Stress doesn’t only aggravate symptoms of arthritis
Stress can hurt you in so many ways that it’s a leading cause of senior visits to the doctor. Anything you can do to reduce stress and deal with it constructively is going to do you a lot more good than letting stress build up—and it’s very likely to help protect you against the negative effects or onset of a lot of conditions other than arthritis including heart disease, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, asthma, and accelerated aging. So why not fight back against arthritis and take a big step toward improving your general health by reducing unnecessary stress and dealing constructively with the stress you can’t avoid?
What’s the best way to relieve stress?
A lot of people with arthritis are turning to yoga as a means of keeping stress in check. What’s more, a lot of health professionals are getting on the yoga bandwagon, too.
Can yoga really help in the fight against arthritis?
Any activity that promotes flexibility and strength is likely to help and may reduce pain. But as with any form of physical activity that’s new to you, it’s important not to try to do too much at first. Joining a yoga class with a qualified teacher is a great way to start. A good teacher will help adapt movements to your individual needs, and will make sure you’re not trying yoga moves that may not be beneficial for you. Most important, a qualified teacher will help minimize the chance of injury.
According to the United Kingdom’s National Health Service (NHS), seniors don’t need to be concerned about starting yoga later in life, as “yoga is a form of exercise that can be enjoyed from childhood to your advanced years.”
The NHS suggests there’s a yoga program for people of any age, fitness level, and degree of flexibility. Many people who take yoga in order to fight back against arthritis find the experience beneficial, safe, and fun. Although most of the evidence showing yoga is a great weapon in the fight against arthritis is anecdotal, the Johns Hopkins Arthritis Center reports that early studies seem to confirm the belief that yoga is a promising weapon in combating the effects of arthritis.