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Table of Contents
Yoga is a science of life that originated in India several thousands
of years ago. It involves much more than the asanas (postures)
and pranayama (breathing exercises) that most people are familiar
with. For this chapter, however, I will limit my discussion of yoga
to those aspects -- asanas and pranayama -- also known as Hatha
Yoga.
Yoga is enjoying growing popularity in Western countries. Most of
you reading this are aware of its use as a powerful stress reduction
technique. A quick review of my New England (US) Holistic Health
Directory shows that as of 1990 yoga classes are being offered at five
area hospitals. Yoga is quickly becoming a mainstream tool for
stress reduction.
While it is exciting that yoga is quickly is becoming synonymous with
"stress reduction," it is that and so much more. Practiced regularly,
over an extended period of time, it is a very powerful healing and
transformational tool.
Yoga is only just beginning to be studied by the Western scientific
community. Below are a selection of findings from a few of the
completed scientific studies.
- Several studies have shown that yoga significantly improves the
condition of bronchial asthmatics, even patients who were childhood
asthmatics. Many subjects eventually reduced or eliminated their
need for medication.
- Yoga has been shown to significantly decrease hyperglycemia in
non-insulin dependent diabetics.
- Yoga has been shown to significantly improve mental and physical
energy levels and alertness as compared to relaxation exercises and
visualization.
- One study showed that yoga produced and gradual, significant
decrease in body weight. In addition there was an increase in
alpha wave activity in parts of the brain which corresponds to an
increase in patient calmness.
- Yoga has been shown to produce a significant increase in serum LDH
levels (the enzyme which provides energy to contracting muscles
during exercise).
- Other studies have shown that yoga can help conditions of arthritis,
arteriosclerosis, chronic fatigue, varicose veins, and heart
ailments.
- Specific yoga breathing postures and breathing exercises have been
led to significant improvements in patients with Obsessive-Compulsive
Disorder (OCD).
Yoga stretches and tones the muscles and joints, has a positive
effect on the entire skeletal system including the spine, and has a
postive effect on all of the organs, glands, and nerves. Many of
the yogic postures and breathing exercises bring much needed blood
and oxygen to bodily tissues and organs which speeds the healing of
the practitioner. Releasing built up physical and emotional tension
slowly liberates vast resources of energy. Finally, and not to be
underestimated in importance, a regular yoga practice can gradually
and significantly increase a person's sense of self-acceptance and
inner peace.
It is difficult to overemphasize the important of learning yoga in a class.
Experienced yoga teachers can help with the correct postures and
breathing techniques. More importantly, it is usually much easier to keep a
regular practice over the long-term when attending a regular class and
practice sessions.
Please look for a yoga class that meets the following criteria:
- Located close to your home or work if possible.
- Taught by a certified yoga instructor, not by a health club
instructor teaching glorified stretching exercises that they
decide to call "yoga" or teaching "relaxation exercises."
- The yoga instructor is willing to adjust the routine to
to your abilities. The instructor should help you develop a
routine that will improve your overall wellbeing without
injuring or frustrating you. Speak with the yoga instructor
on this subject before starting classes.
- I feel that it is best to start with a form of yoga that
emphasizes the asanas (postures), includes a "final
relaxation" pose and over time begins to add a couple of
breathing exercises (pranayama). For many people, it is best
to leave meditation and the spiritual aspects of yoga until
later. (On the other hand, I know several people who have
gotten enormous benefits from meditation without first
practicing yoga postures or breathing. So, you will have to
find what works for you with a little experimentation.)
- If possible, locate a yoga instructor who has several low-cost
practice sessions per week. This way, it will be easier to
perform short yoga routines regularly.
- As you become more experienced, the yoga instructor should be
able to teach you yogic cleansing exercises.
- Some very experienced yoga teachers may be able to customize
treatment routines for persons with a chronic illness. Some of the
research mentioned earlier included customized yoga exercises.
Information on various yoga styles can be found at the
Yoga Research & Education Center,
the
Yoga Movement
web page, and at the
Yoga Paths web page.
- Look at the various online databases listed on the Holistic
Healing Web Page:
http://www.holisticmed.com/www/yoga.html#practitioners
- Ask at your local natural food store(s).
- Ask at your local health clubs.
- Ask at your hospital's stress reduction clinic.
- Local community Adult Education classes often ofter yoga
classes.
The following books have helped me over the years.
- Richard Hittleman's 28-Day Yoga Exercise Plan
(See the
Stress Reduction page of the Holistic Healing Web Page / Amazon.Com
Bookstore for details.)
