changes are happening on a deep level

15.09.2011
Pranayama goes very deep, it works on a very deep level and when you start working with pranayama, there is no escape from having to heal on a very deep level. Emotions, thoughts and a strong awareness are stirred up and you are phased with learning to understand what your challenges are, what your hang-ups are, what emotions you have been carrying with you all your life. Pranayama helps with the healing of your deep inner being. Pranayama helps to unlock blockages, self-imposed restriction, self-sabotage, and all the stuff we are holding on to. Pranayama helps with healing deep inner feelings, burdens, stresses and all the underlying causes. The hardest part about it all is that these challenges come to the surface to be healed to be released, to be let go of. In these situations, it is good to have a teacher who can help you through those challenges and stop you from giving up. Pranayama has helped me to find my inner teacher and has helped me to be aware of what is going on and has helped me to work through all these challenges to heal myself on a very deep level. It is a wonderful experience, but it is also very challenging and is testing my faith daily. It is wonderful so to come out on the other end and while practising Pranayama the warms and the healing energy that flows through my body, my mind, my heart and soul is amazing and words can not even begin to describe these feelings. Pranayama gives you the strength to conquer all challenges.


18.11.2011
It has been interesting for me to observe myself. Changes are happening on a deep level from practising Pranayama regularly. It has come to my attention that my reactions to stress or difficult situation are changing. I do not react in the old ways any more. My response to stress or difficult situation is calmer, it is more focused and it is not affecting me in a negative way. I noticed that the old feelings are there just for a short moment and then from deep within the new and positive response is coming to the surface.
In the past I would react negatively, then become aware of my negative reaction, then I would try to change and to work through it, now it is changing from deep within. This made me realise that the healing is now starting to happen deep within me and as a result of practising Pranayama, I no longer react negatively to stress or difficult situations, it is automatic that I do not react negatively now, which means by being calmer the physical body can continue to heal and deep physical, mental and emotional ailments can now heal at the core.
In the past, the negative reactions came automatic and it was as if I could not stop it. Now the positive reactions come automatically which shows that Pranayama can change negative behaviour patterns on a very deep level. The power of healing from Pranayama is continuous impressing me just amazing. Bad I still do have these bad days too but they are easier to cope with now.

The behaviour pattern is changing from deep within





Pranayama and its effect on animals

Since I have been practising Pranayama I have noticed a change in all my animals. I have two large breed dogs, 3 cats and two Lorikeets. One of my dogs is still very much a puppy and wants to play and chase the cats. When I get up early in the morning she is all up and ready to run and play, but as soon as she sees me sitting down to practice my Pranayama she calms down and goes to sleep next to the cats. The cats often sit around me and they sense when I am calming down they come closer. They know when I need space and they move. The connection between the animals and me has changed, we are much more in tune with each other, we can communicate better and the animals just feel so much calmer. When one of the animals get sick they try and sit on my lap when I do my Pranayama and it seems to help them they seem to feel better when we finish our practice. After practising Pranayama I go and open up the bird aviary and the two Lorikeets sit on my shoulders and start to smooch me and I can feel they are soaking in the energy. I am sure since practising Pranayama it has made my environment more pleasant and calmer, it is benefiting my whole family.

Pranayama heals headaches and migraines

February 2017
A Chapter out of my new eBook; Pranayama, Mudra, Mantra and Meditation for health and well-being

Pranayama does work, and I have been blogging about this many times. To me, it was such a huge relief when finally something worked for my migraines. I had suffered from migraines from the time I was about eight years old until I discovered the power of Pranayama.

My migraines were very debilitating, started always at four am in the morning. I could not lay down as this made it all worse. I could only sit up and hold my head back. This caused my neck to become very painful. I always had to yawn a lot with a migraine and many times I dislocated my jaw from the intense yawning. The intensity of a migraine resulted in vomiting and diarrhoea and nothing really gave any relief, I had to sit it out for the twelve to sixteen hours that it had taken for relief to come. Anything would set off a migraine, the weather, the food, the stress and so on.

Often I had one or two migraines a week. Very exhausting as I could not sleep with it and my back and neck were hurting from the sitting position that would slightly ease the intensity of migraine. No medication worked and I just had to put up with it. My stress in life increased and the migraines increased and then the death of my soul mate the dog tipped me over the edge...I was at the end of my strength and screamed at the universe for not helping me!!

Then I sat at my computer checking my emails and here an email was in my inbox, that was not addressed to me but I did read it and it was from a Pranayama yoga teacher from London who offered his help to this person the email was meant for.

I checked out his website and thought what on earth is Pranayama yet I was very drawn to it. So I emailed him and asked if he could teach me the Pranayama via Skype as I am living in NZ and the response was that we could try. I had eleven sessions to learn about ten Pranayama’s and they made me feel so good. I then practised the Pranayama’s daily and within two or three weeks I was free of migraines. Six years later still no migraines.

