YOGA
Yoga
You can book one-on-one yoga with Gillian and small group sessions (pending availability).
This can be helpful for developing a home practice tailored for you and your body.
*Billable through extended health when part of physiotherapy.
The physical (asana) aspect of yoga is the most familiar in the 'western' culture, though it is only a small piece of the traditional practice and philosophy.
The physical postures can be effective in healing from injury or pain when combined with attention and breath practices. Modern lifestyle has led to some unhealthy movement patterns such as the use of chairs, toilets and computers. Sustained and repetitive movements can add strain to the body. Getting onto the floor to wiggle, move and meet our edges helps reclaim vital mobility patterns, boost our healing process and support aspects of well-being beyond just the physical benefit.
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Research
Research continues to build and demonstrate the benefits of yoga for pain. This 2019 meta-analysis shows how yoga can help chronic neck pain: Yoga for neck pain.
There is also evidence to support yoga for lower back pain and arthritis, though research continues to be challenged by the variability of yoga approaches and how difficult they are to measure.
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Edges
An important aspect of Yoga is the way it invites us to explore our edges. Often the ‘edge’ of our stiffness or pain (or psychological/emotional edge) is earlier in a movement than we thought. We may have been pushing past an edge for years adding stress to the body or perpetuating a pain cycle. By slowing things down, noticing our breath patterns and softening we allow the intelligence of the body to tell us what is needed to heal.
If you are interested in reading more about edge ‘play’, this old article by Joel Kramer describes it very well. You can skip to page 5 if you only want to read more about edges in the yoga practice.
Yoga as self-transformation
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