Yoga for scoliosis of 1, 2, 3 degrees

Scoliosis is one of the most common spinal pathologies. It is not just a postural defect: curvature of the spine leads to disruption of the internal organs. Non-surgical treatments for scoliosis often aim to restructure the spine, usually by relaxing or stretching muscles or ligaments. [ 1 ]

Some doctors use scoliosis treatments such as heel pads, physical therapy, manual therapy, electrical stimulation, acupuncture, Pilates, and yoga.[ 2 ]

Studies evaluating the effectiveness of general strengthening and other conservative treatments are conflicting and therefore their results should be considered inconclusive. [ 3 ], [ 4 ] A few small studies are optimistic about yoga-like approaches. [ 5 ], [ 6 ]

Yoga for scoliosis is treated differently, because it is not just physical education, it is a whole teaching that changes people's worldview. Can yoga classes straighten the spinal axis or is it better to use other practices?

Scoliosis is a condition in which there is a lateral curvature of the spinal column. This right-to-left asymmetry is often accompanied by a rotational and/or kyphotic component.[ 7 ]

Scoliosis affects 2% to 3% of the population, or an estimated 6 to 9 million people in the United States. Medical and preventive advances in tuberculosis and polio have changed the statistics so that more than 80% of cases are now idiopathic.[ 8 ] Most scoliosis now develops in infancy or early childhood. Although it is usually detected between the ages of 10 and 15, it usually begins much earlier and is equally common in men and women during its onset.[ 9 ] Degenerative scoliosis in adults occurs as a result of a combination of age and deterioration of the spine, typically with onset after age 40. It may be associated with osteoporosis.

Is it possible to do yoga if you have scoliosis?

In search of healing, patients are interested in whether it is possible to do yoga with scoliosis? If gymnastics is part of complex therapy, then which system of exercises is more effective: exotic yoga for scoliosis or something more traditional?

• The teaching was born in ancient India, and modern variations are not different in essence. Classes are aimed at moral improvement and physical health.

Yoga practice is a natural rehabilitation process and provides the desired dynamics by activating the body's resources. The most common option is hatha yoga. Its essence lies in the ability to relax the body and achieve calmness of the mind. Thanks to a well-designed program, the spine straightens, and the progression of the pathology stops.

• The best effect from yoga therapy is observed with curvatures of the 1st and 2nd degree.

At stage 3, improvement is also observed after exercise; it is important for a patient with this diagnosis to overcome the fear of the inevitable pain that accompanies this condition. Exercises are also indicated for injuries that have led to curvature of the spinal axis. With a properly selected rehabilitation program, positive results are achieved: special exercises strengthen the back muscles, relieve spasms, put the vertebrae in place (in the literal sense of these words), and return flexibility to the ligaments.

Yoga helps patients with scoliosis to stabilize weak muscles; increase breathing range; improve posture while standing, sitting, and lying down; and strengthen and lengthen the spine through specific poses used as traction. [ 10 ]

The system, which requires physical and mental effort when performing exercises for body flexibility, is called hatha yoga. It teaches that each asana affects individual organs. Without delving into the subtleties of the teaching, which cannot be described in a short text, we will dwell on the issue of hatha yoga for scoliosis.

Yoga classes have a healing effect, according to people who have been practicing for a long time. Patients not only improve their health, but also become kinder, morally purer – in a word, happier.

• After all, the ancient teaching is aimed at finding harmony, perfection, peace in the soul. And isn't this what the feeling of happiness consists of?

This version of yoga for scoliosis is chosen for its safety and accessibility. In addition to aligning the spine, the benefits of the technique are as follows:

• improves well-being;
• disciplines the body and emotions;
• resists stress;
• makes a person stronger in all respects.

The apologists of the teaching say that the method increases the intellectual capabilities of the individual, promotes erudition and quick learning. A person is freed from blocks - and this says a lot. Problems and their causes are eliminated, time is found to realize a long-standing dream, realize hobbies and hidden talents, the opportunity and desire to look at yourself from the outside.

