Sinuses are respiratory cavities in your face. Problems with your sinuses can result in nasal congestion or discharge, headaches, and pain in the jaw, eyes, cheeks, or ears. Specific yoga poses can help alleviate and prevent problems with the sinuses. As with any new exercise routine, consult your doctor first.
Open Your Chest
Yoga teacher trainer Jeff Migdow recommends yoga poses that elevate the head and lift the chest to combat sinus problems. Try lying your upper back on a folded towel and your head on a pillow. Ensure that your head is positioned higher than your chest. Relax your arms and legs naturally. Close your eyes and breathe deeply. Relax in the pose and stay for up to 15 minutes.
Prasarita Padottanasana
Prasarita Padottanasana, or intense leg stretch, helps relieve problems with the sinuses, according to yoga master B.K.S. Iyengar. While standing, bring your feet 4 feet apart, ensuring that your feet are facing straight forward. Keeping your legs straight, bend forward and place your hands on the floor. If this is too difficult, you might place your hands on a chair or yoga blocks. Hold the pose for one minute.
Shoulder Stand and Plow Pose
Advanced Iyengar teacher Dean Lerner recommends plow pose and shoulder stand for sinus problems because the poses act as a natural flushing mechanism for blocked sinuses. Both shoulder stand, or salamba sarvangasana, and plow pose, or halasana, are inversions and should be practiced under the guidance of an experienced yoga teacher to avoid injury to the cervical spine.
Neti Pot
A neti pot is a small ceramic pot with a handle and a nozzle. Mix warm water and non-iodized sea salt in the neti pot and pour slowly through one nostril while breathing through your mouth. It is best performed while bending forward slightly. Repeat on the other side. Performing neti pot daily will keep your sinuses clear, according to author and yoga teacher Mukunda Stiles.
References
- Yoga Journal: Sinus Solutions
- Yoga Journal: Yoga for Sinusitis
- "Yoga, The Path to Holistic Health"; B.K.S Iyengar; 2001
- "Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy"; Mukunda Stiles, 2007