Your sufferings can become your biggest blessings for me learning about the Pranayama and yoga has changed my life so much I cannot put it into words and I just keep wanting to scream about it from the rooftop!!! Thanks to these awful migraines I have come to experience the power of Pranayama yes your sufferings are your blessings. I wish so I did not have to suffer for so many years.

Here below are all the old posts I wrote during my time of healing my migraines and headaches while practising Pranayama daily.


16.08.2011
I had suffered from migraine headaches since childhood, as long as I can remember. Pranayama has healed my migraines, my headaches for good. I use to get the migraines from stress, from a storm approaching, from windy weather, around my menstrual cycle, from foods, from sinus problems, anything would set off a migraine often with vomiting and always with diarrhoea. The pain would be so severe that it waked me at about 4 am in the morning and I could not be lying down I had to sit or walk around to get a little relief. Walking around gave only short-term relief as my legs would get so tired I also had to yawn a lot and sometimes so much that it hurt my jaws. No medicine helped as I would vomit it up as soon as I had taken it. They use to last from 4 to 12 hours and the next day I was always so exhausted. I got them 2 - 4 x a month. When I started practising Pranayama I noticed immediate relief. The migraines turned into headaches within 1 month and then I had no migraine and no headache for 3 months. Then I had a week of just niggling headaches and then nothing for a month then one more headache and now it has been a good six month without migraines or headaches or even a niggle. It is just such a relief and I do not know how I ever coped with all these migraines as it is such a great feeling to be free of them. Pranayama does really work it is amazing.

Updating!Dec.2013
It is now over three years that I have been practising pranayama and since my migraines disappeared I have not looked back. I have not had any migraines since and I may get a slight headache once in a while like maybe every six months or so if I have been straining my neck but a headache is so light that it does not really bother me. It is just so amazing to be rid of them and that they have not returned anymore. Pranayama truly works!
Pranayama really works! Dec. 2013

Update!20.04.2015
Just a quick update, just about five years since my start of practising Pranayama and my migraines have not come back, this is just so wonderful!!! It is beyond words, to be free of a life full of migraines!! I can get an occasional headache in the morning on waking if I strain my back or neck, but it is only a very mild headache, and it goes within an hour or two of getting up and moving. So Pranayama is brilliant!!!

UPDATE: 1.10.2016
it has been now about 5 or 6 years since I started practising Pranayama and I am still free of migraines. I worked out, that I had suffered from very bad migraines for about 40 years and no medical Doctor had ever been able to help me. And I must say I had never been successful with natural remedies either. But with Pranayama and mudras, I am totally free of migraines and headaches. I wish I knew about Pranayama much earlier.

It is pure bliss not having migraines anymore or even headache words can not describe the feeling!


All information here is from my personal experience copyrights@BarbaraSchaer all rights reserved

Pranayama warms the body regulates body temperature

We have just been experiencing one of the coldest time here in New Zealand, and Pranayama has kept me warm. The polar storm has bought us snow and icy cold winds and the houses in New Zealand are not well insulated, the icy wind is getting through the tiny gaps in the windows and it is hard and expensive to keep the house warm. I have always suffered from bad circulations and get cold easy, but since practising Pranayama I have been so much warmer. I do not feel the cold, in the same way, I use too. The cold wind is not getting into my bones any more, I am staying warm it is just amazing. I can not believe, how I am feeling warm while everyone around me is freezing. With Pranayama, Ujjayi, Suryabhedi or Suryanga pranayama breathing in through the right nostril, and the breath of fire, doing more of these pranayamas have made a marked difference in my body temperature keeping me warmer then I have ever felt. I also noticed that I have had no pains in my joints, even so in the past in these extreme weather conditions my joints would hurt. Its because my joints feel warmer and the cold does not penetrate me. The extent of benefits one can get from practising Pranayama is beyond words.

Pranayama what you should avoid doing

When practising Pranayama there are a few important things to do or not to do:

Some Pranayama like Kapalabhati and the breath of fire should be practised on a completely empty stomach only, as when they are practised straight after eating they may cause heartburn and can raise your blood pressure, therefore, doing it first thing in the morning is best so you have no food left in the stomach for a good three or more hours.

When doing Kapalabhati it is important to do it correctly, to do the speed and rhythm correct as if you do it incorrectly you can get acidity, heartburn and shortness of breath, and you should avoid doing Kapalabhati straight after having had any surgery.

When doing the three bandhas with the Bahya Pranayama, you also do them on a completely empty stomach as you do not want to hold in and pull up toxins while holding the bandhas. You should not do any bandhas if you are menstruating, this is important. These three bandhas with the Bahya Pranayama could be practised fifteen minutes before a meal as they fire up the digestive system which is very beneficial.

If you got a cold or have a sinus infection you should not do Sitkari, as it will make your infection worse, because it cools the body.

