Yoga Head To Toe

I was just plain tired this weekend. I’m not sure what caused it but it hit me in the face during my Friday run when I started getting a bad side ache while jogging at a pace I could have actually walked. I felt heavy, uncoordinated and just plain tired. Having learned through yoga to listen to my body when it is trying to tell me something I decided to cut the run short and made the decision to take weekend off from exercise and really relax. But, as these things happen, my plans changed as Saturday morning rolled around and I felt the need to do some yoga.

For me practicing yoga asana is usually a good physical and mental workout. I tend toward those postures that require strength and flexibility and usually push myself towards perfecting them. I concentrate on my body posture and breathing, really trying to stay focused and in the moment – this does not come easy to me. (I’m a “type A” personality and it reflects in my practice – but that is a subject for another day!!). After a practice I usually feel great but I have definitely exerted some energy. So what to do with this strong pull toward my yoga mat on Saturday morning. The answer of course was restorative yoga.

I had been reading quite a bit about restorative yoga the last few weeks. My eyes and attention had seemed to gravitate towards the subject lately as I was beginning to look deeper into how yoga poses affect the body, mind and spirit. This past weekend i t seemed to me that I need the deep rest, peace and quiet I would experience with a restorative yoga practice as it calmed my mind and rested my body. Also, many of the recent books I had read on yoga and menopause emphasized how very important restorative poses were and since I was feeling a bit unnecessarily agitated that last week (probably wacky hormones) I thought now was a time to pick a few to practice.

Thinking back to what I had read and what my teachers had said about restorative yoga I decided first not to be in a hurry during the practice and only picked a few poses that I could do in a peaceful, leisurely way. There were three asanas that seem to come up time and again as excellent for restorative yoga not only during perimenopause and menopause but in general and these were the three I decided to practice.

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Supported Bridge Pose) Benefits: This pose opens the chest and heart area. It is restful for the heart, helping to balance blood pressure and hormonal secretions. It has a calming effect on the mind and nervous system and helps to prevent and relieve headaches. Placing the head lower than the rest of your body with the chest open is soothing and refreshing, and removes lethargy and depression. It also helps drain fluid from the legs after long periods of standing. This pose relieves mood swings and hot flashes.
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Supta Baddha Konasana (Supported Lying Down Bound Angle Pose) Benefits: This poses opens the chest, abdomen and pelvis and allows the body to relax deeply. Blood flow is directed into the pelvis, bathing the reproductive organs and glands and helping to balance hormone functions. The centering, balancing effect of this pose helps reduce mood swings and depression. This pose is also beneficial to those with high blood pressure, headaches and breathing problems.

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Virarita Karani (Supported Legs Up The Wall Pose) Benefits: This is an excellent inverted pose that most can do for long periods without any effort or stain on the neck. It allows blood and lymph fluids to pool in the belly, soaking the organs in oxygen. It refreshes the heart and lungs, works to restore depleted energy and rebuild energy reserves. It is deeply relaxing during times of stress and tension and has a beneficial effect on the immune system. The pose also reduces blood pressure. Supported Legs Up The Wall is considered the most healing of the yoga restorative poses.

It felt wonderful to just relax and stay in each of the poses as long as I needed to. After each of the practices I definitely felt rested in a complete way both in my mind and body . Maybe a little more restorative yoga throughout the week is just what is needed right now.

“Yoga is not about the body or about the mind. It is about the synthesis of body and mind, and the transformed self that is the result. It is an adventure in human potential, in going beyond the spirit identity that either body or mind alone provides, in discovering a new kind of energy and life”. Dana Holleman, Orit Sen-Gupta, Dancing the Body Of Light: The Future of Yoga.

