Exploring Yoga's Role in Homeostasis

Modern medicine emerged and evolved through the practices of pathological anatomy and vivisection. These early, often controversial methods laid the foundation for a deeper understanding of the human body. Over time, this knowledge expanded and gave rise to high-tech disciplines such as molecular and genetic biology, transforming medicine into a precise, technologically advanced field. Again due to overemphasis to see and categorise everything.Eventually this led medical scientists to become compartmentallised, every aspect of human health reduced to biochemistry of cellular actions.But in reality our biology cannot simply be reduced to genetic switches being turned off and on, because virtually every bodily action occurs simultaneously with thoughts, feelings, hormonal changes, immune system modifications, fluctuations in biologic energies, and countless other transformations.

Compared to the western medicine - Ayurveda (Vedic Tradition) and Chinese medicine never used a vivisection to gather the knowledge, instead this systems evolved gradually through deep observation, experience, and intuitive understanding of nature, the body, and consciousness.

Ayurveda, one of the world’s oldest systems of medicine, emerged in ancient India thousands of years ago as a holistic science of life. The word itself comes from Sanskrit: “Ayus” meaning life, and “Veda” meaning knowledge or science - together, “the science of life.” Rooted in Vedic Tradition- Ayurveda grew out of the spiritual and philosophical insights of the Vedic texts. These scriptures didn’t just discuss rituals and cosmology but also addressed health, longevity, diet, and the balance of body and mind. Ayurvedic sages (rishis) closely observed the natural world, cycles, behaviors, and human physiology. They analyzed patterns of health and disease through daily living, seasonal change, digestion, emotions, and spiritual development.- Instead of dissecting the body, Ayurveda approached human anatomy energetically - through the five elements (earth, water, fire, air, ether) and the three doshas (Vata, Pitta, Kapha). Health was understood as balance; disease as imbalance.

In Chinese medicine the organs are not merely physical entities, they are functions. These functions reside throughout the body, not in one place. Just as the body overall needs these functions to maintain health, each cell also requires the same functions. We cannot say that just the body needs oxygen and needs to eliminate wastes. The function of respirations (via the Lungs) and elimination (via the Kidneys) are pervasive: every part of the body needs to be fed, nourished, and its wastes taken away.

These organ functions were discovered through observation, not dissection. Chinese physicians never dissected bodies and thus had to develop keen observational skills. Because of this different approach, Chinese medical models often refer to the organs with a capital letter to differentiate their model from the Western view of organs, which are denoted by a small letter. When you see the word Heart with a capital “H” you will know you are dealing with the function of the Heart organ, rather than the physical heart organ, as we know it in the West.

Biological systems once thought to be separate are in constant communication, that genes regulate certain function but thoughts, feelings, and social experiences can actually alter gene expression. The very tools high-tech scientists used to understand molecular biology are revealing that mind-body communication occurs on the deepest levels of cellular function.

The idea of mind-body unity, still considered radical by some in the healing professions, is not so new actually - it traces its origins all the way back to the Greek physician Hippocrates, who said, "Natural forces within us are the true healers of disease". Two hundred years later, Pythagoras espoused the then - commonly held belief that human beings were most successfully treated when they were perceived as complete and undivided organisms.

Kalokagathia (Greek: καλοκαγαθία) - is the greek concept reflecting the belief that true excellence arises from the unity of body, mind, and spirit.

This holistic and remarkably sophisticated perception of the human ecosystem remained the norm until the mid-seventeenth century, when Rene Descartes articulated the philosophy known as Cartesian dualism, which held that mind and body were two distinct entities, one having absolutely no influence on the other. His theory held sway well into the nineteenth century, when a handful of doctors initiated a return to the mind-body point of view. The most notable was the French physiologist Claude Bernard, who spoke and wrote of the need for harmony among all the systems of the body.

Bernard discovered that the liver produces glycogen, a form of stored sugar, even when no sugar is present in food. This challenged the prevailing idea that the liver was simply a filter and helped establish that organs have specific biochemical functions.

But the most important was his introduction of Milieu Intérieur (Internal Environment)

The internal environment is a fluid environment surrounding the cells of multicellular organism, particularly in animals and humans. This environment must be kept stable and balanced for cells(and yhus for whole organism ) to function properly.

Bernard's idea of Milieu Intérieur (Internal Environment) was further developed in the 1930s and 40s by Harvard physiologist Walter B. Cannon, who came to the conclusion that the human organism remains healthy through a self-regulating system of balance, or homeostasis., that stabilizes our internal environment, including our blood pressure, heart rate, body temperature, and blood sugar levels. He coined the phrase "fight-or-flight response" to describe how the sympathetic branch of the nervous system reacts in the face of stressful or threatening conditions. Stress, he suggested, covers a wide spectrum of life experiences, including anxiety, tiredness, and the difficult passage from childhood to adolescence. All of these conditions could affect the human body, so much so that "the whole gamut of human disease might be studied from this point of view."

