If you suffer from Fibromyalgia, you may have asked the question, “Can Yoga help Fibromyalgia Pain? Before we move on, let’s take a look at what Fibromyalgia is. Fibromyalgia is a fairly common syndrome that is often times misdiagnosed and misunderstood. Fibromyalgia is technically a syndrome.
A syndrome is basically a set of symptoms. Some common symptoms that Fibromyalgia suffers experience are widespread pain in the body, multiple tender points, disturbed sleep, immense exhaustion, anxiety and depression.
Around 12 million Americans alone suffer from Fibromyalgia. We here at the Healthy Back Institute believe that the answer to the question, “Can Yoga help Fibromyalgia Pain” is a definite, YES.
Before we begin talking about how Yoga can benefit Fibromyalgia suffers, let’s take a look at what exactly is Yoga and what are the benefits.
What is Yoga?
Yoga is a form of exercise that creates balance in the body through developing both flexibility and strength. Balance is creating through a succession of poses or stances. Each pose has a very specific physical benefit. For instance the “child pose” in yoga stretches the back and arms and promotes overall relaxation.
The practice of Yoga originated from ancient India and is said to be as old as 10,000 years. It is a very common exercise program and is practiced in gyms around the world.
What are the benefits of Yoga?
For the purpose of this article I will only name a few benefits, but there are literally over fifty benefits of performing yoga. A few of the important benefits of yoga are below:
• Increased Flexibility
• Increased Strength
• Increased Energy
• Better Posture
• Improved Blood Circulation
• Increased Relaxation
• Massages Internal Organs
Now, traditional exercise may be too painful for those suffering from fibromyalgia. Yoga however, has be demonstrated to provide relief for Fibromyalgia sufferers as it is a gently way to stretch and strengthen the body.
So, Can Yoga Help Fibromyalgia Pain?
A recent study in the journal “Pain” suggests that a weekly two-hour yoga class showed to reduced symptoms such as pain, stiffness, and fatigue by 30 percent in fifty percent of the people who took the class. So yes, yoga can help fibromyalgia, although it may not completely make you pain free. But it will help you stretch, eliminate muscle imbalances, help you learn how to breath and how to relax.
Also be sure to perform stretches and exercises that you are comfortable with as some poses can be very challenging, even for those people who do not suffer from Fibromyalgia. An important and extra benefit of yoga is that it will help you sleep at night.
To learn more about Fibromyalgia, click the link below.
