Not "IF" but "HOW MUCH" does STRESS affect your pain?

Want to know how much stress affects your pain?

In my Yoga Physical Therapy practice, I listen to the patient’s story of pain. That is…she tells me what she believes the problem is. Many times this is repeating what she has heard from other healthcare providers. After hearing the patient’s pain story, I ask her: WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON IN YOUR LIFE? My goal is to understand the level of stress present in the patient’s life. We then have a conversation about how that stress can impact pain.

The woman in this video is not my patient, but it very easily could be. I’ve actually lived Julie’s story and now I hear very similar stories from my patients and clients. I hear things like:

  • I didn’t have an injury, but my neck (or back) just started hurting.

  • I tried physical therapy (or physiotherapy) and it didn’t help

  • medications don’t touch my pain level

  • my physician (or other healthcare provider) told me that I would just have to live with the pain

The first step to overcoming pain that seems to be “permanent” and “hopeless” is AWARENESS. In this video, Julie shares how easy meditation is:

  • just 20 minutes a day

  • performed anywhere and in any position

Other aspects that helped Julie along her neck pain journey were:

  • family support

  • “don’t accept” invasive procedures like surgery, if you haven’t tried to relieve your tension (and stress) in other ways first

  • “NEVER give up”

Do you wonder HOW MUCH stress affects your pain and tension? Take the QUIZ to find out! You will get advice on what to do next, based on your results!

As always, I see the potential in you to heal your own pain.

Namaste,

Stephanie

P.S. I provide even more information about how to overcome chronic pain on my Facebook business page. Like my page to get more value in your Facebook feed.

Mindful Relief of Back and Neck Pain

You know that stress creates more tension and pain in your neck and back. And you've heard that meditation can help.

But how do you start a meditation practice?

In this video I share 5 practical tips for you to be successful. Keep watching (to the 7 minute mark) because I also GUIDE you through an awareness practice using the breath to create relaxation.

Want to work with me?

I'm offering an Online Workshop January 31, 202 from 1-3 pm EST:

The Yoga Physical Therapy Approach to Ease Neck and Shoulder Tension

Sign Up:

https://stephaniecarterkelley.com/online-workshop-neck-shoulders

As promised in the video, here is access to a variety of positions to create comfort in meditation (along with a gentle movement practice):

https://stephanie-kelley-1ef2.mykajabi.com/pl/117092

Want to know if Stress Affects your Pain? Take the Quiz:

https://stephanie-kelley-1ef2.mykajabi.com/pl/116416

Here are several other Mindfulness and Meditation Resources:

I HAVE USED ALL OF THESE RESOURCES IN MY JOURNEY TO REDUCE MY PAIN AND TRANSFORM MY LIFE FOR THE BETTER! I HOPE YOU ALSO FIND THEM USEFUL.

Jon Kabat-Zinn is the “father of mindfulness” and led the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program at Massachusetts General Hospital for many years.  You can find him in just about any media format describing the benefits of this practice.

  • Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday has both video clips of the interview with him in 2015 and a Super Soul Conversations podcast.  Here’s one video clip:

  • Podcasts:  He has been interviewed for several podcasts:  10% Happier, Street Smart Wisdom, Becoming Wise, etc.  Just search for him on iTunes!

  • He also has several books which I read and became convinced that this practice was worth my time.

From Kabat-Zinn’s program, many more academic centers have opened and provide resources.  University of California, San Diego’s Center for Mindfulness has a list of guided meditations on the website.  If you are new to meditation, I suggest the shorter clips and progress to the longer ones.  There is a DOSE-RESPONSE relationship to mindfulness and meditation.  That is, the more you meditate, the greater the benefit.

The Insight Times is (in my opinion) THE BEST, meditation app.  And it is FREE!  You can pay for features, but you don’t need to.  It has great a great search function for SLEEP and other types of meditation like the BODY SCAN.  A few of my favorite teachers are:

  • davidji (just LOVE his voice!)

  • Tara Brach (master meditation teacher!)

