I had two clients this afternoon. Both have been in debilitating humbling pain this summer.
Today I allowed the yoga to present itself as appropriate.
The yoga practice can be approached as simply a form of physical therapy or it can be approached as a path to Yoga. To allow the session to be an opportunity for Yoga to occur, is to open up to a great deal more than relief of a bulging disc. We suddenly open ourselves up to insight which means that the work has just begun.
Insight into the idea or thought pattern that sits at the source of our pain is a beginning.
The techniques that are prescribed as homework were simply tools to hep keep both women on the track of their own healing.
For the first time I did not feel drained after a FULL day of teaching. Two classes and two private sessions. Something was shifted today. I was relaxed and open and following the guidance completely.
Showing posts with label pain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pain. Show all posts
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Thursday, April 24, 2008
1:1 Week of April 21
Wow. New client today.
Very fit male, maybe in his 40s.
In a really tough spot in his life.
In excruciating sciatic nerve pain.
Many injuries from many accidents.
Today's session was about understanding the situation and offering a few things he could start to do on his own.
It was so bad it felt appropriate to just share my biases on the relationship between the causal, astral and physical realm. He seemed open and even agreed. I wanted to make sure that it was clear that I was not going to be able to make magic happen...that the healing would be up to him.
We agreed that it is a dialogue and maybe together we can help things to open.
Supine
He told me the story as I worked his legs a little with Thai Yoga Massage. The Right Side is frozen and more than a few degrees movement towards internal or external rotation creates shooting pain.
We started with Left Leg (the good leg).
Apanasana
Hip Rotation Awareness 1 and 2
This was not even possible on the Right Side without intense pain, so we did not do it on that side, but rather focused on the open feeling on the left and played with the idea of "transfer."
I believe that the right side can start to get "trained" by the left side.
Hamstring Stretch on the Left.
Supine Tailbone Awareness
More pain with Dog Tilt than Cat Tuck
A "bunching up" in the hip crease and joint
Yin Sphinx (I recommended he start to do this)
Cat/Cow
More pain with dog tilt than with cat tuck
This lead me to believe that there is not herniation in the discs, but rather the pain is coming from a misalignment in pelvis from car accident.
Easy Supported Groin Opener with Props
Legs up Wall and Wide
This was going okay until he started to come out. He was gripped in terrible pain.
There seems to be equal pain if the hip rotates to far out or in.
Neutral Hip Position or Constructive Rest Pose
This was one of the best things we did.
Cuz the tightness and holding in the right side was so apparent.
After 10 minutes, seemed to relax a bit.
Belly Breathing
This was key.
The whole abdomen is so held and tight that to relax it and allow it to move was totally foreign.
His homework is to play with these things and we will go from there.
Very fit male, maybe in his 40s.
In a really tough spot in his life.
In excruciating sciatic nerve pain.
Many injuries from many accidents.
Today's session was about understanding the situation and offering a few things he could start to do on his own.
It was so bad it felt appropriate to just share my biases on the relationship between the causal, astral and physical realm. He seemed open and even agreed. I wanted to make sure that it was clear that I was not going to be able to make magic happen...that the healing would be up to him.
We agreed that it is a dialogue and maybe together we can help things to open.
Supine
He told me the story as I worked his legs a little with Thai Yoga Massage. The Right Side is frozen and more than a few degrees movement towards internal or external rotation creates shooting pain.
We started with Left Leg (the good leg).
Apanasana
Hip Rotation Awareness 1 and 2
This was not even possible on the Right Side without intense pain, so we did not do it on that side, but rather focused on the open feeling on the left and played with the idea of "transfer."
I believe that the right side can start to get "trained" by the left side.
Hamstring Stretch on the Left.
Supine Tailbone Awareness
More pain with Dog Tilt than Cat Tuck
A "bunching up" in the hip crease and joint
Yin Sphinx (I recommended he start to do this)
Cat/Cow
More pain with dog tilt than with cat tuck
This lead me to believe that there is not herniation in the discs, but rather the pain is coming from a misalignment in pelvis from car accident.
Easy Supported Groin Opener with Props
Legs up Wall and Wide
This was going okay until he started to come out. He was gripped in terrible pain.
There seems to be equal pain if the hip rotates to far out or in.
Neutral Hip Position or Constructive Rest Pose
This was one of the best things we did.
Cuz the tightness and holding in the right side was so apparent.
After 10 minutes, seemed to relax a bit.
Belly Breathing
This was key.
The whole abdomen is so held and tight that to relax it and allow it to move was totally foreign.
His homework is to play with these things and we will go from there.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Second 1:1 Monday, February 11
Usually I do not do two privates in a day. But today was an exception.
Client: 68 year old man who has been doing yoga regurally for about 10 years. He has been coming to Lulu's for about 3 years. In the last 3 months, however, the pain in his hips and neck from osteoarthirits is making it difficult for him to do all the moves he used to. He talked me through some of the problem areas. As always, I feel like I have gotten "the teachings" just in time as Tucker and I just finished leading the "Yoga For Life" Teacher Training.
Today's session felt like an assessment. We did a bunch of stuff for me to understand more deeply what the roots of the problems are, but I did not get a clear hit on a solution.
