How to Use Your Body to Trick Your Mind (In a Good Way)

Growing up, I used to respond to my best friend getting upset by touching her face, trying to get her to smile. Luckily, she consistently responded by cracking up instead of punching me, like non-best-friends might have done. Similarly, assuming the “starfish position” also seemed to cheer her up in a pinch. Although most people clearly won’t let you grab their face or strike a pose on command, variations of these tricks also work in yoga- and real life.

Which comes first- the feeling or the behavior?

Nerdy Fact: Williams James began assessing this question in the 1890s. Social psychologists began studying Self-Perception, positing that acting “as if” led to feeling a certain way, as early as the 1970s (Bem, 1972; Laird, 1974). Strack, Martin, & Stepper found evidence supporting the Facial Feedback Hypothesis, which assumes that even forced facial expressions contribute to perceived affect, in 1988.  Botox patients often report having blunted emotional experiences.

More recently, research in business has demonstrated that “body language,” including physical postures, impacts our brain chemistry, self-perception, and the way others perceive us. Even walking in a “happy” way has been shown to improve mood.

Additionally, BKS Iyengar, one of the foremost yoga teachers in the world, has been quoted as saying, “It’s impossible to be depressed with the armpits open.”

When teenage students comes to my office feeling upset, they often give me the crazy look when I ask them to do a standing starfish pose. So far this method has worked- possibly due to self-perception. Even if they end up laughing simple due to the silly starfish demonstration, it has yet to fail.

Some Like it Hot, Part 2: Hot Yoga

When I was a kid, my cousins convinced me, my sister, and their younger brother that going in the dryer was a fantastic plan. Yes- the *clothes* dryer. So in we went, separately at least. And then they turned it on (whee!). Gotta admire their creativity.

I know, probably not our brightest moment. Or as I like to say, “an important life experience that has resulted in the well-adjusted individual standing before you today.” More importantly, though, not only was it hot in the dryer, it was surprisingly humid too. As in, dang, it’s-so-humid-in-here-how-dare-they-call-it-a-dryer level of humid.  “Dryer.” What a farce. However, due to the short-lived nature of the experience, as well as the going upside down part, at least the heat was short-lived.

Fast forward about a decade, and my high-school soccer team plays in 106 degree, muggy-beast level heat. This results in an all-day perma-headache that lasts the rest of the day.  As much as I loved soccer, hard to say whether it was worth it. Head-roasting pounder only to be replicated another decade later during & after first spinning class (surprised I ever went more than once). And then again, when my friend Hillary asked me to come to the first yoga class she’d ever teach. The fine print: said class took place in a heated  (104 degree), humidified room. I should have seen the red flags: they called the class “yoga sculpt.” Proceeded to pass out 3-5lb hand weights at the door. Studio name: “Core Power.” Multi-page legal document to sign, mentioning take at your own risk: check. Recommendation to wear a head band, wrist bands, and bring multiple towels- yes.

As a person who strongly believes that if I wanted to work out, I’d go to the gym, my preference for separation of sweat and yoga was pretty clear. In fact, the only situations in which I want to be in that kind of heat for more than the few seconds it takes to dart from on air-conditioned area to the next include steam rooms, saunas, and hot tubs. And even those are ill-advised hangout spots for more than about 15 minutes at a time.

However, my urge to support my friend and leave my (air-conditioned) comfort zone outweighed those preferences. So I went, equipped with my shortest short-shorts and skimpiest everything, ’cause at some point I figured we all stop caring. And that wasn’t (skimpy) enough to prevent my matt from turning into a virtual Slip’N’Slide. As in, the kind I had in the ’80s, before they came with sprinklers. Until that day, I never fancied myself a particularly sweaty person. Yet for the record, my alleged “Thirsty Towel” was no match for this particular brand of sweat lodge, I mean class.

For the first time in my life, I think my eyelids were sweating. They wouldn’t stop. My whole body turned into one giant faucet. So the biggest challenge was to stay until the 15 minutes of the excruciating 90 minute class when Hillary would take her turn. But clearly a whole room of sweaty people survived. A lot of them went back. Confession: after spending most of the “longest-yoga-class-of-my-life,” I felt pretty awesome. After taking one of the most satisfying showers on Planet Earth, with a side of roasty, pounding headache that is.

