Too often we ignore our body's little pains, or stuff away our negative emotions instead of dealing with them. Fortunately, yoga can be a powerful tool for physical and emotional recovery. Whether your issue is anger, depression, illness, injury or chronic pain, yoga can help you get relief. You can use your breath at anytime to send healing energy through your body.

In yoga, your breath is considered to be very powerful. It is prana, the life force, and when you connect with it and send it to certain parts of your body, you can experience renewal, relief and relaxation. This is true for healing injuries, just as it is for difficult emotions or challenging asanas. It works when you breath into an injury or a sensation instead of avoiding it. Here is how to do it:

First, get comfortable. Lie or sit in a way which minimizes your discomfort, but does not cause any restrictions in the body, especially around the area you will be working with. Corpse pose is best, but if you are focusing on the upper body, a relaxed, straight spine will do just fine.

Then, close your eyes and connect with your breath. Really pay attention as it enters your lungs and fills your belly. Enjoy the sensation as it leaves your body again, only to return, refreshed. Let yourself feel the rhythm of it. Don't try to change it, just engage it, notice it, become a part of it. Once you are fully connected with your breath coming in and out through your nose or mouth, begin sending it directly to the injured part.

If what you need is emotional healing, simply allow yourself to feel the emotion. Allow it to rise and sit with it. Breath in and out with it. Don't talk to yourself about the emotion or allow yourself to direct it at anything or anyone. Just feel it fully and let your breath enter into it and break it up. It will become less intense and lose it's grip on you. You may even find it turns into something else, entirely. Allow whatever arises to arise, and breath into it. Be gentle with yourself. This can be a difficult exercise.

If your injury is physical, begin breathing in and out from the part of the body that is injured or in pain. By this I mean, imagine that this part of your body has a mouth and lungs and that it is doing the breathing. Imagine your breath entering and leaving right there. Give it all of your focus. Picture it strongly in your mind and send loving vibrations to this part of your body. Will it to repair itself. Do this as long as you can. The pain will become more noticeable at first, but it should eventually dull or subside.

That is all there is to it. It isn't meant to be a replacement for other therapies or medical attention. What it can do is aide you in managing pain and injuries, connecting with your life force, and focusing on and loving your body. Instead of ignoring your injuries and negative emotions, yogic healing through the breath can help you begin to work through them. In the meantime, you will be improving your relationship with prana, your body, and your true self.