Help Heal Yourself With Yoga

Yoga has been shown to help with musculoskeletal problems, and Mary found relief—both for the injury to her pelvic and hip area as well as for the heel pain. Yet she had to try several yoga teachers before finding one—a former dancer who had also suffered injury—who understood how to help her learn the poses safely.

Like Julianna, Mary finds that her pain returns if she lessens her yoga practice. She tries to take at least two classes each week.

"I feel like I'm resourceful now, whereas before I was so frustrated—it was medications and injections and one thing after another," Mary says.

That appears to be a typical pattern. "If people are practicing yoga regularly," Dr. Yang says, "we expect that their health conditions will improve and, thus, they will need fewer medications and have less complications."

Before you begin

If you're thinking of trying yoga to help with a health condition, consider these suggestions from Dr. Innes and Dr. Yang:

• Consult with your health care provider about your interest in using yoga to help manage your condition.
• Find an experienced yoga instructor who knows how to modify poses to make them safer and more accessible for you. Talk to the teacher before signing up for the class, to make sure that the sessions will fit your needs. Some instructors are specially trained in therapeutic yoga.
• Many types of yoga have been shown to be beneficial at preventing and managing health problems. Choose a class that lets you start slowly and gently.
• To avoid injury, pay attention to how your body feels during poses. Do not push yourself or try to compete with what others in the class are doing.
• There's no recommended frequency, but research shows effects from yoga with one-hour sessions, two or three times weekly, for eight to 12 weeks. Daily practice—even for just five minutes—is very helpful.