Head of the Knee Pose. Practice this pose to promote flexibility in the hip joints and relief from mental turmoil.

Medical Uses:

Practice Head of The Knee Pose (along with the other forward bends) to bring high blood pressure under control. Acidity, bronchitis, colitis, leg deformity, diabetes, kidney problems and prostate problems, can also be tackled by working intelligently and regularly in this pose.

1. Sit in Dandasana (Staff Pose). Bend your left knee to the side and place your right foot against your inner right thigh. Raise your arms.
2. Reach forward and hold your right foot. Curve your spine in and up.
3. Fold forward over your right leg. Place your head on your shin.

Practice Note:

If you are flexible turn your hands out and clasp the left wrist.

If you cannot clasp your feet hold a strap. To enable a quiet mental release, either support your head on a bolster placed across the legs, or rest your head on a chair.

Chapter 11: “Facing the Truth” Excerpt from feature documentary, Addiction, Recovery and Yoga.

Shoulderstand. This pose brings about inner peace and tranquility.

Medical Uses:

This pose strengthens the spine: Problems such as arthritis of the lower back, dorsal region and shoulder joints, general backache and displaced spinal discs, can all be dealt with if this pose is practiced regularly and correctly.

Perhaps one of the greatest benefits of this pose is that it can help relieve the problems that beset many of us each winter such as, bronchitis, chest, chill, cold, cough and nasal catarrh. Learn this pose and stay away from antibiotics as much as possible. Asthma, tonsillitis, and (after medical treatment and rest) pleurisy and pneumonia, can also be brought under control with a practice that includes this pose.

Shoulderstand calms the brain like no other pose. For instance, this pose can be a wonderful tool for women going through menopause. Practice it along with Sirsasana to deal with memory loss, nervous debility and anxiety. It also helps to bring heart palpitations under control.

Other conditions that can be addressed by a balanced practice that contains
Shoulderstand: Acidity, anemia, appendicitis, low blood pressure, breathlessness, colic, colitis, constipation, diabetes, displacement of uterus, epilepsy, giddiness, (umbilical) hernia, (inguinal) hernia, impotency, indigestion, insomnia, kidney problems, swollen knees, lumbago, menstrual disorders, hemorrhoids, prostate problems, sciatica, duodenal ulcer and varicose veins.

1. Stack three blankets neatly, one on top of the other. Lay back over the blankets with your head on the floor and your shoulders two or three inches in from the (folded) edge. Bend your knees. Press your arms by your sides, palms facing down.
2. Roll your knees up over your chest.
3. Raise your hips. Support your back with your hands and place the tips of your toes on the floor above your head.
4. Clasp your hands behind your back and stretch your arms away from you. Come onto the tops of your shoulders.
5. Lift your spine. Hold for a few minutes at first

Practice Note:

Beginners should begin with the feet supported on a chair. When the pelvis can be held in line with the shoulders, and the back becomes strong, the feet can be lowered.

“Yoga is a process of self exploration and healing”

Yoga is the original mind-body workout, meditation in action. Although most people perceive yoga as a nice way to stretch, it is way more profound than that. It is a process of self exploration and healing. The postures, or asanas, help align and strengthen muscles and bones, but also can be a way of improving the functioning of the nervous, hormonal, digestive, cardiovascular, pulmonary and immune systems. It can boost your energy and relax you. It promotes a sense of unity and balance. And when your body feels balanced, so does your mind. Some of the less tangible effects I have noticed from doing yoga myself have been more patience, serenity and resilience, a capacity to cope better with the stresses of life. In this day and age, I feel all of us can do with a little bit of all those qualities.

“A unique aspect of yoga is its adaptability”

The unique aspect of yoga is its adaptability. What I mean by that, is when you are tired there are poses to restore you, when stressed out, poses to relax you, when depressed, poses to elevate your mood, or when you can’t sleep, poses to help the insomnia. And you can do it anywhere, a hotel room, in your home or at the office.

“Yoga is a way of optimizing physical, emotional and mental functions”

Yoga was developed as a way of optimizing physical well being as a necessary first step to optimizing emotional and mental functions. So there is an emphasis in yoga, not on competition and winning, but on learning a practice that is defined as “good” to the extent that it induces physical strength, organic health, emotional stability, mental lucidity and joy of being. In fact delivering most of the benefits that most people want from any practice.

As I get older, it has been yoga, more than anything else I do, that has kept me feeling healthy and vital. I have also observed this in my patients that do yoga. It is a process of self exploration and healing.

Upward Bow Pose stimulates the nervous and circulatory systems and tones the whole body.

Medical Uses:

Backbends work on the spine and chest. They help reduce general backache and can keep in check arthritis of the lower back, dorsal region and shoulder joints. Practiced regularly, they can also reverse hunchback.
Upward Bow helps those with asthma, breathlessness, bronchitis, chest, chill, cough and tonsillitis.