Homeostasis is the process by which a living organism or system maintains a stable internal environment, despite changes in the external environment.

Homeostasis operates through feedback loops - especially negative feedback - where the body detects a change and triggers responses to counteract it. For example:

If body temperature rises, you sweat to cool down.

If blood sugar drops, your body releases glucagon to raise it.

Homeostasis is not managed by any one system alone — it's a network of feedback loops and cross-talk between these systems. A change in one (like stress via the nervous system) ripples through all others:

Homeostasis

The Internal Environment refers to a fluid environment outside the body's cells - especially extracellular fluid (ECF) like blood plasma and interstitial fluid - that surrounds, nourishes and supports all cells. Includes oxygen, nutrients, ions, hormones etc.

Homeostasis is the process or mechanism that maintains stability in the internal environment despite changes in the external environment. Regulatory processes which involve sensors, control centers ( like brain ) and effectors ( like glands and muscles )

3 years ago my yoga teacher in Bali asked me - "What is Balance ?"

And that time I couldn't answer to that question. Now I realise the deep and profound importance of this concept in yoga.

As you can see the Homeostasis is a scientific term for Balance, which ancient yogis and taoists understood as Health.

If one of our system is out of balance our body via Homeostasis will activate other systems to restore the balance.

However, we are living in the times where we are prone to constant stress, thus we are living with our Sympathetic Nervous system in overdrive. Thus the scale of balance is always tilted and if we don't seek the balance ourselves - we get sick or even worse we get some chronical illness. Eventually we can restore balance with better understanding our situation, ourselves, our body and bring ourselves to balance through mind-body unity.

Let's walk through what the Sympathetic and Parasympathetic systems are:

The sympathetic and parasympathetic systems are divisions of the autonomic nervous system (ANS), which controls involuntary functions in the body like heart rate, digestion, and respiration. Together, they maintain homeostasis by having opposite effects on organ systems.

Purpose: Prepares the body for action during stress or emergencies.

Effects:

◦ Increases heart rate and blood pressure.

◦ Dilates airways to improve breathing.

◦ Inhibits digestion and other non-essential functions.

◦ Releases adrenaline (epinephrine) from the adrenal glands.

◦ Dilates pupils to enhance vision.

Example: During a dangerous situation, the sympathetic system triggers a quick response to either fight or flee.

Purpose: Restores the body to a calm state and supports routine maintenance functions.

Effects:

◦ Slows down heart rate and lowers blood pressure.

◦ Stimulates digestion, saliva production, and nutrient absorption.

◦ Promotes energy conservation.

◦ Constricts pupils to focus on near objects.

Example: After a meal, the parasympathetic system promotes digestion and relaxation.

These systems are antagonistic but complementary, working in a push-pull manner to balance bodily functions depending on circumstances. For example, the sympathetic system increases heart rate during exercise, while the parasympathetic system lowers it during rest.

This dual regulation ensures that the body is ready for both action and recovery when needed.

When we're continually stressed out, our mind and body become frozen in a chronic state of fight-or-flight; we consistently react as if we're surrounded by a pack of wild animals, an evolutionary legacy of our prehistoric ancestors. The shallow breathing that results causes a particularly vicious cycle because the body reacts as if it is oxygen starved, which to a certain extent is the case. The body's response to oxygen deprivation, which is to pump out even more stress hormones, only adds to our anxiety, and the vicious cycle is exacerbated. This catapults the rest of our physiologic systems out of balance, including other hormones, neurotransmitters, neuropeptides, and the immune cells and substances they help to regulate.

Remember: We need the fight-or-flight response when we're exposed to a real threat, whether that threat is an angry boss or the howl of a state trooper's siren. Under normal circumstances, once the danger has passed, our systems return to normal in a relatively short period of time. Our heart rate slows, our blood pressure normalizes, the musculoskeletal system relaxes, and the entire body-mind returns to a state of relative balance. But if we ceaselessly react to trivial events with high anxiety, the pounding heart, sweaty palms, high blood pressure, and clenched jaw become the norm. We get stuck in the fight-or-flight response, and our systems are thrown out of whack.

Ancient yogis understood the importance of this balance far before we even discovered the functions of Homeostasis.

The yogis also understood that the breathing is a key to activate the desired system, or bring them to the state of equilibrium. The science of breath is called pranayama.