  • Andy Hobson (voice of the Headspace app)

  • Sonic Yogi (for music)

  • Kristen Neff (when you need self-compassion!)

  • Vidymala Burch (with specific focus on pain who also has a book with an audio CD)

Please tell me about your practice of Mindfulness and the benefits of your practice!

Namaste,

Stephanie


Progressing Strength of the Legs and Resiliency of the Body

Strength is resiliency for the body! When you are strong, you can get pulled off balance and recover. If you are weak, chances are you will get injured. And as we age, we lose muscle mass and strength each passing year. Leg strength provides "shock-absorption" for the back and spine.

Strength training the big muscles of the legs also helps your brain by releasing brain-derived growth hormones. So it is not only good for your legs, but good for your mind too! You MUST prioritize strength in your exercise program.

In this video, I share 3 ways to progress your strength training program for the lower body. Each week we do this very exercise in my yoga class as a Tabata set, which is a high intensity interval set of 20 seconds effort and then 10 seconds of rest repeated 8 times. So we do 4 minutes of squats each week and I encourage my students to repeat the set at home in between classes.

Does STRESS affect your PAIN? Copy and Paste the link below to Take the Quiz and Find Out!

https://stephanie-kelley-1ef2.mykajabi.com/pl/116416

I created "Mind Your Spine" to help you learn to pay attention to what your body is telling you. As a Physical Therapist that uses Yoga as the primary treatment, I know that the body has great wisdom. But how can you tell what your body is telling you? Watch these videos and as you learn to listen carefully, you will unlock the potential, not only to live without pain, but to live the life you were meant to live.

Namaste,

Stephanie

#mindandbodystrength#bodyandmindstrength#exercisesforneckpain#relieveneckpain#therapyballexercises#chronicpainpivot#bodymindhealing#ourspinesweremeanttomove#flexiblespineflexiblemind#movementnotmedication#movenotmed#meditationnotmedication#tryeverythingbutopioidsforpainrelief#backpainrelief#neckpainrelief#hippainrelief#shoulderpainrelief#whydoihurt#yogaphysicaltherapist

Facebook @yogaphysicaltherapist

IG @sck.yogapt

website: stephaniecarterkelley.com

Have a Ball Correcting Your Sitting Posture!

When you sit all day, it is so hard to maintain good posture. Gravity pulls your spine into a rounded position and over time loses mobility. The result is neck tension and the loss of motion. So grab your therapy ball for a few exercises that will give support to your neck while opening your shoulders and thoracic spine.

You can do these exercises as a break at work or at the end of the day. Hold each position for 6 deep breaths (about a minute) while you feel gentle (not intense) stretching.

Need a Therapy/Exercise Ball? Here are a few choices from Amazon:

What are some other ways that you move during your day to counteract sitting? Leave me a comment below.

NEW! Online Workshop: The Yoga Physical Therapy Approach to Ease Neck and Shoulder Pain

Did you miss my recent workshop for the neck and shoulders? I’m repeating it ONLINE! That’s right, you can attend from anywhere LIVE on November 24th from 3-5 pm. So save the date and find out more information. A replay will also be available, but attend LIVE if you want to ask questions and get answers during the workshop.

Mind You Spine with Backward Bending

Because many of you sit all day and have been doing so for many years, you have lost the ability to comfortably bend backward. Your mid- and upper back is rounded and stiff and your hips are stuck in flexion (the position of sitting). You also wear your rounded posture like a protective shell to protect our hearts from the barrage of negativity and hurt all around us. You stiffen in the hips because energetically, that is where you store suppressed emotions. Men are afraid to show emotions for fear of being labeled "weak". Women are afraid to show emotions for fear of being labeled "dramatic" or "bitchy". All of this posturing and suppressing is making you SICK! In this video you will learn how to physically open the front of the body to improve both your upright posture and backward bending of the spine. You can practice these exercises everyday. Your spine was meant to move this way. It's NATURAL! You can use this motion to also feel how it is to live your NATURAL emotional self. Slowly practice connecting to your emotions. Feel how your posture shifts when you are around negativity. Notice your discomfort when you stifle an emotional reaction. With practice and time, you will learn to posture yourself in situations and around others to open WHOLLY and with compassion.