So un-shockingly, I never returned to Core Power, or any brand of uber-heated class for that matter. for that matter. Plus, to anwer one of the top FAQ posed to any yoga practitioner, will never, ever take a Bikram class. And not just ’cause they do the same sequence. Every. Single. Time.

To me, some things are better hot. Saunas. Hot chocolate. Soup. Tea. Sriracha. Significant others. Those hot stones they put on your back sometimes for massages. But I’ll take my yoga room-temperature, thanks. Effective forever.

To be fair, there clearly are some people out there who feel the awesome minus the 2-day headache, strong urge to shower, and extreme sweat intolerance that others experience. I’ll continue to admire their bodies’ abilities to handle being roasted while they “flow” through lots of poses, and their mental fortitude to be unperturbed with their own dripping sweat. And channel my yogic tranquility to politely decline the next time a “hot yogi” tries to convince me to join the parade.

Kicking Low Back Pain to the Curb – Gently, of course

I love it when doctors explan fancy medical concepts in accessible ways their patients can understand, like Dr. Mike Evans does in this video: 

A few pearls of wisdom from the video: 

• Low back pain accounts for 40% of all missed work days, and is one of the top 2 reasons people visit doctors
• Most “mechanical” back pain improves on its own, yet will recur. Thus, it’s best to treat it as a chronic vulnerability, and make small changes to prevent and treat it, such as managing stress & getting enough sleep. 
• Back pain has an excellent prognosis. Over 90% of patients recover! Acknowledge the pain without dwelling on it.

What works:

1. Movement! Get out of bed. Avoiding movement often makes people worse. 
2. Massage, acupuncture (maxes out in 8-10 sessions), and exercise
3. Yoga and pilates- some evidence, yet hard to prove in research trials
4. Cognitive behavioral therapy- changing the way you think about back pain (attitude matters!)
5. Small changes count: improving posture, taking breaks from sitting, changing work station

Gentle Routine for Low Back Pain:

• 1st Place: Supta Padangusthasana (Reclining Big Toe Pose)- stretches hamstrings, which can lead to low back pain. Use a strap, keeping both legs straight. Repeat at least twice on both sides, holding for about a minute or 10 breaths. 
• 2nd Place: Ashva Sanchalanasana (High Lunge), supported with blocks as needed, holding about 5-10 breaths and repeating on each side. 
• Cool Down: Balasana (Child’s Pose)- with knees apart/wide; decompresses the spine

Prevention: 

• Cat & Cow poses, paired with inhale (cow) and exhale (cat), prepares the body for movement before any kind of exercise. 
• Salabhasana (Locust Pose)- strengthens the back and can relieve / prevent low back pain. However, avoid if back pain or injury is severe. 
• Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Bridge Pose)- strengthens & reduces backache. 
• Plank Pose: strengthens and stabilizes muscles supporting the spine. 

 

Modifying Your Yoga Practice: 

• Avoid deep forward folds (such as Uttanasana) and deep backbends (e.g. ustrasana). When injured, think of your spine like a paper clip- stay away from bending forward and back too deeply, too quickly, while recovering
• Alternative backbend- bhujangasana (sphinx pose) or a gentle standing backbend
• Twist gently- never force. Try gentle supine twists or static standing variations. 
• Move slowly in and out of poses, never straining (this should come naturally when injured!)
• Gradually return to your “normal” routine as symptoms improve. Revisit and repeat as necessary! 

 

(and, when done safely, a little hot stone massage often helps)

Some Like it (Flamin’) Hot – Yoga Strategies for Cooling Down on Hot Days

A few months ago, charged with the task of shopping for my high school students’ snacks for their anger management group, I surveyed them for advice. Resounding opinion: we want “hot flamins.” Even when given the option of a variety pack, the regular potato chips were last picked (good thing chips don’t have feelings). On the students’ final day of group, we had a pizza party. So I let them haze me, putting some flamin’ hot cheetos on top of a slice of cheese pizza. After choking/crying a little bit, since Flamin hots are *not* intended for inhalation, at least the students were happy / proud of me. 

