Entering a temple while menstruating was considered to be a sin, and it was even common that women were asked to leave their home and stay in a hut outside their village for the duration of their menstruation. That woman should not practice yoga during their menstruation, therefore, becomes a logical conclusion, if you were to be influenced by this stigma. Remnants of this cultural view on yoga, can be found in most of the yoga traditions.
Countless other schools of yoga are either strongly against or undecided as to whether practitioners should practice during their periods. Deep breathing practices, meditation, and gentle yoga poses that emphasize on stability and flexibility alleviate many of the problems that women general tend to experience during their monthly cycles such as cramps, weakness, nausea, or emotional symptoms like anxiety, irritation, mood swings etc.
Menstrual cycles are like a barometer of your hormonal health. If this harmony is disturbed, your menstrual cycles will let you know in different ways. That is the reason why irregular menstruation and severe menstrual symptoms may indicate hormonal problems. In the short run, these changes do not pose any threat, but if you keep on neglecting these signals, you stand a higher risk of developing some serious complication or disease later on.
For example, very heavy bleeding may lead to iron-deficiency anemia. Some women may notice a worsening of symptoms of certain diseases like asthma or autoimmune conditions. Others stand a higher risk of developing mood disorders like depression. Prolonged cycles may indicate PCOS poly cystic ovary syndrome , which could lead to infertility. It may also increase the risk of developing diabetes. If irregular periods or other problems with the menstrual cycle are frequent, one should seek medical attention and avoid strenuous exercise.
In case of any of the following irregularities occur frequently, you should consult a health care professional at the earliest:. Even though the stigma on impurity has somewhat been watered down by the Western influence on yoga, it continues to be quite prominent. In many yoga classes and yoga teacher training programs, students are told that even though it is okay to practice some light and Yin inspired yoga poses, they should definitely avoid heavy practices and inversions.
Students are told that a more vigorous practice, including advanced yoga positions and inversions, might slow down the cleansing process and have an adverse effect on their health.
The myth that inversions might trigger the onset of endometriosis is common in the yoga community. The thinking goes that during inversions, gravity will pull the menstrual flow away from your vagina and towards the Fallopian tubes.
Positive affirmations like, "I am so grateful for my incredible body," or, "I am free of pain and suffering," or, "I am in charge of how I feel, and today, I am choosing happiness," are all great places to start. This might be new, and even a bit weird for you if you haven't done it before, so try to keep an open mind, and release all expectations you have for your meditation practice. As Dr. Guptha notes, these types of positive affirmations will only work if you, yourself, are ready and willing to manifest positive change — so, are you?
By Georgina Berbari. Parker says meditating is a great way to de-stress, especially when dealing with painful period symptoms, all because of the relaxation response that mindfulness elicits in your body.
Rituals are an ancient, magical and long forgotten practice to celebrate or recognise in a sacred way. In this session we learn all about the Sorceress Goddess Archetype; who she is, how you can connect with her energy and when in your cycle and your life you are most likely to feel her presence. Nicola guides you through a meditation where you will journey to a wooden cabin, nestled deeply in the woods, and meet your inner Sorceress. She is the Wild Woman who is often misunderstood by many, but you are about to learn the truth of who she really is and how important she is to women everywhere.
In this session we learn about the many gifts of the Wild Woman. In this modern patriarchal world, we have lost touch with our inner Sorceress. In this lesson Nicola reminds you of how important it is to embrace your inner Sorceress fully, and you are guided in meditation to a powerful circle of women, where you are free to connect with and unleash your Wild Woman and celebrate women everywhere. In a safe space, lets explore together the unpredictable energies of the sorceress, which is felt most powerfully before bleeding in the menstrual cycle and pre menopausal in the life cycle.
As a circle of goddess lets pick our way through potentially explosive, blunt, out of control and critical tendencies. A shorter mindful meditation concludes this session, which you can continue to use when you have a few minutes to spare in your everyday life to temper the chaos of the wild woman in a calm and productive way. Sam shares with you the practical ways in which you can invite her wild energy into your modern day life and thrive during this potent phase.
At the very beginning of the lesson you are guided into a light state of meditation so that you can absorb the positive teachings fully on a mind and soul level. In this session we learn how to bring balance to our body, mind and soul through meditation which can greatly assist us during our pre-menstrual phase. You are encouraged to look within and focus on giving yourself and your body exactly what it needs to feel in balance and harmony once again.
