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| I would like someone to suggest yoga exercises to help me sleep. I've had difficulty sleeping since I entered menopause 14 years ago. It's a hormone thing. I don't take hormone replacement therapy - it gave my sister breast cancer and she died. I am careful with my diet. I already know what foods and substances bother me. What I need now are specific yoga exercises that will help. When I started doing yoga 5 years ago, it helped a lot with my over all sense of well being. If you have any ideas could you describe specifically what I need to do and how to do it, or guide me to a place or tape to help me learn how to do it. I'm a writer and an artist and live in the boonies. So class are not available here.
Thanks. |
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| packwidget - 2006-10-15 8:17 PM
I would like someone to suggest yoga exercises to help me sleep. I've had difficulty sleeping since I entered menopause 14 years ago. It's a hormone thing. I don't take hormone replacement therapy - it gave my sister breast cancer and she died. I am careful with my diet. I already know what foods and substances bother me. What I need now are specific yoga exercises that will help. When I started doing yoga 5 years ago, it helped a lot with my over all sense of well being. If you have any ideas could you describe specifically what I need to do and how to do it, or guide me to a place or tape to help me learn how to do it. I'm a writer and an artist and live in the boonies. So class are not available here.
Thanks.
My answer to your question would be to contact an experienced teacher and take private class ONLY. |
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| Some people don't really understand what it's like to live in the boonies!
There is a very good book that covers asanas for menopause, called "The Woman's Book of Yoga and Health" . I don't recall the author's names, but I think Judith Lasater is one of them or wrote the introduction. It is available on Amazon or here: http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/1-57062-470-4.cfm
Through most of my 20s. I only slept five hours a night and felt fine. In my 30s, I developed the habit of waking up regularity at 3 a.m. having breakfast and going back to sleep five. Wacky biorhythms! The worst thing to do is to stay in bed and keep trying to sleep.
B
Edited by lovesmoon 2006-10-15 10:27 PM
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| Hi Vi,
There is a practice for PMS in “Yoga for Wellness” by Gary Kraftsow that might be good for calming your system and could help with hot flashes, too. It is hard to say, though, not knowing much else about you. 
If you do any practice close to bedtime, keep it simple and soothing. Gentle breathing and gentle forward bends are nice.
Earlier in the day you can use a more active practice. Deep backbends tend to build heat, so you may want to use them with caution if you're having hot flashes.
Being active and getting light in the morning can help improve your sleep at night, too.
While you seem to have a good feel for what foods work for you, consider reading the book (or at least part of it – particularly chapters 7 and 15) “The Omega Rx Zone” by Dr. Barry Sears. It talks about how diet affects hormones.
I'm also a big fan of EFT, a technique of tapping on acupressure points and is something you can easily learn to do yourself. There is a free manual you can download at http://www.emofree.com/downloadeftmanual.asp. People find it useful for a lot of things, including menopause http://www.emofree.com/articles/menopause-hot-flashes.htm (this article may not make a lot of sense until you've read the manual, but it will give you an idea of what EFT can do).
Best of Luck,
Pamela
Yoga in Grand Junction Colorado
Body Movement Therapy |
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| Hi, while consulting an experienced teacher is good advice, if that's not an option for you I agree that gentle forward bends and slow, deep breathing are worth trying. EFT works but, as mentioned, you'll need to download and read the manual first, especially if you have no background in acupressure. Here's a link to 3 illustrated acupressure points you can press on yourself to help you unwind and sleep. Point 3 is used specifically in acupuncture and acupressure for menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes and also insomnia.
http://chinese-holistic-health-exercises.com/reflexology-for-anxiety.html
All the best,
Matthew |
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Yoga exercise to induce sleep
