Can yoga therapy alleviate hay fever and sinusitis?

by Linda Madani

You may wonder how recommending therapeutic yoga can help those of you who suffer from allergies, hay fever or sinusitis and I understand your skepticism. Clearly, yoga therapy is not for emergency situations and of course, in the midst of an allergy attack, yogasana and pranayama are not appropriate as you are not able to breathe clearly through your nostrils.

I was able to experience this first hand when a childhood problem resurfaced. Suffering from chronic sinusitis caused by hay fever and allergy to dust, my upper respiratory tract was congested and consequently inversions became painful and practicing pranayama was almost impossible. You can imagine as a yoga teacher I felt somehow handicapped especially with my congested voice which was furthermore inconveniencing me.

Allergies occur when your immune system reacts strongly, in a very extreme and hypersensitive way, as if it was fighting a vicious disease when in reality only a non-threatening substance, such as pollen, pet hair, or dust, has entered the body. As a result, the immune system erroneously releases histamine and other chemicals in order to tackle the enemy substance.

The primary objective of yoga therapy with regards to all types of allergies is to balance the immune system so as to stop chronic allergic spells. Yoga therapy can be used as a complement to any other therapy and doesn't interfere with any other treatments. If you want to reduce your sensitivity to allergies, the good news is, yes, yoga can help you.

Allergies and hay fever are often associated with emotional upsets. The first thing you ought to do, if you suffer from an allergic condition, is to look honestly at what is happening in your life at this time. You might be able to make a connection with current emotional stress in your life. The cause of the problem may have roots in the past and it could even be a pattern that you have developed earlier in life as a coping mechanism. Allergies can disappear if your commit yourself to working on your mental and emotional state.

This is what I did when my allergies returned. I looked at what was happening in my life. My best friend was moving to another part of the country far away with her boyfriend and although with my rational mind I was very happy for her, an old feeling of abandonment from my childhood resurfaced. It was an emotion that I had long forgotten and buried. Once I realized that this was the source of my ailment, I was able to exorcise these emotions that had been hidden deep inside me and release them.

You may decide to seek the help of an allopathic doctor who will certainly prescribe you western medicine such as antihistamines to reduce sneezing, control your runny nose, and the itchiness of your eyes, nose and throat. If this is the option you choose, make sure that you take non-sedating antihistamines as antihistamines are toxic drugs with adverse effects which I believe affects also your consciousness. These drugs do not heal the allergic condition but only suppress it temporarily. If you must use them, use them just for a short period of time.

When I was confronted with my chronic sinusitis I chose to take antihistamines for a few days to help clear out my nasal passages and allow me to do my practice yoga. This was just a temporary measure. If my condition would have persisted, instead of taking antihistamines again I would have sought the help of naturopath, homeopath, a Chinese doctor or an ayurvedic doctor for a more holistic treatment.

You may want to look for the cause of your allergies in your surroundings. In my case, I chose to cut a few trees in my garden whose pollen was very powerful. I also stop sleeping with my cats … for a while, I know!

I also made some changes in my diet. I followed a low protein diet, avoided milk products as proteins in cow's milk stimulate mucus in the body, and adopted a light vegetarian diet I ate plenty of fruit, including papaya and raw vegetables and avoided cold and iced drinks.

Yogic science highly recommends fasting or a fruit juice diet for three or four days. Drink plenty of citrus and grape juice but do not mix juices. Alternatively, you can substitute the evening meal each day with tea prepared of a mixture of ginger, pepper, cinnamon and cardamom, which heat the body and promote mucus elimination.

I chose to practice my asanas in a gentle and relaxing way with slow breathing. Once my nose was free, I resume practicing Sarvangasana (Shoulderstand) and Halasana (Plow Pose) to open my nasal passages and drain my sinuses.

Yoga therapy teaches you to be pro-active in your healing process no matter the severity of your illness and whether you choose conventional or alternative treatments. Yoga therapy empowers you in your healing process.

You will find below a series of exercises that are recommended for healing allergies in the upper respiratory system and sinusitis:

Yogasana

Warning:

Inverted positions such as sirsasana and sarvangasana are contraindicated when you have excess of mucus in your upper respiratory system as they may exacerbate your condition.

1. Parshimottanasana
   • Sit on the floor with your legs outstretched aligned with the hip bones
   • Bend your knees slightly
   • Slowly bend forward and grasp your feet putting, the thumb on the base of the big toe and the remaining fingers behind
   • Extend your legs as far as you can
   • Keep your hands on your feet
   • Push the big toe forward and the small toe toward you
   • Inhale, extend your spine, bend the elbows sideways
   • Exhale, bent from the hips bringing the belly close to the thighs
   • Drop your head like a fruit on a tree, relax your neck shoulders, arms, chest, upper back, middle back, lower back, belly, sacrum, the whole spine, both of your hips, both of your thighs, both of your knees, both of your ankles, both of your feet. Relax the whole body observing your body going deeper and deeper in the pose.
2. Bhujangasana
   • Lie on your belly
   • Put your hands next to your breast, fingers pointing forward
   • Make sure the tips of your fingers are not any further than your shoulders
   • Abduct the back muscle of your thighs
   • Inhale, straighten the elbows, lift your chest, arch your back and roll your shoulders back
   • Gaze upward to the eyebrow center
   • The thighs and hips remain on the floor
   • Unless the spine is very flexible the arms will remain bent
3. 
   
