- One of these days I hope to get to do your Yin training.... I teach vinyasa to college students and athletes and, now having had a bit more experience now with Yin, I'm planning on adding it to what we offer. Thank you for the work you have done to make it more available and understandable for students and teachers.
The main reason I'm reaching out right now is that I was just diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer and will be having surgery soon. I've been practicing Yin each morning and have found that the benefits are enormous in helping me prepare for what is ahead. I've really loved the 90 minute spine sequence on youtube...especially since it appears I will be in bed quite a bit over the next months which reeks havoc on my back...ugh!! I know that my arm range of motion will be very limited after my mastectomy and I was wondering if you could offer a sequence that may help prepare my upper body prior to surgery and what sequence you might recommend post surgery that would not include being on my belly???
Thank you so much for considering and any advice you might have would be welcome. Your work is inspiring and I hope to pass it on when I have recovered from this crazy twist in the road! Blessings and much gratitude,
After surgery, the best person to listen to is your surgeon he/she will be the only one who knows exactly what she/he did. And, of course, I am not a doctor and can’t offer any medical advice. With all those caveats, generally the most important thing after surgery is to get moving. I am not sure Yin Yoga will be the best option for you right away: you will want to gently mobilize the area. The scarring will automatically start to shrink wrap you - so gentle, slow, continuous movements may be ideal. Of course some longer held stress can be okay too, but first mobilize.
With that proviso in place, what Yin Postures might be helpful? One option before and after surgery could be Anahatasana. Also, while your chest area is recovering you can still do yin for your lower body and maybe add some gentle stress to the chest area. For example: lying down with in reclining twists, windshield wipers or other reclining postures (Saddle) with the arm raised over your head, supported on bolsters, holding the opposite elbows might be good. Some seated twists could also work, perhaps in Shoelace Pose, as long as you go slowly. Check out this video on using props in Yin Yoga too … it may give you some other ideas.
Finally, it would be great if other readers who have gone through what is ahead of you share their thoughts… Indeed, here is a link to another thread on the Forum where some women shared their experiences. Especially note the recommendation to shorten the holding times to maybe 2 minutes maximum!
Good luck
Bernie