Namaste,

Stephanie

P.S. Does stress affect your Pain? Take the Quiz and Find Out!

Words and Pictures Keep your Back in Pain

If you're someone that has chronic tension and tightness in the low back all the time, it's probably because of the fear of what a healthcare professional, friend or family member has told you or showed you about your spine.

"Herniation" is a very scary word along with the other words that are used to describe your spine like: "tear", "rupture", "deterioration", and "degeneration". When you embody these words you put fear into your body.

Fear creates stress. The nervous system's normal reaction to stress is to "FREEZE" and thus creates extra muscular tension in that area. You feel tension that won't go away, which gives you more stress and the cycle continues. No amount of stretching will help unless you deal with the underlying cause: FEAR and STRESS.

Change your perspective about what is going on in your spine. Start growing confidence in your body. Use this video guiding you through gentle movement to help.

Namaste,

Stephanie

P.S. I created the "Mind Your Spine" video series to help you learn to pay attention to what your body is telling you. As a Physical Therapist that uses Yoga as the primary treatment, I know that the body has great wisdom. But how can you tell what your body is telling you? Watch these videos and as you learn to listen carefully, you will unlock the potential, not only to live without pain, but the life you were meant to live.

#movementnotmedication

#movenotmed

#meditationnotmedication

#tryeverythingbutopioidsforpainrelief

#backpainrelief

#yogaphysicaltherapist

@yogaphysicaltherapist

stephaniecarterkelley.com

Mind Your Spine while Bending Forward

Paying attention to the sensations of your body can improve how your back feels.  For this video I’m focusing on the motion of forward bending.  This motion is also called flexion of the spine.  One method that we use in Physical Therapy is to “assess, treat, and then re-assess”.  So that is the process that I’m using in this video. 

Assess:  Perform the movement of bending forward, reaching toward the floor.  How does it feel to bend forward?  Where do you feel this in your body?  Some options are lengthening in the low back, in the hips, backs of the thighs, or even in your calves. 

Our spines were meant to move this way.  We need to be able to reach toward the floor and get down to those toes! 

If seeing me reach fingers to toes brings you tension or anxiety, consider that fear may be affecting your ability to move.  More on that in other posts and in my online course (Yoga for a Better Back)!

Treat:  Now go to the floor or to your bed to try these exercises: 

1.      Engage the muscles of your belly to flatten your back x 5

2.      Hug your right knee to your chest and hold for 5 deep breaths

3.      Hug your left knee to your chest and hold for 5 deep breaths

4.      Hug both knees to your chest and hold for 5 deep breaths

Re-Assess:  Now stand up and re-assess bending forward.  How does it feel now?  Can you go further?  You can see in the video that even my back and hips bend more!

This is just one of many lessons that I use in my online course, “Yoga for a Better Back”.  The goal of the course takes you step-by-step treating body, mind and spirit empowering you to gain freedom from back pain.

Namaste,

Stephanie

PS: Could stress be causing your pain? Find out with this video to ease muscle tension.

Mind Your Spine: Exploring Your Pain Story

When a physical therapist interviews a new patient for the first time, the therapist asks her/him about their past medical history.  Basically, the therapist asks: “Why are you here?”  or “Tell me about your pain”.  The therapist goes on to ask, “What makes your pain worse?” and “What makes your pain better?”.  The therapist explores all aspects of the patient’s pain.  Most patients seem to be used to this as they have told their story many times before coming to see the physical therapist.  Some even come with notes so that they won’t forget to tell pertinent information. 

In my new approach to helping people with pain, I listen carefully to the story of physical pain.  Many people have ideas about what is going on and just want validation that their pain is real.  I give them that validation and also give them some things to think about.  I now ask, “So what else is going on in your life?”; “How much stress would you say you have?”, “Do you sleep OK?” and sometimes even “How is your digestion; any constipation?”.  With these questions I am looking for symptoms of chronic stress and trying to bring awareness to the FACT that pain is not all triggered by the physical body; i.e. posture, flexibility, or muscular strength; or triggered by the structure of the joints; i.e. arthritis, cartilage damage, etc. The lack of correlation between the position or structure of the body and the sensation of pain is evidenced by the fact that the person did nothing physically new or different and the sensation of pain changed. 

