Yoga Therapy for Hypertension

Believe it or not, every living animal on the planet has blood pressure.



There is no exception to this rule. The blood flows through the body with a certain pressure. Sometimes, for a variety of reasons, the blood pressure increases.



For instance, fear, anger, anxiety, excessive thinking, mental tensions, or even for physical exertion. During such situations the heart comes under extra load. But when the situation changes and returns to normal, so does the blood pressure.



This temporary change in Blood Pressure is not an ailment. But when this Blood pressure remains high always, it becomes a disease.

So, if the pressure is higher than the normal range then it becomes a disease. This is called High Blood Pressure. Sometimes the blood pressure drops below the normal range, then it is called Low Blood Pressure.

The Blood Pressure is not same everywhere. It is maximum, near the heart, from where blood flows out and lowest where blood flows into the heart. So the BP is always measured on the arms. The Blood Pressure in a healthy person should ideally be 120 mm / 80 mm – that is systolic 120mm and diastolic is 80mm. If it is more or less by 15 mm to 20 mm than normal, it is considered an ailment.

The reason for this High BP cannot really be found on the physical plane. However, it can be traced to mental behavior. By and large, mental strain results in high Blood Pressure. So the best remedy is to get rid of all the underlying reasons for mental stress and strain. Yoga certainly helps achieve a stress free state of mind. Yogasanas, Pranayama, Meditation, Yoga Nidra definitely help achieve this.

Yoga for hypertension

Every session in the program would run for around an hour.  Since the primary goal is to induce a state of relaxation, there should also, preferably, be quiet background music, unless the student asks that it not be used, except during the Shavasana session.

• Majariasana
• Balasana
• Janu Sirshasana
• Ardha Matsyendrasana
• Sethu Bandhasana
• Apanasana
• Urdhva Prasarita Padasana
• Jathari Parivartanasana

Pranayamas for hypertension

• Kapalabhatti
• Ujjayi
• Anuloma-Viloma

Shavasana –

15 to 30 minutes with lower legs supported on the seat of a chair.  Talk yourself through a very simple body awareness scan of limbs, torso, head and neck. Reflect on how you feel and try to calmly assess your state of physical relaxation/tension, and in which parts of your physical body you experience this most clearly.