Moving Through Anxiety: How Yoga and Embodied Practices May Help

Angie Lamb
Jun 9
4 min read

Guest Post by Angie L, C-IAYT Yoga Therapist

Older woman with short white hair, wearing a long-sleeved white shirt and grey tights sitting on a black yoga mat looking at a laptop while she stretches to the side.

Action Anxiety Day (AAD) is a nationally recognized day dedicated to raising awareness, educating the public, and reducing the stigma surrounding anxiety disorders. It's important for all of us to take a moment to reflect on how we can normalize mental health challenges and better support ourselves, our families, friends, and communities.

What is Anxiety?

It may be simple to say that almost everyone understands what anxiety is, but this could not be further from the truth. A friend of mine from the Philippines even noted that there is no direct translation for the experience of anxiety in their first language, Tagalog, and that they did not know it was something people struggled with before studying in Canada!

Anxiety is excessive, uncontrollable worry about real or perceived threats which have a tangible impact on a person's day-to-day life. There are various anxiety diagnoses, such as:

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
Panic Disorders
Social Anxiety Disorder
Various Phobia-Related Disorders

When someone experiences anxiety, their nervous system may be understood as living in a chronic Sympathetic State - more commonly referred to as the fight-flight-freeze stress response. This can cause a host of physiological, mental and emotional symptoms, such as:

Stomach Aches and Digestive Upset
Headaches, Dizziness, Lightheadedness
Rapid, Shallow Breathing
Muscular Tension - especially in the upper body and/or chest
Difficulty Falling Asleep
Difficulty Concentrating and Making Decisions
Overthinking and Racing Thoughts
Feeling uneasy, fearful, panicked or irritable

Anxiety affects each person's life in unique ways and, as a result, requires a personalized approach to treatment.

How Can Yoga Help My Anxiety?

A young man wearing a white t-shirt rests his head in his hand looking as though he's contemplating.

If you are one of the many people who have or do experience anxiety, you may recall being told to 'calm down' or 'take a deep breath.' Further to this, messaging in popular culture around integrating mindfulness and meditation as options for anxiety that have us sit - still and silent - can leave us swimming in a stormy sea of thoughts. Although usually well-intentioned, this messaging can make us feel like there is something inherently wrong with us if these tactics do not work for us, invalidating our experience and, in some cases, making us less willing to talk about our experience with anxiety openly.

There is no one-size-fits-all solution to anxiety treatment, but here are some suggestions from my Yoga Therapy toolbox that you can try on to see if they work for you:

Movement

Engaging in movement—whether it's taking a walk around the block, going for a run, hiking, or dancing to loud music in your home—can help you reconnect with your body in its anxious state and quieten your mind. Along with numerous health benefits, movement serves to signal from the body to the brain, reassuring both that we are present and okay. This can be much less frustrating than trying to sit in meditation with a busy mind!

Gentle Neck and Upper Body Stretches

When people feel anxious, they often use secondary breathing muscles, like the upper trapezius, which leads to short, shallow breaths and muscle tension in that area. Performing neck rolls and gentle stretches can help alleviate some of this physical tension caused by anxiety, while also encouraging deeper breathing and a calm state.

Sighing or Humming

When anxious, focusing on the breath can sometimes be triggering, but it is a powerful way to shift into the parasympathetic system - the system of rest and digest (and calm)! Sighing and humming can help focus on the exhalation without the pressure of tracking what your breath is doing. Long exhalations can even increase gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which is an inhibitory neurotransmitter that interrupts the anxiety, stress and fear response. Dramatically sigh, hum your favourite tune, or sing aloud - even if you feel silly, you may smile or laugh, which also helps reduce anxiety!

An older couple practice yoga, standing with their arms stretched out like a 'T.'

The practices mentioned above highlight the essential connection between the body and mind. Engaging in these embodied practices can help calm our nervous system by using our bodies to relax our minds. By returning to our bodies, we can ground ourselves in the present moment, allowing us to live with more ease.

Finding the right team and methods to manage anxiety can be challenging, as it manifests differently for each individual. It's important to allow yourself to experiment with various approaches to discover what works best for you. If something isn't effective, let it go and try something new. Ultimately, every experience provides valuable information that can guide you toward finding the right solution for yourself.

If you're struggling with anxiety, consider exploring Yoga Therapy to support your mental health alongside counselling and other therapeutic options. I'm here to support you when you are ready.

Be sure to check out Learning to Live Fully: Creating a New Relationship with Anxiety! by Lorraine Irlam, Registered Clinical Counsellor.

Om shanti shanti shanti

Om peace peace peace

Angie L is a Certified Yoga Therapist with the International Association of Yoga Therapists (C-IAYT) who primarily works with individuals who struggle with anxiety and/or are neurodiverse. She offers online and in-person Yoga Therapy classes and series that focus on living with intention and with more ease. You can learn more about Angie and her offerings at www.cedarcoastyoga.com.

References

Anxiety Canada. (2024). AAD Educator Toolkit 2024. Anxiety Canada. Retrieved [Date you accessed], from https://www.anxietycanada.com/wp-content/uploads/AAD-Educator-Toolkit-2024-Official.pdf

(Use Accessed date format: e.g., “Accessed June 9, 2025”)

Anxiety Canada. (n.d.). Action Anxiety Day educator toolkit. Retrieved [Access date], from https://www.anxietycanada.com/action-anxiety-day-educator-toolkit/

Hanson, R. (2009). Buddha’s Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love and Wisdom. Raincoast Books.

Marcia, N. (2023). ‘Student Manual for Yoga Therapy and Mental Health.’

Mason, H. & Birch, K. (2018). Yoga for Mental Health. Edinburgh: Handspring Publishing.

Mishra, A. K., & Varma, A. R. (2023, September 28). A comprehensive review of the generalized anxiety disorder. Cureus, 15(9), e46115. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.46115 (PMC ID: PMC10612137)

Rosenberg, S. (2017). Accessing the Healing Power of the Vagus Nerve: Self-Help for Anxiety, Depression, Trauma, and Autism. North Atlantic Books Publishing.

Looking for support with your anxiety? Book a free 15-minute phone consultation with Lorraine - your opportunity to learn more about one-on-one sessions for anxiety and/or CBT for insomnia (CBT-I).