Endometriosis can be very painful, as anybody who has had it knows the outcomes of it. Controlling the pelvic discomfort that frequently accompanies endometriosis is a part of controlling the condition.
A recent study has suggested that yoga for endometriosis may be useful, especially the positions to help period cramps.
Yoga for endometriosis can lessen the symptoms of endometriosis and enhance your general health.
Yoga positions to help period cramps promote relaxation, ease stress, and help with pain reduction. You can control your stress and cultivate awareness via yoga for endometriosis.
In this article, learn:
- What Endometriosis is
- How Yoga for Endometriosis can help
- 10 effective yoga for endometriosis poses to help period cramps
What Is Endometriosis?
Knowing what endometriosis is is crucial in understanding why yoga for endometriosis benefits those with the condition. Endometriosis is a medical condition in which tissue related to the uterine lining starts developing outside the uterus.
The normal endometrium lost during your menstruation is unlike these lesions in shape or behavior. Through inflammation, invasion into bodily structures, and scar tissue, endometriosis tissue can result in discomfort, infertility, and organ malfunction.
Endometriosis affects around 1 in 10 women and those assigned female at birth.
Extremely few males (who were assigned the gender at birth) experience it. When symptoms are frequently mistaken for “bad cramps,” it takes an average of 10 years and 8 doctors to diagnose endometriosis.
Surgery is necessary to confirm an endometriosis diagnosis, even if your doctor may have a suspicion.
Endometriosis is the subject of several hypotheses. It is most likely a result of a mix of genetic and environmental variables and tissue from an embryonic origin (tissue you were born with).
Despite being substantially discredited, the widely held belief that endometriosis is brought on by menstrual backflow (also known as “reflux menstruation”) nevertheless serves as the foundation for many of the therapies available.
Early detection of endometriosis may result from awareness and education. You must thus be aware of and vocal about your symptoms.
Some of the signs of endometriosis include:
- Back pain
- Leg pain
- Extremely painful periods
- Shortness of breath
- Excessive bleeding
- After or during sex pain
- Chronic pain
- Fatigue
- Bloating
- Nausea
- Thickened blood clots
- Painful urination
- Painful bowel movements
- Pregnancy loss
- Infertility
How Can Yoga for Endometriosis Help Treat Endometriosis?
Yoga for endometriosis may help you manage the symptoms of endometriosis through positions to help period cramps, according to some findings presented in January 2017.
In the study, those who practiced yoga for endometriosis reported much decreased daily discomfort and higher well-being.
Many people living with endometriosis have ongoing attacks on their neurological and immunological systems. When the body is not under stress, it may mend more effectively through practicing specific yoga for endometriosis.
Moreover, practicing yoga for endometriosis can help find relief from the condition. This is because yoga may help your body relax, which will help you experience less pain.
Gentle asanas, meditation, and yoga breathing techniques, all work to settle your mind, which lessens how uncomfortable you feel through yoga positions to help period cramps during yoga for endometriosis.
Additionally, yoga for endometriosis and certain yoga positions are believed to reduce pelvic and abdominal stress and improve blood flow to the area.
Yoga for Endometriosis: 10 Positions to Help Period Cramps and Endometriosis
Here are the most effective 10 yoga for endometriosis positions to help period cramps and relieve symptoms of endometriosis:
1. Supine Spinal Twist
This twist extends your chest, back, and glutes while enhancing spinal mobility.
Even digestive problems associated with endometriosis, including bloating or constipation, may resolve by performing yoga for endometriosis.
- Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet straight on the floor.
- Put a cushion or yoga block under your knees to help your low back and sacrum if your knees don’t touch the floor.
- Put your hands down on the floor and stretch your arms outwards in front of you.
- Inhale deeply into your lower ribs and belly.
- Bend your knees towards the left side as you exhale.
- Take five full breaths.
- Pay attention to how your ribs’ sides feel as they expand and extend.
- Bring the knees back to the beginning position.
- On the right side, repeat the movement.
2. Goddess Pose
This soothing position eases nervous system imbalance, decreases abdominal tightness, and alleviates pelvic discomfort.
- Begin in the mountain position and then step the feet out wide with the toes facing the corners of the mat.
- Raise your arms to shoulder height and cactus the arms
- Exhale as you bend the knees and squat down, trying to get the thighs parallel to the floor if you can
- Hold the goddess position for 30 to 60 seconds.
