National Yoga Month, recognized by the US Department of Health & Human Services the entire month of September, is designed to build awareness of yoga’s proven health benefits and inspire people to participate in free classes and events nationwide. Launched in 2008, the initiative has taken root as a global awareness campaign, educating, inspiring and motivating people to achieve a healthy lifestyle. This year, over 2,000 free classes and events are being held nationwide. Yoga Month is coordinated by the Yoga Health Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and locally, NamasteWorks Yoga + Wellness, is sponsoring free classes through September 4 at the annual Free Yoga In the Park, Highlands Ranch.

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One of my favorite scenes in City Slickers, starring Billy Crystal, is when he returns from his yahoo adventure and greets his wife at the airport. He holds up his index finger to his mouth and says, “Look what I found” as he exuberantly displays a wide smile. If you saw the movie, you know he had just had a mid-life birthday, felt trapped in his career and seemed unhappy in his life. He sets out on an adventure in search of a magic elixir to curb his depression and what he finds is a smile.

Imagine that –something as simple as a smile can change one’s emotions and reignite joy inside the body. Physiologically, a smile helps to increase endorphins, a brain chemical sent through the nervous system. These endorphins act as a barrier to stress and pain and increase a state of euphoria.

In my therapeutic practice, I have many clients who come to me no longer smiling. Whether its bodily pain, physical stress or emotional drains, the loss of a smile can have a tremendous impact on one’s health.

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