An excellent introductory book for the beginner. It includes
two very healing exercises, a simple breathing exercise and
abdominal lifts. This is the book I started with many years ago.
- The Sivananda Companion to Yoga
(See
Stress Reduction page of the Holistic Healing Web Page / Amazon.Com
Bookstore for details.)
The routines described in this book seem very well-designed.
The Basic Practice Charts includes examples for a 1-1/2-hour
routine and a 1/2-hour routine. Great pictures too. As I
mentioned earlier, please be careful not to overdose on long
yoga routines in the beginning.
- Yoga For A New Age
(See
Stress Reduction page of the Holistic Healing Web Page / Amazon.Com
Bookstore for details.)
Includes detailed descriptions of how to perform many of the
common asanas correctly and would pitfalls to avoid.
Extremely useful if you are trying to teach yourself.
- Yoga International Magazine
Rural Route 1, Box 1130
Honesdale, Pennsylvania 18431-9718, USA
570-253-6243 (Subscriptions & Information)
Email: info@yimag.com
Web: http://www.yimag.com/
I find the instructional articles in this magazine to be
excellent! A subscription is well worth it in my opinion.
I also highly recommend ordering the March 1997 (#34) and
the May 1997 (#35) back issues because of the wonderfuly
detailed beginner's articles on several very powerful (when
practiced regularly) yogic breathing exercises -- Alternate
Nostril Breathing and "Skull Shining." Another article in
issue #35 entitled "Mastering the Fire" has very important
and helpful information about abdominal lifts and other
important exercises.
The Alternate Nostril Breathing and Skull Shining are
very effective in strengthening the nervous system and
helping to remove toxic substances from the blood. The
abdominal lifts and other exercises presented in "Mastering
the Fire" are very effectives ways to strengthen the digestive
and elimination systems.
- Yoga Journal
2054 University Avenue
Berkely, California 92046-9952
510-841-9200
Web: http://www.yogajournal.com/
Another excellent source of quality information about yoga and
natural healing for the beginner and advanced student.
I have never used a yoga video, but you may want to give one a
try. Experiment! Adventure!
Here are some sources for yoga videos:
- Yoga Journal Series (800) 722-7347
- Lilias Yoga Series (800) 876-7798
- Kripalu Yoga Videos (800) 967-7279
(See the
Stress Reduction page of the Holistic Healing Web Page / Amazon.Com
Bookstore section below to place secure orders online.)
You can practice whenever you wish. However, some people find
themselves energized and have difficulty getting to sleep if they
practice immediately before bedtime. Most people practice in the
morning or in the early evening before dinner. I find that I
enjoy practicing a short 1/2-hour routine during my lunch hour. I
feel much more relaxed throughout the afternoon when I do this.
You may decide to split your routine so that you practice breathing
exercises and the sun salutation yoga exercise in the morning and
other asanas in the early evening. I find it easier to practice
breathing exercises in the morning. In the morning I perform
yogic breathing exercises such as "Skull Shining," Alternate
Nostril Breathing and a short meditation after the sun salutation
and a couple of other stretches. It only takes 10 to 15 minutes.
Most people have more success if they set aside regular days and
times to practice (preferably in an organized class or practice session)
rather than haphazardly trying to fit it in. I highly recommending doing
this if possible.
If you are able, it is preferable to practice at least three
times per week. Three to six days per week is fine. Do whatever is
comfortable without taking too much time from living your life and
enjoying yourself.
It is preferable to practice in a room that is not cold. If it is
warm out, you can practice outside if you like.
The surface that you practice on should be firm, but soft. You can
practice on a folded blanket or you may want to purchase a yoga mat.
You can order one through the mail by calling the Kripalu Center for
Yoga & Health at (800) 967-7279.
- Warm-up: I believe that it is generally better to warm up
the extremities before stretching the major muscles and the
spine. I prefer to start by massaging, twisting and bending my
feet, toes and ankles. Then I do the same with my hands,
fingers and wrists. Finally, I gently stretch and twist my neck
using exercises I learned in yoga classes.
- Final Relaxation: Please set aside some time to practice the
final relaxation pose. It is where much of the healing takes place.
- Breathing Exercises: Many breathing exercise instructions
suggest that you sit cross-legged. If you cannot sit that way
_easily_, then try sitting on your heels. If you cannot sit
on your heels _easily_, then try the exercise while sitting in
a chair or lying down if you cannot sit in a chair.
