Restorative Yoga Offers Respite

By Jennifer Lang

Picture this scenario: You feel sick. You go to the doctor and he tells you to go home and relax, so you go straight to the couch and turn on the television. You may think you’ve ratcheted down, but, explains Judith Lasater, PhD, author of Relax and Renew: Restful Yoga for Stressful Times, relaxing is a dynamic state that requires separation from external stimuli like TV. Unfortunately, most people don’t know how to accomplish that and need to be taught. “Doing nothing is the healthiest thing you can do for yourself,” says Lasater, “because when the body’s in a state of relaxation, all measurable indices of stress are reduced—you can’t be anxious and relaxed at the same time.”

Once you know how to achieve a state of dynamic relaxation, you can then learn to dis-identify. Meaning? You separate yourself from your thoughts: you have them, but they aren’t who you are. You can observe them arising but can detach from them. “If we’re at the mercy of our thoughts, which can change 60,000 times a day,” explains Lasater, “we’ll always feel stress and suffer because what we think is never going to fully satisfy us.” Learning to relax, therefore, is learning to let go of what you think and who you think you are. You aren’t your body or your thoughts.

The purpose of props
Research shows you need four things in order to relax: a feeling of safety, darkness, warm hands and feet, and a cool core body temperature. Props, such as blankets, bolsters, blocks, straps, eye pillows, and sandbags, help create this environment by manipulating the nervous system so the only possible response is relaxation. “Really, we manipulate our nervous system all the time with cigarettes, coffee, anti-depressants, and other drugs to create a certain inner state,” says Lasater. “Restorative yoga is doing the same thing except it’s using only your body and breath.”

If you don’t have formal yoga props, improvise. Use a chair or a couch; a small, firm pillow; a few blankets; and something to cover your eyes. Then test out the environment with something simple: Lie on the floor with your legs raised up on the chair, your head and neck supported by a pillow, your body under a blanket if you’re cold, and your eyes covered. Now breathe comfortably for 15 to 20 minutes. According to Lasater, it takes the average person 15 minutes in a basic restorative pose to relax deeply, so set your timer and enjoy.

Ease on down the road
Restorative yoga works wonders when you’re stressed or over-tired, but it also has therapeutic value when you’re injured or not feeling well enough to do your regular practice. Whether your lower back is bothering you, your head hurts, or hot flashes have zapped your strength and energy, doing supported poses allows your body to reap the benefits of traditional poses without taxing your muscles or re-injuring yourself. We’ve asked a few of our favorite therapeutic yoga teachers to suggest poses that might feel good and help ease particular conditions. Feel free to experiment, see which pose feels best, and mix up the order of the sequences. Keep in mind: If something doesn’t feel good, don’t do it.

Problem: A raging migraine headache
Dean Lerner, co-director/co-owner of the Center for Well-Being in Lemont, Pennsylvania, has been practicing yoga since the mid-70s and the Iyengar method since 1980. He recommends these three poses.

Half Plow Pose (Ardha Halasana)
Props: 1 chair and 4 blankets
Benefits: Quiets the adrenal and pituitary glands as well as the nerves; brings controlled circulation to the head; quiets the mind and eases mental tension.

Fold two or three blankets in quarters and stack them neatly on top of each other on the floor in front of the chair. Lie on your back so the chair is near your head, your shoulders are on the blankets, and the back of your head is on the floor. Press into the floor with your hands and swing your legs over your head so your legs come on to the chair seat. Use your hands to pull the chair towards you so your thighs rest comfortably on top of the chair seat. (Depending on your size, you might need to put blankets on the seat of the chair so your thighs stay parallel to the floor and your back doesn’t round.) Let your arms rest on the floor with the elbows bent. Relax supported completely by the blankets and chair. Breathe quietly, calming your mind, for 5 to 10 minutes, if possible.

Dean Says: A 10-minute stay in supported plow can be as refreshing as taking an hour-long nap. This pose stills the thinking process, calms the mind, and quiets the adrenal glands. With the body supported upside down like this, your brain gets a good supply of oxygenated blood; because of the chin-lock position, the nerves are stretched in such a way that thoughts naturally withdraw.

Bridge Pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana)
Props: 3 to 4 blankets
Benefits: Expands the chest muscles; opens the lungs; balances the glands; quiets the nerves and releases tension in the nervous system; increases oxygen intake to the brain

Fold 2 to 3 blankets to make a bolster for your torso and fold a single blanket the same way, to support your legs. Sit in the middle of the “bolster” and lie back so that your shoulders and head rest on the floor. Slowly continue moving toward your head so the skin on your back is caught and pulled toward your hips. Your torso and buttocks should rest on the bolster, your legs on the single blanket, and your head and shoulders on the floor. Roll your shoulders back and down to open your chest. Stay here, breathing quietly, for 10 minutes.

Dean Says:This pose brings more circulation to the heart and the lungs. The abdominals are drawn in and upward, which tones the organs and helps release emotions and relieve mental tension. In this supported posture, the muscles of the chest relax allowing the chest to open so breathing comes easier. This puts the mind in a tranquil, serene, and positive state.

Forward Bend (Uttanasana)
Props: 1 chair and 3 blankets
Benefits: Relaxes and quiets the head, nerves and adrenal glands; slows the blood flow to make you more passive and release the headache.

Sit on the floor in front of a chair, with your legs straight in front of you. Fold the blankets in quarters or thirds and place one underneath your buttocks and two on top of the chair seat. Inhale into your chest. As you exhale bend from your waist, keeping your spine long, and lay your head to rest on the blankets on the chair. Stay 5 to 10 minutes or as long as you are comfortable.

Dean Says:When you let your head rest heavily on the blankets the frontal brain quiets and the nervous system calms down. This pose allows the mental and physical tension to dissipate.

