Yoga For Relaxation, Stress And Sleep: Notes And Articles From Flametree
Yoga for relaxation: the short version
You lie down at night, exhausted, and your mind starts racing. Yoga for relaxation is about teaching the body to switch off first, so the mind can follow. This page gathers everything Flametree has written on stress, anxiety, low mood and sleep. Iyengar yoga is the style developed by Mr BKS Iyengar. In the 20th century he did more than anyone to set down traditional Indian yoga, through his books and his teaching, and he pioneered the use of props. It is sometimes called modern classical yoga, and it’s the style we teach at Flametree. Supported, restful poses are a big part of how it helps.
Yoga for relaxation in short form
- Stress: what yoga does to a stressed nervous system.
- Anxiety and mood: the research, and the poses we use.
- Sleep: simple poses and habits for better nights.
- Anger: two very different stories.
- Restorative yoga: why lying still is a skill.
- Classes: restorative classes, in the studio or LIVE online.
- First class free: for newcomers, plus a half price pass.
This page is one of the topic hubs in Yoga Notes From Flametree.
Why do supported poses calm people down?
Because the body can only rest when it feels held. A bolster under the back or a sandbag on the legs takes away the effort, and the breath slows by itself.
The articles below cover what the research says about stress, anxiety and sleep.
Belts and blocks take the work out of a pose so the body can rest.
What if stress has become something bigger?
Yoga helps many people feel calmer, and it sits well alongside other care. If low mood, anxiety or sleeplessness is getting in the way of life, talk to your doctor as well as your yoga teacher.
A wide legged forward bend (Prasarita Padottanasana) lets the head rest down.
Start here: the main yoga for relaxation articles
These are the owner pages. Each answers one main question in depth.
- Yoga For Stress Relief: What The Research Says, And What To Do, the place to begin.
- How To Calm Your Nervous System: What Yoga Actually Does.
- Yoga For Anxiety, And Breathing Exercises For Anxiety That Help.
- Yoga For Sleep: What The Research Says, And 6 Easy Poses.
- Sleep problems in Darwin.
- Yoga For Depression: What The Research Says, And Iyengar Poses For Low Mood.
- Yoga For Low Mood: How Your Posture Shapes How You Feel.
- Yoga Poses For Happiness And Relaxation, Including A Video.
- A psychiatrist using yoga for trauma and PTSD.
- Yoga nidra for sleep, and why plain yoga helps too.
- Clean your dirty brain: meditation for sleep.
- Yoga And Anger, & How Retreats Help.
- A pearling boat captain on yoga for anger.
- My hair fell out from stress.
- Yoga for kidney failure: what research shows and what to ask your renal team.
- Anxiety, constipation and back problems work together.
- Beginner yoga online for mood, sleep and more.
- Yoga For Headspace.
- Stress and drama in an election campaign.
Also on stress and immunity
- Yoga and the immune system, with simple poses for stress relief.
- How yoga helps the immune system.
- Yoga, inflammation, fasting and disease risk.
- Yoga for high blood pressure: what the research says.
- Four practices for challenging times.
- Free sequences from a difficult time.
Yoga Notes on relaxation, stress and sleep
- Legs Up The Wall: What It Does And How To Set It Up, a calming pose for tired legs and restless nights.
- Savasana: How To Relax Properly At The End Of Class, the props and the mind.
- Yoga For Darwin’s Build-Up: How To Stay Steady In The Heat Before The Wet
- Yoga And The Immune System: Sleep, Stress, Lymph And What Is Still Unproven
- Yoga For Depression: What The Research Says, And Iyengar Poses For Low Mood
More notes are being added. You can also browse every Yoga Note in one list.
Classes for relaxation
- Restorative yoga classes, in the studio or LIVE online.
- The beginner timetable.
Try a restful class
Your first class is free if you’re new to Flametree. New students, and anyone who has been away three months or more, can also get a half price 10 class pass with 2 extra classes free, to use online, in the studio, or both.
For the studio, check the beginner timetable and just come along. For a LIVE online class, go to our online class list, click the class time you want and we email you the link to join.
Questions about this relaxation page
What will I find on the Flametree relaxation page?
You will find every Flametree article and Yoga Note on relaxation, grouped so you can start with the main articles and then read the shorter notes. Each link goes to one page that answers one question, so you are not reading the same thing twice.
Which Flametree article on relaxation should I read first?
Start with the stress relief article, then the one on calming your nervous system. If sleep is your main worry, go straight to the sleep article.
Are Flametree’s relaxation notes only for people in Darwin?
No. They are written in Darwin, from our teaching at Woolner and Coolalinga, but the poses and habits apply anywhere, and classes are also taught LIVE online, so you can join from anywhere in Australia.
How often are new relaxation notes added?
New Yoga Notes are published in batches of about twenty, and this page is updated each time a note on this topic goes live. Older Flametree blog articles stay linked here too.
Flametree Yoga Studio teaches Iyengar yoga in Darwin, at Woolner and Coolalinga, and LIVE online anywhere.
General information only, not medical advice. Talk to your yoga teacher, yoga therapist, and your doctor if you wish, before changing what you do.