Many people find breathing exercises difficult at first.
Please feel free to take as many deep breaths between
repititions as you need.
Yoga is an excellant way to cultivate self-love and self-acceptance.
One day that you practice, you may feel relaxed, happy, and have a
deep sense of inner peace. The next day you may feel tense,
stressed-out, or sad. Over time, yoga will make you more limber,
relaxed, and healthy, but on a day-to-day basis your condition may
vary considerably. This variation is part of the process, so expect
it.
As you perform a yoga pose, simply accept whatever you can do and
however you feel. Then breathe deeply and fully into your abdomen
and chest and feel the energy from that love and acceptance of
yourself in the area being stretched. Don't worry if you don't
physically feel the energy from the breath in the area being
stretched. Simply use your imagination. The love and acceptance will,
over time, gradually grow within you. This, in turn, will speed
your healing.
The somewhat serious method of using yoga to cultivate self-love and
self-acceptance needs to be balanced to some extent with not being too
strict. Please enjoy yourself during the routine. If you feel a
need to sigh or grunt during the routine (and the instructor allows
expression), please do so. If you want to stop for a couple minutes
and do some dancing, drink some water, cry, sing a song, etc., feel
free to be yourself. Yoga can help liberate your true nature. Please
don't use yoga to supress it.
The natural progression in Hatha Yoga study seems to be to begin
practicing the postures (asanas) and then adding some breathing
exercises (pranayama), and finally adding a short, regular practice
of meditation. Meditation can strengthen the mind, deepen the
relaxation and inner peace that is felt, and change your health
and life significantly for the better. At some point in time, I
would strongly recommend adding a regular, short meditation period
to your routine.
It has been widely reported that a very small percentage of people
experience adverse psychological reactions to meditation
practitice. It seems that some persons get in touch with
buried childhood, birth or other traumas while meditating. If the
person is not able to embrace and work through these feelings, the
constant triggering of these feelings without resolving them can
make matters worse. In such cases, transformational and
psychological therapies such as Holotropic Breathwork, rebirthing,
Hakomi, Bioenergetics, Radix, etc. may be a better way to start
until such time as meditation practices can gradually be added.
Like yoga, I recommend learning meditation in a class.
- Look at the various online databases listed on the Holistic
Healing Web Page:
http://www.holisticmed.com/www/meditation.html#practitioners
- Ask at your local natural foods / health food store.
- Ask at your hospital's stress reduction clinic.
- Local community Adult Education classes often ofter meditation
classes.
- Look in the phone directory under "Meditation Centers."
- Locate a yoga classes in your area using the resources listed earlier.
Once you find a yoga class, talk to the instructor to be certain
that he/she can meet your needs. If so, then begin taking classes.
Remember to ask the instructor to be taught a few postures or
breathing exercises that you can practice between classes.
Eventually, you will be able to put together your own routines
that will significantly contribute to your wellbeing. When you are
starting out, long yoga routines can quickly become a pain in the
butt. So please start out with short, regular yoga routines.
If you can't find a yoga class that meets your needs, see the actions
below.
- Breathing Exercises (Pranayama)
Be sure to gradually incorporate the yoga breathing exercises
into your routine. These are very powerful healing tools! In
fact, different breathing techniques are used in many of the most
powerful holistic healing and transformational practices available
(e.g., yoga, qigong, transformational breathwork, etc.). Regularly
practicing a short routine of pranayama is well worth the small
effort.
- Books, Magazines and Videos
If you cannot locate a class that would be satisfactory, you can try
learning a few basics from books or videos. While I don't recommend
using books or videos, some people have used them successfully.
- Meditation
Locate a meditation class in your area using the resources suggested
earlier.
Once you find a meditation class, talk to the instructor to be
understand the type of meditation performed. There are many
types of meditation. I prefer Insight Meditation. Browse
through the links on meditation web page mentioned earlier so
that you get a sense of the various types available.
Whenever I do yoga or breathing exercises, I seem to need to yawn
or sigh. How can I stop from yawning or sighing?
First let me start by saying that it is very important NOT to supress
these actions. Here are Janet Goodrich's views on the benefits of
yawning from her book "Natural Vision Improvement":
- Yawning brings fresh oxygen into body cells including the eyes
and brain.
- Yawning contracts then releases the muscles related to the eyes.
A really good yawn will contract and expand muscles from the top of
your head to the tips of your toes -- including the should or
trapezius muscles, the eyes (orbicularis oculi), the neck (neck
flexors), the belly (the abdominals and solar plexus area).