Credits

B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health
Geeta S. Iyengar: Yoga – A Gem for Women
Suza Francina: Yoga and the Wisdom of Menopause: A Guide to Physical, Emotional and Spiritual Health at Midlife and Beyond

I had been thinking I was one of the few “clueless” women out there that had no idea about perimenopause or menopause. I was sure almost every other woman around my age had been aware of this life transition, what to look for and what to do once they determined they were heading towards menopause. Could there be many women out there who, like me, showed all the signs of heading into perimenopause/menopause and just never connected all the dots? Well, I certainly found out that the surprising answer is – yes.

A few years ago I started getting a little moody, well maybe at times a lot moody. And then there was the periodic night sweats, I had always known that down comforter was too much for the desert where we lived. I had always been skinny but what was with the little extra junk in my trunk? Oh and I loved the weekends, I was always so exhausted that I loved to take long afternoon naps during my days off work. Migraine headaches, since when did I get migraines. It seemed like I would get one at least once a month. I could continue this list for another half page but you get the point – I had all these signs of hormonal changes but never once did the word “menopause” pass through my mind nor did I ever think all my “signs” were related.

I had one of those Aha moments when it finally hit me that I was in “pre-menopause”. But it took me a good few years to get there. Between the ages of 39 and 44 I had spent my time living in Latin America as a Volunteer and later as a Technical Trainer for the Peace Corps. It was an amazing time of my life but when I returned my health was not the best after having battled several bacterial and parasitic infections. I knew it would take some time to regain my former health and honestly I thought for years that most of my pre-menopausal signs were actually attributed to this.

I’m an avid reader. I love the library and would go to our local branch every week to check all kinds of books on health and wellness. I read book after book trying to figure out how I could work to get rid of all these health issues I was having. I always stopped by the new book and best seller section to see what was new. Our library would put the books flat against the shelf so you could see the full cover. For about three months there was the Suzanne Somers book that always caught my eye. Her photo was on the cover and every time I saw it I just thought of “Chrissie” from her old show Three’s Company. I didn’t think it could be a serious book, I wasn’t interested in reading it…… but I tell you that book was calling my name. Finally I pick it up one day, read a few paragraphs about hormones and said to myself “I need this book”. I checked it out and read it over a week and couldn’t help but notice everything I was going through was being described in those pages. Believe it or not, in my mind I still didn’t grasp the word menopause. I latched onto Adrenal Fatigue, which I certainly had and worked to recover from it. It wasn’t until a few months later when I was at the library dropping off another bundle of health books when talking to the librarian I literally froze with a wide-eyed look on my face when my mind finally said loud and clear MENOPAUSE. I had a million thoughts at once, everything jelled – everything finally made sense.

Since that time I have made a strong effort to be the healthiest I can be and the results are that most of the signs that menopause is coming down the track have gone away. What has yoga got to do with all of this? Well, during my first 6 months of twice a week practice I felt better physically and knew yoga was helping me but I didn’t notice any significant changes specifically to my perimenopausal issues. However in January I started a home practice which bumped my yoga days up to five or six times a week and this is when I really noticed – nothing – as in no signs left of menopause coming. I know I am in perimenopause, I had the signs previously, I am at the right age but for now through yoga I have been able to calm and regulate my body and mind so the transition is unnoticeable. I’m thinking- wow- amazing what a little yoga can do for you.

Please check out our previous blog on yoga poses to help with the menopause transition.

Book by Suzanne Somers: Ageless: The Naked Truth About Bioidentical Hormones

Great book on Yoga and Menopause:Yoga and the Wisdom of Menopause: A Guide to Physical, Emotional and Spiritual Health at Midlife and Beyond

Yoga’s approach to holistic health is a powerful tool for helping women experience the passage into menopause as a positive event both physically and spiritually. By balancing the endocrine system yoga can reduce the effects of hormonal changes brought on by perimenopause (premenopause) and menopause. Through yoga poses, proper diet, relaxation and meditation yoga will help bring back equilibrium to the physical body, emotional balance and mental clarity.

