It calms you down, it relaxes your body thereby lowering your heart rate and your respiration...
Hydrating reduces physiological stress of dehydration...
Savoring requires mindfulness of pleasure and promotes distraction...
I have no doubt that yoga is a practice that can make some people 'feel better' some of the time. But the list of things that can make people feel better is enormous.
The following suggestions are included on a list that suggests doing yoga as a means of pleasurable distraction. It was presented to me while I was in therapy, and it appears to come from a skills manual by McCay, Wood and Brantley. The questions I have are about these things are whether all of the things are equally valuable and/or can be said to have specific therapeutic value; or whether such a list demonstrates a huge range of things that can distract a person from awareness of mental suffering and thereby be temporarily palliative? To me the list has always looked like an unorganized and largely medically unsubstantiated brainstorm of things to do when feeling blue...
-talking with a friend
-going out with a friend
-inviting a friend in
-texting a friend
-organizing a party
-exercising (generically non-specific)
-lifting weights
-doing yoga, tai chi or pilates
-stretching
-taking a walk
-being in a peaceful place
-watching clouds
-jogging
-biking
-swimming
-hiking
-surfing, rock climbing, skiing, sky-diving
-participating in a playground game
-watching a playground game
-getting a massage
-going for an automobile drive
-sleeping
-eating chocolate
-eating ice cream
-cooking a favorite recipe
-cooking a new recipe
-taking a cooking class
-going out to eat
-playing with your pet
-borrowing someone's pet and playing with it
-giving a pet a bath
-bird/nature watching
-finding something funny to do
-going to a movie theater and watching whatever is playing
-watching television
-listening to a radio
-playing a game with a friend
-playing a solitary game
-chatting online
-web surfing
-creating a website
-blogging on your website
-joining an internet dating service
-selling something online
-buying something online
-doing a jig-saw puzzle
-calling a crisis hotline --really this is on THE BIG LIST OF PLEASURABLE ACTIVITIES--
-going to a mall to shop
-getting a haircut
-going to a spa
-going to a library
-going to a bookstore
-going to a café
-going to a museum
-going somewhere to people watch
-praying
-going to a house of worship
-joining a worship group
-writing a letter to God
-calling a family member
-learning a new language
-singing
-learning a new song
-writing a song
-listening to something happy and upbeat
-turn on music really loud and dance
-memorize lines from a script
-make a movie
-take photos
-join a public speaking group
-participate in a local theatre group
-sing in a choir
-join a club
-plant a garden
-work outside
-knit/crochet or sew...or learn how
-make a scrapbook
-paint your nails
-change your hair color
-take a bubble bath
-work on a machine/car/truck/motorcycle/bicycle etc
-sign up for a class
-read a book --seems to repeat, but it's item 88 on the list
-read a trashy magazine
-write a letter to a friend
-write positive things about yourself
-write a poem/story/movie/play
-write a journal
-write a letter to yourself
-make a list of 10 things you like about yourself
-draw a picture
-paint a picture
-masturbate
-have sex with someone you care about
-make a list of people you admire
-write a story about sexy things you've imagined or done
-make a bucket list
-make a list of celebrities you would want to have sex with
-write a letter to someone who make your life better
-create your own list of pleasurable things
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