Confession: maybe it was the burning sensation, the “Flamin’ Hot spice mix,” maybe it’s the monosodium glutamate, or just some magic combination created in a factory near us… but I kind of liked them. Like so many other things you never knew about, then “discovered,” I started noticing different iterations everywhere: Dinamitas, Blazin’ Hot, Fuego (Fire) flavored Takis… 

 

Hint: You *might* be in trouble if a package depicts a tiny corn pouf that’s on fire / cartoon man with flames coming out of his mouth like a fire-breathing dragon. To be safe, have some yogurt nearby… just a little pearl of wisdom picked up from a London Indian restaurant where the waiter came to my rescue. Deep down, he knew this particular white lady was kidding herself thinking she could handle the spiciest dish on the menu. 

Nerdy Fact: It might not be our fault that we enjoy such spefically engineered, “hyper-palatable” snack foods. By design, their ratio of  fat, salt, and spiciness may cause our brains’ pleasure centers to react to them more strongly than other foods.

But also like so many other questionably-awesome things: Is eating these really in our best interest? And more specifically: do aggressive, sometimes trauamtized teenagers really need this in their lives? Perhaps not. 

In fact, some school districts have banned “super spicy snacks,” which some emergency room doctors believe may lead to digestive distress. This article further explains that some spicy snacks have “come under fire” (haha) to to poor nutritional value and potential health risks. 

What does this have to do with yoga? According to Ayurveda, an ancient healing system considered to be yoga’s “sister science,” summer is supposedly “Pitta” season. Hot, humid weather may make us a little more prone to anger, aggression, inflammation, impatience, and irritation. There might even be data to support this, even if it’s correlational (as the often-mentioned ice cream sales and violence statistics mentioned in social science classrooms everywhere). 

Nerdy Fact: A team of economists and public policy researchers compiled 27 quantitative studies examining the  we looked link between temperatures and conflict- ALL of which found an association between higher temperatures and violence.

So there might be something to this…

How to “Cool Down” from a yogic / Ayurvedic perspective: 

1. Physical practice: work on gentle twists & side stretches. Avoid aggressive sports and intense exercise, especially during the hottest part of the day. 

2. Breathing: try a cooling breath (Shitali, Sitkari), lengthen exhales, and exhaling through the mouth. 

3. Diet: Avoid hot, salty, oily, and pungent foods; limit caffeine and alcohol. Eat more sweet and bitter foods. 

4. Other suggestions: stay cool, manage stress, avoid conflict & overworking. 

(And probably cut down on the flamin’ hots!)

Take *That* Ambien! – Yoga for Insomnia

Sometimes, drugs *are* bad.

 Once upon a time, (circa March 2012) I started laughing hysterically while sitting in traffic on the 90/94 Expressway in Chicago. Except there was absolutely *nothing* funny going down at that time, not on the radio or the street or even in my memory or imagination. Thus, understandably, my first rational thought was, “Am I insane?” Seriously. It could happen. People have psychotic breaks and/or manic episodes all the time, and maybe the ol’ job (or commute) had finally driven my poor brain over the edge. Before looking myself up in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, I had a “Stop and Think” moment.

Had I taken a little blue pill called zolpidem tartrate the night before? Why yes, yes I had. The Walgreen’s pamphet on Possible Side Effects made for some interesting reading. Euphoria? Check. Luckily, at least to my knowledge, I had not partaken in sleep-walking, sleep-driving (!), meal preparation / consumption, making phone calls, and ahem, other activities, while not fully awake. Phew. And I could rule out insanity, at least as it pertained to the cracking up in traffic incident.

So how exactly did I end up taking psychotropic medication in the first place? You see, as I like to say, every girl needs two kinds of doctors in her life: Dr. Prevention and Dr. Prescription-Writer. I had tried Dr. Prevention’s way, after a 30-minute consultation with her. After a bout of insomnia brought on by accidentally taking allergy meds containing pseudoephedrine, (the chemical precursor meth), she told me to relax, listen to soothing music, and take a bath. If only.

Days later, unable to score one of Dr. Prevention’s coveted half-hour appointment slots, I begged the office for a same-day appointment. At that point, I was willing to see just about *any* doctor. Given that Dr. Prescription-Writer saw patients for an efficient 15 minutes or less, he had time in his schedule.

