Signs of allergy season began for me this past month but to the extreme. Sinus pressure and headaches were more distracting and disconcerting than ever before, and this past week my chest has felt tight.
Perhaps the ragweed count in Kansas City is at record levels. Had a suspicion it was something to do with me. So what's going on? I asked myself.
Stress!
After researching yoga poses for allergies and asthma due to the tightness in my chest, I found the online Yoga Journal article "Allergy Antidote." It correlates asthma and allergies to stress and how having a more calming yoga practice can help alleviate symptoms.
"Through relaxation, the nervous system basically tells the immune system to hold its fire. Once the immune system backs off, the inflammation and mucus decrease, and symptoms diminish.
Migdow suggests you make de-stressing your immune system a priority by modifying your yoga practice to be less vigorous and much more calming. "For example, avoid Bikram Yoga or Ashtanga Yoga where there is already heat. Instead, practice asanas in a smooth and relaxing way with lots of slow breathing."'
Must admit, I have been giving the pressures in life more power than they deserved, but to have my body reacting to it as allergies. Who knew?
After returning to the Midwest four years ago, I visited an allergist upon having allergy symptoms for the first time in my life. A few tests later only revealed mild allergies and a slight athletic asthma. Took the prescriptions for a while. Once they ran out, I switched to the more holistic nasal rinsing since soon after I became pregnant.
Although now nasal rinsing didn't seem to help as much. Nor did taking several Claritin and Sudafed generics per day.
Next step: relaxation.
The same article mentions these asanas or postures to induce calming and to help reduce allergies and asthma by massaging "various parts of the spine and the thoracic cage and condition the lungs"
standing poses
forward bends
backward bends
twists
inversions (shoulderstand and plow) - help "clear the upper respiratory tract and drain secretions from the nose, allowing freshly oxygenated blood to flow into the oral cavity."
Imagine being arrested for doing yoga. Apparently it wasn't so long ago where people would call the cops on you if you were practicing yoga, even in the USA. Crazy, right?
If you have eight minutes, watch this video about the last 35 years of Yoga Journal and hear the yoga leaders of modern time.
I've always said yoga is my prescription for living, but I guess the more timely way to phrase this is to say it's my bailout. What a clever and funny way to convey how yoga can help you turn inward and allow you to deal with the external in an even-keel manner.
YogaDork actually created a shirt called "Yoga is my bailout," which you may order on YD's blog. I learned about it on YJ's blog Yoga Buzz; interesting article.
With the new year, comes new yoga students. Perhaps someone is attending yoga for the first time in my class, which can be quite daunting, but I feel very honored to be a yoga ambassador.
New students seem to also bring up old, yoga etiquette issues. My biggest pet peeve is when people arrive late to class. The beginning of class is when I steer everyone to turn inward and quiet their minds. The other day, I think I had seven people arrive five minutes late to class. Completely distracting and not in line with yoga whatsoever!
So what's a yoga instructor to do? I'm half tempted to pin up a list of etiquette on the bulletin board outside of the classroom that I found in this month's Yoga Journal magazine. I've also read you could hand the student a list of expectations directly, but I could see that hurting the person's feelings and hindering them from ever returning which is obviously not my aim.
New students aren't the only ones to blame for this etiquette misstep. One woman has been attending my classes for almost three years, and she still seems to come in late EVERY time. It annoys me to no end, as well as many other regulars, I'm sure! Don't get me wrong, I understand the OCCASIONAL tardy, but when it consistently happens, it's just downright annoying and rude.
Any advice on how to address yoga classroom etiquette is greatly appreciated.
Found a great overview article about prenatal yoga on YogaJournal.com called Yoga for Moms-to-be; thought it was fitting for Mother's Day.
(Photo of me today at 38 weeks!)
Not sure if this is technically my first Mother's Day or not, but I did receive some Mother's Day cards, which was nice. I also was able to check out the DVD Yoga for Your Pregnancy that I blogged about earlier this week. Received it from Netflix and practiced the energizing, 30-minute practice a few times along with the meditation, pranayama and birthing room section. There's also a 17-minute relaxation practice and a postnatal section.
If you're new to yoga and expecting, this is a good DVD to try. If you have Netflix, I strongly suggest renting it first to make sure you enjoy it. I'm not sure if I recommend buying it, especially if you're more versed in yoga because it's fairly basic. However, it's definitely a great practice to do later on in your pregnancy, and the birthing room and meditation section are unique to any prenatal yoga DVD I've found. The alternate nostril breathing demonstration within the pranayama or breath section was very good as well. In addition, there's three women representing each stage of pregnancy and doing the poses in various ways, which is always nice so you may use the practice throughout your entire pregnancy.
"Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it." - William Arthur Ward
This is exactly why I have "Thankful Thursdays," although obviously this is Friday but give a pregnant girl a break! Expressing gratitude is the key to receiving even better experiences and joy in your life.
