NATCHEZ — In a world where the noise and stresses of forces beyond your control can dominate the rhythms of your inner cognition, sometimes you need a place to work out those worries in a community of like-minded people.

Satya Yoga Wellness Center aims to be that place.

Natchez has had yoga studios and classes before, but when Satya Yoga Wellness Center opened in August, it had the goal of unifying the area’s yoga practitioners.

“I wanted to get all of us together and have a yoga community,” owner Stacy Worley said. “I wanted to have some like-minded people come together in one place where we could teach and share our practices.”

Satya Yoga Wellness Center now offers daily classes led by Worley, Lee Carby, Bill Byre and Danielle Eubanks-Craft. While some of the classes focus on personal alignment and flow, others are more centered on strength, balance and flexibility.

Yoga is a 5,000-year-old school of thought that incorporates the use of various physical postures and stretching techniques to help practitioners connect their bodies, minds and spirits.

It has gained popularity as an exercise regimen because it is low impact but has been shown to reduce stress, increase strength and flexibility, improve cardiovascular fitness and help manage practitioners’ body weight.

But while the physical benefits are obvious, the practice has mental and emotional benefits as well, Worley said.

“We live in this world where there are so many things outside our control — wars, disease, politics — and we are constantly bombarded by that,” she said. “People get addicted to the chaos. One of the things we want here is to have a safe place where they can come for just an hour to unwind and work out that stress on the mat.

“We can have a class and one person is here for an emotional reason, another is here for a physical reason, but they can all work that out in their practice.”

Many people have linked their own spiritual and emotional healing to yoga, but it is not a religion and no acts of worship are carried out during the classes.

Eubanks-Craft said working with the other yoga teachers at Satya has helped the yoga community draw together.

“When we are here, we are only taking the seat of the teacher for an hour-and-a-half,” she said. “The rest of the time we are learning.”

Worley said she wanted the studio to focus on more than just one aspect of physical well being, but on overall wellness.

That’s why the studio has incorporated the Reiki healing therapy practice of therapist Terry Rouprich.

“Reiki is a natural therapy that’s done through gentle touch,” Rouprich said. “It is a form of energy medicine that promotes relaxation and encourages the body’s own natural healing abilities.”

During the 45 to 60 minute Reiki session, Rouprich will have a client lie comfortably on a table, clothed except for their shoes.

“I place my hands lightly on the energy centers of their bodies and help the energy move into them and help them relax,” she said. “I serve as a conduit for the energy field; it flows through me but it doesn’t come from me, it comes from the universal energy source.”

A licensed social worker and a Reiki master, Rouprich said Reiki is not a substitute for traditional physical and medical therapy.

“It is a complementary therapy,” she said. “It is about a balance of the overall health of the person, a balance of physical, mental and spiritual.”

Worley said she would likewise be adding the complementary practice of Ayurveda into Satya’s offerings.

A sister science of yoga, Ayurveda focuses on attaining peace of mind and lifestyle balance through lifestyle changes, diet, herbs and the use of yoga.

A full schedule of classes can be found at satyayogaclasses.com.

Costs for drop-in classes are $10 and a 5-class package is $45, while a month-long membership is $65 and three months is $150. Details of other packages are available online.

Satya is located at 713 Main St., and can be reached by phone at 769-355-2118.

For more information about Reiki therapy, contact Rouprich at 601-431-1068.