January 10, 2011

online zine covers Yogic Approach to Asthma

http://www.elephantjournal.com/2011/01/yoga-for-asthma-a-whole-life-approach-meta-chaya-hirschl/

Yoga for Asthma: A Whole Life Approach
by Meta Chaya Hirschl
author of multi-award winning
Vital Yoga: A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers

Asthma is the fastest growing disease world wide, the mortality rate has increased every year for five years, and it is the most common disease among children.  Yoga has proven successful but has not been widely available to asthmatics.  In this article yogi and asthma survivor, Meta Hirschl, describes an approach that can create vibrant health.

There’s that sound again in my chest.  I can’t figure out what it is.  It’s the middle of the night, my new baby is just five months old and finally sleeping in her bed, and my husband is asleep in the small loft in our tiny east village loft in Manhattan.  I’m sitting in the bathroom with the shower running hot to create steam trying to quiet that crackling, rattling, unfamiliar sound coming from my body.  I know I have just a few precious hours before I begin again with the routine, getting off to my job as a systems consultant working for an international consulting firm on a job in the Consolidated Edison building just a few blocks away. My coworkers at ConEd are mostly engineers in their 50s who are rarely ill.  Yet in this room where we work on a new geographical mapping system almost everyone has some kind of respiratory illness that doesn’t go away. The windows now don’t open in this majestic building constructed in 1910 with a clock on all four sides of its tower.

I can’t seem to shake what seems like just a very bad cold, but the hardest part is that my lungs have developed what appears to be a contraction that comes at odd times and brings me to my knees.  The year is 1988 and I’m 32 years old having returned to work from maternity leave and cannot find a way to health.  I seek medical advice and all docs say the same thing. You have asthma, chronic sinusitis, and aspirin allergy and you’ll have it the rest of your life.  The only solution to continuing to breath is to take pills, which make me jittery and nervous, inhalers, which make my heart race, and I can give up on smelling anything again.  The rest of my life, really?  But I’ve never had asthma, isn’t that a genetic thing?  What is going on?

I have spent the next decades finding a road to robust and vigorous health without any daily use of medications, drugs, or restrictions on my activities.  In fact, I ran a marathon in 1997, the Big Sur from Big Sur to Carmel, I’ve biked and hiked long distances including my beloved Grand Canyon three times, and I spent time now helping others with asthma and respiratory disease find their way to health through what I call a yogic approach to asthma, a Nine Mode Model.

The yoga approach begins with intention, defining the aspiration, the vision.   Then a holistic view is taken incorporating all appropriate modalities called modes. The modes have been developed from years of personal experience, intensive study and incorporation of traditional and nontraditional healing practices.

Nine Modes, overview

1. Objective Measurement of Lung Capacity:  absolute key aspect of the program so that lung capacity is always monitored and recorded and the student of asthma experiences personal knowledge and control over health
2. Yoga Breath Practices:  simple three part breathing, then develop the use of retention at the end of the exhale, a natural bronchodilator
3. Yoga Poses:  poses to open and body and build strength, flexibility and balance
4. Yoga Chanting:  simple English or Sanskrit chants that are practiced daily and can be used as a calming practice during a decrease in breathing capacity
5. Yoga Meditation:  simple yet effective meditation techniques both to calm the mind when the inevitable fear arises during asthma and also to create the witness distance from the body experience
6. Nutritional Choices:  consideration of food that may contribute to asthma
7. Medical doctor support: working with health care provider to support progress and issues as they arise
8. Environmental Analysis: consider both indoor and outdoor and outdoor pollutants and irritants that may contribute to asthma
9. Aerobic Fitness: to quote Jackie Joyner-Kersee, think of the lungs as a muscle and use them!

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Nine Modes, detail instructions to the student:

Mode One:  Yoga Breath Practices

Asthma is a disease of the lungs and so breathing practices are the most direct remedy.

All breathing practices (called pranayama in Sanskrit) require focused attention on the experience and persistent awareness of what is happening.  Never ever push breath practices or any yoga practices to gasping, or grasping, just to the point of manageable intensity, that you control.

Vital Yoga:  A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers, Chapter 5.  First find the full yogic breath which means a complete breath moving the diaphragm slowly and gently, pages, 88-89 Notice the picture of the diaphragm, p. 95 Figure 4.5, and how it acts like a parachute moving with the body.

In all the poses and practices that follow use the Three Part Yogic breath as the foundation, when you are nervous, tired, anxious, you can always practice this simple breath in any position.

Once you have found a rhythm and comfort with the Three Part Yogic breath, then you can begin the breath practice that can specifically help with creating more openness in the lungs, a retention pages 88-90 (kumbhaka in Sanskrit) after the exhale.  Retaining the breath after the exhale is the practice that you will monitor and record results. This form of kumbhaka is designed to help individuals with asthma, which includes retention after the exhale, strengthening the lungs. This can provide asthma sufferers with an immediate bronchodilator and a more long-term, holistic approach to their problems.

Please do this practice consistently each day, preferably in the morning and at night. Never strain but stay focused and alert to your body’s sensation.

