Why Kundalini is so good for brain health and why this is important to me

• . Next weekend on Sunday, May 3 my friend and fellow Kundalini Yoga teacher Sarah Cannon, and I are running a workshop on Kundalini for Brain Health at the Little Escape Studio in Crystal Palace between 4 pm and 6 pm. Please use this booking link or email me to book. The cost is £25 and includes tea and snacks!

I have been reading up about the impact Kundalini Yoga has on mood, memory and focus and the scientific research shows some really exciting outcomes

One study in particular highlights the cognitive benefits of the practice for older women at risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

Alzheimer’s has become the number one feared condition of old age and with good reason. More and more older adults are being diagnosed with dementia and currently twice as many women as men have Alzheimer’s. However, other forms of dementia are more common in men.

There are a number of risk factors being investigated, the impact of the decline in oestrogen after menopause being a major focus. Other possible causes include the specific impact of genetics on women, the societal pressures, gender roles and for those from older generations at least, fewer opportunities in work and education.

The picture on the left shows my mum, Shirley Myers, as the tiny girl in the centre of the crowd, directly below my grandad, who ran residential holidays for East End kids in the 1920's and 30's. The central one is mum as a young woman and right in her late eighties with my brother and daughter.

Most people know someone or are related to someone who has had a dementia diagnosis. For me this was my mother. She developed the outward signs of Alzheimer’s in her early 80s and lived with the disease until her death at 91.

There were periods when her illness became very distressing, for her and for my dad. She had a short period of being very angry and irritated with him. She also thought for awhile that he was an impostor, someone pretending to be her real husband.

But most of the time my Mum became more and more of what she always was deep down, a very loving, cheeky, gentle and appreciative person. She was always small , only 5 feet tall and became even smaller and quite dainty. She loved to dress up and have her hair done. She was fairly deaf at the end but loved music and dancing. When we walked through Catford Market she always had to have a little dance as we passed the Reggae record store and I have a poignant memory of her waltzing with her carer in the care home while a visiting pianist played a Nightingale Sang in Barclay Square. But despite my gratitude to her and my admiration both of who she had been, loving mother, school teacher, political activist and funny, warm, brave person, and who she became, I do not want to end my life as she did. I do not want to develop dementia.

I’m following all the recommended advice for reducing my risk. I’ve invested in good hearing aids as I have developed hearing loss. I don’t smoke, I drink a minimal amount of alcohol eat healthy most of the time get as much exercise as possible have worked hard to improve my sleep which was really compromised by menopause. I’m trying to learn new things, currently doing Swedish on Duolingo!

Excitingly though my favourite Yoga(Kundalini of course!) style, the one I have been practising almost daily for 14 years, both as a student and teacher, has turned out to offer some protection from cognitive decline.

Admittedly the research psychiatrist, Helen Lavretsky, who ran the studies showing this improvement, is also a trained Kundalini Yoga teacher so she has some investment in the outcome though I assume it isn’t a financial one!

But cultivating good brain health is much more than just reducing the risk of cognitive decline. It is important for all ages and genders. The negative effect that screen use has on focus and concentration has been increasingly well documented.

The world is a stressful place with financial worries, toxic workplace cultures, housing shortages, international conflicts and climate anxiety among the contributors to a steep reduction in wellbeing and good mental health.

In countries where the contributions of older women are undervalued, Menopause often brings greater likelihood of depression and anxiety.

So anything that helps to support us has got be a good thing!

All exercise has been found to be beneficial for the brain so why is Kundalini Yoga so special?

Well, it employs so many different parts of the brain and offers a very holistic experience

Regular practice of Kundalini Yoga has shown to produce structural changes to the brain and growth in areas related to memory attention planning and decision-making.

Kundalini has been shown to protect against anxiety and helps the brain to work more effectively with less effort.

Yoga reduces the chronic stress which literally damages brain cells. The stress hormone cortisol, when elevated, increases inflammation which hastens cognitive aging in the brain.

Coordinating breath with movement develops focused attention and create new neural pathways. Kundalini Yoga uses many exercises which use synchronised breath with movement.

Visualisations activate and enrich networks in the brain as if the experience were really happening they also enrich the imagination and strength and perception pathways.Ku kundalini Yoga uses many forms of visualisation in its meditation practices.

Kundalini practice also includes the chanting of mantras. Rhythmic repetition activates brain language centres and attention pathways.

There are many different movement sequences in Kundalini practice. Remembering the sequences enhances memory systems.

Yoga contains many cross lateral movements, actions that cross the midline and involve both brain hemispheres simultaneously. This strengthens the bridge between the left and right hemispheres which results in one improved connection between analytical and creative thinking and two enhanced memory formation and stronger and more numerous neural pathways which create cognitive reserve.

In our workshop , we will be exploring Kundalini yoga sequences and meditations and discussing exactly how these exercises help to strengthen our brains and calm our emotions.

It should be an interesting, fun and hopeful afternoon!

Book Here