3. Happy Baby Pose
Happy Baby is a mild hip opener promoting calmness, flexibility improvement, and reduced anxiety.
- Lay down on your back and hug your knees into your chest.
- Turn your feet so that the soles are facing up. Upon the outer edges of your feet, place your hands.
- If your hands are too short to reach your feet, rest them on your thighs or calves or lay a strap across the tops of your feet.
- Pull your knees to be positioned outside of your chest and open the knee joint to around a 90-degree angle.
- Push your feet down with your hands to provide resistance & push your feet toward your palms while doing this.
- Concentrate on relaxing your pelvic floor and hip muscles.
- For up to a minute, maintain this posture.
4. Legs-Up-The-Wall Pose
This posture calms the body, boosts circulation, relaxes the pelvic muscles, and relieves cramps.
- On your back, lean against the wall with your legs up.
- Put your hips close to the wall or a little bit farther away depending on how your hamstrings feel.
- Put both hands on your tummy or lay your arms next to your body.
- For up to 15 minutes, maintain this posture.
5. Child’s Pose
This soft forward fold encourages calmness and self-awareness. Your glutes, hips, and spine are gently stretched, which helps to relieve stress, cramps, and muscle tightness.
- Begin by getting down on your knees. Put a pillow beneath your head, torso, or legs for additional support.
- Send your hips back on your heels and let them soften down.
- Your knees can be close together or a little broader than your hips.
- Fold forward by putting pressure on the hips.
- Stretch out your arms over your head or next to your body.
- Maintain this posture for up to five minutes.
6. Reclined Bound Angle Pose
This yoga position releases tension in your inner thighs, hips, and pelvis.
Additionally, it gently expands your stomach, which eases pelvic pain.
- Sit down on your mat and bring your feet together, allowing your knees to fall out to the side
- Use cushions or blocks beneath your knees for more support.
- Lean back and lie down.
- Put both hands on your tummy or lay your arms next to your body.
- For up to five minutes, maintain this posture.
7. Reclined Hero Pose
This position helps to ease pain, bloating, and stiffness while gently stretching your pelvis and abdomen.
- Start by sitting in vajrasana
- With the tips of your feet contacting the ground and your big toes pulled toward the middle, spread your feet broader than your hips.
- Between your feet, place your pelvic region on the ground.
- Lean back while supporting yourself with your forearms and elbows.
- Slide onto your back with care.
- Put your arms at a small angle adjacent to your torso.
- For up to a minute, maintain this posture.
8. Garland Pose
This squat helps to reduce discomfort, cramps, and digestive issues while strengthening the pelvic muscles.
The low back, hips, and thighs are gently stretched, which improves flexibility and circulation.
- Your feet should be a little broader than hip-distance when standing.
- Put your hands together in prayer and squeeze your palms.
- Turn the toes out to the corner of your mat and bend the knees, bringing the hips down low into a squat
- Set your heels firmly on the ground.
- Lengthen your spine and lift your pelvic floor.
- With the hands staying in prayer, push your elbows into your lower legs or knees to deepen the posture
- For up to a minute, maintain this posture.
9. Thunderbolt Pose
This pose helps you build breath stability that helps you relieve stress while improving the blood flow in your body.
- Kneel on a soft surface, such as a yoga mat.
- Retain a comfortable posture while sitting back with your heels.
- Rest your palms on the top of your thighs, keeping the elbows close to your torso
- Adjust your posture so your back is straight
- Tighten your neck to stabilize your head as you fix your attention forward.
- Take a big breath in and let it out gently.
- Maintain your back upright and deliberately try to prevent slouching.
- Keep yourself in this posture for as long as you can.
10. Three-Part Breath Pose
This pose helps you inhale and exhale deeply while focusing on your heart, gut and body.
- Start by lying on your back while resting your face and body. Let your knees rest against each other if you are bending them.
- Start taking long, deep breaths through your nose.
- For around five breaths, keep doing this deep belly breathing.
- Continually take ten breaths.
Yoga for Endometriosis: Concluding Thoughts
In conclusion, yoga for endometriosis can greatly help females experiencing pain and discomfort due to endometriosis. While exercise is not a cure, yoga positions help relieve period cramps.
The yoga poses mentioned are great for releasing tension from the pelvic area, improving blood flow, and reducing muscle stress.
Yoga for endometriosis not only eases endometriosis symptoms but also improves your overall well-being and helps you develop mindfulness.
