Yoga Philosophy: Contentment

by Nina

�He who finds happiness only within, rest only within, light only within�that yogi having become one with nature attains oneness with Brahman.� �The Bhagavad Gita, trans. by Mohandas K. Ghandi

When I first started teaching, I was determined to find the right language to help my students come slowly out of Savasana (a bigger challenge than you might imagine!). Eventually I learned that repeating the word �slowly� three times (as in �slowly, slowly, slowly bend your knees and place the soles of your feet on the floor�) did the trick. My point? It�s simply that the language that you use can sometimes make all the difference.

I�m bringing this up today because I�ve been thinking about contentment, one of the qualities the Yoga Sutras encourages us to cultivate.

�2.42 From contentment and benevolence of consciousness come supreme happiness.� �Yoga Sutras, trans. by TKV Desikachar

�Contentment or the ability to be comfortable with what we have and what we do not have.� �TKV Desikachar

To me, this means that here are many unpleasant situations in your life that you cannot change, some minor (traffic jams, not being able to find something you need) and some major (death, divorce, loss of a job). And in these circumstances when you normally would react with anger, anxiety, envy, frustration, sorrow, you might be able to choose to react instead with contentment.

But another thing I�ve learned from teaching is that the words �happiness� and even �contentment� can be a confusing to people. How, students will say, can I be �content� when something bad happens? Or how, a person with depression, will ask, can just tell myself to be �happy?�

Through the Mist by Brad Gibson

For myself, the answer was using different language: �I can be okay with this.� During the last four years, I�ve experienced a lot of loss: both my parents died and both my children moved thousands of miles away. But telling myself that, even while I was sad, I could be also okay with those circumstances did, in fact, help lead me toward contentment.

If you�ve been reading this blog for a while you�ll know that I�m a big fan of yoga�s stress reduction tools, including poses, breath techniques and meditation, for cultivating equanimity. But yoga philosophy has also been extremely helpful to me.

In our materialistic and success-oriented culture, we are bombarded with messages telling us we need to do more and buy more. So we become caught up in an endless cycle of desire and dissatisfaction, which benefits the economy but not necessarily our happiness. For me, yoga philosophy is the antidote. Although yoga promises freedom from the bondage of the unending cycle of desire and dissatisfaction, I can�t say I�m there yet. But at the very least, when I notice dissatisfaction taking over, I�ve learned to step back and remind myself there is a different point of view.

�2.42 From contentment, the highest happiness is attained.� �Yoga Sutras, trans. Edwin Bryant

�This sattvic happiness does not depend on external objects, which are vulnerable and fleeting, but is inherent in the mind when it is tranquil and content.� �Bryant�s commentary

Friday Q&A: Sequencing Two Poses

Q: I love the variation of Viparita Karani with the chair. I also love Knees to Chest, which you featured in an earlier post. What I am wondering is should I do a pose in between these 2 as a transition or is it OK to go back & forth between the 2?

A: There�s no need to do any poses between these two, as they�re both gentle, symmetrical poses. It�s only when you are doing a deep forward bend, backbend, or twist that you might want to consider a counter-pose.

Can you go back and forth between the two? Personally, if I were going to sequence these two poses, I�d do the Knees to Chest pose (see here) first because moving with your breath is slightly stimulating. Even if you don't move with your breath in this pose, you are actively engaging your muscles, which makes this an active, rather than passive pose. I�d follow Knees to Chest pose with the Viparita Karani variation (see here) because this is a deeply relaxing passive pose, and it�s traditional to finish your practice in a state of relaxation. Put them together, and you�ve just created a nice little mini practice for winding down at the end of the day.

In general, a good way to sequence poses is in an arc like this:

1. Warm-up poses
2. Active poses
3. Counter poses and/or cool-down poses
4. Relaxation poses

�Nina

I agree that the poses are fine sequenced as Nina suggested, especially if you are ultimately trying to quiet the nervous system. However, if you needed a rest but wanted to do a mild stimulation of system prior to heading back into your day, you could reverse them. I don�t think any particular pose needs to go between them, but both would be a nice counter-pose sequence at the end of a back bend practice.

�Baxter

Yoga and Your Emotions

by Nina

I once bet an old friend of mine, a long-time yoga student who expressed some doubt when I told him that yoga poses can have strong effects on our emotions, that I could change his mood by putting him in a yoga pose. He said, �You�re on!� So what I did was set him up in a supported form of Seated Forward Bend (Paschimottanasana) and left him there for three minutes (the amount of time needed for most supported poses to really take effect). When I told him it was time for him to come out the pose and he slowly lifted his head, I knew just by the look on his face�you know, that classic �yoga� look�that I�d won the bet hands down. And my friend did, in fact, concede quite gracefully, because the quieting power of a long forward bend (if you are set up comfortably) was undeniable.