When practising Pranayama make sure you have enough time, if you stressed and rushed doing Pranayama it will not be very effective. Check and recheck yourself that you do the Pranayama correct, stay mindful, focused and aware throughout your practice, it is easy to slip and rush them or get tired, or not doing them correctly or not sitting straight etc.

After practising for eleven months I still catch myself out and need to focus on doing all the Pranayama correct. You will feel a difference when you are focused and do all the pranayama correct. It takes time but it is worth it. Don't be too hard on yourself it will all come together, make sure you are relaxed when practising Pranayama and you have an inward smile and feel positive.

Another thing is important, make sure you are warm during practising and the air you breathe in is warm and not icy cold.
I just made the experience, over the past few weeks it has been very cold here minus six degrees and colder and my house was chilly when I was practising the pranayama.  A few days later I could feel my lungs were very sore as if I had pneumonia, very painful. I thought about what I had done and realised that I was breathing in all this chilly air. I now make sure the room temp is warmer and I wrap myself in a warm blanket and have a hot water bottle on my back to keep warm. I am on a very tight budget and can not heat my home too much so it is important to find other ways to stay warm. My lungs healed quickly when I kept myself a bit warmer during practising Pranayama.

An eleven-minute practice a day is better than not practise any at all. Many other pranayamas can be done during the day even about 15 minutes after eating.

Ujjayi Pranayama should not be practised while having a sore throat but is a wonderful Pranayama as a preventative for colds, sore throats etc.

Sitkari is a wonderful Pranayama to cool off if filled with anger, and also is cooling when feeling over heated, but should not be practised in cold air and on cold winter days.

Be sensible, and always be observant, aware and focused when practising any Pranayama.

Pranayama Flu and colds, chilblains.

It has been amazing how Pranayama also helps with colds and the flu. I have found when I get symptoms of a cold or the flu increasing the practice of Ujjayi pranayama will nip it in the bud.
Pranayama boosts the immune system making you less susceptible to colds and flu.

At first, I had difficulties in learning the Ujjayi Pranayama, it is a sort of breathing through the throat it is a scraping sensation in the throat, but have found on YouTube many different ways to learn this Pranayama.
A word of caution if you already have a sore throat do not practise this pranayama as it will aggravate the throat, but if you include this pranayama in your daily practice and increase it a bit in the month where these flu and colds are doing their rounds you should be free of getting them.

When I had finally mastered it I followed the instructions of Swami Ramdev doing this Pranayama with kumbhaka, holding the breath and doing the bandhas., then exhaling through the left nostril, by closing the right nostril.

This Pranayama has put a stop on my colds and flu very quickly. Some Pranayamas also warm the body and some cool the body which is great I increase the warming Pranayama practice at the moment as the weather has turned quite wintry now. And feeling so much warmer for it.

In the summer I increase the practice of the cooling Pranayama and this is just so amazing. Pranayama also helps with circulation and adding some mudras specific for circulation also help with pumping the blood all through the veins and capillaries, which has helped me this winter with my problems of chilblains. Pranayama does work you just have to practice it.

Some Mudras we can practise with our pranayama help in preventing sore throats, ear infections and flu are the Shunya mudra and the bear grip mudra

Breath and transform your life

Pranayama creates true freedom, abandon excuses, let go of being controlled

There are two things that people find hard about making the decision to practice Pranayama. One thing is, people, tell me they have no time to practice Pranayama. My question why? We can all get up a bit earlier in the morning to practice Pranayama or we can do it before going to bed instead of watching TV.
We could go to bed earlier so we can get up earlier really it is no excuse in my books. You lose your freedom if you are hooked on TV or if you are a workaholic because you want a boat a flash car etc. Take stock about your excuse why you could not practice Pranayama and find out how you are being controlled by these reasons.
The next thing is people tell me they would not want to give up coffee, white sugar, meat, junk food, fast food, alcohol fizzy drinks etc. Why because these are all addictive things and they have great control over people. You are being controlled by all these things. You can't have any treats hm you can change your mindset and see that all the healthy foods are treats for your body they give nourishment to your body, vitamins, minerals, energy, good health so why would you want to be under the control of negative foods that keep you sluggish, hyperactive, stressed, iron deficient, hangover, give you diabetes, high blood pressure, heart diseases, etc.
You go to the doctor who prescribes you medication and he tells you this will control your blood sugar, this will control your cholesterol, this will control your blood pressure, this will control your aches and pain this will control your headaches, this will control your mood swings, hey you are being controlled!!!!
You have to go to the doctor regularly for your prescription the drug companies got you under their thumb and you have to become a workaholic to pay for it and to pay for the health insurance!!! Where is your freedom???

All you need is a bit of discipline to start practising Pranayama and soon you can start to experience some freedom. Isn't it a fact that when you go on holiday somewhere nice you take a deep breath and say wow I can do what I want for a little while, you take a BREATH!! that gives you a sense of freedom.
Studies have proven that people with a bit of discipline are happier than the once that allow themselves to be controlled.