Thinking I’d have to make a case for why he needed to immediately give me the juice, I came armed with a bulleted list. Irrelevant! He wrote it up and within an hour those sweet little 12.5mg pills were all mine. Before the FDA reduced the dosage considered safe for women. The little blue guys succeeded in knocking me out for about 5-6 hours, except it was a weird, trance-like brand of sleep-esque coma rather than true, restorative sleep. Like the time when my Italian grandma gave me Carlo Rossi to knock me out (Irish friends got whiskey), Ambien is to real sleep as I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter is to real butter. I prefer the real deal.

Life Lesson: sometimes, for some people, Mr. Mackey’s famous tirade makes some valid points. Prescription meds definitely have their place. Personally, next time I’ll try whipping out every other drug-free tool in my toolbox first. See below. 

Yoga Solutions:

1. Restorative, supported inversions such as Viparita Karani,* sometimes called “Legs Up the Wall Pose,” can combat insomnia as well as stress, anxiety, and even back pain and foot / leg cramps. Even a few minutes (up to 15) may be enough. 

2. Forward Folds such as Balasana (Child’s Pose) often calms the mind and relieves stress and fatigue.

3. Ayurvedic Self-Oil Massage (Abhyanga), especially on the bottoms of the feet, often benefits sleep patterns and promotes relaxation.

4. De-Clutter. Sometimes messy bed(room) = messy head. When all else fails, try getting up and doing something. Organize your sock drawer, closet, or junk drawer.

*Nerdy Fact: How does this work? When experiencing a stress response, putting the body in to a supported inversion such as Viparita Karani can reverse this process by encouraging blood flow to the internal organs.  This counteracts the sympathetic nervous system’s “fight or flight” response, which sends blood flow to extremities, and activates the parasympathetic nervous system, encouraging the body to “rest and digest.”

Yoga Nidra. It’s kind of like cheating. The *good* kind of cheating.

I remember my 10th grade Economics teacher telling our class that there’s “no such thing as a free lunch.” Ever since then I’ve loved anything that defies this principle. Let’s be real, everyone. Getting something for free is its own brand of awesome. Especially when it comes to two of my favorite commodities: sleep and time. Enter yoga nidra, a meditation technique so cost-effective, it makes me feel like I’m getting something for nothing.

But wait! I’m too much of a spaz to meditate, mind jumping around like Tigger on amphetamines. Actually, that’s perfect. Yoga nidra, also known as “yogic sleep,” is a *guided* meditation technique that helps treat “Tigger brain.” Even better, the teacher or guide *tells you what to think about,* so it’s easy-breezy for the stressed, rushed, and scattered. We know who we are 🙂

Nerdy fact(s): Yoga nidra has been shown to effectively treat insomnia, relieve pain, and alleviate symptoms of chronic stress, anxiety, depression, substance abuse/addiction, and PTSD. Clinical trials also have shown promising results in using yoga nidra as a part of a treatment plan for individuals suffering from cardiovascular disease, cancer, and asthma (Saraswati, 2013).

How long does it take? One could practice yoga nidra for 5, 10, 15, 30, or 45 minutes. Regardless of the amount of time spent practicing, the few minutes you spend purportedly translate to several *hours* of deep sleep. If that’s not a ridiculously awesome return on investment, I don’t know what is.

Though sources vary, some estimates are as follows:

• 30 minutes yoga nidra = 3 hours of deep sleep
• 45 minutes yoga nidra = 4 hours deep sleep

Okay, so how do we do this? You can take a specific yoga nidra class, offered by most yoga studios, or ask your yoga teacher to integrate it at the end of class. Otherwise, you can find a variety of audio versions online using itunes, Amazon mp3, or sources such as http://www.yoganidranetwork.org/.

Hint:  when using recordings, listen to a few previews to see if you like the teacher’s voice and content. My first experience with a recording ended with me cracking up at the new-agey expressions. This was fun, yet somewhat ineffective if you’re of the “Must. Relax. Now!” mindset. Shop around!

You can practice yoga nidra at any time of the day, or even (or especially) if you suffer from waking-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night brand of insomnia.

Teaching Yoga Nidra requires no specific certification, though some studios and teachers offer classes and trainings. The book Teaching Yoga Nidra by Swami Satyananda Saraswati (Bihar School of Yoga, 2013) includes comprehensive information, with several adaptable practices including one for children.