When it's that time of the month, for some of us, that means lots of painful cramps! Ouch! No fun. You've tried everything -- warm compresses, hot showers or baths, even pain medicines. Have you ever considered yoga?
I know you may be thinking, "I don't want to move, let alone stretch in a thousand different positions while I'm cramping." That's completely understandable, but did you know studies have shown a correlation between yoga and less pain during menstruation?
Yoga offers a nurturing and reflective time for ourselves during a moment when our hormones are shifting. Uterine cramping are caused by prostaglandins hormones and can made worse by stress hormones. Yoga can help lower stress, reducing the amount of stress hormones produced and easing pain. Makes sense, right?
There are number of yoga poses that can help with this issue. The Floating Lotus suggests poses such as Supta Baddha Konasana and Janu Sirsasana for anything related to female health. You may still not feel up to leaving the house, and that's okay, you can try these poses at home.
The poses not only help during this time of the month, but so does having a group of supportive women to connect with.
In Biblical times, women would live together in a tent known as the red tent during menstruation. As women, when we become emotionally connected to one another our cycles link up. It is healing to be supportive and also reassuring to have female friends to help us during times when we are feeling low. Feeling the symptoms of our menstrual cycle certainly can make us feel low!.
So next time those cramps hit hard, consider a yoga class!