When included in a balanced practice, Urdhva Dhanurasana also brings relief for those with colitis, diabetes, tight hamstrings, (umbilical) hernia, impotency, kidney problems, lumbago, menstrual problems, hemorrhoids, prostate problems and a displaced and painful coccyx.

1. Lay on your back with your knees bent. Place your hands under your shoulders with your fingers facing your toes
2. Raise your pelvis. Raise your chest and place the crown of your head on the floor. Suck your shoulder blades and your back ribs firmly into your back. Don’t let your elbows swing out – they should be shoulder width apart.
3. Push down through your hands and feet and push up into the pose. Raise your heels and lift the trunk higher
4. Move your tailbone deep into your pelvis and place your heels on the floor.

Practice Note:

This pose is for intermediate students only. Learn the basics of yoga in a beginner’s class first so that your body is toned and strong before embarking on back bends such as this.

Before practicing back bends, warm up first with some standing poses. Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (Upward Facing Dog Pose) also works well to get the spine moving prior to backbends.

A yoga practice combined with diet and lifestyle changes can strengthen and harmonize digestion and elimination to heal and reduce many GI complaints.

If you have chronic digestive problems, a short regular yoga practice, continued over a few months will certainly help to resolve the problem and keep your digestive system healthy and functioning smoothly. You will need a yoga instructor to ensure you receive the utmost benefits.

For lower abdominal problems like constipation or diarrhea, set up in the Supported Bridge Pose with the following items: a yoga bolster, a yoga block and a blanket (or some firm cushions) and a pile of books.

1. Set a yoga block or a 12-inch-high pile of books against a wall.
2. Place a bolster or firm cushions at right angles to the wall. The far end of the bolster should be about five feet away from the wall.
3. Begin by sitting in the middle of the bolster facing the wall. Then, lie back over the end of the bolster.
4. Now for the adjustment change the position of the bolster, or change your position on it so that your feet firmly contact the wall and your shoulders rest lightly on the floor.
5. Stay in the position and relax for 5-10 minutes, eyes closed.

Notice the shape of the posture, especially how the chest coils over the end of the bolster and how the shoulders rest only lightly on the floor. This restorative pose is restful and rejuvenates the whole system, including digestion.

Head Stand counteracts tiredness, improves concentration and boosts self-confidence.

Medical Uses:

First and foremost, Headstand, when practiced correctly, oxygenates the brain and helps those with memory loss. When practiced incorrectly, it can damage the neck, so be sure to study with a qualified yoga teacher.

This pose strengthens the back; it helps those with arthritis of the lower back, dorsal region and shoulder joints as well as dealing with lumbago, sciatica, and general backache.

It also works on the legs; any experienced yoga practitioner who has had the misfortune of spraining a knee or an ankle knows how effective this pose is at bringing down a swelling or inflammation in these joints. Varicose veins, and coccyx pain and displacement can also be reduced.

Diseases of the respiratory system, lungs and heart such as palpitations, asthma, breathlessness, bronchitis, nasal catarrh, chills, cold and cough, and (after medical treatment and rest) pleurisy and pneumonia, can all be tackled by standing on your head.
Headstand also brings relief for those suffering from digestive problems; constipation, acidity, colic and colitis can all be ameliorated with this and other poses.

Always practice this pose regularly in equal measure with your shoulderstand.

It can also boost low blood pressure. Other conditions that greatly benefit from Headstand are diabetes, displaced uterus, epilepsy, umbilical hernia, inguinal hernia, impotency, anemia, appendicitis, insomnia, kidney problems, menstrual disorders, prostrate problems, tonsillitis and duodenal ulcer.

1. Start by practicing against a wall. Kneel down in front of a wall.Interlace your hands. Place your elbows a shoulder width apart on the floor and then place the outer edges of your interlaced hands on the floor, touching the wall. Place the crown of your head on the floor, inside your hands.
2. Raise your hips and straighten your legs. Pull your upper back away from the wall, press your forearms down and lift your shoulders away from the floor.
3. Come up, one leg at a time.
4. Place your feet but not your buttocks on the wall. To avoid compressing your neck, secure a strong base: continue raising your shoulders up and pressing your shoulder-blades in toward your st. Touch the inner edges of your feet together and stretch your legs up.
5. Gradually move away from the wall, a few inches at a time until you can balance without support. Don’t be in a hurry to do this. Work diligently and methodically to develop strength and balance.

Practice Note:

Sirsasana is not for beginners. Iyengar yoga teachers really are second to none when it comes to teaching inversions! Learn this in an Iyengar level II class. Until you are ready to begin learning headstand, practice Standing Wide Leg Forward Bend Pose (Prassarita Padottanasana).