Well I have turned the table on people, I know when they feel sorry for me that I have hot water instead of coffee or healthy food instead of junk food, I tell them how I feel sorry that they are under such control of their so-called treats, they really treat themselves with poison, that every time they have these so-called treats brings them closer to disease.
It saddens me to see how people, doctors drug companies, fast food places are so irresponsible only because they want control over the human race. When will people wake up and realise how they are really not free and how they have been under such control.
Break free from it, start practising Pranayama take a deep breath and with each inhales, breath in the freedom and with each out breath let go of being controlled.

I have found that when I started practising Pranayama, my body automatically wanted to change and my awareness grew to eat and drink more healthy, and I am so aware that if I feel I must have something every day it has a hold over me. And we all on occasions overeat or have something that is not completely healthy, and this is fine, so long it has no hold over us so long we can be without it.

Pranayama can be incorporated throughout your day if a sit-down practice is not possible, as we can stop a few minutes during the day and take our focus to our breath, become aware of our breath even if it is only for a few minutes and it will already make a world of difference.

There are many ways you can fit a pranayama breathing exercise into your day, no matter how busy you are. It creates awareness and with it freedom and the ability to choose and make changes. Remember you can choose to have junk food, coffee, alcohol all these things, but do you really enjoy being controlled by it? Now I can really enjoy a coffee once in a while without getting hooked on it or I can eat junk food, I must say so that when I do I wished I did not as it makes me feel unwell, and this is why I choose not to have it very often, is it really worth it to feel sick after overeating, is it worth it to get indigestion, is it worth it to get a hangover the next day????
Observer yourself and listen to your mind chatter, what are the things that control you, what are the things you do without thinking about it just because you need it and are hooked on it?

Everything becomes crystal clear just like these ice crystals on this branch.

Pranayama with Ayurveda or other healing modalities

During my years of practising pranayama, I have noticed that when I can afford some Ayurveda medicine that it works in extremely well with Pranayama, and especially in chronic conditions. Ayurveda helps in speeding up the recovery and cure of most ailments. These herbs are powerful helping with giving fast pain relief in chronic conditions like arthritis, and many more symptoms.

Ayurveda also helps in accidents sprains, dislocated joints swelling etc. but Ayurveda can be quite costly, and if you can afford it, it is well worth using in conjunction with practising Pranayama.
At the same time, Pranayama works wonders even if you cannot afford the Ayurveda medicines. This is why I love Pranayama as it costs nothing and all we need to do is practice it, it is so simple. And the brilliant part about Pranayama is that it does not interfere with any other healing modalities or healing medicines, but it will enhance the power of any other healing modalities and medicines.

For chronic ailments, Pranayama may take a bit longer for the healing to come about, but it can work quite quickly in acute situations and as it works on all levels, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual it is a wonderful tool to use.

I love using Aura-Soma products like Pomanders and Quintessences before and after a Pranayama session as I feel it has made me more sensitive and aware during my Pranayama practice which I love very much.

When I have a bit of spare cash, I use Ayurveda for my chronic and physical ailments if need to, I also use Homeopathic if need to, as I have been a practising Homeopath for many years, and I love using homoeopathic in severe acute situations together with Pranayama and mudras.

There are so many healing tools around and for me, the most important thing is that I can use a tool even when I do not have much money....so Pranayama costs nothing!!

Pranayama improves your Lungs

5. 07. 2017

It has been incredible to watch the improvement of my lungs, and with a special mudra, I could learn to feel the difference between breathing just with the upper part of my lungs, or then the mid part of the lungs, and it had taken quite a while before I could feel the breath in the lower part of the lungs.
At the beginning when I learned to really take a deep breath I had quite a sore chest. I think the expansion of the lungs bruised the chest walls as it was a very new experience.
Only very recently I noticed, even so, I had been a bit unfit again when I climbed a very steep hill I did not get as puffed that I use to and very quickly my breathing settled down again. Something that is very new to me. It feels like even when I am not exercising regularly I can stay fit and my heart and lungs work really well. I must say so, that just practising Kapalabhati pranayama, it is like doing a fitness practice and it definitively keeps me fitter than if I did not practise it. Pranayama really improves the lungs and the heart and circulation. I can now hold my breath for quite a bit longer than I have ever been able to and my inhaling in the past could not be deeper than a four second inhale, now I can inhale for about fifteen sometimes even twenty seconds. the same with the exhale. When your lungs improve and heal you are less likely to catch these chest colds and coughs, Since practising Pranayama I have had hardly any colds, a snuffle maybe for a very short time that is all.


