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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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