• By developing the body and mind, a person “allows himself” to be free, healthy and happy.

This is ideal. How it will turn out in reality depends, first of all, on the person with spinal problems. And the decisive factor in practice is the focus on the result.

Indications

Yoga is a whole system, almost a religion, combining physical and spiritual aspirations. Yoga is one of the methods of religious and spiritual asceticism associated with Hinduism. For yoga for scoliosis to be effective, the patient should accept the teaching in its entirety, not only in the part concerning the physical side. This requires significant effort, discipline, and fulfillment of a number of conditions that do not always correspond to a person’s previous lifestyle.

Outside of India, yoga is commonly known as the asana (posture) of hatha yoga or as a form of exercise in general. Recently, yoga has gained popularity in the United States, as it has been claimed to be effective in treating scoliosis. As a result, yoga has become a popular treatment method in private orthopedic practices.[ 11 ]

In 2012, a Cochrane review stated that they could not evaluate yoga because there was no randomized control or controlled prospective trial or equivalent.[ 12 ],[ 13 ]

Yoga has many variations. Modern hatha yoga is called training to improve control of one's own body. It is like the first step to perfection, followed by more subtle steps.

• Experts attribute the abundance of new styles to the fact that yoga schools are now on a commercial footing, and loud or mysterious names of styles are intended to simply attract a clientele that is quite physically healthy.

In addition to scoliosis and similar spinal problems, medical indications for yoga are as follows:

• arthritis, arthrosis;
• vegetative-vascular dystonia, asthenia;
• chronic fatigue syndrome and anxiety;
• insomnia, internal tension;
• consequences of long-term stress.

Contraindications

Most of the adverse effects associated with yoga affect the musculoskeletal, nervous, or visual systems.[ 14 ]

Like any other physical or mental practice, yoga is not without risk. However, given the large number of practitioners worldwide, [ 15 ] relatively few serious complications have been reported in healthy individuals. Therefore, there is no need to discourage the practice of yoga in healthy individuals. However, yoga should not be practiced as a competition and that yoga teachers and students should never push themselves (or their students) beyond their capabilities. Beginners should avoid difficult poses such as the headstand or lotus position, as well as advanced breathing techniques such as kapalabati. Practices such as voluntary vomiting should probably be avoided entirely. Yoga should not be practiced under the influence of psychoactive substances.

There are temporary and permanent contraindications. Yoga should not be included in the complex treatment for 4th degree scoliosis and during an exacerbation of the process. Other contraindications:

• severe back pain;
• infections;
• cardiovascular problems, hypertension;
• neuroses, traumatic brain injuries;
• mental disorders;
• malignant tumors;
• gallstones.

Temporary contraindications are present in the postoperative period, in severe conditions, severe fatigue, elevated temperature, when the patient is physically unable to withstand stress, be active and perform asanas.

However, some specialists are sure that there are no absolute indications or contraindications. Everything is relative and depends on the coincidence of factors in each specific case.

Duration

A quick result from yoga classes for scoliosis is a good wish. The non-traditional method requires persistence, effort, and concentration on classes. Strict discipline is a mandatory component of yoga success.

The duration of training required to achieve the result is determined by the doctor. The duration of each asana is determined initially: depending on the complexity of the condition, each body position is held for 10-20 seconds, repeated 2-3 times in a row.

• At first, the trainer supervises the execution of the exercises, then the opportunity arises to work independently, at home.

Expected results are reported after 2 months of practice. According to available statistics, on average, the curvature during this time decreases by 30-40%. This depends on persistence and time spent on the training mat. With 10-15 minute sessions, most people notice a 30% alignment. Those who practice daily for an hour or more, achieve a 40% improvement in the same time.

