I’m working my way through an online course on integrating yoga therapeutics into rehabilitation. If you’re interested, it’s freely online from Smart Safe Yoga (just ask me for the code for free access).
The course kicked off the second week with a quote from B.K.S. Iyengar (he is often credited for introducing yoga to the western world with his first book, Light on Yoga):
“Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured.”
That says so much about what my style of teaching yoga is all about. I think yoga can be fantastic at helping improve strength, mobility and balance. It can also help with stress relief and sometimes can even resolve chronic injuries and pain.
But can, doesn’t mean always. With age, the physical challenges we give our body, and life stresses, sometimes we can’t really get rid of those things that give us chronic pain and stress.
That also doesn’t mean you have to grin and bear it. Yoga can also be a tool to manage and cope with chronic pain and stress.
Sometimes how that works in a yoga class is confusing. There are so many mixed messages, of ‘pushing through the pain’, ‘no pain no gain’, or ‘sitting through the discomfort.’
I don’t agree with those. I suppose there are times when you do have to work through pain, but that should be done with caution and with the help of a clinical professional one-to-one – think doctor, physio, osteopath, acupuncturist.
So what about in a yoga class?
This comes back to you. You are the expert of your body and mind. Only you will know what’s best. I realise it might feel sometimes like you have no idea. That’s OK. It’s worth trying to figure it out.
Stop thinking about trying to fix, cure or get rid of the pain/limitations/discomfort. Instead, try to understand it and figure out what provides relief.
But where to begin?
When you’re in a yoga class, or doing anything really…ask yourself:
- Does this hurt me?
- Will this hurt me?
If the answer is yes, why are you doing it? Can you stop or do something differently so that it feels OK?
