Yoga from a Physiotherapist’s Perspective - An Eclectic Approach

Abstract

The aim of this article is to enlighten the physiotherapist’s perspective of Yoga and encourage the use of Yoga therapy as an adjunct to physiotherapy exercises in different pain syndromes. Yoga is an ancient science on spirituality that originated in India. Ashtang Yoga is one of the paths and has eight steps that are Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi. Yoga works on the mind-body concept, whereas physiotherapy focuses on the physical aspect. The latest concepts and techniques that have evolved in physiotherapy have been discovered and practiced in yoga ages ago which has been described in this chapter. But still there is less evidence of the effectiveness of yoga in the management of different pain syndromes and diseases. Hence, the effectiveness of yoga as an adjunct in the treatment of different conditions needs to be further studied.