After searching "gratitude" on Yoga Journal's Web site, I discovered a wonderful article on various ways to be mindfully thankful and how this practice can alter one's life called "Selfless Gratitude." Here's an excerpt:
Practicing mindfulness of gratitude consistently leads to a direct experience of being connected to life and the realization that there is a larger context in which your personal story is unfolding... It also elicits feelings of generosity, which create further joy. Gratitude can soften a heart that has become too guarded, and it builds the capacity for forgiveness, which creates the clarity of mind that is ideal for spiritual development.
I found in the article some ideas on how to practice being thankful:
Actively notice things you are grateful for throughout your regular day. For instance, when you're stuck in traffic and it's making you late and irritated, you notice you can be thankful you have transportation and that other drivers are abiding by the agreed-upon driving rules, which prevent chaos and unsafe conditions.
Practice being consciously grateful to your family, friends, teachers, benefactors, and all those who have come before you who have made it possible for your existence to be comfortable, informed, and empowered.
What is your gratitude ratio? Are you more negative or more grateful? The purpose of this inquiry is not to judge yourself but rather to motivate yourself to find a truer perspective.
"There is no fear of the cycle of birth, life and death for when you stand in the present moment, you are timeless." ~Rodney Yee, YJ's Yoga for Relaxation and Meditation dvd
Armed with two bags full to the brim with at least twenty pounds of books, I ventured to our local-used bookstore. And yes, probably not smart of me to carry so much weight since I'm almost eight months pregnant, but I'm nesting and need to make room for baby! This must have been the first time I actually sold books at this particular store because they totally jipped me.
"Your total trade in is $7.50," said the store employee.
"Uh, so what books aren't you taking?" I inquired.
"That's for all books..." he replied. In my mind I wanted to FREAK out about how they were taking advantage of the process, but then I reminded myself of the heaviness of the books and lugging them into and out of my car. Not to mention how much room getting rid of them would save. After taking a deep inhale, I said, "Thank you" and took my pathetic amount of cash where I spent it times four in the store. BASTARDS! I need to open my own used bookstore, man!
Enough of my self pity, however notice how I practiced presence (kind of) and didn't allow my pain body to show up (if you're reading Eckhart Tolle's A New Earth you'll know what I mean). Let's return to the quote at the top, which I heard in one of my purchases at the used bookstore - yoga dvd "Yoga for Meditation" with Rodney Yee. Even before I began reading A New Earth, I wanted to dive deeper into the seventh limb of yoga, meditation or dhyana. But due to the words in Tolle's book, I am convinced of its power. Here's a quote from A New Earth that really conveys the potential behind being present/meditation:
'"Be aware of your breathing as often as you are able, whenever you remember. Do that for one year, and it will be more powerfully transformative than attending all of these courses. And it's free."' ~ Eckhart Tolle
To make meditation a daily habit (now doing three to five times per week), I'm exploring various ways to instill the practice into my life. This morning I watched Yee's "Yoga for Meditation" and am a bit disappointed it doesn't allow to skip through the various yoga and seated practices Yee includes to get to the specific parts you want. However, if you are just beginning meditation and want to try different seated positions and are looking for a very easy-going yoga practice prior to the meditation, it's a good start.
After practicing the first segment "Mountain" and viewing a few of Yee's seated postures, I ended the practice with "Wind" and "Sky." At the very end, he said the quote above, and it really struck me because the last few days I've begun FREAKING out that I'm not prepared for our upcoming arrival in late spring. Up until a few days ago, I think (maybe that's the operative word) I was doing relatively well staying present and stress free about the whole thing. Yet now it's two months away (or less!), and I'm starting to feel very worried about finding daycare, finding a new car so I won't wrench my back from putting the baby in its car seat within my two-door vehicle, etc.
But what's worry going to do? Both Yee and Tolle reminded me there's nothing to fear, even childbirth, if I remain present ... life will continue to be. Not that I should neglect finding a new car (hopefully not a minivan!) or a daycare or whatever need there is. However, I need to return back to the now with the aid of my breath and focus on what can be done now versus focusing on what I didn't do in the past or about what possibly can't be done in the future. That will get me nowhere but into a negative space.
So take a deep inhale with me in this present moment - "All is well." ~ Louise L. Hay
Below is a brief video (not the same as the dvd mentioned above) with Yee on meditation.
Yoga Journal magazine is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in learning more about yoga. I received it as a gift about a year prior to teaching yoga and have had a subscription ever since. It's so cheap considering all the information provided such as suggested sequences, health benefits, meditations, etc.
Also on YJ.com is a ton of online newsletters to sign up to receive, and I recommend "My yoga mentor," which is written with the yoga teacher in mind. The last edition had a wonderful article, "Tools for teaching prenatal yoga: the first trimester" by another one of my favorite bloggers - Ground thru the sit bones author. Very good advice for teachers and for the expectant yogini.
Prenatal yoga pose: squat Squats are great for opening up the hips and preparing for birth. You can do it against the wall or on a block.
