How our bodies affect our wellbeing
As I awoke this morning, I was instantly aware of a pain emanating from my knee, before I even took a step. I slowly got out of bed and groaned my way around the house. “Darn knee, it must be going to snow soon,” I mumbled. And “Good golly I am old.” I grabbed the Ibuprofen and proceeded onward, slowly and with a pronounced limp. Not the best start to the day.
In the world of behavioral health, we often think of our minds, that is, our thoughts and feelings being the main drivers of how we behave and how we feel. However, the body we live in is very important to our mental health. If we were an old-fashioned car, the brain might be the battery, and the knee joint might be something like a part of the suspension. If it is malfunctioning, it will be a bumpy ride. If we take this analogy to a new-fangled car, we see how the computer system is more like a brain and the little dash lights take messages from the various parts and relay them to the computer so we can see, “oops, my right tire is low.” One of the main differences being that the car doesn’t usually feel sad or lonely, or giddy, etc.
In a human, our functioning body does affect how we feel. Messages go to the brain and with those messages and a little negative thinking (“Gosh I am old”), we start our day feeling a bit of sadness and a touch of dread.
These days more attention is being paid to how the body tells the brain various things and how this can alter our emotions. In a recent study published in JAMA Psychiatry, yoga proved to be a useful intervention. This is summarized in Psychology Today: “Yoga and meditation were already considered promising adjunctive approaches by some clinicians, but new randomized clinical trial results provide the strongest evidence to date for yoga as an adjunctive intervention. In this study, OUD patients receiving standard buprenorphine treatment were randomized to usual care or usual care plus structured daily yoga. Notably, the yoga patients achieved stabilization of their withdrawal symptoms much faster than controls and showed significant improvements in levels of anxiety, sleep onset latency, and pain. These yoga-related benefits occurred independently of medication/dose, showing yoga provided additive therapeutic value.” (Gouthem et al., JAMA Psychiatry, Jan 7, 2026).
Similar benefits have been found for breathing work and meditation which are also believed to affect our nervous systems and ultimately help to improve our mental state and lessen the effects of stress.
Shiatsu (a message with pressure at certain points) and Acupressure have recently demonstrated more robust findings than in the past as it relates to mental health. Aroma Shiatsu improved cognitive functions amongst adolescents (Deepa et al., Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, V. 46, 2026) and acupressure has been shown to improve movement with persons with schizophrenia.
Recently in the Harvard magazine called Staying Healthy, yoga was found to be associated with a thicker cerebral cortex and they summarized that all exercise can help mood by lowering stress hormones (assuming you are not running from a bear). In addition, one session of yoga was found to increase positive emotions and decrease exhaustion in a study published in Complementary Therapies in Medicine (2020).
Overall, it seems various kinds of structured movement, breathing and meditation are associated with improvements in various areas of mental health. These are not all causal studies, but the evidence is adding up. In short, consider your body when thinking about your behavioral health. It does not have to be strenuous to be a big help to you and your knee.
As always, It’s okay not to feel okay. If you or someone you know has been struggling with their emotions, behaviors, or substance use, please reach out to us. We can help you find appropriate tools and services that could help you overcome obstacles in your life. We are here for you. Please contact the Southern Ute Behavioral Health Division at 970-563-5700 for more information or to set up an appointment to see a counselor or therapist.