La Sagrada Familia (a detail) by Brad Gibson

Yes, various yoga poses and practices can have a strong effect on your moods and emotions, and this is something you should take into consideration when you practice on your own. I decided to write about this subject today because earlier this week another friend was surprised to learn that doing Sun Salutations before bed affected her ability to sleep. Knowing that certain poses like Sun Salutations and standing poses are stimulating can not only help you chose which poses to do at a particular time of time, but when you know something about how the poses effect you in general, you can actually practice to balance your emotions.

So today I�ve grouped the yoga poses into general categories, and for each category, I�ll list some of the typical emotional effects. In the end, however, don�t just take my word for it. You should always rely on your personal experience to guide you. Baxter and I once had a student who said that twists made her sleepy. That�s not the traditional view of how twists effect us, but if this woman felt they made her sleepy, well, that�s what they did!

Standing Poses. These are considered to be very grounding poses, which immediately engage your body-mind and bring you into the present moment. So they are good poses to do when you are worried and distracted or agitated. Standing poses are also stimulating, because being upright raises your blood pressure and increases your heart rate (ha, ha, the reverse of being inverted). So while these are great poses to do in the morning or afternoon, these are not good poses to do before bedtime if you have trouble sleeping.

Sun Salutations. Poses that are linked together with the breath, including Sun Salutations, moving from Paschimottanasna to Halasana and back, and even just moving from Tadasana to Uttanasana and back, can energize your emotional body and can help lift you out of lethargy, depression, or sadness. Like standing poses, Sun Salutations are stimulating. Moving with your breath increases your oxygen intake and up to standing and then back down again can raise your blood pressure. So like standing poses, Sun Salutations are great in the morning or afternoon, but not good to do before bedtime if you have trouble sleeping.

Backbends. These are considered to be energizing, uplifting poses. They may help create more energy when you are tired and may help lift you out of depression or sadness. On the negative side, they may actually make you too hyper if you are already nervous, and some people have difficulty falling asleep after practicing backbends. Because they literally open the heart area, they may cause strong emotions to arise�sometimes people find themselves crying after doing a lot of backbends. One way to access the energizing, uplifting quality of these poses without over-stimulating yourself it is to do passive, supported backbends.

Twists. These are considered to be cleansing poses. They can help release stress from your body-mind. On the negative side, twists may also release difficult feelings or emotions, so that they may actually leave you feeling a bit yucky�that�s a technical term�although that has never happened to me.

Forward Bends. These are considered to be quieting, introverted poses. They are restful poses that can calm you down when you are feeling agitated or hyper and rest you when you are feeling fatigued. On the negative side, the inward-turning quality of the poses may cause you to brood or feel claustrophobic. Supported versions of these poses that remove the physical resistance from the pose can be extremely quieting and calming.

Inverted Poses. These poses are considered to be soothing and centering poses. Although Headstand is a fiery pose (it warms you physically), it is also very calming. And any pose where you head is on the ground, such as Supported Downward-Facing Dog, Supported Standing Forward Bend, and Supported Wide Angle Standing Forward Bend, is considered to have the same benefits and can be substituted for Headstand. Shoulderstand�if it is at all comfortable for you�is more cooling than Headstand and is considered the ultimate soothing pose (the mother of all poses). Viparita Karani is also very soothing for almost everybody. I think a good reason to do the work to become comfortable with Headstand and Shoulderstand is because the benefits they provide are so valuable.

Arm Balances. Handstand and the other arm balances fully engage your body-mind as they demand your immediate presence of mind. This can help distract you from concerns outside the yoga room and therefore lift your spirits or at least give you a break from your obsessions. (Patricia Walden recommends them for depression for people for whom backbends are very easy.)

Hip Openers and Seated Poses. These poses are considered to be very grounding and centering. They seem to release tension, especially from the legs, and bring you into the present moment. On the negative side, opening your hips can sometimes feel really yucky�both mentally and physically�who knows why?�and you might not feel up to it some days.

Readers, what are your thoughts about the emotional effects of various yoga poses?

Interview with Vickie Russell Bell, Continued: Teaching Yoga to Students with Parkinson's

Baxter: Can you talk a bit about what sort of experience or training would be optimal for a teacher out there thinking about doing this sort of class for folks with Parkinson�s?

Vickie: Teachers interested in working with PWPD need to have a strong background in teaching asana and adapting classic poses. Assisting a teacher who works with disabilities or special populations (or even someone who is adept at working with seniors) would be very useful. If a teacher is interested in eventually working with a group, starting solo with a PD student who is mobile and only slightly limited might help her begin to understand this population.