Here is what we did:
Spring Training Shoulder Circles
Around the Clock Shoulder Stretch @ Wall
Splat at Wall
Right Angle Pose
Wall Lunge
Warrior 1 @ Wall
Triangle at Wall (top arm with bent elbow, gaze @ earth so as not to aggrevate neck pain)
Neck Stretches
Wise Guy and Side and Forward
Neck Extenstion and Turning Work
Locust Work
Eye of Needle at Wall
Hamstring Stretching
Restorative Block behind Heart Pose
Neck Roll
Savasana
Sit
My plan is to develop some sequences for him. In the meantime, we agreed that he would add the shoulder work and neck work to his current routine and see how it felt.
Client: 68 year old man who has been doing yoga regurally for about 10 years. He has been coming to Lulu's for about 3 years. In the last 3 months, however, the pain in his hips and neck from osteoarthirits is making it difficult for him to do all the moves he used to. He talked me through some of the problem areas. As always, I feel like I have gotten "the teachings" just in time as Tucker and I just finished leading the "Yoga For Life" Teacher Training.
Today's session felt like an assessment. We did a bunch of stuff for me to understand more deeply what the roots of the problems are, but I did not get a clear hit on a solution.
Here is what we did:
Spring Training Shoulder Circles
Around the Clock Shoulder Stretch @ Wall
Splat at Wall
Right Angle Pose
Wall Lunge
Warrior 1 @ Wall
Triangle at Wall (top arm with bent elbow, gaze @ earth so as not to aggrevate neck pain)
Neck Stretches
Wise Guy and Side and Forward
Neck Extenstion and Turning Work
Locust Work
Eye of Needle at Wall
Hamstring Stretching
Restorative Block behind Heart Pose
Neck Roll
Savasana
Sit
My plan is to develop some sequences for him. In the meantime, we agreed that he would add the shoulder work and neck work to his current routine and see how it felt.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Case Study: Pain in the Metatarsophalangeal Joint
A friend mentioned today that for the last 2 weeks she has been experiencing pain on the inside of one of her feet behind her big toe when her toes are bent forward and bearing weight.
The friend is between 25 and 30, female, and fit. She is moving to a new town, in with a new roommate and new job. She is newly single. She has been doing yoga for 10 years.
She showed me all the moves that cause it the most distress. The action of rolling forward into Cobra or Updog and back to Down Dog and the action of pivoting from sole of the foot on the ground onto the ball of the foot were the primary ones.
1. First Step
I pulled out "Trail Guide to the Body" and looked up the spot. I learned that between the 2nd and 3rd bone of the Big toe side of the foot is called the Metatarsophalangeal Joints. The spot is also known as the "Base of the Phalanges". The Tendon that attaches the Base of the Phalanges to the Metatarsals is called the Abductor Hallucis.
2. A Guess
My guess was that she should stop doing what hurts it and follow the R.I.C.E. protocol. "Rest, Ice, Compress and Elevate." Yet she should continue to move it in gentle circles and keep blood and attention flowing to it.
3. Google
Since my pal thought she had a sprain I typed in "abductor hallucis" with 'injury' and 'sprain' into GOOGLE. These searches revealed that an injury in this spot is super common among football players and is often called "Turf Toe". I also learned that it is the joint that bunyans often grow from and a hot spot for arthritis.
4. Nerve Pathways
One site mentioned the nerve connection to the Sacrum, which inspired me to pick up the Atlas of Human Anatomy by Netter. From this I was able to see the nerve relationship between the S1L5 and that spot in the foot.
5. Conclusion
I was not able to discover any "magical cure" but the increase in the understanding of a 'problem' will often open you up to new insight. And in our research, we began a dialogue that led us up through her whole spine into a much more integrated discussion about how she was put together.
The friend is between 25 and 30, female, and fit. She is moving to a new town, in with a new roommate and new job. She is newly single. She has been doing yoga for 10 years.
She showed me all the moves that cause it the most distress. The action of rolling forward into Cobra or Updog and back to Down Dog and the action of pivoting from sole of the foot on the ground onto the ball of the foot were the primary ones.
1. First Step
I pulled out "Trail Guide to the Body" and looked up the spot. I learned that between the 2nd and 3rd bone of the Big toe side of the foot is called the Metatarsophalangeal Joints. The spot is also known as the "Base of the Phalanges". The Tendon that attaches the Base of the Phalanges to the Metatarsals is called the Abductor Hallucis.
2. A Guess
My guess was that she should stop doing what hurts it and follow the R.I.C.E. protocol. "Rest, Ice, Compress and Elevate." Yet she should continue to move it in gentle circles and keep blood and attention flowing to it.
3. Google
Since my pal thought she had a sprain I typed in "abductor hallucis" with 'injury' and 'sprain' into GOOGLE. These searches revealed that an injury in this spot is super common among football players and is often called "Turf Toe". I also learned that it is the joint that bunyans often grow from and a hot spot for arthritis.
4. Nerve Pathways
One site mentioned the nerve connection to the Sacrum, which inspired me to pick up the Atlas of Human Anatomy by Netter. From this I was able to see the nerve relationship between the S1L5 and that spot in the foot.
5. Conclusion
I was not able to discover any "magical cure" but the increase in the understanding of a 'problem' will often open you up to new insight. And in our research, we began a dialogue that led us up through her whole spine into a much more integrated discussion about how she was put together.
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