38
EARLY PREGNANCY
Many women find early pregnancy most challenging. Discomforts associated with hormonal
changes, such as exhaustion and nausea, can be alleviated with yoga until they subside later on.
However, anxiety, pelvic pain, and backaches may be longer-lasting and so require preventative
yoga. Your breath is your main tool in these simple yet effective exercises, which act simultaneously
on your endocrine glands and nervous system. The effect of each exercise is cumulative, so that
frequent practice through the day brings the best results for each of these conditions.
SPECIAL APPLICATIONS
Lifting your sternum and opening out
your shoulder blades helps alleviate
heartburn. Sit astride a chair facing
backward and hold its back. Pull your
shoulders back and breathe steadily
for six breaths. If you experience
lower back pain or groin twinges,
sit at the front of the chair facing
forward and place your palms on the
seat to push your chest up. Look up
at the ceiling if comfortable.
Sit up straight with your knees apart. Place your hands,
palms up, against your lower abdomen so that your
fingers point toward each other. Breathe in deeply and
feel your abdomen expand. Gather energy and slowly
breathe in and out for six breaths. Then curl up your
fingers, turn your wrists out, and breathe intensely
in your upper chest for six more breaths.
TIREDNESS HEARTBURN
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39
SPECIAL APPLICATIONS
“Bee breath” helps relieve mild
depression and anxiety. Sit up
straight with your hands over your
ears and your eyes closed. Inhale
deeply. Exhale slowly, making a
buzzing sound that vibrates in
your head. Repeat four times.
lf you can easily lift your
legs over your head, use
this supported Half plow
pose to relax your brain
and relieve tension and
anxiety. Lie on the floor
with your head under a
chair and bring your legs
over your head so that
the tops of your thighs are
supported by the chair seat.
Support your shoulders with
a folded blanket if your back
needs to be lifted slightly.
Rest your arms on the floor
and relax for five to 10
minutes, breathing evenly.
SYMPHYSIS PUBIS
DISORDER (SPD)
Alleviate early stages of
pubic pain by toning the
deepest muscles of the
pelvis linked to your pelvic
floor muscles. Sit in a stable
“triangle,” whereby the
distance between your knee
is no greater than the length
of your thighs, and your feet
are solidly planted on the
floor in line with your
knees, creating an equilateral
triangle between your sitting
bones and your knees. Press
your sitting bones into the
chair and breathe deeply
in this neutral, aligned
sitting pose.
ANXIETY
RELIEVING TENSION
Choose a chair that
is neither too high nor
too low for your legs
Roll back down if your
neck is strained or if you
feel pressure on your eyes
Move into
position slowly
and carefully
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