Heal Faster: My Yoga For Sick Recovery Journey
I did not expect to be strong on a yoga mat. My body was a foreign body after a lengthy, debilitating illness. My muscles were too weak, my energy was nonexistent, and my spirit was crushed. The gym was not an option. A high-paced stroll was a marathon. This weak condition is how I learned the great force of Yoga for Sick Recovery. It is not a matter of complicated positions or sweating. It is all about listening, caring, and slowly helping your body heal again.
My experience has taught me the fact that recovery is not a competition. It is a conscious, humane one. Yoga helped me find a ground, and it can help you find one, too. I would like to tell you about the soft habits that allowed me to regain my health, one at a time.
The reasons why Yoga For Sick Recovery is effective.
When you are ill, you are stressed. Your body is in a fight or flight mode. Working hard through strenuous exercise is worse than nothing at all. Yoga of ill recovery is different. It takes the mental act of moving your body into the “rest and digest” position and that is where healing takes place.
In my case, the advantages could not be denied:
Recovered Polite Strength: I was able to develop muscle slowly without straining.
Better Circulation: Light exercise aided in the oxygenation of my blood.
Less Stress and Anxiety: The practice of breathing helped me to deal with my fast mind.
Improved Sensation of the Body: I got to know how to listen to the new limits of my body.
Increased Mental Strength: The exercise provided me with a feeling of power and improvement.
My Golden Rules of Practice Safety.
There is one thing that you need to know before we get to the poses; your recovery yoga practice is not about performance. It’s about presence. I was forced to leave all ego and competition particularly with my previous self.
These are the uncompromising rules that I observed:
Always Consult Your Doctor: I always consulted my doctor before embarking on something new.
Listen to Your Body (Really Listen): When it hurts, quit. Good pain does not occur in recovery. Pain: your body is telling you to take a step.
Less is More: A five-minute exercise on a bad day is an enormous triumph. Celebrate it.
Getting Out Of the Chair, Not Stretching Deep: It is best to have the intention to feel calm and supported, but not to stretch deeply.
My Soft Recovery Yoga Flow to the Sick.
It is the same order in which I began. I did it in my bed room, on a soft carpet, having pillows and blankets around. You will require a mat of some sort to help you do the yoga or a thick blanket, and some cushions or pillows.
Simple to Start Comes at the Foundation.
1. Meditative Breathing (Pranayama) in Bed.
I would begin this even before I had gotten up. I was lying on my back with bent knees and my hands came upon my belly.
I breathed in slowly with my nose, and my belly was lifting.
I sighed even more slowly through my nose or mouth, and my belly dropped.
I did it 10-20 times only paying attention to the rhythm. This predetermined a peaceful mood throughout the day.
2. Kneeling Pose of the Child (Balasana).
This was my sanctuary pose. It was a relief to my back and it made my anxiety subside.
I sat down on the floor with a sharp jerk on my heels.
I put a thick pillow on my calves and folded forward with all my chest and head lying against the pillow.
My hands were lying contentedly beside me. I remained here 10-20 deep breathing.
3. Legs-Up-The-Wall Pose (Viparita Karani)
This pose was enchanted to my circulation and sore feet. It is so inactive and revitalizing.
I was seated obliquely against the wall.
I tippedpledledly turned myself round to rest and trailed my legs to the wall.
I used the folded blanket or pillow to support my hips.
I put my arms next to each other, closed my eyes and had 2-5 minutes of breathing.
Continuous Development: Creating Stability.
These simple seated and standing poses were added as my energy slowly came back.
1. Supported Mountain Pose (Tadasana).
This made me re-establish myself as being grounded and stable.
I was leaning my back against a wall, with my hips apart half a foot.
I slowly drew my thighs and my spine straightened. My hands rested by my sides.
I have just been standing 5-10 breaths, just trying to feel the contact of my feet with the floor.
2. Supported Cat-Cow Stretch (Marjaryasana-Bitilasana)
This spinal movement alleviated the soreness of the lying in bed position.
I knelt on my knees and hands, but with a blanket beneath my knees to cushion the knees.
During one inhalation, I lowered my belly and raised my eyes (Cow).
I then curled my back and chin on an exhale (Cat).
I would progress in a slow movement with my breath with 5-10 cycles, never overduing the range of movement.
Potency of the mind-body relationship.
Physical poses were not half the battle with me. The actual change occurred when I made them purposeful. Accentuated in my Yoga For Sick Recovery, I would repeat affirmations silently.
The thoughts I would have in Child Pose would be, I am safe and supported.
In Legs-Up-The-Wall, I would be telling myself, I am letting my body heal.
This has rewired my brain to stop being in an area of fear but an area of trust.
My Last Word To Your Road to Recovery.
Your journey is unique. What was effective with me is not a prescription but a template. Begin with nothing but the breathing. Then, perhaps the next day, one pose. Be your own best friend and most understanding coach. This mild attitude towards Yoga For Sick Recovery helped me to recover my agency, which I felt as had lost everything.
It made me understand that healing is not a linear process, but a sacred process. Be patient with yourself. Your body is trying its level best to restore you to health. Respect it, hear it and tend to it with soft power of yoga.