Receiving a breast cancer diagnosis and completing your treatment is only part of the battle. Next, you must navigate the choppy waters of cancer survivorship. Learning about how yoga can improve your sense of wellness through stretching, body awareness and relaxation is the next step in the healing and recovery process.
Significance
Breast cancer is a disease effecting cells in the breast tissue. Men and women can be diagnosed with breast cancer. However, it affects women more than men. The "Journal of Family Physicians" reports that, according the National Cancer Institute more than 2.1 million U.S. women are breast cancer survivors.
History
In 2010, researchers at the University of Alberta concluded a two-year study on the effect of yoga classes targeted to breast cancer survivors. Study participants were asked to fill out a questionnaire commencing a 12-week session of Iyengar yoga. The questionnaire included health-related and disease specific inquiries about how treatment and surgery affect the quality of life. Researchers examined the responses taking into consideration depression, anxiety and body image. Ninety four percent of indicated an improvement in their quality of life while 88 percent attested to feeling better physically. Additionally, 87 percent of participants reported feeling happier and 80 percent of the participants felt less fatigued. Researchers also found gains in the perception of body image and lower levels of stress, anxiety and depression.
Function
Karen Mustian, Ph.D., from the University of Rochester Medical Center, suggests that there may be some distinct advantages to yoga over other types of exercise. Deep breathing and mindfulness training are essential components to yoga and may help to regulate parasympathetic nervous system activity and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. This may explain why cancer survivors that practice yoga experience an overall improvement in their wellness and symptoms.
Features
Breast cancer survivors may need to rehabilitate the shoulder area, especially if they are recuperating from surgery. Jaki Nett, writing for "Yoga Journal," recommends practicing gentle postures for breast cancer survivors that will loosen, stretch and strengthen the shoulder area after surgery. Nett suggests learning about the range of motion in the shoulder girdle. For example, experiencing how it feels to shrug your shoulders, toward your ears is an example of elevation. Likewise, medial rotation is when you rotate your arm bone internally. Lateral rotation is when you rotate the arm bone externally. Understanding these movements will allow you to more effectively modify yoga poses.
Nett suggests upward prayer position or Urdhva Namaskarasana. This pose teaches you how to elevate your shoulder girdle and how to externally rotate the upper arm bone. You may want to consider cow face pose or Gomukhasana. It incorporates the movement of elevation, external rotation and internal rotation of the arms.
Nett further recommends Extended Child's Pose or Extended Balasana, to open the area near your armpits. Another gentle method to work the chest area can occur while standing upright in Mountain Pose or Tadasana. Interlace your fingers behind your back into an extension. Nett recommends carefully lifting your arms away from your buttocks and pressing the shoulder blades together. This pose will begin to release the front of the chest muscles. You can also practice this modified arm position in Wide Legged Standing Forward Bend or Prasarita Padottanasana (See References 5).
If you are ready to try strengthening poses, practice Triangle Pose or Trikosana and Warior I, II, and III or Virabhadrasana. Each of these poses requires you to hold your arms out straight against gravity (See References 5).
Warning
Consult your doctor before you begin practicing yoga. Some poses may not be suitable for breast cancer survivors. Seek the guidance of an experienced yoga practitioner that specializes in working with cancer patients and survivors. A yoga instructor can assist you in modifying the poses for your physical needs. She can also help you to learn about meditation and breathing exercises, which also play an important role in yoga. Above all, perform yoga poses carefully and slowly, paying attention to the sensations in your body. Should you experience pain or discomfort, do not perform the pose until you have further guidance from a professional.
