In the past couple of weeks, my husband and I both got the stomach flu. Lucky for him, he had no persisting symptoms after the second day. For me, they dragged on, and of course it was the one thing I hate the most. Nausea. The other symptoms I think I could have handled better, but I will be the first to tell you that I am the biggest wimp when it comes to nausea. Cannot handle the nausea. [pullquote]Ladies, don’t ignore your persistent nausea. Nausea is a more common sign of heart attack in women than in men.[/pullquote]
I started combing through all my books and favorite yoga websites to find the poses that could potentially help me out with my nausea and found some ideas. I got out my mat and gave 3 of them a try and almost instantaneously felt some relief. Within an hour, I felt no nausea at all and could go to sleep comfortably for the first time in 5 days. Success!
The only trick that night was, I could not be upright for more than a couple minutes before the twinges of nausea started back, but by the next morning I felt so much better. I did these poses for the next couple of days whenever I started feeling any nauseous twinges or stomach cramps, and also just before bed. They worked without fail every time!
1. Virasana (Hero Pose)
Instructions
- Come to where you are almost seated on your knees with your heels under your hips.
- Keeping your knees together, bring your heels wider than hips width and then sit between your heels.
- If it is uncomfortable for you to sit with with your hips all the way to the floor between your heels then, use a pillow, blanket, or bolster underneath your hips to raise yourself up off the floor a little.
- For the purpose of relieving nausea, I raised my arms, bending at the elbow and rested them on my head. This creates space in the abdomen, lifting your ribs and taking pressure off the stomach, diaphragm, and liver.
- Hold this pose for at least 10 deep breaths.
Warning: It will be intense at first. But, for me, this pose gave the most noticeable relief.
Virasana
2. Supta Virasana (Reclining Virasana)
This is a variation of virasana. You just need to lie down on your back to do this.
Reclining Virasana
3. Baddha Konasana (Cobbler’s Pose)
Instructions
- Come to a seated position on the mat with your feet in front of you.
- Bring the soles of your feet together and scoot them as close to your hips as is comfortable.
- Breathe in this position for several minutes.
[expert_opinion expertname=’annieau’ opinion=”Based on Chinese Medicine, Liver Qi (energy) stagnation can cause nausea. Baddha Konasana targets the inner legs where the liver meridians flow. By applying gentle pressure on the inner thighs, you can remove Qi stagnation and within minutes alleviate nausea sensations.”]
Variation: Supta Baddha Konasana
You can also do this pose in a reclining position, which is what I did. Start by lying on your back, bringing your feet into the position mentioned above, and resting your arms overhead.
Baddha Konasana
4. Viparita Karani (Legs Up The Wall)
You will need a pillow or blanket for this pose. Start by sitting sideways against a wall.
Instructions
- Keeping your hips as close to the wall as you can, lie down on your side and then roll on to your back, bringing your legs up against the wall.
- Bend your legs at the knees, bringing the soles of the feet against the wall and press with the feet to bring the hips off the floor just long enough so that you can slide the pillow under your hips.
- Then, gently lower the hips onto the pillow and straighten your legs and rest them on the wall.
- Close your eyes and breathe deeply. You can stay in this pose for as long as you need to in 8–10 minute intervals.
[expert_opinion expertname=’annieau’ opinion=”If you have tight hamstrings, when propping your legs up in Viparita Karani, slide the pelvis slightly away from the wall. By having more distance from the wall, it provides more space for the low back and legs to extend.”]
*On a side note: This is one of my favorite yoga poses ever! It’s good for so many things and now I can add one more to the list. It gave the most relaxation of the 3 poses I did.
Viparita Karani