2. 04. 2011

I have always been a shallow breather and often huffed and puffed while walking up the hill or upstairs. Even as a child I huffed and puffed, but nobody ever thought it was a problem. I just lived with it and felt that I was just unfit. But even after doing a lot of exercises and becoming quite fit my breathing did not change. I was never diagnosed with anything but often wondered about my huffing and puffing. Never was I able to hold my breath or hold out my breath for very long.
Since doing Pranayama it has certainly improved, but I noticed that holding my breath in or out I could not do for very long. I can take a deep breath, but it has never been as deep as others have been able to do. So when I was reading the book Yog in Synergy with Medical Science especially the chapter Role of Pranayama In Yog practice and its effectiveness, I have learned more in depth how to control the breath and how to hold and do the bandhs and have felt in a short time great improvement. At first, I also felt a bit light headed, but now this has settled and I am feeling my lungs expanding and filling with air. It makes a big difference. Learning to do the Pranayama and experiencing the depth of Pranayama is just amazing. Being focused while doing Pranayama and really having control, following the breath inside the body is a great experience.

Mudras with Pranayama; the power of Mudra

16.02.2017 some snippets from my new eBook; Pranayama, Mudra, Mantras and Meditation for Health and Wellbeing

What are mudras? They can also be called Hand and finger Yoga.

Your whole body is in your hands, and by holding your fingers in a certain way, pressing certain energy centres, will bring healing to your body, mind and soul. 

For the people who have an understanding of the five elements; 

1. The thumb represents Fire

2. The index finger represents Air

3. Middle finger represents either

4. The ring finger represents Earth

5. And the little finger represents Water.

For the people who love the concept of chakras your energy fields, just the five chakras who represent the physical body are in the hands; 

1. Thumb Solar Plexus

2. Index finger Heart Chakra

3. Middle finger Throat Chakra

4. Ring finger Root Chakra

5. Little finger Sacral Chakra

For the people who are interested in Acupressure, you have the acupressure points in your fingers and hands and by simply pressing these points can bring relief for many ailments without the use of needles. 

My old Post; 9.03.2011 Mudras with Pranayama

Doing the different Mudras while practising the Pranayama is very powerful. I did not know what effect Mudras have until I could really focus on my breath while practising Pranayama. My mind wandered a lot and it was at first very hard to stay focused.
When I was able to really focus on my breath (prana) I realised the powers the Mudras had. Especially during practising Kapalabhati changing the Mudras every 3 - 5 minutes was amazing.
When doing the Vayu Mudra, I could feel prana moving around my arthritic joints and pushing out any toxins in my joints, then changing to Sunya Mudra, the prana was very strong around the throat and ears. It was a marked difference each time I changed the Mudra and prana became very strong in the particular area and I could feel the toxins removed from these areas. It made me feel so refreshed. Mudras are amazing. Hand mudras regulate the elements.




Vayu Mudra

Sunya Mudra

There are so many different Mudras it is just amazing. Make sure you drink plenty of water after practising Pranayama with Mudras as your body needs help with flushing out the toxins.

Photos and Information by Barbara Schaer copyrights@BarbaraSchaer all rights reserved

Difficulties when practicing Pranayama

10.12.2011

Crisis does happen;

Over the past few weeks, the energy around me has been so hectic and I have felt like my Pranayama has come to a crisis point. I am tired in the morning, I do not feel like practising Pranayama everything is hectic around me, the energy around me is fast and everyone is stressed and feel like this stress is coming on to me and is taking over.

It is the Christmas time around here where everyone is planning, organising, partying, drinking and overindulging. Somehow I feel it has nothing to do with this spiritual time that Christmas suppose to be. In our street all the holidaymakers are coming, kids are running and cycling up and down the road, stressing out my dogs.

Dogs roam early in the mornings around the streets and it is hard work when  I want to walk my big dogs before anyone is up. I feel stressed and to top it all I had a fall and banged my head quite badly, realising a few days later that I may have had a concussion as I have been feeling bad and the head hurts.
I have been doing Pranayama for quite a while now and wondering when the road would become a bit smoother, I can see how easy it is to just quit and go back to the old ways. But then I take a good look at what is happening around me. I see how far I have come, so much less pain in all my joints and I do recover from falls so much better. I feel not tempted as much to eat negative foods, in fact, I always feel really good when I can resist it so easy.
I can see what's going on and I can pull myself back and practice my Pranayama and feel so much better in the end. A crisis is part of life and I feel I get through it so much easier now. I do have my moments and have had days where I may only do twenty minutes of Pranayama, but I always feel like I need to do some as I just do not want to fall back into old habits. And often it is only one or two days where I feel a bit low and then I pick up and automatically my Pranayama sessions become longer again. Hang in there through any crisis look back and see how far you come, then you realise it is worth the effort, practising Pranayama does heal the body, mind and soul.  And it is a great tool that carries you through any challenges you may encounter.
We will always face challenges, but when we do a pranayama practice or focus on the breathing throughout the day we can easily get through all our challenges.

