Yoga and your emotions: let them go

Newcomers to yoga are sometimes shocked at the intense emotions which well up during their practice - you may feel angry, sad, joyful or blissful. The positive emotions are wonderful, but the negative emotions can make you feel as if there's something wrong with you.

In "When Emotions Well Up During Yoga" John Friend says:

Thoughts and feelings are completely intertwined in the fabric of the body, so yoga often initiates the release of emotions. With a focus on balanced breathing, even muscular engagement and uniform stretching, mindfulness, and a positive mindset, hatha yoga can be one of the healthiest ways to begin to clear unresolved feelings such as sadness, anger, or fear.

Just keep breathing, and focus on your asana. The emotion will pass - an emotion is like a wave, it builds up to a crest, and then falls away. Feeling an intense negative emotion is a release - the tension in your muscles and spirit is being released; the original injury may be decades old, and now you're releasing it.

Let it go - releasing old emotions is a good thing.