There are often local PD organizations that offer classes or info sessions for those interested in furthering their knowledge. I am currently training a number of yoga teachers who want to take this work into the community and I hope to expand this educational opportunity further.

Baxter: And final advice to either students with Parkinson�s, or teachers interested in working with this population?

Vickie: The thing that drives my success in working with this population is this motto: Teach to their possibility, not their disability! Be willing to be light, to play ant, to constantly continue to learn. 

Vickie Russell Bell was born and raised in Ohio, and is a journalist by education. She teaches yoga because she loves to. Her intention is to help her students increase their level of daily awareness through their body, breath and experience. She is a graduate of the Piedmont Yoga Studio Advanced Training Program and is a certified �Relax and Renew Trainer� through Judith Lasater�s accredited program. See here for more information.

Interview with Vickie Russell Bell: Yoga for Parkinson's Disease

In October, we were fortunate to have long-time yoga teacher and yoga writer Richard Rosen contribute a post about his personal journey with Parkinson�s Disease and the recommendations he has for working with the condition. This month, I am pleased to share with you an interview with another yoga teacher, Vickie Russell Bell, who has been involved in serving the Parkinson�s community for several years now. You can learn more about her teaching here. 

Baxter: Vickie, I know that you have been offering a Parkinson�s Yoga Class at Piedmont Yoga Studio in Oakland for some time now. How did that come about, and what�s the class like?

Vickie: I�ve been teaching a yoga class for people with Parkinson�s Disease (PWPD) for a little more than three years now. I started off assisting Richard Rosen, teaching about 8-10 students, and then took over leading the classes. I now offer two classes weekly at Piedmont Yoga Studio through a local organization called PD Active! In a given week there are usually 12-18 participants per class. These students have varying physical abilities. I have two assistants helping in each class.

As Richard Rosen stated in a previous post about PD (see here): it is a progressive degenerative disorder of the central nervous system. Common physical symptoms are loss of muscular flexibility (PWPD become very stiff), loss of balance, loss of strength and often a noticeable resting tremor. Sometimes people who have been diagnosed with Parkinson�s are in denial, resentment or rejection of their condition. PD affects the body, mind and spirit and needs to be looked at holistically. Asana practice done regularly can help students to cultivate and refine their body awareness so as to work productively with some of these symptoms.

My students with Parkinson�s definitely need extra attention during classes. I attempt to adapt what I�m teaching in my public classes that week for the classes (for example, Downward Dog with hands on a chair seat, Warrior I with the front knee supported by a block and the wall, Bakasana (Crane pose) lying on the back). Often in class there is an extra emphasis on keeping the feet stretched, open and supple to increase awareness of the base, on balance, on opening the upper back/chest/lungs, and on restorative poses (PWPD are often taking various medications that can make them fatigued or affect sleep adversely).

Baxter: Can you share with our readers any observations of the benefits your students have discovered by regular attendance in your class?

Vickie: I can do even better! Here is some testimonial directly from one of mty PD Active yoga students:

�The yoga exercise class has helped me immensely and I feel it is due mostly to stretching of the muscles. Parkinson�s causes atrophy in our muscles and the yoga exercises are a direct hit against that atrophy. I walk straighter and breathe properly when I walk now. Learning to breathe properly in the yoga class has helped my freezing of feet problem as well. When my feet freeze now I stop, breathe, relax and off I go again. Before, I would go into panic mode, struggle and usually fall. I have had fewer falls since I started the yoga class. I used to fall about three times a week and now it is about twice a month and that�s usually due to my own inability to breathe properly and stay relaxed. Yoga has added to the quality of my life.�

Baxter: In Richard�s post, he mentioned the benefits of supported backbend over a bolster. Where do you see that pose fitting in, and what are two or three other essential poses you find helpful for your classes?

Vickie: I often incorporate the backbend over a bolster that Richard described in my classes. My students also love supported twists over a bolster as well as a Viparita Karani variation. Legs up the Wall is difficult for many Parkinson�s students due to tight hips and hamstrings, and rounded upper backs. So this is how I teach the Viparita Karani variation:

Fold two long, single fold blankets (Shoulderstand size in half long ways) and place them on the floor in front of a chair seat. Have the student sit with their tailbone right on the front edge of the blankets and lie back so that the blankets are perpendicular to the spine and support the lumbar curve and back of the pelvis. Some PD students may need help lying back safely, or may need help adjusting the blankets. The student then hooks the back of their knees on the front edge of the chair seat, resting the calves on the seat. If your student has a rounded upper back they might benefit from a lift under their head so that the chin and forehead are on the same level. Here's a photograph from one of my classes of a student in the pose:

Viparita Karani variation (also called Easy Inverted pose)

This pose allows the low back (lumbar spine) to have a neutral curve or for some a slight backbend and allows the shoulders and chest to gently open. This can be a delicious pose for someone who spends most of their day with the head and shoulders hunched forward! I also teach PWPD adaptations of many standing poses and other beneficial active poses.