22.09.2011

Making Time;

I often hear people say to me they have difficulties to make time to do the pranayama. My response to this is, that we all make time to have a shower, to brush our teeth to washing our hair, to eat, to sleep., to exercise. This means we make time to care for our teeth, for cleanliness, we care and make time to fuel our bodies with food, we make time to sleep, to rest our bodies, but we do not make time to breathe!!

When a child is born the first thing it does is taking an independent breath, the most important thing, without breathing we can not live. Without breathing our body cannot function, yet we do not want to make time to work with our breath, the one thing that we need the most, the one thing that helps to restore the body to health, the one thing that keeps the body healthy the one thing we call life.

In the beginning, it was hard to make that time, I know and what I did, was telling myself how important breathing is! When I woke up in the early hours of the morning and just wanted to turn around and go back to sleep, I told myself that breathing is so important and I asked myself what it was I wanted to achieve. This made it easy for me to get up and practice my pranayama.
Now I can not wait to get up in the early morning to practice my pranayama, as it gives me such a boost. It fuels my body with oxygen, with energy, with strength with calm and with focus. If we can make time for all these other things it should not be hard to make time for our most important tool our breath. You gain so much more from practising pranayama then from that extra hour of sleep. The benefits from working with pranayama are far more than you would ever get from sleeping that extra hour. Make time for your breath for the most important part of your being alive. If the early mornings are so difficult, then why not practise Pranayama at the end of the day or make short breaks during the day to breath.

02/07/2011

Pranayama a journey not always a quick fix

Pranayama can give instant relief, but the true healing comes with time. When I first learned pranayama I was on a high, I was motivated by my teacher and felt great. The deep breathing gave me a "fix," it felt like an adrenal shot, I felt on top of the world. But when my lessons finished and I had learned what I needed to learn I dropped like a hot potato, it was back to reality.
No one there that motivated me no one that wanted to hear about the struggles no one that wanted to hear about healing crisis etc. I was on my own and this is a reality.
We have to walk our journey alone. There may be friends around us that will listen and support us. But what I have found is that I could not get any answers on how long it would take to heal, I could not get answers on how to deal with difficulties, with struggles, or with healing crises.

What I have observed as a healer, as a Homeopath over the past 20 years is that healers, teachers, therapists often cannot answer these questions, and often have not the time to guide you along the way unless one can spend large amounts of money for the time of these people.
My experience is that we all are different, we all heal differently and it takes each one of us a different amount of time to heal. It all depends on how long we have suffered from an illness, how deep the suffering is, where does the suffering come from etc. I have always been fascinated about the journey of healing, because I have learned that nothing really is a quick fix, nothing comes easy nothing changes unless we do the work.

I believe that most of our physical symptoms are an expression of our mental and emotional state. Unfortunate most of us are unaware or dispute or refuse to accept, or just do not know ourselves and what makes us stressed, emotional, happy or unhappy etc. We often do not know ourselves, we do not know our hang-ups our negative personality patterns.  When practising Pranayama these things all come to light. Awareness happens and you have to learn to deal with what you find out about your self.
When your mind your emotions start to heal your physical body can heal too. Often you start feeling a relieve in your physical body when your mind and emotions calm. But then the Journey begins and we have to acknowledge and work through our negative personality patterns, sometimes the physical ailments can get worse before getting better, and sometimes they get better but hit us again with a vengeance a few months later. It is a Journey to work through and not to give up.
We will feel like quitting or even quit for a while and then take it up again, we want to feel better sooner than later, and when do we really know that we are healed? I believe that we need to be free of symptoms for at least 12 months before we can say we are healed. Pranayama is a Journey and you should practice it for life, It should become part of your life it should fit into your lifestyle. That is the hard part. Hold in front of you the goal you like to achieve, the reason why you chose to practice Pranayama and remembering that the most important part of life is the Journey.
When starting practising Pranayama you can feel dizziness, vertigo, lightheadedness, tingling sensations, coldness, heat, hunger, thirst and energetic or exhausted. You may feel emotional, old grief, hurt sadness can surface. You may get discharges, runny nose, weepy eyes, smelly pooh, dark urine, all depending on your physical ailments.
Pranayama works on a deep level it heals on a deep level, therefore, you can experience all these things. Your body will detox so it needs to get rid of the toxins somehow. Therefore it is important to start making changes on your diet so you stop loading your body with toxins again. The good thing about Pranayama is it does work it will get you there if you really want to get there. This is one of the reasons I have been blogging about my experiences, to share what it is like when we practise pranayama on a daily base. It has been my experience that many teachers may not practise what they teach on a regular base and therefore often have no answers to the questions. This is my reason for publishing my two eBooks to help you the reader to get more understanding and help when you take up a daily practice.