Shallow breathing is also evidence that the body is in a perpetual state of "fight-or-flight"- the stress response to external danger or anxiety-provoking events. During fight-or-flight, which is a natural mind-body reaction to stress, the sympathetic nervous system goes into overdrive; our adrenal glands pump out stress hormones such as adrenaline; the musculoskeletal system goes into a taut state of preparedness; and heart rate and blood pressure become elevated.

Deep breathing is a key to breaking the vicious cycle of fight-or-flight. As soon as we shift from shallow chest breathing to deep abdominal breathing, we send our bodies a signal that the danger has passed. The sympathetic nervous system, which governs the entire fight-or-flight response, with all its attendant stress hormones, is quieted. All of the physical manifestations of stress cardiovascular, hormonal, immune, and muscular-begin to normalize.

Our nervous and cardiovascular systems must go into overdrive, but they must also return to baseline. Otherwise, we're subject to anxiety disorders, high blood pressure, chronic muscular tensions, and heart disease. The same phenomenon holds true for the immune system. When it is challenged by a foreign entity be it a bacteria, virus, or cancer cell-it must mobilize all of its forces to destroy the invader. But it, too, must return to baseline. If the immune system doesn't regulate itself, we become subject to chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, and even diabetes.

That's why yogis developed an asana practice - the sequence of exercises which allow you to breath and follow your breath naturally while you perform this asanas or sequences of them.

Also there are different style of yoga practices. We can divide roughly all styles of practice into Yang & Yin

Yang & Yin are the relative terms of Taoists tradition, which can be described as:

Hot, masculine, energizing, outward

Cool, feminine, calming, inward

A hormone produced by the adrenal glands - released in response to stress, especially when the brain perceives a threat or challenge.

This is healthy and adaptive.

Increases blood sugar for quick energy

Suppresses inflammation (to keep energy focused)

Enhances alertness and memory

Raises blood pressure and heart rate

Shuts down non-essential functions (like digestion, reproduction, growth)

It gives you the “get up and survive” boost.

When stress is prolonged, the body keeps producing cortisol day after day. This leads to dysregulation and wear-and-tear, often called allostatic load.

Anxiety, depression, insomnia, poor memory (hippocampus damage)

Suppressed immunity, increased risk of infections or autoimmunity

Hormonal imbalances (e.g., thyroid suppression, insulin resistance)

High blood pressure, risk of heart disease

Poor digestion, ulcers, IBS symptoms

Muscle breakdown, fatigue

Low libido, irregular cycles, infertility

Acne, inflammation, hair loss

Normally, cortisol gives negative feedback to the brain:

But in chronic stress, this loop is disrupted. The HPA axis becomes desensitized or hyper-reactive, leading to either:

Cortisol flooding (anxiety, wired feeling), or

Adrenal fatigue (burnout, exhaustion, low cortisol)

Yang activity, like fitness, work-out , power-lifting, calisthenic, ashtanga yoga in the long-run if practices regularly with sufficient time for recovery will bring your baseline cortisol levels down which result in less chronic stress load on the body and better overall resilience and response to the stress.

But what to do if you are already in chronic stress mode ?

During the intense exercise the cortisol level will go up short-time and this is normal. But if you already have a high cortisol level (cortisol flooding ) - you add more stress loadto an already overactive system, never returning to baseline.

During the adrenaline fatigue - there is no more cortisol spike to mobilize energy → you feel weaker. Your body can’t handle stress → workout feels draining instead of energizing

In this situation you need to bring your system to the baseline.

Remember the homeostasis is terms of nervous system is balance of two of two antagonistic systems - sympathetic and parasympathetic. Your sympathetic system is in overdrive due to chronic stress or fatigue - so you need to seek the balance by activating parasympathetic system. Likely we can do it voluntarily.

Term Hatha Yoga deciphered as Union of Sun and Moon, where "Ha" means "Sun", "Tha" means "Moon" and Yoga means "Union". This is a holistic practice designed to balance different kind of energies. But in the situation of the chronic stress or fatigue - you do need a special practice depending on your situation, which promotes rest, healing, digestion, sleep. If you remember this corresponds to Ida ( Moon) channel - we also can call it a Yin activity ( calming, inward )

Special practice designed for this kind of circumstances is called - Yin Yoga, and you can learn more about it here.

As you can see a homeostasis is a balance on various layers of our body. True homeostasis isn’t just physical - it’s multi-layered balance. That's why yoga practice is so unique - because it allows to build a steady balance through all your systems and layers - from gross to subtle.

Ancient Taoist were saying that:

Blood is not just a physical liquid but carrier of our emotions

Let's explore if it true.