Frequency

Official medicine does not recognize the therapeutic usefulness of yoga. Eastern medicine, on the contrary, considers it useful in the first three stages of scoliosis. This is confirmed by practice: specialists and patients talk about the positive results of gymnastics using asanas for stretching and relaxation.

• An early-stage problem can be cured completely, and an advanced one can be stabilized, preventing progression and the likelihood of complications.

Yoga for scoliosis requires consistency and regularity. The more diligently they are performed, the sooner the result is achieved, i.e., the symmetry of the spine. The publications provide the following statistics: practicing for an hour with a daily frequency, for 2 months, actually achieves an improvement (i.e., straightening the curvature of the spine) by 40%.

• However, we should not forget that scoliosis does not develop according to typical patterns, but very individually. Not only the axis of the spine is displaced: the chest, the muscles of the upper limbs, the whole body are deformed.

Everything is so individual that it is sometimes impossible to take into account all the features. Therefore, too intense and dynamic exercises should be avoided so as not to aggravate the situation. As for static asanas, they are useful for frequent performance - because they relax and restore muscles, train breathing, stimulate blood circulation and nutrition in this area.

Gradually, the vertebrae are pulled into place, symmetry is restored, and the functioning of the internal organs returns to normal. The person becomes calmer, more alert, sleeps normally, and the healthy habit of monitoring posture and breathing usually remains forever.

Description of the exercise

Yoga for scoliosis should be started after consultation with doctors and development of an individual set of exercises. The main goal of the practice is to prevent the aggravation and progression of the pathological process.

• On the part of the patient, it is important to have a conscious approach to the work of the body, breathing, and relaxation at the final stage of the exercises. Systematic training is mandatory.

Regardless of the type of scoliosis, the technique should not overload the spine. You should start with something simple to smoothly prepare your weak back. Add the next asana gradually. Do not use forceful bends, twists, inverted asanas, or long, exhausting workouts.

It is necessary to ensure that the anatomical structures of the body are symmetrical relative to the spine. The chest is expanded, the stomach and buttocks are pulled in. Breathing with the stomach. Each asana is performed on inhalation and exhalation.

A temporary feeling of discomfort should not be an obstacle. It is normal, as is the fact that during the exercises you hear clicking sounds: this is the vertebrae falling into place, straightening the spinal column. After finishing the asana, it needs to be stretched.

One study used a slight modification of the classic Iyengar side plank pose in which patients were instructed to elevate their ribs, which is not part of the classic Iyengar technique.[ 16 ] Complex or "S" curves were corrected by adding a second contralateral strengthening pose, which consisted of holding the free leg with the free hand and pushing that part of the spine, usually the cervicothoracic spine, upward.[ 17 ]

Yoga for scoliosis 1st degree

Scoliosis can be congenital or acquired. Depending on the curvature, there are 4 stages, and by localization - thoracic, cervical, lumbar. By direction - right- and left-sided.

• This is mainly a problem for schoolchildren, whose skeletons grow quickly. But adults also face this pathology.

Low activity, underdeveloped muscles, injuries, unhealthy habits, poor nutrition with a lack of calcium - any of these reasons, and more often a combination, can cause curvature of one degree or another.

The first degree of curvature is considered a normal variant, a cosmetic defect. This is a curvature of up to 10 degrees, visually almost unnoticeable. A careful look may only show a slight asymmetry of the shoulder blades and shoulders.

• Yoga for scoliosis at this stage is indicated, but not mandatory, since the defect does not lead to disruptions in the functioning of internal organs.

Yoga for stage 1 scoliosis is allowed as therapeutic gymnastics, as well as for the prevention of relapses. Yoga practice can improve the health of not only the spine, but also the body as a whole. Another point: yoga therapy has the necessary psychological effect. For this purpose, it is convenient to practice in a general group, two or three times a week. However, such a regime will not correct the existing deformation.

To prevent the exercises from harming the scoliosis spine at stage 1, you should refrain from dynamic and strength exercises. The fact that the practice was chosen incorrectly is evidenced by pain, including outside the spine, rapid heartbeat, painful menstruation in women.

