Many people notice that after a yoga session, they feel calmer, lighter, or more grounded. I remember experiencing this myself during my very first yoga practice, shortly after the birth of my son. It was a completely new sensation. I joined a postpartum recovery program for mothers, which included yoga. During the sessions, I felt challenged and very uncomfortable. Downward-facing dog, in particular, felt terrible at the time. Yet the feeling afterwards was entirely new to me. Something had shifted, even though I couldn’t explain why. Years later, I understand that this experience was not accidental. It has everything to do with how yoga influences the nervous system.
Homeostasis: Your Body’s Balance
Our body constantly works to maintain balance, a process called homeostasis. Regardless of what happens around us, internal systems such as heart rate, breathing, temperature, and energy levels are continuously adjusted to keep us stable. The nervous system plays a central role in guiding this regulation.
The Autonomic Nervous System
The autonomic nervous system moves us between two essential states, depending on what life asks of us. When action is required, the sympathetic nervous system triggers the well-known “fight-or-flight” response. Heart rate increases, breathing quickens, and energy is mobilised so the body can respond quickly. Once the challenge has passed, the parasympathetic nervous system kicks in, helping the body return to a state of rest. Digestion improves, repair processes begin, and energy is restored. This is also known as the “rest-and-digest” mode. Homeostasis is therefore not about being calm all the time. It is about the ability to move smoothly between effort and recovery.
Modern Life and Prolonged Stress
However, our modern lifestyles challenge this ability. We often keep our nervous system in a prolonged state of activation. Even during moments of rest, the body may remain alert, and we may feel unable to relax, with our minds still racing, overthinking constantly, or simply restless. Stress hormones stay elevated, digestion slows down, the immune system receives less support, and recovery processes are postponed. Over time, this imbalance can affect both physical and mental health.
How Yoga Supports Regulation
Practising yoga can interrupt this pattern by inviting the nervous system back toward regulation. Through conscious breathing, slow movement, and mindful attention, the body receives signals of safety. Practices such as pranayama, mindful asana like forward folds, twists, and restorative postures help slow the heart rate and soften muscular tension. As breathing deepens, the parasympathetic nervous system becomes more active. The body shifts from survival toward restoration. Digestion improves, healing processes are supported, and the mind naturally becomes quieter.
Completing the Stress Cycle: Why Movements Matters
Yoga can also help complete what is sometimes called the stress cycle. When the sympathetic nervous system activates, the body prepares for action. Heart rate increases, breathing quickens, glucose is released into the bloodstream, and blood is directed toward the muscles. Biologically, our bodies are still wired as they have been since prehistoric times. When danger is detected, the system expects action. We are ready to run, climb, push, or defend ourselves. This is how our DNA and nervous system evolved to keep us alive. Once the coast is clear, the system can finally shift toward rest, repair, and recovery.
In modern life, stress is often mental rather than physical. We experience pressure, deadlines, emotional tension, or constant stimulation while remaining physically still. The stress response begins, but the action the body was preparing for never fully happens. As a result, the nervous system may remain partially activated even after the stressful moment has passed. Have you ever tried to relax and noticed it feels almost impossible? I certainly have, many times, because the body is often still waiting to complete the response it initiated.
Sometimes, when I teach a yin class, I notice people who are unable to relax. They fidget in poses and seem restless. Although yin practice is wonderful, adding gentle movement beforehand can help. Movement through Sun Salutations, asana practice, or other mindful sequences allows the body to release energy mobilised during stress and complete the cycle. Once this activation has been expressed through movement, the nervous system can more easily shift toward the parasympathetic state of rest and recovery. This is why many people feel calmer after movement rather than before it. The body first finishes what it started, and only then allows itself to rest.
When Balance Matters More Than Supplements
Rather than viewing health simply as supplying the body with missing nutrients or treating only the area where symptoms appear, modern physiology increasingly focuses on regulation. The body is not a collection of separate systems working independently, but a constantly communicating network. When regulation is lost, processes such as digestion, hormone balance, immune function, and tissue repair become less efficient, even if nothing is structurally wrong. In many cases, the real challenge is dysregulation, which hinders the body’s natural self-healing ability.
A concrete example of this is magnesium. When the body experiences constant stress and is in a heightened state of alert, it may excrete nutrients that support relaxation, such as magnesium, through the urine. This is a protective mechanism: the body stays alert to perceived threats and does whatever is necessary to remain vigilant, even if that means secreting minerals that help the body relax. If blood tests then show a magnesium deficiency, supplementation may be recommended. However, if the underlying dysregulation is not addressed, supplementation alone will have a limited effect. The nervous system’s prolonged stress state alters how energy and nutrients are distributed, prioritising survival over repair. Over time, recovery processes receive less attention, and an imbalance can develop.
Restoring Health Through Safety
Restoring health often begins with restoring a sense of safety within the system. When the nervous system shifts out of constant alertness, the body can once again regulate itself efficiently. Understanding the nervous system changes how we look at yoga. It becomes less about achieving perfect postures and more about learning how to listen to the body again. This is the intention behind the sessions I guide on Curaçao: creating a space where movement and breath come together to support restoration, awareness and ease.