As I understand more about the person’s life, I send her/him home with these instructions: “the next time you feel the pain change (usually increase) pay attention to what just happened in that moment”.  Then I give some ideas of what may have happened, for example: received an email from a colleague asking you to add yet another task to your already unending to-do list; had a conversation with a person who presents a relationship challenge in your life; had a car pull out in front of you; and the list goes on.  Because I now have this new label as a “Yoga Physical Therapist”, people are not surprised by these questions and they have a look of understanding on their face.  The person doesn’t yet know how to manage these triggers of pain, but the awareness has been set.

With this new awareness, I am asking people to write a new story.  As the title of the book I recommend so often says: “You are Not your Pain”.  I could also say, “Your past injuries and/or surgeries are not YOU”.  “Your pain and the emotions that come with it, do not define you”.  You can actually define your pain in a new way with a new understanding.   And it all starts with the practice of Mindfulness.  Mindfulness helps you grow your awareness and Understand the physical, psychological, emotional, and even spiritual aspects of your pain.  With this new Understanding you can have Compassion for yourself.  With Compassion comes a deeper Healing than experienced with the focus just on the physical. 

So today, start writing a new story of Healing.

Namaste,

Stephanie

P.S. If you would like some help in writing this new story, download this guide.

The Magic Pill for Shoulder Pain

This gentle exercise will support your shoulders so you can reach for the stars!

The weight of responsibility takes a toll on your shoulders each day. From taking care of your self, to taking care of others, our arms were meant to do the heavy lifting of life. In this video you will learn how to give your shoulders a little support before asking them to carry, lift and reach.

But has the heavy lifting become a burden? Do you lack support for all that you need to get done in a day?

Besides creating physical support for your arms and shoulders through exercise, maybe what you really need is emotional and social support. Shoulder and/or neck pain can be a symptom of overwhelm.

Who can you ask for help? How can you delegate some tasks? What trusted friend will listen as you lighten some of you emotional load? You might be surprised how addressing your emotional health can affect the physical pain that you experience each day.

Rather than continuing to push through the endless tasks each day, find some time to prioritize the list and then find ways to lighten your load. Create time to do more of what you love and less of what you consider to be a burden. Your shoulders will thank you.

Namaste,

Stephanie

The Magic Pill for Low Back Pain

The only way to get relief with the Magic Pill for low back pain is to address your back pain at the exact Moment you feel it.

That’s right, you first you need to become aware.  Through a practice of awareness, i.e. mindfulness or gentle movement, you become more tuned-in to when your pain fluctuates and changes. This allows you to address your pain at the exact moment that you notice it change.  

That’s when the Magic happens!

  • Rather than wait for the pain to increase…

  • Rather than wait until you get so stiff that you don’t want to move…

  • You NOTICE and take immediate ACTION.

In the video below, I give several examples of when you might notice pain during the day and how to use gentle movement as the Magic Pill to relieve it.

 

Through a practice of awareness, i.e. mindfulness or meditation, you become more tuned into when your pain fluctuates and changes. This allows you to address your pain at the exact moment that you notice it increase. In this video, I give several examples of when you might notice pain during the day and how to use gentle movement as the Magic Pill to relieve it.

But what if your pain is not due to a posture or position? What if you notice that STRESS from your day increases the pain? Maybe one of these is a STRESSOR for you :

  • a conversation with a family member

  • taking on a new role in retirement

  • participating in an unproductive conversation

  • a near miss in traffic

The gentle movement “pill” can still work magic for you. Creating gentle movement along with an even and deep breath, can allow the stress to pass through you and not settle into your body for the rest of your day, week or LIFE.

What about the Side Effects of the gentle movement “pill”?