Every yoga pose has a multitude of effects on all the systems of the body. In each posture (asana) different organs and glands are placed in various anatomical positions and are supplied with fresh blood, gently massaged, relaxed, toned and stimulated.

Most of us are familiar with the categories of yoga poses listed below. Under each category is a list of particularly important poses to include in your yoga practice during perimenopause and menopause. Consistently practicing these poses will have a healthy and positive affect on your body and mind.

Standing Poses

Standing poses tone and activate the torso, back, pelvis and abdominal organs, messaging the organs located there and increasing blood flow. Standing poses also invigorate the adrenal glands which produce hormones that help us tolerate many of the stresses of life. Both Extended Triangle Pose and Intense Side Stretch Pose also help in relieving menstrual disorders.

Mountain Pose With Arms Stretched Up (Tadasana Urdhva Hastasana)

Extended Triangle Pose (Utthita Trikonsana)

Intense Side Stretch (Utthita Parsvakonasana)

Sitting Poses

These sitting poses will improve blood circulation in the pelvic area and massage the organs of the reproductive system which will stimulate the ovaries and its hormones. They will also help to regulate the blood supply to the endocrine glands, activating the adrenal glands and relaxing the thyroid gland. Sitting poses will soothe the sympathetic nervous system for a calm mind.

Seated Wide Angle Pose (Upavistha Konasana

Intense Back Stretch (Paschimottanasana)

Lying Down Poses

Practicing yoga’s restorative poses on a regular basis will help relieve stress. They give an opportunity to weed out and clear away the mental and emotional issues being carried around and smooth out the emotional rough edges common during menopause. These restorative, relaxing lying down poses will help to improve blood circulation in the ovarian region and tone the pelvic organs.

Reclining Bound Angle Pose (Supta Baddha Konasana)

Reclining Hero Pose (Supta Virasana)

Corpse Pose (Savasana)

Backbend Poses

Backbends squeeze the adrenal glands helping them to increase the amount of estrogen in the body. They also stimulate the kidneys, promoting healthy elimination of metabolic by-products. Backbends will stimulate the thyroid, improve circulation in the pancreas and relieve pelvic congestion which benefits the ovaries.

Bridge Pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana)

Inverted Staff Pose (Viparita Dandasana)

Forward Bend Poses

During forward bends a compression of the abdomen occurs which messages the uterus and other abdominal organs. When we come out of the pose and release the compression, the organs are bathed in freshly oxygenated blood, giving a refreshed and rejuvenated feeling. The alternate squeezing and soaking of the ovaries enhances their function and the hormones they produce. Forward bends also soothe the nervous system and have a quieting effect on the mind.

Supported Downward-Facing Dog Pose (Adho Mukha Svanasana)

Standing Half Forward Bend Pose (with head supported) Ardha Uttanasana and Wide Angle Standing Forward Bend Pose (with head supported

Child’s Pose (Adho Mukha Virasana)

Twist Poses

Twisting poses are invaluable for replenishing and stimulating the adrenal glands and massaging the abdominal organs.

Seated Twist (Marichyasana III)

Inverted Poses

Inverted poses are particularly important during menopause as they have powerful effects on the neuroendocrine system, allowing fresh, oxygenated blood to flow to the glands in the head and neck. In particular, the pituitary gland which is located in the center of the brain and involved in the regulation of blood-sugar levels, body temperature and changes in the hormone levels that occur in menopause will be positively affected. Inverted poses also improve circulation in the thyroid, messages the adrenals, stimulates the pancreas and relieves pelvic congestion which benefit the ovaries.

Supported Legs Up The Wall Pose (Viparita Karani)

Plough Pose (Halasana)

Headstand (Salamba Sirsasana)

Credits

B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health
Geeta S. Iyengar: Yoga – A Gem for Women
Suza Francina: Yoga and the Wisdom of Menopause: A Guide to Physical, Emotional and Spiritual Health at Midlife and Beyond