Yogasana Help To Alleviate Cervical Condition By Toning Up The Neck And Back Muscle

By Patricia | November 28, 2008

Yoga Solution For Cervical Neck

Causes of Neck Pain: These, by and large, fall under the following categories:

  • Stress, anxiety, overexertion and fatigue
  • Eye strain
  • Depression
  • Neck, upper back or head injury, even months or years after the incident.
  • Continuous, monotonous activity (such as typing, working on a computer, or doing any fine work with the use of the hands and eyes, neck) that involves your head being held in static position for long periods.
  • Work or exercise that involves the arms, shoulders and upper body (like, for instance painting the ceiling or such sort of overhead work in a factory or tool shed.
  • Sleeping on a high pillow or one that is too flat; in fact, any pillow that doesn’t support the neck and head well enough. Even sleeping on the abdomen with the neck turned to one side or bent can cause neck pain, sometimes severe postural problems.

These are the commonest problems but there may be others such as fibromyalgia, old age, so on and so forth. But, no matter what the cause, Yoga has a lot to offer. These simple Yogasanas poses and Pranayama (breathing exercises) will definitely help alleviate your condition by toning up the muscles in the region of your back and neck. This will, subsequently, make them less vulnerable to pain resulting from any cause, including past injuries. Better yet, these practices will even help rehabilitate chronic upper back and neck pain sufferers.

Yoga for cervical pain

The first step practicing Yoga is learning to relax both physically and mentally. Relaxation is extremely important for us all, especially in your condition. Yoga teaches asanas like the Corpse Pose and several other techniques specially designed for physical, mental and emotional relaxation.

Warm-Ups

  • Shoulder Stretches (please avoid neck exercises and rotations at all costs)
  • Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutation). However, you should do only a few rounds, very slowly and without any jerks.

Standing Position -

  • Tadasana (Mountain Pose)
  • Vrksasana (Tree Pose)

Sitting Position

  • Sukhasana (Easy pose)
  • Padmasana (Lotus pose)
  • Vajrasana (Thunderbolt pose)
  • Pavanamuktasana (Wind Relieving Pose). Please do this pose without raising your neck and head.
  • Parvatasana (Mountain pose). Do this pose with hands joined, upraised and stretched to the limit).

Supine Position

  • Single Leg Raises (please resist the urge to raise your head and neck while doing them and steer clear of Double Leg Raises, no matter who advises you, until you are completely rid of your problem)
  • Supta Vajrasana (Supine Thunderbolt pose)

Prone Position

  • Bhujangasana (Cobra pose)
  • Dhanurasana (Bow Pose)
  • Shalabhasana (Locust pose)

Twist

  • Ardha Matsyendrasana (Half Spinal Twist). Please resist the urge (and instruction) to turn your neck and look behind and stare behind your shoulder as otherwise, normally advised in this pose.

Relaxation

  • Shavasana (Corpse pose)

Pranayama (Breathing Exercises)

  • Mild Kapalabhatti (Skull cleansing)
  • Anuloma-Viloma (Alternate nostril breathing)