The side effects are only positive, such as…

  • You gain a sense of control over your pain

  • You feel more freedom to do activities that you love

  • You feel empowered that you can manage the stressors of your day and not allow them to add to the layers of pain that you feel.

These are side effects that I can live with!

Namaste,

Stephanie

***If you are interested in learning more about my approach that blends Yoga and Physical Therapy to Heal your low back pain, email me at info@stephaniecarterkelley.com

The Magic Pill for Hip Pain

If you sit all day, you need this “PILL” or this small dose of exercise to create support for your hips.

Have you ever heard of “Dead Butt Syndrome”?

Well you may have it it you sit for most of your day. Sitting on those glute muscles doesn’t give them a chance to activate or contract. So this exercise, done in small doses, can go a long way to get those muscles working to support your hips.

Let me know how you like this one!

Namaste,

Stephanie

The Magic Pill for Knee Pain

Is it me or does everyone’s knees hurt at one time or another? We put stress on those knees as we walk, climb stairs and even get up from a chair. To feel better your thigh muscles need to be strong. Strength training can even help conditions like OSTEOARTHRITIS. But you need to make sure the RIGHT muscle is activated before you progress any strengthening program. This small dose of exercise done frequently can go a long way to reduce your knee pain. I checked with my good friend and knee researcher, Dr. Stephanie DiStasi on this and we agreed that this is an important exercise to get started on a path toward relief of knee pain!

Namaste,

Stephanie

P.S. Want more information about how to manage knee pain (patellofemoral pain)? APTA just put out an nice infographic.

The Magic Pill for Foot Pain

Many people turn to medication when they experience pain in order to get fast relief. But what if a small dose of the right kind and amount of movement could give you immediate relief from your pain? Just as the success of medication depends on the right medication and the right dosage, so too does movement.

TRY MOVEMENT INSTEAD OF MEDICATION!

That’s what this series is all about. Showing people that a simple movement, activity, or exercise can make substantial differences in you feel. I see this all the time in my yoga class. In many classes I start with a “self-assessment”, that is some basic movement and cue people to pay attention how it feels. Then I lead a simple and gentle movement of that region (or maybe a related region) of the body, a treatment or intervention as we call in it Physical Therapy. Then I have people repeat the movement, or “re-assess” how they feel. From the majority of responses, I have seen people have immediate changes in sensation or pain.

Each video will give you education and 1-2 minutes of an activity that may just help your pain. But if you need to "fine tune" your prescription, go to the American Physical Therapy Association to search for a Physical Therapist near you. http://aptaapps.apta.org/APTAPTDirectory/FindAPTDirectory.aspx

I would love to hear your comments about this video and others in the series.

Namaste,

Stephanie

4 Your Core - Exercises to Build Strength and Support

Why do we need CORE Strength? You hear a lot about “training the CORE”. But what does that really mean and how do you get started?

When defining the CORE, it depends on who you ask. I have been studying the concept of the “CORE” as it relates to low back pain since 1996 when I attended the Australian Physiotherapy Conference. At that time new research was presented on function, assessment, and training of the deepest layer of trunk muscles. Because we couldn’t see or touch these muscles prior to that time, we didn’t really understand the role of Transversus Abdominus and Multifidus. Over time, less emphasis has been placed on these muscles but they are still play a role to support the spine. And the research still shows that people with back pain have an impairment of these muscles. My anatomy video gives you a better look at the layers of muscular support around the low back.

My idea of training the CORE is that it is must be done as a progression. You cannot start with the most difficult exercise, especially when you have back pain. You may hear about exercises that are the “best” for training the core. But many times those exercise activate multiple muscles of the CORE or ask one muscle of the CORE to fully engage. And for some people, this can create pain! So it may be better for you to start with low level CORE exercises and become very aware of these muscles during breathing, pelvic tilts, and low loads. With time, better endurance, and less pain you can progress the exercises to add more challenge.

It may also be OK to drop the expectation of doing a few of the “best” exercises. Be content with the level of challenge that is right for you. You want the level of challenge that provides EFFORT but not strain or pain. Yoga supports this philosophy of exercise. The right amount of effort at the right time that meets your needs. Bring your awareness to what you need in this moment to continue on a journey of healing.