Problem: You know you‘re due to get your period because the cramps are killing you.
Felicity Green, of Lopez Island, Washington, has been studying yoga for over 40 years and with BKS Iyengar since 1974.

Supported Seated Angle Pose (Upavishta Konasana)
Props: 1 chair and 1 to 3 blankets
Benefits:Releases the pelvis, which helps get rid of any tension in and around the buttocks, the hips, the belly, and the lower back. It can help regulate your menstrual flow and calm agitation and irritability.

Place a chair in front of you with one or two folded blankets on it. Sit with your legs wide and the chair in between your legs. If your lower back rounds and you can’t sit up tall, put a folded blanket underneath your buttocks to release your pelvis. Inhale as you elongate your torso and exhale as you lean forward onto the chair. Your hamstrings shouldn’t hurt in this pose. Cradle your head in your arms. Flex your feet as you press your inner thighs towards the floor. Stay 2 to 3 minutes.

Felicity Says: Our society pictures the perfect female body as a woman with a flat stomach, so some women tend to hold their stomachs tight, which can create blockages and tension.This pose allows the abdomen to relax completely while increasing circulation in and around the pelvic floor.

Standing Twist (Utthita Marichyasana)
Props: 1 chair and a wall
Benefits: Stimulates the kidneys and adrenal glands; relieves back aches and abdominal cramps

Put the back of a chair up against the wall and stand near the wall facing the side of the chair. Place the right side of your torso next to the wall and bend your right leg to put your foot on the chair seat. Put both your hands on the wall. Keep your right thigh parallel to the wall and stand firmly on your left heel. Inhale to lift your chest up, exhale and turn from your navel area and waist until your shoulders are parallel to the wall. Stay 30 to 60 seconds and repeat on the other side.

Felicity Says:Turning your upper body while the lower body is stable releases tension in the abdominal and back muscles.
Contraindications: Those with lower back problems should release their pelvis completely and allow their hips to go in the direction of the twist.

Half Moon Pose (Ardha Chandrasana)
Props: 1 block and a wall
Benefits: Relaxes and releases the belly; relieves cramping associated with heavy bleeding

Stand with your back to the wall. Step your feet apart so your legs are about 4 to 41/2 feet wide. Hold on to the block, bend the knee of the front leg, and place the block a foot or two in front of your front leg. With your hand on the block, step your back foot in and shift your weight over your front leg. Your front leg should be straight as you lift your back leg parallel to the floor. Take your top arm up the wall vertical and the top buttock back to the wall as much as possible. Stay 30 to 60 seconds and repeat on the other side.

Felicity Says:Poor circulation during PMS and the first days of menstruation creates cramping. This pose is good because it opens up the belly to release cramping and promote relaxed breathing.

Problem: Hot flashes, sleep disturbances, and memory loss—oh my! Menopause at last.
Cyndi Lee, founder and director of OM Yoga in NYC, started practicing yoga in 1972. She developed her own restorative practice with the onset of menopause.

Legs-Up-The-Wall Pose (Viparita Karani)
Props: 1 strap and 2 to 3 blankets
Benefits: Relieves tired legs; reduces swelling or pressure in legs; increases mobility in the joints; reduces the general feeling of heaviness and adds an energetic lift

Fold one or two blankets in thirds to make a bolster and place the “bolster” parallel to and about 10 inches away from a wall. Sit on one end of the bolster so your hip is parallel to the wall and strap the belt around your calves. Gently roll onto the outside of your shoulder and then onto your back as you swing your legs up the wall. Place a blanket under the base of your skull so your forehead is slightly higher than your chin and your throat stays soft. (If you feel too much stretch in the hamstrings, move your bolster further from the wall.) Your lower back should remain on the bolster and your tailbone will be slightly off, moving toward the floor. Stay 5 to 20 minutes.

Cyndi Says: If you are standing on your feet all day, this pose will feel incredibly refreshing as the fluids and fatigue drain down your legs.

Goddess Pose (Supta Baddha Konasana)
Props: 4 to 5 blankets
Benefits: Opens up the chest, front of the belly, and hip joints; lengthens and brings movement to the lower spine; allows the throat, face, and chest to soften

Fold two to three blankets lengthwise to make a bolster and place it behind your back. Sit on the floor with your buttocks against the bolster, with soles of your feet together. Support yourself with forearms as you lie back onto the bolster. Place a blanket folded under each thigh to keep your groins soft and thighs supported. Place a folded blanket under your head so your body is in the shape of a waterfall—forehead slightly higher than chin, chin higher than chest, and chest higher than pelvis. Stay 5 to 20 minutes.

Cyndi Says: This pose makes your hips feel good. It invites the apana or downward moving wind energy to flow, which grounds and relaxes you. The support of the blankets might help you completely let go. It can feel as if the tension is draining off the sides of your temples.

Rest (Bharadvajasana)
Props: 4 to 5 blankets
Benefits:Eases sluggish and dull feeling in the lower belly and pelvis; massages neck, shoulders, and head; invigorates upper body.

Fold 3 to 4 blankets lengthwise to form a “bolster” and place another one across the top of the others for your head. Sit sidesaddle with your left hip at the bottom edge of the blankets. Inhale and lift your spine and ribs up, and as you exhale face the blankets and lie down. You can turn your nose in the same direction you twist or not. Let your arms relax. Large breasted women may want to put another blanket under their head to lift their shoulders and make room for their breasts. Stay 3 minutes and repeat on the other side.

Cyndi Says: This gentle twist releases your spinal muscles and low back, an area that tends to grip up during menopause. Hugging the blankets also may help you relax a little bit more.
Contraindications: This pose may not feel comfortable for those who have sacrum injuries.

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