It’s heartbreaking to see a friend or loved one suffer a migraine attack but only those who suffer migraines can truly understand how traumatic and debilitating they are. Migraineurs have lost many precious moments to pulsating pain, vertigo, aversion to light, and nausea to name just a few intolerable symptoms of migraine. But there is hope. In addition to avoiding various triggers when possible such as stress, hormone fluctuations, sleep disturbances, certain types of food, excessive use of caffeine, addressing migraines nutritionally at the cellular level, and adding some healthy habits to your lifestyle such as yoga, can make all the difference.
BENEFITS OF YOGA
More and more people are catching on to the benefits of yoga. Not only does it increase flexibility, improve your balance, build muscle strength, improve your posture, and prevent cartilage and joint breakdown, it also increases blood flow, drains your lymphs and boosts immunity. If that’s not enough to get you started with yoga, it can help regulate your blood pressure and adrenal glands, lower your blood sugar, help you focus, relax overall and release tension in your limbs, help you sleep, and make you happy.
Yoga is also believed to reduce pain. Yoga, meditation, or a combination of the two is believed to reduce pain in people with arthritis, back pain, fibromyalgia, migraines, and other chronic conditions. Note: While yoga is effective and most doctors today advise you to take up this form of workout, when it comes to migraines or disorders, always consult your physician as yoga is not an alternative to your physician’s advice. Adding a cardiovascular activity such as walking or swimming and getting a good night’s sleep will help with reducing stress and is also very beneficial to migraine sufferers.
6 YOGA POSES FOR MIGRAINE AND HEADACHE SUFFERERS
When going through the sequence of yoga poses (asanas), hold each pose comfortably for a few minutes while concentrating on relaxing and breathing, inhaling and exhaling, slowly and deeply.
#1 STANDING FORWARD BEND – Invigorates the nervous system by increasing blood flow and calms the mind.
• Standing with even weight through the feet, or weight very slightly forward onto the toes, keep the tailbone tucked under, allow the spine to bend forward.
• Tuck the chin gently in towards the chest, lengthen the back of the neck. Gently work the fingertips or palms towards the floor. Hold the pose, relax, and breathe.
#2 CHILD’S POSE – Calms down the nervous system, helps to increase the body’s parasympathetic state… decreasing stress and migraines.
• Start on your hands and knees (tabletop position).
• Bring your legs all the way together, then sit your hips back onto your heels with your toes together, letting your knees spread apart wide,
• Stretch your trunk and arms forward and rest your forehead on the floor as you lower your chest onto your thighs. Close your eyes and relax for a few seconds and don’t forget to breathe.
• Reach your arms back along each side of your body, towards your feet, resting with your palms face up.
• Close your eyes, breathe and relax.
#3 CAT & COW – Improves blood circulation, relieves tension in the neck, shoulders, and upper back while increasing serotonin levels in the brain and relaxing the mind.
CAT: Begin on your hands and knees (tabletop position).
• Center your hips over your knees and square your shoulders over your wrists.
• Inhale as you tilt your tailbone towards the sky, lowering your stomach towards the floor (cow pose).
• Arch your back and keep your neck long. Relax and hold the position for a few seconds.
COW: Exhale as you round your spine, drop your head, and tuck your chin (cat pose).
• Tighten your abdomen while keeping your chin to your chest.
• Breathe slowly and deeply while holding the pose for a couple of minutes.
• Switch between the cat and cow poses a few times while taking long deep breaths and slow exhales
#4 SUPINE TWIST – Stretches the spine and relieves tension in the shoulders and back.
• Lie on your back with your knees drawn in towards your chest.
• Cactus your arms out by your sides with your palms facing up and parallel your shins to your mat, bringing your knees to 90-degree angles.
• Inhale, then exhale as you slowly lower your knees to the left side of your body.
• Hold for 8 breaths, then draw your knees back to the center.
• Hug your knees into your chest for a breath, then twist to the right on an exhale. Hold for 8 breaths.
#5 CORPSE POSE – Rejuvenates the body by bringing it into a deep state of meditative rest.
• You can end your yoga routine by lying down in this pose and relaxing.
• Lay on your back with legs and feet slightly apart and let feet fall out to the sides
• Rest arms away from your sides at a 30-degree angle with palms facing up.
• Close your eyes and relax your entire body.
• Think happy thoughts!
NUTRITIONAL SUPPORT FOR CHRONIC MIGRAINE SUFFERERS
Try increasing nutritional support if you are a chronic migraine sufferer by adding MigreLief dietary supplements to your daily regimen.
Created just for migraine sufferers, MigreLief® comes in 4 nonprescription nutritional formulas:
3 “daily maintenance”
Original MigreLief
Children’s MigreLief (age 2-12)
MigreLief+M for menstrual migraine sufferers
“as-needed” formula
MigreLief-NOW for on-the-spot nutritional support.
The MigreLief® Nutritional Regimen for Migraine Sufferers:
Action Step 1: Choose one formula for daily maintenance and take daily.
Action Step 2: Take MigreLief-NOW as-needed.
Action Step 3: Live the life you love!
For more information, visit MigreLief.com, call 1-800-758-8746, or email healthadvisor@migrelief.com
**These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to treat, prevent, diagnose or cure any disease or medical condition.