After the discovery of functions of sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system functions by Walter B. Cannon - subsequent discoveries in the 70s and 80s about the actual anatomical links between the brain and the immune system gave birth to the field of psychoneuroimmunology, the area of research dedicated to finding the connections among the mind, nervous system, and the immune system.One extraordinary breakthrough in the study of PNI was achieved by neuroscientist Candace Pert Ph.D in the early 1980s. Pert discovered that specific brain chemicals - usually called neuropeptides - acted as couriers between the mind and the immune system. Her new understanding of the relationship between the brain and the body showed us that no barriers exist between our thoughts and feelings, on the one hand, and our biological healing system, on the other.

Pert showed that the neuropeptides, which she calls "chemicals of emotion," are like keys that lock into molecular keyholes on the surface of cells known as receptors. Thus, brain chemicals can circulate throughout the body, delivering messages to immune cells to perform particular functions, and ultimately determining how well our systems operate to keep us healthy and to heal injuries or disease.

Every time you experience an emotion — fear, love, grief, joy — your brain doesn’t just process it mentally. It translatesthat feeling into a biochemical signal.

That signal is carried by neuropeptides: tiny protein-like molecules released by neurons and other cells.

These neuropeptides travel through the nervous system, bloodstream, or intercellular fluid

They bind to receptors on your cells, delivering emotional "messages"

This means your entire body — not just your brain — participates in every emotional experience

Your cells aren’t passive — they’re equipped with receptor proteins that act like locks, ready to receive the emotional keys of neuropeptides.

For example:

Immune cells have receptors for endorphins, cortisol, and oxytocin

Muscle cells respond to adrenaline and stress hormones

Even gut cells respond to serotonin - your “second brain” in the belly

This means that your entire system - from your heart to your skin to your immune system - participates in your emotional life.

Indeed, Pert has pointed out that our intestines are filled with neuropeptide receptors; hence the notion of "gut feelings" is not merely a metaphor, but an actual biological reality.

With repetition, emotional states begin to condition your cellular response:

Chronic stress? Your cells may become hypersensitive to cortisol or stop responding at all (burnout)

Chronic grief? Your immune system may slow down, weakening your defense

Joy, love, connection? You produce more oxytocin, boosting immunity, resilience, and repair

These are not abstract ideas - they’re measurable biological effects. Emotion shapes function. Experience shapes physiology.

"Candace Pert is adamant that we no longer should even speak of a mind-body connection but only of mind-body unity. She has been the strongest scientific advocate of the idea that mind and body are not simply linked by some biological bridge but are totally inseparable. The "molecules of emotion," as she calls them, travel throughout our bloodstream, hooking onto receptors on cells in every corner of the body " - Mitchel L. Gaynor, MD

As Dr. Candace Pert (neuroscientist and author of Molecules of Emotion) put it:

(c) yinYoga - Practice & Principles by Paul Grilley

Somatics refers to practices that center the lived experience of the body (not just as anatomy, but as felt presence

Somatic memory = emotional experiences stored in tissues and nervous system

To answer how yoga acts as a somatic practice - let's figure out what means Soma.

The word soma (σῶμα) in Greek literally means “body.”

In modern biology, it refers to:

Somatic nervous system = part of the nervous system that controls voluntary bodily movement

In this context, soma = physical body (in contrast to psyche = mind); In Vedic context Soma has a different meaning - so don't be confused.

In many healing sessions - yoga, breathwork, dance therapy - people often spontaneously cry, shake, laugh, or feel waves of emotion. Why?

Because the body stores what the mind suppresses. These practices help unwind the stored patterns, gently releasing emotional energy that was once "locked in" the tissues.

Yoga has a very long tradition. The Vedic "rishis" - seers, sages - were yogis, and practiced even somewhere 7 millennia BCE - that's why very profound and holistic understanding the different layers was developed.

There are 5 layers ( containers) of human body described in Taittirīya Upaniṣad.

These koshas are concentric sheaths from the gross physical body to the subtle and causal levels of consciousness.

Annamaya Kosha - Physical Body. (Anna = food) - bones, muscles, organs )

Pranamaya Kosha - Energy Body. ( Prana, breath, nadis, life-force flow )

Manomaya Kosha - Mental-Emotional Body (Thoughts, emotions, sensory input)

Vijnanamaya Kosha - Wisdom/Intuition Body (Discernment, insight, inner knowing)

Anandamaya Kosha - Bliss Body ( Deep peace, connection to the Self )

Indeed, this scheme of suggested practices in for general reference, because all them target multiple koshas at once - for example then you are doing your asana practice you are focusing on your breath and this is already a pranayama; doing your asana practice will activate your Ida or Pingala Nadi depending on the kind of practice you are doing Yin or Yang, thus specific hormones will be released which will change your mental-emotional state ( euphoria, joy, success, calmness ), so you are dealing with your mental and emotional body. During your practice you can have many insights and eventually feel a true connection with your-Self.

— Nikita Ierisov