Namaste,

Stephanie

Relieve Pain by Taking Time for YOU!

When you are not tuned into your own health, you can be of very little benefit to others. I have learned this lesson through the practice and community of yoga. It took me a while to understand all of the focus on “self care”. At first I thought that “self care” meant isolating myself from my family and taking time away from work. But I have come to realize that “self care” can happen daily through intentional small actions. When you realize the effect of even a small act of self kindness, then you begin to want more. The small bits of self care begin to accumulate into a way of living and knowing that:

“When I care for myself , I give everyone so much more”

The process of self care is different for each person and is reveled when you listen very closely. The way that I listen is by going inside my own head and body through a regular meditation practice. These are the self care acts that have been reveled to me and incorporated into my life over the last few years:

  • Stop the negative self talk

    • When I make a mistake, instead of saying “You idiot!” in my head, I say: “You’re doing the best you can”.

  • Celebrate moving more

    • When I leave my phone upstairs instead of saying “Oh Crap"!” in my head, I say: “Great! I get to challenge my legs and heart.”

  • Stop being scared of activities that may have created pain in the past

    • Instead of being worried that gardening will exacerbate my back pain, enjoy working in the dirt and know that any back soreness will go away in 24 hours.

  • Eat in a way that makes me feel good

    • I have played with my diet enough over the years to know that an anti-inflammatory diet feels best for my body and mind. So instead of focusing on what calories or “bad” food, I focus on what makes me feel good.

  • Move (instead of exercise) in a way that my body craves

    • Trying to understand the benefits of the different types of exercise (like trying to understand what to eat) can be frustrating. Rather than focusing on my daily does of prescribed exercise, I try to move in a variety of ways throughout the week. Several times a week I breathe hard (aerobic exercise), I feel a challenge in my core, legs, and arms (strength training), and I feel tension across my muscles and joints (flexibility). I let the sensations of my body dictate what type of movement I do each day. I have found that it responds to what I did (or did not do) the day before. Too much sitting? I need to challenge my core and arms and do some backward bending. Too much focused concentration? I need to breathe hard, challenge my legs and do some forward bending.

  • Creating time for a spiritual practice is mandatory

    • Yoga has helped me transition from a religious practice to a spiritual practice. As I listen to a guided meditation or sermon, I take time to reflect on how the lesson applies to my life. Spirituality has become woven into my thoughts and actions.

As you can see, my self care is as much about caring for my mind and spirit as it is about caring for my body. All 3 are important and affect each other. Over the past few years one or the other may take priority during any given time. And once I have created a “good” habit of self care, I look to create another one. It has become a practice of understanding life and health as a process rather than a “fixed point”. This understanding has given me so much more contentment each day.

Namaste,

Stephanie

Heal Your Low Back with STRENGTH!

This is another lesson that I give to patients on the very first day of Physical Therapy.  It is the focus of my class at Balancing Owl Yoga Thursdays at 2pm.  The body derives so many benefits from developing strength.  And as we age, we can lose up to .5 lbs of lean muscle mass each year.  Yikes!

 A regular practice of leg strengthening can help ease the sensations in the back  by taking tension and strain off of it.  Having a strong body overall gives you energy.  Energy which can translate to having more "will power".  That's right, strengthening your body can also strengthen your will.  A strong will can help you each and every day build, not only a pain free life, but a life of joy because you're doing the things You want to do.  

With this video you can learn to "stand up" with proper mechanics, but you can also gain the strength to "stand up for yourself".

Namaste,

Stephanie

P.S.  If you need the advice of an expert or need some motivation from a knowledgeable coach, that's what my private sessions are all about.  I will spend an hour with you and together we'll develop a plan to get you back on track to heal your back.  It usually only takes 1-2 sessions and as a bonus, you will get access to 1 or more of my yoga practice videos.  To schedule a session email me: 

info@stephaniecarterkelley.com

P.S.S.  You can also get my advice and coaching from my online course:  Yoga for a Better Back.  You get 10 total hours of education, rehabilitation, and 8 yoga videos to perform anywhere/anytime.

