Yoga & Menopause

Yoga For Menopause Relief

Yoga has many benefits for menopause. Learn about some of the types of poses that can be beneficial, and some important points to keep in mind when incorporating them into a practice.

Yoga is not a 'remedy' for menopause - not least because menopause represents a stage of life, rather than an illness. A woman's experience during menopause is completely individual, and yoga is not specific like the drugs of modern medicine. There is no one set series of postures that can make up a remedy for the symptoms of perimenopause.

Yoga is an adaptive discipline that can support the body through the myriad of biological changes it is making. Importantly, it supports our minds and emotions, and allow us to come to a perspective on the inner processes that are happening. Many perimenopausal women have found both the physical and less tangible benefits of yoga helpful at this time.

Backbending postures & exercising is great for lifting energy levels. Forward bends are good for anxiety and stress.

Given that quite active physical exercise had been found to help with menopause, this observation is no real surprise. Ultimately, it depends on what is going on for each woman, and this can vary over time anyway. If you're feeling really tired all the time, restorative poses may be best for that period. However, if you've got more energy, there are a number of yoga asanas that can really help.

Some of the Asanas / yoga poses that can be beneficial include:

• Sarvanga Asana
• Tada Asana
• Ardha Chandra Asana
• Matsya Asana
• Bala Asana
• Gomukha Asana
• Ugra Asana

Whatever poses you incorporate into your daily life during menopause, remember to be flexible. The needs of our bodies change, areas of stiffness change, symptoms change. Learning to respond to this, like the challenges that life can send our way, is the best way to practice yoga to suit your individual needs and physical condition.