- Yawning is capable of changing emotional states from negative to
positive.
- Yawning changes the pH of the blood reducing toxicity levels in
your whole system.
- Yawning stimulates the production of refreshing tears that bathe
naturally tired eyes and moisten chronically dry eyes.
- Yawning helps to cleanse the liver and to balance the energy
in the liver meridian.
Here is what to do about yawning.
- If the urge to yawn comes up during the yoga or deep breathing,
DON'T SUPRESS IT. The more yawning that comes up during the
yoga and deep breathing, the better.
- Whenever you have to yawn, make it a BIG yawn, opening the mouth
wide and making a noise while exhalling. This is very important
-- to heck with Ms. Manners. :-) Could you image a big lion
starting to yawn, realizing that it is in public, and then
supressing the yawn? I don't think so!
- The same can be said of sighing. Make a big, noisy sigh.
I'm in too much pain to do many of the exercises. What should
I do?
First of all, don't perform any asana that causes pain.
Working with an experienced yoga instructor is important because
the instructor can draw from hundreds of possible asana variations
and pranayama exercises to create a routine which is safe and meets
your needs. If you can't get to a class, you may be able to set
up one private lesson so that the instructor can create a safe
beginner's routine.
There are almost _always_ a few beneficial exercises that can be
done. Unfortunately, most books do not include simplified
variations that are easier on the joints. So, please see an
experienced instructor.
I can't do any asanas as I am bedridden and have too much joint
pain. It looks like I'm sunk.
No, you are NOT sunk. You are still a wonderful, beautiful person
who can gently begin to cultivate self-love and self-acceptance
by very gently taking some actions as outlined below. This can
help tremendously in the long run.
If you cannot do any strethcing exercises in bed, you may still
be able to nurture yourself quite effectively. Here are three ideas
from which you can create a short routine.
- Pranayama (Breathing Exercises)
- Ask a yoga instructor to give you a few simple exercises
to practice, or
- Use the Yoga Internation Magazine back issuees listed
above or a video to teach yourself a few of the beginning
pranayama exercises.
- Breathing exercise to relax the body and the diaphram:
- Conscious Breathing
(See
Stress Reduction page of the Holistic Healing Web Page /
Amazon.Com Bookstore for details.)
- Get a relaxing (i.e., non-painful) therapeutic massage as
often as you can comfortablely afford.
All of these ideas will be helpful in keeping the lymphatic
and digestive system healthy.
Most people will want to experiment with these ideas eventually,
so you're "ahead of the game" if you are starting with them.
When I perform certain asanas and breathing deeply, I begin to
feel sad. Is that normal?
Yes, it does happen and can be healing to feel emotions. Using yoga,
not only can we get in touch with the physical tension deep within
our body, but with get also get in touch with the emotional tension
that is usually very closely tied to the physical tension.
It is a very good sign that you have found a tool to access and
eventually help heal your emotional tension. Feeling and making peace with
emotions can have a tremendously beneficial effect on one's health.
Here are a couple of ideas for working with feeling emotions brought up when
doing yoga.
- If the emotions are not overwhelming, simply continue the
asana, feel and accept the emotion fully while breathing deeply
into the abdomen. Remember, it is okay to feel sad or cry or feel
joy, etc. as long as it is not overwhelming.
You should definately talk about these feelings that came up to
a close friend, support group, family member, therapist, etc. in
order to continue to release the emotions and cultivate self-love
and self-acceptance.
- Modalities to Help Process:
I don't want to spend time doing yoga. I would rather do Qigong, Tai Chi,
or Aerobics. Is that okay?
Those are all wonderful expercises. Even though it can be very healing,
performing a regular yoga routine is not for everyone. There is only so
much free time in a day for many people. Some people would rather spend
some of that free time relaxing in other ways to exploring other healing
techniques such as qigong, tai chi, aerobics, meditation, etc. This is
perfectly acceptable.
However, it can still be extremely helpful to take a yoga class and
learn some of the postures (asanas) and the breathing exercises
(pranayama) because they can be used as a short warm-up and warm-down
which significantly enhances the positive effects of other healing
practices.
Yoga can also be incorporated into one's daily activities. An excellent
book for learning how to successfully incorporate simple yoga exercises
into your daily routine is "Yoga For Your Life." (See
Stress Reduction page of the Holistic Healing Web Page / Amazon.Com
Bookstore for ordering information.)
Resources