Yoga for scoliosis 2 degrees

If you are recommended yoga for scoliosis, start with the theory: at least briefly familiarize yourself with the ancient philosophy that lies in the physical exercise complexes. And let the recommendations provided help you achieve your goal - to be cured with yoga for grade 2 (or grade 3) scoliosis.

The effectiveness of yoga is ensured only by following the rules for performing asanas. A qualified trainer should familiarize the patient with them, after a doctor's conclusion. The trainer also offers an individual set of exercises suitable specifically for your case.

• If you are confident in your own responsibility and persistence, after training with a teacher you can move on to home training. The trainer's advice, accessible information, video lessons will help you!

Yoga is characterized by selective effectiveness: people with the same diagnoses require different treatment complexes. During classes, listen to your body: its reaction will tell you which exercises are useful and which are better to avoid.

• A key point in many Eastern practices is conscious breathing.

From it the body receives energy and strength to overcome annoying ailments. Concentration of attention on breathing brings an element of meditation into physical actions, balances the energy flows and directs them where necessary. The habit of breathing correctly after regular classes becomes permanent, which, according to yoga theory, supports the full functioning of all organs.

Yoga for scoliosis 3 degrees

To achieve the result of yoga for scoliosis of the 3rd degree, it is necessary to practice persistently and systematically. The number and combination of asanas depends on the individual needs and capabilities of the patient. In general, the yoga complex for scoliosis consists of no more than 7 exercises. Each pose has a specific name inherent in the practice of yoga:

• gomukhasana (cow);
• vrikshasana (tree);
• virabhadrasana (warrior);
• chakrasana (wheel);
• shashankasana (hare);
• janu sirsasana (head to knee);
• uttanasana (extended pose);
• shavasana (corpse).

The last name is not a black humor joke; this is the pose that yoga recommends to finish classes with – completely relaxed, satisfied and peaceful.

You should get acquainted with the poses in personal communication with the instructor, as well as from drawings and videos. And it is imperative to exclude moments that are fraught with danger: incorrect performance of asanas, unjustified risks, unpreparedness for the practice in general.

• Exercises are unacceptable during exacerbations, in a weakened state, or if they are accompanied by excessive discomfort.

It is impossible to include twisting in the complex, when the spinal column takes an unnatural position and shape. On the contrary, striving for the position characteristic of the spine brings the moment of alignment as close as possible.

Yoga for thoracic scoliosis

Gymnastics is an important component in the scoliosis treatment program. In mild forms, it is aimed at stabilization, in severe forms - at preventing relapses. Yoga for scoliosis contributes to this - with the correct selection of asanas that strengthen the muscle corset, back and health in general. Doubts about the effectiveness of yoga for thoracic scoliosis arise in those who are not ready to work regularly, persistently and with full responsibility for their health.

According to statistics, most curvatures are localized in the thoracic region, with a shift to the right. If to the left, then there is a high probability that scoliosis is a consequence of some other disease.

• Yoga asanas are available for performance at any age. The main condition is not to start without consulting a doctor and initially to practice under the supervision of a trainer.

It is important that these are qualified specialists, each in their own field. A competent yoga specialist will definitely emphasize that asanas should be performed smoothly, with concentration, combining movements with the breathing rhythm and without distracting attention from work. Periodically, the body needs rest, which it should get thanks to a breathing exercise: inhale and exhale with the stomach, returning it to its original position.

The program for eliminating thoracic scoliosis includes flexible and relaxing asanas. Locust, extended triangle, hero's tilt, side plank - these are the figurative names practiced by the gymnastic system from ancient Indian sages, gaining more and more fans among our contemporaries. The names are intriguing, but also prompt patients with scoliosis the correctness of performing the exercises.

