Yoga for Sciatica

Here is a sequence to help allieviate sciatica. This is a great practice that will help relieve some of the pain immediately, and when practiced daily can help keep the pain away completely! Consider adding it to your daily practice or my DVD!

Chandrasana
(moon pose)

Stand with feet hip distance apart and reach overhead. grap your left wrist with your right hand and pull the shoulders down away from yoru ears. Lift up through the right arm, and then lean to the right looking up to the left--stretching the left side.

Come back to center after a few breaths, switch hand positions and do the pose on the left. Do this pose 2 or 3 times until you feel really 'stretched out.'

Then, interlace your fingers with index finger pointing upward and pressing together, then release your tailbone back (relatively normal if you're pregnant) and then bend your back into a slight curve lifting your rib cage up. DO NOT thrust your hips and thighs forward. Keep legs long and straight with thighs lifted and inner thighs rolling in and back. Come back to center a few times and do a couple of these gentle back bends.

Salambha Uttanasana
(supported instense pose; forward bend)

standing a decent distance from a table or counter top with feet hip distance apart, cross yoru arms and put your forearms on the table. place your head on the fore arms and then straighten or flatten your back. Bend your legs slightly and roll the tailbone up towards the ceiling. Feel your back lengthen away from yoru hips as you sink your hips back and keep that tailbone lifting.

find the position where you feel slight discomfort in the hamstrings (stretching) and the rib cage and hips gentle drawing apart.

Salambha Parsvottanasana
(supported side intense pose)

from the same torso position, bring your right foot forward so that the toes appear to be under your nose (feet are still hip distance apart). Make sure that your hips are level behind you--a lot of people will drop the right hip forward). To square your hips, bend your front knee slightly, move the weight forward onto the foot, then lift the right hip and draw it upwards and back. straighten your leg as much as possible, as long as you feel the stretch in the hamstring and not in the hip or behind the knee. Always keep thighs firm.

Make certain also that you are not curving your spine left or right. you want to extend straight out of the hips and feel the hips draw back as the rib cage draws forward.

Repeat on the left.

Utkatasana II
(yoga squat)

Squat like a frog--feet are hip distance apart or slightly wider. toes can point out, but straight ahead is better. Heals can lift off the floor, but on the floor is better. Arches of the feet are lifting (even if you have flat feet) as the weight moves toward the outter edge of the foot and is counterbalanced through the big toe. Thighs are rolling outward drawing the knees away from each other. Keeping the hands on the floor, lift your chest and try to flatten your back. Roll the tailbone back as well, feeling the hips open gently.