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Yoga Takes A New Twist

Whether you have a bad back, arthritis, or even cancer, a yoga therapist may be able to help you

by Carol Krucoff

Published May 2008 in health •self_care | 0 Comments, Talk about this article »

The pain in Francesca Bill’s lower back started with sporadic small twinges that gradually intensified into nagging pain. “I felt like my back was always on the verge of going out,” recalls the 42-year-old Los Angeles social worker, whose visits to a physician, chiropractor, and acupuncturist brought no relief.

Her doctor suggested over-the-counter pain medication, which didn’t help. He wanted her to have further diagnostic testing. “But I didn’t want to go for an MRI right off the bat,” says Bill, who instead turned to yoga therapist Larry Payne, PhD—a pioneer in the emerging field of adapting yoga to help people facing health challenges.

Yoga classes have become wildly popular throughout the country—nearly 17 million Americans now practice this ancient healing art that originated in India. But unlike a group yoga class, yoga therapy is offered one-on-one so the yoga therapist can create an individually tailored program for your specific health problem, whether it’s a bad back, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, or even infertility.

“Yoga therapy applies the principles of yoga to people with special needs that are not met in a group class,” says Dr. Payne, who co-founded the International Association of Yoga Therapists in 1989 and is coauthor of Yoga Therapy Rx. “It’s a lifestyle approach that looks at the whole person, not just their specific symptom.”

If you see a yoga therapist, your typical home practice will include a 20-minute routine of yoga postures, breathing exercises, and relaxation techniques, plus what Dr. Payne calls biomechanical re-education—tips for staying properly aligned while you’re doing everyday activities, such as walking, sitting, or working at a computer. “We also talk about mind-set and visualization to help people harness the healing mind-body connection,” says Dr. Payne, who recommends that people have at least three to six yoga therapy sessions and then return for a “tune-up” when needed. “Often people become strong enough through their home practice to join an appropriate group yoga class,” he says.

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“This is a lifestyle approach that looks at the whole person, not just their specific symptom.” -Larry Payne, PhD

After several months of yoga practice using personalized CDs Dr. Payne created for her, Bill says she’s almost completely pain free. “I was skeptical at first because I don’t like a lot of the hype surrounding some yoga places in LA, and I feared getting injured in a yoga class,” she says. “But this approach is not intimidating and offers so much practical application for my everyday life—whether it’s bending down to put a dish away or playing with my kids. It’s given me lots of pragmatic, realistic tools I can use to help myself.”

All About You

Yoga therapy’s focus on giving you techniques that let you participate in healing yourself is the driving force behind its growing appeal, says Timothy McCall, MD, medical editor of Yoga Journal magazine and author of the new book Yoga as Medicine.

“It’s very different from conventional care, where the patient is a passive recipient and can feel quite helpless,” says Dr. McCall, an internist and yoga practitioner who left his Boston-area medical practice in 1997 to travel throughout India and the United States to study with the world’s leading yoga teachers and therapists.

Instead, yoga therapy gives you a psychological boost by teaching you that you can take care of yourself. “The real changes and benefits come from what patients do for themselves,” says Dr. McCall. “It’s very empowering.”

Yoga therapy isn’t a substitute for medical care. For health problems, you need a physician to diagnose and treat you conventionally, but yoga can work as an adjunct therapy. In fact, a growing body of scientific research has documented its therapeutic benefits for a wide array of ailments, ranging from osteoarthritis to infertility.

“Yoga can increase flexibility, improve balance, promote strength, heighten cardiovascular conditioning, lower blood pressure, reduce overweight, strengthen bones, lift mood, improve immune function, and heighten sexual function,” says Dr. McCall. “Yoga is also the best overall system of stress reduction ever invented.” Since stress plays a role in virtually every illness, he points out, learning how to relieve it can have profound health benefits.

Studies have shown that yoga allows some people with asthma, heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and obsessive-compulsive disorder to lower their dosage of medications and sometimes get off them entirely, Dr. McCall says. “Using fewer drugs lessens the chance of negative side effects and dangerous drug interactions and also saves money.”

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“It’s very different from conventional care, where the patient is a passive recipient and can feel quite helpless.” -Timothy McCall, MD

What You Need to Know

You don’t have to be flexible, fit, or even healthy to practice yoga. “The only requirement is that you’re conscious,” says Dr. McCall. “Even if you can’t get out of bed, you can do a breathing exercise or a visualization technique or lie propped up on a bolster for a while in a way that can have therapeutic benefit. Then, as you get stronger or better, your practice can be modified.”

People with serious medical conditions should work with an experienced yoga therapist, he says, either one-on-one or in small groups tailored to those with the same condition, such as cancer or multiple sclerosis. “If you have a serious medical problem and wander into a randomly chosen yoga class,” he points out, “you could easily wind up worse off than when you started.”

It’s not necessarily easy to find a good therapist. While common in India, yoga therapy is an emerging field in the United States, notes John Kepner, executive director of the International Association of Yoga Therapists, whose membership has tripled to nearly 2,000 over the past three years.

Yoga professionals recommend that when choosing a practitioner, ask if he or she has met the standards set by Yoga Alliance, a nonprofit organization based in Clinton, Maryland, which requires members to complete at least a 200-hour yoga teacher training program. Most reputable yoga therapists have additional experience and training, such as certification by programs such as Integrative Yoga Therapy, the American Viniyoga Institute, or the Yoga Therapy Rx program at Loyola Marymount University.

Yoga therapy gives you a psychological boost by teaching you that you can take care of yourself.

You can contact local yoga studios and disease advocacy organizations if you’re looking for someone with special expertise for a specific health condition. Ask about their training and experience, and find someone who motivates you to practice, says Dr. McCall, since “the biggest determinant of success in yoga therapy is steady practice.”

“The way to effect change is to do a 15- or 20-minute practice every day because when you think or do something repeatedly, it helps build new neural pathways and strengthens them by repetition,” notes Dr. McCall. In fact, he says, you’ll feel much better if you practice longer. “The benefits are like compound interest that builds slowly over time. When you keep it up, the changes it can effect are enormous.”

Carol Krucoff is an award-winning health journalist, founding editor of the Washington Post Health section, and a yoga therapist herself.

Find a Yoga Therapist

The International Association of Yoga Therapists (www.iayt.org) offers information and resources, including a locator to find a yoga therapist in your area.

The Yoga Alliance (www.yogaalliance.com) lists registered yoga teachers who’ve met certain education standards and can help you search for instructors in your area.