Flexible.
Capable of bending easily without breaking.
Able to be easily modified to respond to altered circumstances or conditions.
Ready and able to change so as to adapt to different circumstances.
Yoga, Day 4 of the 30-day challenge; has me in knots! Hee Hee! I used to love yoga, Hot Yoga; a room heated to 105 and 40% humidity! Gosh, the sweat on was amazing, I felt like I was melting away all of the toxins of the day, however; as I started to get sicker and have more symptoms form my Lupus this no longer became an option.
Hot Yoga and Bikram – and not being able to control my body temperature or inflammation was a BAD idea. I started to become dehydrated and have very constricted movement, the more my Lupus reared its ugly head. Lupus makes it hard for the for the veins to dilate, which aids in a normal cooling process and core temperature regulating system.
My last yoga class was 2+ years ago, maybe 3; I don’t know I’m bad at timelines. But I remember it like it was yesterday…
My Lupus hates my kidneys, so the ongoing dehydration from excess sweating due to my veins inflammation; lead to very concentrated urine = the formation of kidney stones.
Stones + regular pain = unbearable pain
The fear of this pain is what has kept me away from yoga for so long.
Something clicked with me the other day through, how does someone like myself who lifts everyday – not fully stretch their bodies. If anything, I need to stretch longer than the average bug – my symptoms make it a game to deplete movement and flexibility. That’s just for the body!
Yoga stands for the path to health, relaxation and inner happiness, through practice calming the mind and body. Yoga is designed to integrate and balance all the layers of our life so that our body, mind, heart, intellect and spirit flow in harmony.
Getting back to practicing, I found an amazing YouTube; Yoga with Adriene. This has been a blessing into my life. She offers everything from the 30-day challenge to different types of yoga to meditation to relieve stress and anxiety.
Something she said in the first video struck me, Yoga offers a way for us to see a world that is working for you instead of against you. They main pain with Lupus is feeling alone, stressed, fear, and a general uneasiness that your body is out to hurt you – but like everything; it’s just a disease. The disease can’t help what it was designed to do, but I can help how I react to it.
My moments of stretching and practice with Adriene, through YouTube has given me more awareness of my body, my movements and myself. My workouts are for me, they are the proof to myself that I can own my pain and illness. Why am I not repaying my body with some stretching and reflection?
Like L said to me not so long ago, Your body is so hard on you, don’t be hard on it.
http://yogawithadriene.com/blog/
http://www.resources.lupus.org/entry/recommended-types-of-yoga