Yoga for Pain Management – An Alternative Treatment

There was a time in history when many people believed the best thing for chronic back pain was rest and some more rest. Nowadays that’s not the case anymore. Especially here in Boulder, many believe rest is the last thing you need to rid yourself of chronic back pain. Instead, they may take a much more holistic approach through mediation and massage. Naturally, there are some people who turn to modern medications such as pain killers in order to seek relief. Unfortunately, utilizing pain killers as a form of pain management only really mask the pain for a period of time. Recently, some have started looking to yoga for pain management as an alternative treatment.

Can Yoga Be a Form of Treatment?

Until very recently, there had not ever been any studies conducted on the safety and success rate of using yoga to treat chronic lower back pain. There have, however, always been both patients and medical experts who turned to it. Mainly as a co-treatment option for someone suffering from back pain.

In March of 2010, there was a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. In this study, 313 patients were told to participate in one of three different treatment plans:

• An exercise routine created by a physical therapist
• A self-care handbook
• A gentle yoga routine

Each group of patients did their treatment routine for 12 weeks. The research ended up concluding that yoga was far more effective than the other two options. The patients in the yoga group reported they were having the least pain and the most mobility they had had in a while.

Best Type of Yoga For Pain

There are many different types of yoga. Viniyoga or Iyengar tend to be the best choices for someone trying to seek pain relief. These are both slow paced and gentle routines. Viniyoga focuses on deep breathing and stretching. Iyengar, on the other hand, focuses on body alignment. As a third option, Yin Yoga targets the connective tissue within your body to provide relief.

Any way you slice it, we recommend yoga for pain management. An individual who suffers from chronic pain is only going to benefit from a gentle yoga routine.

Check out this video for inspiration. Contact us today at Heavenly Embrace to find out more about using alternative pain management techniques, such as deep tissue massages, hot stone massages or Energy Healing.

The Boulder community is filled with yoga studios to guide you on your path to feeling better so I would highly recommend checking out a few of them and trying out different types of yoga to figure out what works best for you.

Namaste.

Love and Light,
Liraz

Liraz Bergman-Turner is a Licensed Massage Therapist, Reiki Master & Reflexologist. She is the owner of Heavenly Embrace Wellness, a massage and energy healing practice in Boulder, CO.

---