Historically, Shamanic ritual has lived inside the core of indigenous cultures and aimed to restore wholeness. With Sam, you are going to embark on a basic ritual as a way of stepping out of the hum drum of everyday life and honour the potency of the Sorceress, through manifestation and magic.
In this session, we embark on a new phase and get to know our Oracle Goddess; who she is, how you can connect with her energy and when in your cycle and your life you are most likely to feel her wise energy. Later, we meet her in a meditation where she can introduce her all knowing and intuitive strengths. Sam looks forward to guiding you into the final archetypal goddess phase. This session is insight based, as we acknowledge the positives of the Oracle phase. Overtime, bleeding has become shameful and age has become inferior.
We learn to fully embrace our beautifully insightful Oracle both cyclically and in life. We end this talking based lesson with a collective chant of the mantra OM, to deepen the lesson and invite your Oracle Goddess into the light.
In this lesson we learn what happens when our inner Oracle is out of balance. When we hold on to her energy too tightly we can experience depression, social anxiety and feel depleted, cranky and irritated. Nicola guides you through a touching meditation, where you will hold hands with the two Goddesses either side of this phase, the Sorceress and the Warrior, who will both help you experience your Oracle phase in a healthy, balanced and healing way.
This entire lesson is practiced in a light state of meditation, where Nicola will offer you practical tips that will help you to connect with your own time of bleeding. You are encouraged to take time to allow your body to rest, retreat, and given tips on essential oils and healing crystals that can aid you during this phase.
A full, restorative guided visualization awaits you in this lesson. How are we supposed to retreat when we have become expected to ignore our bodies in this modern day world? Sam will help you let go in a protective, sacred, red tent meditation where you can enjoy a delicious full body mental massage to soothe away tension and stress.
Daydream, reverie, and enter a state of deep rest. In this session, you are guided through a deeply healing and spiritual meditation, to honour the Oracle within and without. Surya namaskar, when done slowly and gently, can be useful, however it should be avoided if there is a lot of pain or heavy bleeding. Thirdly, bandhas should be avoided for similar reasons. On a pranic level they move the apana upwards instead of down and physically they add more contraction to an already tight region and in the case of uddiyan bandha increasing the heat which can lead to heavier bleeding.
It may seem like there are many positions that cannot be practiced however this is not the case. Many positions can still be practiced and many more positions that may not be in ones daily practice can be incorporated and explored.
It's all about listening to the bodies needs and accepting that this is a time of introversion, acceptance and balance. Do remember that it is not necessary that you have to practice asanas during your period. For the first two days you may have a break from asanas. That doesn't mean you cannot practice other techniques such as pranayam, yoga nidra and meditation.
All will have benefits. It is important that if you decide to practice that you should be aware of and listen to your body. Do not push or strain and instead do some more gentle poses but hold them a little longer. Generally it is good to practice positions that allow one to become more grounded, to alleviate any emotional disturbances and to gain inner strength.
To warm up one can practice the preparatory movements 1 to 12, arm movements, leg and knee movements. The pawanmuktasan series 1, 2 and 3 from Swami Satyananda are also recommended.
Surya namaskar Sun Salutation can be practiced if there is no heavy bleeding or cramping. But it should not be performed in a fast manner. Chandra namaskar Moon Salutation is another alternative which is more soothing, harmonizing and calming at this time and helps to cultivate the feminine aspects.
Gentle forward bends give a light massage to the abdominal and pelvic region, helping to relieve congestion, heaviness, cramping and heavy bleeding. They also bring calmness to the mind. Do not strain or do strong forward bends. Vajrasan Yoga Mudra Type 1 and Shashankasan can be practiced with the knees further apart. Gentle twisting positions can remove back pain, cramping and congestion. Examples include leg movement type 2, vakrasan Twisted Pose type 1, preparatory movement 2 and 3 and gentle twists in sitting positions.
Avoid very strong twisting positions. Gentle backbends, especially when supported, can alleviate back pain and pelvic discomfort. Examples include Supta Vajrasan Sleeping Thunderbolt sitting on heels or with heels apart and Supta Titaliasana Sleeping Butterfly supported with bolsters.
The Vajrasan series is also useful especially for removing tension from the back and to remove pelvic congestion.
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