Retention at the end of the Exhale

Have a watch that counts seconds or you can count your own beats but it is easier and more reliable to have an external measure, at least at first while the asthma may be more severe or unpredictable.

Practicing kumbhaka, breath retention, has many physical benefits, including strengthening the heart, building lung capacity, and providing relaxation. Kumbhaka confers mental, emotional, and spiritual benefits by helping us cultivate detachment and by connecting us to cosmic energy. For example, when we practice breath retention our mind will eventually go on red alert with thoughts that we are about to die. At that point, taking a breath as a conscious action rather than a reaction to fear calms our thoughts and emotions and links us to the greater pool of energy called mahaprana (the great prana), or cosmic energy.

Be sure to close your eyes after release and experience the breathing practice.  Notice the feelings, the sensations in your lungs, your head, your face and eyes and throat.  Smile softly as your begin to become acquainted with yourself and this practice of building lung power from the inside out.

Record how long you’ve head your exhale on the graph.  That is your beginning point.  Relax between cycles and breath normally, then continue to practice retaining your breath after the exhale.  Each time record the length of time you were able to hold after the exhale.  Over time work to lengthen the retention time.

You can even make a game of how long you can hold your breath, once you are proficient at the technique by walking around the room as you hold your breath or imagining your lungs getting stronger and stronger and having more and more energy.

You’ll begin to notice a pattern, too, of the time you can retain your breath.  When your lungs are weaker you’ll notice that the time is less and conversely when the lungs are stronger you can retain longer.  This is an easy test to measure your current capacity.

Mode Two:  Yoga Poses

There are specific yoga poses that may well aid your breathing and they will be described here.  However, you are the best judge of your ability and it is very important that you practice what you can with consciousness and the clear understanding that you are in control.  Never push yourself to exhaustion or to a point where breathing isn’t free;  breathing should ALWAYS be available and smooth not choppy or irregular.  If that is happening you may need to consult your doctor and use your inhalers and medications differently (see Modes Six and Seven) as well as Yoga Breathing Practices (Mode One).

Warming up the Body with Gentle Flow

A standing sequence of poses using breath and movement is a good way to begin your yoga pose practice as it warms the body and connects body, mind and breath.  Each movement should be synchronized to your breath.  You may take more than one breath with the movement but never hold the breath in poses.  Here is a gentle sequence to begin if you are moderately flexible:

Alternate between heart openers, supported with breath and forward folds, same, supported with breath.

Always end with svasana.

Recommended is a yoga class and ADD inversions, especially shoulder and head stand, as your practice advances.

Mode Three:  Yoga Chanting

Yoga chanting is a way to harness the power of vibration for your healing, see Vital Yoga:  A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers, chapter 3..  This may not appeal to everyone and of course, you may not choose to chant.  You may, however, enjoy listening to music, singing a song, humming a tune and then you may notice that your lungs and in fact your whole being relaxes.

Yoga chanting traditionally uses Sanskrit the ancient language of yoga, vibration and transformation.  You may have chants you prefer from your tradition and you are encouraged to use those.

There are many chants to choose from and they are easily found on the web and on YouTube.  The chants below may be especially helpful to you

Simple: Ganesha, Longer:  Apadamapa, or simply the powerful OM.

Mode Four: Yoga Meditation

Yoga Meditation offers us a chance to quiet the mind and make friends with ourselves by watching with great love and compassion our own inner workings.  We find a very comfortable way to sit, or even lie and then close our eyes, or look softly down and breath, slowly and evenly.

Vital Yoga:  A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers, Chapter 5, notice figure 5.6 page 111 with possible ways to sit comfortably.

Meditation Practices chapter 5 and especially pages 110-116.

Mode Five: Nutritional Choices

One of the possible triggers for asthma is what we are eating.  By practicing yoga you are becoming more and more connected to your body and experience and so you are probably already noticing that you are more aware of what you eat and how it affects you.  Ultimately you will learn to eat the foods that best serve you and that inner clarity is the best guide.

To discover what foods may be causing asthma for you, try eliminating a food that you eat one a time.  I have personally found that by eliminating almost all gluten (that is all grains containing this substance called gluten which is basically all wheat, bran, oatmeal), most of dairy products and alcohol there was an enormous improvement in my breathing capacity and health.

Certainly you should consider completely eliminating sodas, refined sugars and carbohydrates and alcohol to begin.  I am assuming that you are not smoking any substance as obviously smoke is not good for the lungs.

Mode Six:  Medical doctor support

There is absolutely NO substitute for a trained medical professional in your corner, assisting your journey to complete, vibrant and powerful health.  You need to find a doctor who is knowledgeable about asthma treatment and wants to support your quest for robust health.  Do not be shy about your intentions and make sure you are clear with your doctor about your responsible approach to your own health, which means that you will communicate with your doctor when your objective measure indicates your lungs are dangerous weakening and you will use the medication correctly and consistently.

