Name: Calm the Mind Within | Regulating Anxiety & Inflammation
Start: 2026-06-13T15:30:00-0700
End: 2026-06-13T17:00:00-0700

Where you belong. The Bend Yoga Festival is an inclusive, multi-day celebration of yoga, wellness, and outdoor experience rooted in the landscape of Bend, Oregon. Expect sessions led by internationally respected educators, alongside community ritual, specialty offerings, and adventures that invite you directly into Central Oregon’s rivers, trails, and wide-open sky.

This year’s theme: Making Space for Joy.

And yes — you’ll feel it.

___________________________________________

This year, you can filter the schedule by "Pathway" — there are six, based on what you might be looking for. It’s a way to navigate the schedule and easily find what you seek. The pathways are:

Movement & Practice
Explore Bend
Restore & Regulate
Tradition & Lineage
Empowered Aging
Arts & Performance

Calm the Mind Within | Regulating Anxiety & Inflammation

FILLING

Saturday June 13, 2026 3:30pm - 5:00pm PDT

The Oxford Hotel — Minnesota Ballroom

Limited Capacity filling up

Anxiety is characterized by activation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA)axis and increased sympathetic nervous system tone, leading to sustained cortisol secretion and prolonged stress signaling. When this activation becomes chronic, it disrupts immune regulation, promotes pro-inflammatory cytokine release, impairs epithelial barrier integrity, and contributes to disturbances in sleep, digestion, skin health, and mood.

Within the Ayurvedic framework, this pattern parallels Vata aggravation, which is marked by mental overactivity, instability, and depletion, combined with Pitta aggravation, characterized by heat, inflammation, and irritability. Together, these imbalances reflect a state of internal overactivation and dysregulated metabolic fire.

Yogic interventions, including pranayama (breath regulation), asana (mindful movement), and meditation, have been shown to modulate autonomic function, enhance vagal tone, and reduce inflammatory biomarkers. These practices directly influence stress physiology by shifting the body from sympathetic dominance toward parasympathetic regulation.

Expect:

**Grounding movement to reduce sympathetic overdrive
**Cooling pranayama to modulate stress chemistry and internal heat
**Guided meditation to support vagal tone and parasympathetic activation
**Integrated education (modern neurobiology and Ayurvedic dosha framework)
**Practical daily nervous system reset protocol

Bring your yoga mat and anything you need to be comfortable while seated (a block or meditation cushion may be helpful). No chairs provided.

Presenters

Usha Nagavarapu, Ph.D., AD

Founder, Surrasa

Dr. Usha Nagavarapu is a Doctor of Ayurveda with a Ph.D. in Pharmacology and Neuroscience, and postdoctoral training in Dermatology from Stanford University. She has over 25 years of experience in translational research, cancer and clinical research and product innovation.

Found... Read More →

Saturday June 13, 2026 3:30pm - 5:00pm PDT
The Oxford Hotel — Minnesota Ballroom 10 NW Minnesota Ave, Bend, OR 97703

Yoga | Holistic Wellbeing, Ayurveda

Pathway Restore and Regulate, Tradition and Lineage
Production Notes: projector & screen, mic

Success you have shared X tickets.

Bend Yoga Festival 2026

Usha Nagavarapu, Ph.D., AD

Get help with the event

Success you have shared X tickets.

Bend Yoga Festival 2026

Usha Nagavarapu, Ph.D., AD

Log in to save this to your schedule, view media, leave feedback and see who's attending!

Get help with the event