SEQUENCE FOR SCOLIOSIS

If you suffer from scoliosis, here are some specific asanas that will help alleviate discomfort and realign your spine.

Yoga Poses For Lengthening the Spine    By Elise Browning Miller

When beginning to practice yoga, the most important movement is lengthening the spine. This movement will create more evenness in the spine and ribs and release tension in the muscles of the back.

YOGA, MINDFULNESS BOOST BOTTOM LINE

The pain and nerve medications that doctors prescribed to Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini following a serious ski accident interfered with his ability to think and function clearly. So he turned to yoga. Paired with other complementary therapies, including acupuncture and naturopathy, he weaned himself from the drugs, got his focus back, and was able to get down to business.

In fact, the results of these drug-less approaches so impressed Bertolini that he wondered how they could benefit his staff. Working with eMindful and the American Viniyoga Institute, he authorized a 12-week study, where Aetna employees practiced mindfulness meditation and therapeutic yoga to reduce stress.

CONCERN JOB FIGURES MASK PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUES

By Thea ManningUpdated Thu Apr 11, 2013 3:09pm AEST ABC NEWS

Stressed workers

Forty per cent of Australia's workforce is in insecure work and 25 per cent of workers are not getting any sick leave.

Beyond Blue chief executive Kate Carnell says that is a serious public health problem.

She says it is a leading factor in depression and even heart disease.

"What Beyond Blue is noticing is that mental health issues are continuing to escalate," she said.

"Last year stress claims topped $10 billion and we know job insecurity, over-work and under-work are contributing factors to the cost, both personally and to the economy."

OBSERVING POSTURE

We probably have all been told at one point or another that good posture is one of the keys to physical health. But we rarely think about our own posture or observe others' postures.

Today, sit in a public place and watch people's posture as they walk, sit, and stand. What do you see? Are there patterns that emerge when you watch a variety of people?

In particular, note the relationship of the head to the spine. Is the head balanced naturally on the neck, or does it lean forward? Are the ears directly over the shoulders or forward of them? What effect might this have on someone's back and neck muscles?

Sometimes observation is the first step toward change. Now that you've seen how this slumped posture can cause pain in the body, consider walking taller with an erect spine and your shoulders rolled back and down.

TIGHT SHOULDERS?

TRY COW FACE POSE

As you may have noticed, many yoga postures are named after animals. In Gomukhasana (Cow Face Pose), by crossing your knees and pointing your elbows in opposite directions, you shape your body into an abstract version of a cow's face.

But there's more to the pose than meets the eye! This simple pose—appropriate for all levels of practitioners—is a great way to open the hips and the shoulders. Those areas tend to be tight in a wide variety of people, including athletes, older people, and men.

STRENGTH TRAINING IS FOR OVER 50s TOO

There is growing interest in strength training as an exercise for older people. You may have read about it in the newspapers, or seen something on TV or maybe even a doctor had mentioned it. Perhaps you know someone who does it. Strength training can help you stay healthier and independent in older age. It’s a fact. If you’re interested in finding out more, or even better, in taking it up, then read on.

RELAXATION AND MEDITATION PRACTICES

Meditation is the basis for all inner work. It is the direct encounter with our own awareness that shifts our understanding of who we are & gives us the power to stand firmly in our own center. No one else can do this for us. Only meditation can unlock these doors. (Swami Durgananda (Sally Kempton), The Heart of Meditation).