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Yoga is a physical, mental, and spiritual discipline that was developed in India as a form of meditation. The practice of yoga is thousands of years old. Like other forms of meditation, it was originally intended for the purpose of achieving a higher state of consciousness in which the material world is left behind. In Indian Buddhism, yoga is considered to be the path to enlightenment.

Yoga, along with other forms of Eastern philosophy, was popular in the counter-cultural movement of 1960s. But it didn't hit the mainstream until the 1980s, when Dr. Dean Ornish disconnected yoga from its Buddhist origins and related it to health. Dr. Ornish is well known as an advocate of life-style changes for improving health, particularly heart disease.

There are several different schools of yoga. Hatha yoga is the most familiar to most Westerners. In Hatha yoga the focus is on adopting postures (asanas) while maintaining slow, meditative breathing. Iyengar yoga is a more athletic form of yoga which uses belts, cushions, benches, blocks, and straps to maintain asanas. Tantric yoga is a form of mysticism that utilizes prana (energy, particularly sexual energy) to achieve ecstatic states.

USES IN ME/CFS: The most beneficial form of yoga for people with ME/CFS is hatha yoga. Most yoga studios have special hatha yoga classes designed for people who have medical conditions. These allow for resting periods and don't require excessive physical exertion. The asanas are confined to those which gently stretch muscles in the torso and limbs.

Treatment rating for Yoga