   Halasana
   • Lie flat on your back with the legs and feet together
   • Place the arms beside the body with the palms facing down
   • Relax the whole body
   • Raise the legs to a vertical position, keeping them straight together, using your abdominal muscles
   • Press down on the arms and lift the buttocks up, rolling the back away from the floor
   • Lower the legs over the head
   • Try to touch the toes on the floor
   • Turn the palms up, bend the elbows and place the hands behind the ribcage to support the back
4. Dhanurasana
   • Lie flat on the stomach with the legs and feet together and arms beside the body
   • Bend the knees and bring the heels close to the buttocks
   • Clasp the hands around the ankles
   • Place the chin on the floor
   • Tense the legs muscles and push the feet away from the body. Arch the back, lifting the thighs, chest and head together.
   • Keep the arms straight
5. Ardha matsyendrasana
   • Sit with the legs stretched out in front of the body
   • Bend the right leg and place the right foot flat on the floor on the outside of the left knee
   • The toes of the right foot should face forward
   • Bend the left leg and bring the foot around to the right buttock. The outside edge of the foot should be in contact with the floor
   • Bind with the left elbow by pressing the elbow against the knee, hand up, middle finger and thumb together
6. Simhagarjanasana (recommended practicing facing the sun)
   • Sit on your knees and then open them 45 cm apart
   • Place the palm of the hands on the floor between the knees with the fingers pointing towards the body
   • Lean forward, resting the body on your straight arms
   • Arch your back and gently tilt your head back so that there is a comfortable amount of tension in the neck
   • Open your eyes and gaze at the eye brow center
   • Relax the whole body
   • Close your mouth, inhale deep through the nose
   • At the end of the inhalation open your mouth and extend the tongue out as far as possible toward the chin
   • While exhaling, produce a clear, steady ‘aah’ sound from the throat, keeping the mouth wide open
   • At the end of exhalation, close the mouth and breathe in
   • This is one round
7. Pranayama

   Pranayama is not appropriate if you are in the middle of an allergy attack. It is consequently a practice that you adopt once you feel better in order to avoid a new attack. It will improve the manner your body deals with allergies by strengthening your constitution, endurance and your immune system and by increasing the amount of oxygen in your blood.

   In order to be able to enjoy a practice of pranayama, you need to be able to breathe properly. Both of your nostrils must be clear and flowing freely. Mucus may be removed through the practice of jala neti (see below).

8. Bhastrika Pranayama (through both nostrils)
   • Sit in any comfortable position with your hands resting on your knees
   • Keep your head and spine straight. Close your eyes and relax the whole body.
   • Inhale slowly and deeply through both nostrils counting Om 1, Om 2, Om3, Om 4
   • Exhale forcefully
   • The abdomen should expand and contract rhythmically with the breath
   • The pumping action should be performing by the abdomen alone
   • The body should not jerk
9. 
   
   Nadi Shodana (Alternate-nostril breathing)

   Note: Nadi Shodana should be practice after Bastrika.

   Nadi Shodana pranayama is a wonderful way to practice breathing more deeply once your respiratory system is better and calmer. This breathing technique opens the nasal passages and allows the air to flow equally in both nostrils. But more importantly, it balances the nadis (energy system of the body) and helps you to connect with emotional blockages which arise at the same time as the physical symptoms.

   • Put your index and middle fingers on your forehead at the third eye
   • You will use the ring finger to block the left nostril and the thumb the right nostril
   • Exhale through both nostrils
   • Block your right nostril by pressing the thumb on the right nostril and inhale through the left nostril
   • Hold your breath, change nostril and block with the ring finger the left nostril and exhale
   • Inhale a complete breath through the right nostril, then change and exhale through the left nostril
   • This is one cycle

   Do 5 to 10 cycles.

10. Jala Neti

    Jala neti removes the nasal mucus and drains the sinuses. Practice once or twice daily or whenever relief of stuffiness and mucus build-up is required. After jala neti, perform kapalbhati to dry the nasal passages and activate the frontal brain. Unless all excess water is cleared from the nose, neti may have damaging effects. This practices rinses pollen off nasal tissues and calms irritated mucous membranes.

    You will need a neti pot which can be found in a yoga shop but you could very well use a teapot as long as the tip of the spout is not too large and sharp.

    • Fill your pot with warm water with a little of salt (one teaspoon per litter)
    • Stand legs hip distance apart and lean forward with knees bent
    • Tilt your head to one side and slightly back
    • Make sure you are breathing through your mouth
    • Insert the nozzle in the nostril and tilt the pot to pour the water into the nose. Adjust the position of your body so the water passes through the other nostril. When half of the water has run through the nostril, lift your head.
    • Let the water run out of your nose and than gently blow your nose to remove the mucus from your nose
    • Repeat on the other side
11. Kapalabhati

    Kapala means “skull” and bhati “that which brings lightness”. In this technique, your breath is short, rapid, and strong. You use the abdominal muscles like a pump, creating pressure on the lungs and expelling air and waste from the air passages — from your lungs up through your nostrils. Although similar to Bastrika in Kapalbhati, you do not inhale but let the air fill your lungs passively. Kapalabhati is advisable if you have sinus problems and numbness around your eyes as Kapalabhati helps to clear this area.

    • Sit in any comfortable sitting position with your spine erect
    • Put both hands on your knees
    • Take a few deep breaths and relax
    • Inhale and allow your belly to expand
    • Exhale forcefully through both nostrils by simultaneously pulling the abdominal muscles in
    • Passively allow the inhalation to happen
    • Repeat up to twenty times, keeping a steady rhythm and emphasizing the exhalation each time