Besides letting your doctor know of this Yoga for Asthma: A Whole Life Approach, you may want to ask your doctor these questions:

1. Does your doctor support your desire to take charge of your own health by carefully monitoring of breathing with an objective measure and will she be available to you if you are in distress?
2. Does your doctor have any ideas about how you may find support locally among other asthma sufferers, support in local yoga studios, and any pertinent environmental health concerns?
3. Will your doctor lend you support in your search for the right nutritional diet and exercise plan?
4. Does your doctor think you are ready for some level of aerobic activity?  Might there be a specific inhaler or mediation to use before or after such activity?
5. Will your doctor review your breathing journal and objective lung capacity journal to help you understand your progress?

Mode Seven:  Objective Measurement of Lung Capacity, monitor and record

When our lungs are constricted a natural reaction is concern and perhaps anxiety. If the lungs are constricted for a period of time, my experience is that we actually lose some mental clarity and judgment.  To help us gain a clear and objective measurement of our lung capacity it is our personal responsibility to monitor daily our lungs.  This is easily done with a peak flow meter, which are produced by many companies and are available on the web, from your doctor, medical supply centers and from this workshop.

Measure your breathing when you first get out of bed.  If the reading is normal then there is no need to measure again until the night but if you reading is lower than normal then you need to use the drugs prescribed by your doctor. You may want to experiment and try doing the yoga practices first, Modes One and Two (Breathing and Poses) and even Modes Three and Four (Chanting and Meditation). It may well be that by doing these practices, your breathing will move to normal.  But don’t delay.  Either use the medications and then do yoga practices, do yoga practices then check your lung capacity and if you are still low then definitely use the medication.  The yoga practices will help you over time but you must always have a minimum breathing capacity, regardless of the other practices that you are doing.

Use the supplied Peak Flow Monitoring graph so that you can see your own trends and begin to understand your own experiences with some objectivity.  This will help for all the modes as self-understanding is the key to success.

Mode Eight:  Environmental Analysis, indoor and outdoor

The evidence is clear from many sources that the environment, both inside and outside, have a potent effect on asthma.  Here are some sources you can read to verify this fact:

• Environmental Poisoning: Is Your Home Hurting You? By Sally Lehrman, Natural Solutions
• Breathe-Easy Homes ease asthma symptoms in High Point’s low-income children, by Tom Phillips, Senior Project Manager Seattle Housing Authority

What you can do?

Indoors

• Remove carpets, especially wall to wall
• Look at the household cleaners beings used, switch to green nontoxics (give reference for this)
• Be wary of spraying for insects and indoor pests as often what kills our little friends is very hard on our lungs
• Get fresh air as much as possible, even in the heat and cold. If it is very cold but a scarf over your mouth
• In work environments check with health officials if you observe increases of  chronic illnesses
• Check with local environment groups and well as national ones about your speicifc work and living environments
• ORGANIZE for your own health for a clean environment

Outdoors

• Organize
• Fight Global Warming?

Mode Nine:  Aerobic Fitness

The more we think of our lungs as a muscle the more we realize how important using our lungs is.  We need to be cautious of course, that we don’t over do aerobic exercise and you may well need a special inhaler for excerise induced asthma.  But the more we work our lungs the stronger they can become.

Discuss what IS aerobic fitness…when can do?  Use heart rate monitors…get good number? Maybe not, just take pulse…do THAT!

The Results:

Recent studies have shown through rigorous scientific test that yoga can improve asthma, a few examples, there are many more:

• November 3, 2009, Personal HealthA Breathing Technique Offers Help for People With Asthma, By JANE E. BRODY
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3931802, Yoga for bronchial asthma: a controlled study. Nagarathna R, Nagendra HR:  Fifty three patients with asthma underwent training for two weeks in an integrated set of yoga exercises, including breathing exercises, suryanamaskar, yogasana (physical postures), pranayama (breath slowing techniques), dhyana (meditation), and a devotional session, and were told to practise these exercises for 65 minutes daily. They were then compared with a control group of 53 patients with asthma matched for age, sex, and type and severity of asthma, who continued to take their usual drugs. There was a significantly greater improvement in the group who practised yoga in the weekly number of attacks of asthma, scores for drug treatment, and peak flow rate. This study shows the efficacy of yoga in the long term management of bronchial asthma, but the physiological basis for this beneficial effect needs to be examined in more detail.
• http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/151558.php Yoga Helps Asthma Patients In 10 Weeks, Article Date: 27 May 2009 – 6:00 PDT: Adults with asthma reported increased quality of life and reduced asthma symptoms after 10 weeks of yoga practice, according to research presented today at the 56th Annual Meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) in Seattle. The study followed 20 subjects age 20-65 who were beginners at yoga.

Yoga for Asthma: A Whole Life Approach offers much more than the yoga that these tests have studied and so offers even greater potential for healing.

References

Vital Yoga:  A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers, Meta Chaya Hirschl

Healing Mantras Ashley-Farrand, Thomas

About Meta Chaya Hirschl
Vital Yoga

Meta was diagnosed with asthma at the age of thirty-two in 1988 after the birth of her first child. Healthy up to that point she found herself with a prognosis of a lifetime of drugs and restricted living. She struggled through the maze of medications, advice and decades of discovery.  Meta has made it her life’s work to find a way back to full health and this focused search resulted in the Nine Mode Approach to Asthma that has liberated her and resulted in health and happiness.

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