from adults’. The most essential factor to be learned is the approach. Adults are attracted to the practice of yoga due to its unique qualities of providing physical, mental and spiritual health, for kids, the story needs to be different in order to capture and hold their attention. Therefore, yoga takes the form of adventure and play. An exciting exercise that also happens to fight those symptoms of depression and anxiety.
11. Difference between children’s yoga and adults yoga Aspects such as anatomy and shorter attention span need to play a vital role in how yoga poses and classes are navigated and structured. A nurturing yoga environment needs to be safe and welcome and equally engaging. Part of this relates to the language being used which on one hand, needs to reflect where the children are at in their development. For instance, cues and explanations must be clear, concise, and imaginative. While on the other, it becomes the communications vehicle that sets the tone for how children will perceive each yoga session.
12. Treatment options Understanding these differences is key to keeping children safe and engaged on the mat, but given the multiple layers, it’s not always easy to achieve without the necessary knowledge. Specialists often recommend an accredited training to achieve optimal results from the practice.
13. Treatment options Children’s yoga teacher trainings have been growing in popularity, making it an accessible and beneficial option, both from a business and personal perspective. With the flexibility of being carried out virtually, courses can be completed from the comfort of one’s home, without compromising the learning process.
14. Treatment options Moreover, training modules can be tailored to include guidance and support in specific areas, such as mental health issues. When carried out in groups, being able to connect with like-minded individuals becomes a valuable resource and an added benefit. It’s not uncommon for parents to struggle with finding the best way to help their children, particularly during times of unprecedented change and uncertainty such as the ones everyone is living through.
15. Treatment options Having access to a network of people who share similar experiences means not having to go through everything alone and possibly finding new solutions to helping their children overcome conditions like anxiety or depression.
16. Conclusion Yoga training is also not for everyone and many parents chose to leave it to expert practitioners who, similar to doctors, can specialize in different styles of yoga. From the well-known Vigorous Vinyasas to power yoga, there is a variety of options to choose from, depending on goals.
17. Conclusion As the practice of children’s yoga is intrinsically different than that of adults, practitioners need to possess the appropriate knowledge and skills to educate, empower and exercise kids. Even more so those struggling with mental health issues who can highly benefit from a safe opt-in environment that gives them the time and space to recover and build resilience. Visit - https://yogabellies.com/yoga-teacher-training-courses/