Support for Your Spine and for You

Clients that come to my yoga class or to see me privately always start by telling me about the injury or damage sustained to the body. It is usually a story of something broken with the assumption that it can’t be fixed. What I have learned is that very few people really understand the functional anatomy of their body and (it seems even less!) of the spine. He or she has only been exposed to reports or pictures of the damage or pathology of the body. The words and images have “stuck” so that now the client’s impression of the body or spine is one of being broken or “a mess”.

My goal is to improve your understanding of how amazing the body really is. It has the potential to heal, but when a tissue is damaged (like a ligament) the body has one or more “back up” systems to create support for injured the area. For example, the disc is not the only connective tissue that holds your vertebra together! You have many more ligaments, muscle, and fascia that create layers upon layers of support for your spine.

So if you like anatomy, you’ll like this video. And if you’ve ever seen an X-Ray or MRI of your spine, watch this video to put a new and maybe more positive image into your brain about your low back.

I also offer another way for you to think about support. Your spine may feel less supported when you talk to yourself in a negative way. The messages that you send to yourself have the ability to break you down or create support. Try telling yourself this:

  • I’m doing the best that I can

  • I am enough

  • I am worthy of love

  • I can learn from this failure

Once you start giving yourself internal support, you will start to notice that you also have external support. You have family, friends and colleagues that are ready to support you.

Because the practice of yoga integrates the body and mind, a physical practice focused on creating support of the low back can help you realize the other ways and people that are present to support you.

This month and next, I’m offering a few evening classes to increase the support that I can offer you. Check out my schedule and sign up at Balancing Owl Yoga.

Another way to get support is in my online class: Yoga for a Better Back. It offers 10 hours of content in lessons, meditations and gentle yoga. Each module provides a level of support that progresses as you learn and practice.

Namaste,

Stephanie

Find Comfort in the New Year

We all need some comfort each day. But you FIRST need to realize that you are uncomfortable and ask yourself WHY. So many of us disconnect from what we feel each day in order to just survive. You may unconsciously find ways to create the comfort you so dearly NEED. From the first cup of coffee in the morning to foraging in the pantry at the end of the day, these subconscious actions don’t deal with the true source of discomfort and don’t really give us long lasting comfort.

So we must first deal with the discomfort, not avoid or keep pushing through discomfort in order to create lasting change for the better. Here are a few questions to ask yourself:

  • When do you feel discomfort?

  • Where do you feel that discomfort in your body?

  • Is the discomfort a physical experience or does it correspond to emotional or mental discomfort?

  • What would directly affect the discomfort that you feel right now?

Because the primary goal of Yoga is to “yoke” our physical sensations with emotional and spiritual sensations, movement may help you find answers to the questions above. You can start on the floor with cat/cow creating gentle movement and exploring comfort vs discomfort. Most yoga classes progress to standing poses. So you’ll want to try those too.

In this video I will address 3 out of 4 of what I call the “Fundamental Four“ (here’s a handout for detailed cues). Fundamental because they are the standing poses performed in almost every yoga class. It is important that you are familiar and comfortable in these poses. My instruction will help you learn the poses and make them your own with both COMFORT and EASE.

Namaste,

Stephanie

P.S. Are ready to really find out the source of your low back pain? My 4 Module Online Course, Yoga for a Better Back, is a commitment to feeling better in the New Year. It takes 8-12 weeks to complete, but will give you a much better understanding of WHY your back hurts and HOW you can make lasting change.

What's Really The Cause of Your Poor Posture?

I had a discussion with my yoga students about posture. This group of women are all in their 50s and 60s, and each of them (like me) remember a grandmother or other adult admonishing them for a bad posture. We talked a little about why there is an emphasis on a good posture in our culture. Our conversation led me to look into the history of posture.  I found this statement from an interesting website, ThePowerofPosture.net:

"In 18th century middle-class society, proper posture was an essential ingredient in formal situations. The body positioning of strangers was shrewdly evaluated as a measurement of upbringing, physical attractiveness, trustworthiness, self-control, and dignity. Respectable people regarded erect posture as the very thing that set us apart from the animals. Likewise, collapsed posture was seen as a manifestation of immorality and stupidity, a symptom of poor character that lead to things like masturbation and other failures of self-control."