Yoga for C-shaped scoliosis

There are many ways to classify scoliosis. They are based on measuring the curvature in degrees, localization on the spine, and direction of the convexity. There are many causes of scoliosis, but in most cases they are unclear.

• Scoliosis with one arc of curvature is called C-shaped, with two - S-shaped. With C-shaped, curvature is observed in one section, in one direction or another. More complex defects are rare.

Standard therapeutic approaches, depending on the angle of curvature, include wearing a corset, surgery, and therapeutic exercise. However, many doctors consider the pathology incurable: as if scoliosis is forever.

• Yoga for C-shaped scoliosis refutes this statement. Why?

The first thing you need to believe is that yoga can help with scoliosis – if you really want it, are ready to be persistent and regularly perform the exercises suggested by an experienced specialist. Yoga therapy strengthens the muscles that help a person take and maintain an upright body position. By focusing on restoring the spine, you can achieve success not only in mild stages, but also in more severe cases.

• Unlike conventional exercise therapy, yoga restores the optimal functioning of all joints. Namely, dysfunction of joints, according to new data, is the cause of the occurrence and progression of scoliosis changes.

The complexity of yoga techniques helps to overcome pain thresholds typical for physical activity with a curved spine. Working with the body, energy and breathing, plus sensations - such a comprehensive approach allows you to work out the entire musculoskeletal system as deeply as possible.

The changes occurring in the body

Expecting super results after the first lesson is a big mistake. The first results can be summed up after a number of lessons, and statistical indicators are calculated after two months.

To understand why this yoga pose may help with scoliosis, it’s important to understand the physics involved in creating scoliotic curves. A simplified analysis of how humans stand up straight involves a symmetrical downward movement of the back, abdominal, intercostal, and paraspinal muscles. Scoliosis can therefore be explained by an asymmetry in the force these muscles exert on the spine. The spine will bend toward the stronger side, and thus the muscles on the convex side may be weaker than their smaller counterparts on the concave side. [ 18 ] Research suggests that side plank pose is helpful in strengthening the quadriceps on the convex side, the iliopsoas, the abdominals, the obliques, the intercostals, and the paraspinal muscles, which in turn can straighten the spine.

When exercises are performed correctly, the positive changes that occur in the body are as follows:

• pain is relieved;
• muscles are strengthened;
• the position of the vertebrae, the nervous system and the activity of internal organs are restored;
• blood supply is normalized;
• the person calms down, insomnia stops.

Some changes are not so pleasant. As a result of yoga classes for scoliosis, pain may occur due to muscle strain. This is not a cause for concern, but a natural muscular reaction to the load, which goes away on its own. To avoid this, it is better to start classes under the supervision of a specialist, and only then do them on your own.

The best results are observed in adolescents. The prognosis for adult patients is also favorable, but achieving the effect is somewhat more difficult.

Complications

There is a possibility of complications if the exercises are chosen incorrectly or if mistakes are made when performing them. Patience is important in the exercises, but within the limits of comfort. Excessive loads cause too much pain, and this should not be the case. If something does not work out, then contact a trainer who helps in choosing therapeutic yoga asanas for scoliosis. [ 19 ]

• It is important to relax the muscles, otherwise they may simply tear instead of stretching. This is both a painful and dangerous complication.

Interesting in this sense information from British specialists, who introduced the term "yoga diseases" into circulation. They recorded the following complications, which resulted from thoughtless and frivolous passion for exotic practice:

• unbearable pain in the knees;
• stroke;
• sprain;
• retinal disorder.

These are probably the extremes that people who are not prepared for yoga practice either morally or emotionally face. With the right approach, all of this can be avoided.

Yoga classes have helped many people get rid of problems with the spine, joints, and the consequences of stress. The technique has a beneficial effect on the entire body. Like other therapeutic exercises, yoga for scoliosis is useful for most of our contemporaries, who suffer en masse from such problems. The key to success is an individual approach to patients by specialists and a serious focus on eliminating the problem for each patient.