Back Pain
I have back pain and everyone recommends something different. What’s the best thing to do?
Back pain can be seem like frightening, debilitating, and mysterious condition - but it doesn’t have to be. As a yoga teacher, I searched for help for myself and my students, until I came across Anusara Yoga. Anusara means “to align with nature” and is based on biomechanical alignment principles that help move the muscles and bones toward optimal alignment. This is the essence of Anusara philosophy: the idea that when we return to our true nature, we feel better.
In a yoga therapy session, you will learn simple exercises - sort of like physical therapy - that will not only give you immediate relief, but will strengthen some muscles and relax others so that your spine can return to its natural curves and length. You will realize that you have the power to get yourself out of pain! It’s not magic, just the scientific part of yoga: alignment.
Sometimes, if the back pain is very severe, I might suggest you go to a chiropractor who will do some of the adjusting for you. Then it will be easier to begin to retrain your own body to maintain this optimal alignment. Once you are on the path to healing, you might look at the patterns in your life that limit you with a life coach or a hypnotherapist. Or, if you feel lot of stress that pulls you out of alignment, you may want to incorporate some sessions with a massage therapist or bodyworker into your month.
Whatever you decide, know that musculoskeletal pain can be a gift. It often causes us to wake up to how we carry ourselves, the attitude with which we walk through our lives, and the patterns that are no longer working for us. In the process, we can discover not only freedom from pain, but freedom to embody our vast potential.
by Jessica Jennings, MS
Certified Anusara Yoga Instructor