With those strong statements you can understand how our beliefs around posture were formed.  I wonder how close you hold the belief that our posture tells us something about the essence of the person?  In my training as a physical therapist, my beliefs about posture and whether posture is an "impairment" have changed over the years.  In my early career, I was trained to believe that we could "train" and ultimately "change" someone's posture.  But with practice, I began to doubt whether real change in someone's posture could be sustained. When posture was the main focus of treatment, it led to frustration on both the patient and my part.  I also began to wonder how much a person's posture really "resulted" in someone’s pain.  So over my years of practice and now integrating yoga, I have a broader perspective regarding the role that posture plays in our lives, Body, Mind and Spirit.  

Body:

I believe that MOVEMENT in and out of posture is much more important than MAINTAINING a STATIC posture.  It seems that no matter what posture we assume: sitting, standing, slumped or erect; if we sustain that posture for LONG periods of time there will be trouble.  Joan Vernikos, in her book Sitting Kills, Moving Heals, states that the problem is not how much we sit during the day (8 hours +), but how long we sustain that posture without moving.  She advocates frequent low-intensity movement throughout the day to combat the negative effects of sustained sitting.

Mental:

I have seen how changing a person's posture can change also their attitude and affect. 

Try the alignment practice describe in the video placing 3 points of your body along the wall.

Do you notice a difference in your mind and body between these two positions?

When I did this activity at a health fair, the majority of people said yes, they could feel a difference in their body. The improved posture brought awareness to their breath filling lower into the body, chest or belly.  But what was also amazing was how the look on their faces transformed.  With an improved upright posture, people raised their eyebrows and the corners of the mouth, that's right, into a SMILE.  

Spirit:

Why is it so hard to maintain a "good" posture?  Many Physical Therapists and others "Body Workers" focus so much on our posture as the source of pain in the neck and back.  I believe that if it was ONLY a problem of the body, then it would be an easy fix. Improving strength and flexibility should be enough.  We blame our jobs, our computers, and our hand held devices on a curved spine. 

But I have come to view this curved spine as a protective position.  We wear this curved spine like a “Turtle Shell or Amour of Protection”.  Some people even have their shoulders drawn up around their ears.  So I have wondered, what are we trying to protect?  Our heart as the source of love?  Our throats as the center of expression?  Maybe our efforts should be focused on how to allow our Spirit to Shine and our True Self to emerge.

Brene Brown, in her book Braving the Wilderness, says for wholehearted living you need to have a Strong Back (COURAGE), a Soft Front (LOVE AND ACCEPTANCE, even for yourself), and a Wild Heart (LIVE YOUR TRUEST SELF).

I think that advice just may be the solution to the postural dilemma.

Namaste,

Stephanie

It's not degenerative discs causing your pain, it's your hips!

Click on the picture above or this link: https://youtu.be/Oc0xJ65OJvs

Most of my patients and clients with back pain have tight hips which ABSOLUTELY contributes to their back pain.  In this video you will learn physical and emotional reasons WHY your hips are tight (hint: too much sitting and too much stress while you are sitting). I will lead you through a few moves to assess your own hips to see if they are tight. Then I will provide 3 ways to do something about it!  And YES, yoga poses are included!

You will want to watch this video along with a few others that help you MOVE and strengthen your BACK and CORE. Then you will have the tools to perform the yoga series provided in this FREE DOWNLOAD: Yoga for People who Sit.

Take a week to watch and learn. And in just 4 short videos and some consistency of performing the yoga series, your back CAN FEEL BETTER.

Namaste,

Stephanie

P.S. If you like my videos and you are ready to take a deep dive into really HEALING your back, check out my online course: Yoga for a Better Back.