Tune in tomorrow for the second half of Baxter's interview with Vickie Russell Bell, in which she will talk about how to teach students with Parkinson's Disease.

Featured Pose: Knees to Chest Pose (Apanasana)

by Baxter and Nina

Knees to Chest pose is a great way to warm up at the beginning of a practice or to cool down at the end of a practice, especially after a backbend or forward bend practice. This pose allows you to check in with the tightness or openness of your hip and buttock muscles and soft tissues, as you gently massage your lower back and abdomen. Because your knees are bent, the tension on the hamstring muscles is greatly reduced, making it safer than straight leg stretches for those nursing a sore or injured lower back. It�s very easy to do, doesn�t require props, and doesn�t take up much space, so this pose is one you can do almost any time or anywhere for quick relief of low back pain or discomfort after sitting for long periods of time, such as at a desk, in a car, or on an airplane.

This pose goes by different names Sanskrit names, depending on the yoga lineage. In the Krishnamacharya tradition, it is called Apanasana, with apana referring to the downward moving inner energetic wind of the body. So the pose is associated with anything that needs to exit the body from the perineum, including waste from the GI tract, as well as reproduction functions (it is sometimes recommended for menstrual irregularity, although Baxter knows of no evidence to support this). In other traditions, the pose is called Pavanmuktasana, which means wind-relieving pose. That name is self explanatory!

Baxter prescribes this pose for:

�    low back relief
�    tight hips
�    GI conditions where sluggishness is a problem (such as constipation)
�    general relaxation prior to Savasana

Instructions: Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on floor.

Next, hold onto your knees with your hands, keeping your arms straight. On an inhalation, lift your feet up just a bit. Completely relax your leg muscles and let your arms do all the work.

Then, on your exhalation, bend your elbows and draw your knees toward your chest.

On your inhalation, straighten your arms and release your knees to the starting position. Repeat six times, moving with your breath.

Baxter recommends the dynamic version of this pose (moving with your breath) for low back pain, but if you are using the pose for other reasons and you prefer holding the pose for a longer period of time, you can keep your knees to your chest for 30 seconds to one minute.

Cautions: If you have knee problems, hold your hands behind your knees (between your calves and thighs). If the bones of soft tissues of your lower back or pelvis are sensitive, lie on a folded blanket or other padding.

Friday Q&A: Restorative Yoga

Q: Thanks to your blog, I�ve been practicing Legs Up the Wall pose on a regular basis now, and I just love it. However, I have a friend who can�t do inversions due to blood pressure concerns. What are some relaxing poses that she can do?

A: Restorative yoga is perfect for someone like your friend, as well as anyone who is sick, stressed out, or low on energy, or who just wants to experience a soothing practice. Restorative yoga is a form of yoga that was specially designed to provide deep rest and relaxation. In restorative yoga, you use props to support yourself in the shape of a classic yoga pose, including forward bends, backbends, side stretches, twists, and inversions. For example, in Child�s Pose, rather than folding forward all the way on to the floor, you use a bolster or stack of folded blankets to support your entire front body.

Standard Child's Pose

Restorative Child's Pose

The props you use in restorative yoga not only make the pose more comfortable but they take the effort out of the pose. Rather than using your muscles to hold you in the shape of a pose as you would normally, the props hold you in the pose so you can simply let your muscles relax. With your muscles completely relaxed, you can then turn your attention inward, focusing on your breath, physical sensations, or any other object of meditation, which allows the relaxation response to switch on.

Now you might ask, why would you go through the trouble to put yourself into a restorative yoga pose when you can just do Savasana (Corpse pose)? In Savasana your body is in an anatomically neutral position, so that no muscles are being released or stretched. In a restorative pose, however, you still receive many of the benefits of the pose itself. For example, in a restorative backbend, you are opening your chest and stretching many of the muscles that become tight after driving long distances or sitting hunched forward at a desk all day. Passively stretching your muscles as your relax increases your feeling of relaxation, as some of the stress you have been holding in your body is gently released. And because you are completely comfortable and relaxed, you can stay in the pose for much longer amounts of time. So restorative poses are actually a good way to work on flexibility, as well as relaxation.

We definitely plan to introduce some restorative yoga poses and sequences on this blog in the future, but until then, three of the books on our list of recommendations yesterday (see here) are good resources for information on restorative yoga: Moving Toward Balance, Relax & Renew, and The Woman�s Book of Yoga and Health.

�Nina