20/05 2011

The challenges when practising pranayama

Since practising Pranayama, I have not met anyone else who practices Pranayama regularly and who has also made all the diet changes that I have made. It is often difficult when going out with friends, who drink and overindulge and who do not look after themselves.
When I pop in at friends places, they like to tempt me with coffee or with foods I do not have any more they try to tell me oh once in a while you should be allowed to have it. It is hard to get the message across to people that I am allowed to have whatever I like, but that I have made these changes consciously and do not want to have all these junk foods.
People can not understand that one can have fun without alcohol, without coffee, without junk food. But since practising Pranayama I have no desire for these things and I often feel sad for all my friends that they still need all these things to make them feel better. I find it hard to watch people being so careless about their health. They happy to go on drugs, they do not worry that diabetes is just around the corner for them even when they have been told by the doctor they do not care.

People find it easier to pop a pill than to practice Pranayama. My friends tell me they would not want to get up so early to practice Pranayama. Yes at first its hard to get up at 5 am, but now it's easy. I tell myself I can have one sleep in a week and do the Pranayama a bit later, but every time I do have the sleep in I feel heavy and tired all day. I now prefer to get up at 5 am and feel fresh and a life. I find it sad that people do not take responsibility for their health and well being when it is so easy.

It is hard to be the only one in a big community, but when I feel all the benefits its worth it and I guess people have a choice. Because I feel all the benefits that practising Pranayama gives I would love to motivate others to do the same, but this is such a hard challenge, people are so ignorant to it, they come up with all the excuses in the world, but no excuse is good enough, when it concerns your health and well being. Practising Pranayama is easier then to pop a pill for the rest of your life with all its side effects. Practising Pranayama is easier than waking in the morning with a hangover or heavy and tired. Practising Pranayama and changing your diet is easier than living a life with aches and pains and stress and tension, anger and frustrations. Practising Pranayama has become a way of life for me and it is no harder then brushing my teeth every morning. I wish others could find their way to practising Pranayama and feel the amazing benefits.

When first starting to practice Pranayama, one will have many excuses why one can not do it today, it is easy to put it off, its easy to feel, not wanting to get up in the morning to practice Pranayama. During practising the mind wonders its hard at first to focus on the breathing. I had problems with yawning at first I just had to yawn all the time. My body had to get used to all the oxygen. Then it became so relaxing that I had difficulties with falling asleep during practising but not giving up helped overcome all these obstacles and having in my mind that I wanted to get healthy and feel better. The healing process is a journey and it does not happen overnight. When I studied Homeopathy we were taught that for each year we had an ailment it would take one month to heal providing we have the correct remedy, but we were not taught that it could take month or years to find the correct remedy that would have such a deep healing effect. But with Pranayama if you do them right you will feel better pretty quickly and then for the ailments one had for a long time or since birth, it will take its time. I wrote the following after practising Pranayama for 3 weeks. In these 3 weeks, we had an earthquake and a storm.

Carry On; September 2010

Doing Pranayamas now for 3 weeks on a regular base 2 hours a day, getting up at 4 am and making changes in my diet has been a challenge. In the morning at 4 am I wake to get up and do my practice of Pranayamas a voice in my head tells me; “you need your sleep close your eyes you can start tomorrow” I ignore the voice and carry on.

I get ready and sit down to start my practising a voice in my head tells me; “you do not need to do them all just a few and then go back to bed.” I ignore and carry on.

The next morning the same happens and I ignore and carry on.

Then one morning I get ready to do my Pranayamas and the house starts to shake. The voice in my head tells me; “an earthquake surely

you do not need to do your practice now!""get over the fear its only a small shake and sit down!"The other voice said.

 I ignore and carry on.

The next day I hear the wind howling and I fear the roof of my

house will be ripped off and the voice tells me; “no you do not need to

practice today give it a miss once will not matter.”I ignore and carry on.

Pranayamas give me the strength to carry on no matter what, but it is not easy to go against the voice, the negative thoughts, my personality, my old habits, my weaknesses and I realise how my old lifestyle is like an addiction, it will try to hold me back from moving into a new lifestyle. I take one step at the time and working on “carry

on” with the changes I have put in place. I turn my back on my old lifestyle on my addiction and it feels like I am going through withdrawal symptoms the voice is finding every excuse why not to do Pranayamas, I struggle and I fight it, and I do not give in as at the end of the struggle ...

Today I feel more grounded a stillness has come over me, I feel more centred, I feel the end of the struggle is near. Patience now is needed for the healing that is starting to take place.

Hope and Determination are getting stronger, the knowledge that I am

on the right path helps me to carry on. And Faith that the healing is starting on all levels is stronger.

I take a deep Breath and know I am coming home to a place of peace

and contentment. OM

Some points;

You can practise Pranayama in the evening if early morning is just not possible.

You can take a break during the day and practise some Pranayama if this helps

Check out my other blogs, as I progressed with my practice I have become aware of how to make my daily practice easier and more fitting to my lifestyle and my daily routine.

What is Pranayama

What is Pranayama? 
Many of my friends have been asking me this question.
Pranayama is controlled breathing, yoga breathing exercises, to control vital energy, life force and especially prana ( breath).