I loathe when people ask me this... sorry Maria (my friend/coworker who attended my power yoga class for the first time Monday night. Apparently I didn't teach a lot of "power" last night if she only felt her hamstrings stretching.).
I believe it was Maria's second yoga class in her life (Another friend/coworker and I took her to a hatha-flow class at a wonderful yoga studio in town called Yoga Gallery.) and was hoping she would enjoy it. She's been a faithful reader of Yoga Mama and requested to come to one of my classes with her friend Angie so I was delighted at the chance to share my passion.
The next morning at work, Maria and I began our IM banter when she asked me the age-old, misconstrued question about yoga that makes me cringe (again, my apologies Maria!). To the yogis and yoginis out there in cyberspace, obviously there is so much more to yoga than the physical postures or asanas - it's only one of the eight limbs of yoga. Yet for the sake of a more simple discussion, let's concentrate on this one limb.
So how did I answer Maria? Probably not very eloquently, but I did find an article on Yoga Journal listing 38 medically proven benefits by Timothy McCall, MD. I probably jumped to the "OF COURSE it's not ONLY about FLEXIBILITY" defense, yet it's so hard to put into words to a person only beginning to explore the power that is yoga.
Once a person begins practicing asanas consistently for a month or so, you begin to notice changes not only in your physical body such as increased flexibility and strength (My friends marveled at my arms after I began conquering chaturangas.). However there are noticeable changes in your mind (Better sleep anyone?) and the interconnection between the two, which isn't surprising since the word yoga is derived from the Sanskrit word yuj to "yoke or bind."
This is really a question one can only truly answer for yourself through the consistent practice of yoga. If I could sum the benefits of yoga in one word, it would be balance. The balance yoga allows you to make: spiritually, mentally and physically. I didn't know what yoga could "do" until I felt how it helped my back and tailbone that wouldn't heal with drugs and physical therapy. I didn't know what yoga could "do" until I realized after a month my depression was beginning to lift. Only until I invested a little of my time did I understand the magic of yoga beyond the assumed benefit of flexibility and this has kept me coming back for five years.
Keep in mind, you don't need to have an ailment to appreciate yoga. All you need is a mat and the patience to keep returning to it and discovering new awarenesses and appreciations within yourself.
In one of my many bathroom trips during the night yesterday (Oh the joy of pregnancy!), I felt a shooting pain of sciatica on the right side of my sacrum shooting down my leg .... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, I thought! I really hoped I was going to avoid the dreaded sciatica that plagues so many expectant mothers. Yesterday I actually felt an odd pain in my left foot so I don't know if it's related. However, now I'm feeling both.
I looked up sciatica in the book You can Heal your Life by Louise L. Hay, which lists a variety of ailments, what is causing them and how to treat them with affirmations. Probable cause of sciatica is "being hypocritical. Fear of money and of the future." Whoa - that's crazy! With my husband's recent job loss, I'm sure fear of money and the future is creeping into my subconscious, although I know we'll be perfectly fine. My husband asked me what the "hypocritical" part is about. The only thing I could come up with is that I'm being hypocritical telling him to be positive and apparently my sciatica is telling me I'm not!
Anyhow, the books' recommended affirmations for sciatica:
"I move into my greater good. My good is everywhere, and I am secure and safe."
This morning I pulled out a Yoga Journal magazine workout for sciatica I clipped called "Easy rider" from Aug. 2006. The original article includes a a great workout for sciatica relief. I did it this morning, but the postures don't seem to be included in the online version. Doing it did seem to help a bit. Guess I'll just need to keep doing it for a while.
"Coping with Sciatica" had more suggestions for poses that can alleviate sciatica, and I also discovered another YJ practice for sciatica. However I'm not sure if all the postures are appropriate for pregnant women, such as the twists.
Besides yoga, herbs like St. John's wort may be helpful. Tumeric may be as well for "its anti-inflammatory effects are most likely due to its active ingredient, curcumin, which gives turmeric its yellow color and may be as effective as cortisone in fighting acute inflammation" according to "Sciatica Strategies" article on YJ.
If you have other suggestions for dealing with sciatica, please let me know. My ass will thank you! ;)
Yoga Journal magazine is an awesome resource and its Web site is packed with information. I believe the site recently had a redesign and now has a way to build a pose or asana sequence with coordinating photos - pretty cool.
I am signed up for every e-mail newsletter YJ online offers, including one it sends weekly for a "dose of yoga tips, information and advice." Last week's was titled the "Yogi's Holiday Guide to the Holidays" and had some interesting article/ideas on how to cope through this typically stressful season.
One was called Gifts for the Greedless and had a bunch of great ideas for gift giving by type of person (college student, children, golfers, etc.), and I thought this one was great for me and my husband, since we're soon to be new parents:
For Parents: Zen Parenting: The Art of Learning What You Already Know, by Judith Costello and Jurgen Haver (Robins Lane). A thought-provoking meditation on child-rearing as sadhana (practice).
Hopefully my husband isn't reading my blog because this book may be in his stocking!