Regular practising of Pranayama increases the oxygen intake and regulates the flow of oxygen throughout the body. Without breath, we die. The baby takes its first independent breath as soon it is born. Pranayama is proven science. The following book helps us to see how science is proving that Pranayama works. "Yog In Synergy with Medical Science"
Acharya Balkrishna this book is available through Amazon.com

Yog in Synergy....

Pranayama should be practised daily and best between four am and seven am as during these time the oxygen intake increases by 40 %. Pranayama should be practised on an empty stomach. The power of Pranayama is beyond words. Even if Pranayama is practised outside the above times it will be very beneficial. Some Pranayama can be practised easily an hour after eating, and some should be practised at least three hours after eating.

But take a deep breath any time during the day, slow down your breathing and focus on your breathing that will make a big difference right away!

And then you can explore all the different breathing exercises available through many books and on YouTube. It is just amazing you will be surprised when you start all these different breathing techniques called Pranayama!
If you have the option of learning the pranayama from a qualified teacher this would be preferred, as it would be best at the beginning to learn the Pranayama from a qualified teacher.

When I got introduced to Pranayama, I did a course via Skype through http://www.divineyoga.co.uk Ajay Kumar, he was a wonderful teacher, and I was able to learn the most important Pranayama through him. This helped me to become more observant, and it helped me to identify quickly if I was doing a Pranayama correctly or not. So if you can please take the opportunity and learn the Pranayama through a qualified teacher.

If you do not have this option to work with a qualified teacher at first, you can learn the Pranayama through books and Youtube videos, but it is essential that you are very good at observing yourself and identify the differences in doing a breathing exercise correct or incorrect. After I had learned the main Pranayama through Ajay I then was able to learn much more Pranayama through books and Youtube and they all have been really great to learn them correctly. As there are so many different breathing exercises, just about one for any ailment it is great to learn all the ones that work for you best.

You can experience hyperventilation if practised incorrectly, you can experience dizziness, vertigo and even fainting if practised incorrectly or for too long at the beginning. So be aware and really be focused when you are learning the Pranayama, as they are very powerful and go very deep.

Deep healing on all levels can be achieved by practising Pranayama correctly and daily. By learning to observe your breathing, your breathing pattern, and by learning to control your breathing, by slowing your breath down, by practising many different breathing techniques you will become aware how powerful breathing and breath control is.



How Pranayama is a Healing experience

Pranayama, Mantra, Mudra, Meditation for health and wellbeing

Why practice Pranayama Breathing

2011
As I have been a Homoeopath for the past twenty years, I have always been on the lookout for new ways to heal myself. Homoeopathy had been working well for me especially in acute situations, but it had failed to help me with the many of my chronic ailments. And it does really work well for my animals and my client's animals. 
So last year in 2010 I got so fed up with my physical emotional and mental/ spiritual symptoms I started searching for something that would give permanent relief. I was convinced that there was something that I could do to achieve complete healing in a natural way. 
I stumbled on Pranayama last August. I learned the Pranayama through a teacher from London via Skype and then started practising every day for 2 – 3 hours I also did Asana exercises. 
The very first thing I noticed was that my energy was increasing. Within 2 weeks of practising Pranayama and Asana my sciatica, I suffered from over the last 6 years, due to a spinal injury, had completely healed. The sciatica was so bad I could not move at night in bed and it always had taken me about 5 – 10 minutes to get out of the bed the pain during the night was about 8 out of 10. I did not have any pain during the day much but as soon as I went to bed it started. 
The doctors wanted to put me on an anti-anxiety drug which I refused. Homoeopathy gave only slight relief. 
Since doing the Pranayama and Asana I have not had any back pain at all now for about 6 months. And I have been teaching exercise classes 4 x a week including many of the Asana which has helped many of the people in the class. Pranayama and Asana is an amazing tool to heal your body mind and soul.                                                                                            
Due to some physical symptoms, I have had since childhood I decided to include Ayurveda with my Pranayama and Asana. So since January this year, I have been adding Ayurveda herbs which speed up the healing process and goes well with Pranayama and Asana. As these Herbs are quite expensive, I just take them when I can afford them but for now, I have got a good supply of them and they add to the healing process. I’ll keep you posted

19/2/2011
Over the past six months, I have been practising pranayama regularly and the result has been life-changing.
Doing pranayama on a regular base has helped me with many health problems. There has been a major improvement in my joints, the swelling has reduced, pain has reduced, flexibility is coming back. Migraines have gone and I get only the occasional headaches now. I have suffered from migraines and joint problems since childhood. I have become more calm and relaxed and stress levels have reduced as well. I am wrapped in the progress and all one has to do is practising pranayama daily. It is so simple to take charge of one's own health. I have learned the Pranayama via Skype with www.divineyoga.co.uk

It is so easy breathing is magic! breath in the fresh air consciously and you feel the difference!

Transformation happens on a deep level!