Restorative Yoga

interesting...another one-on-one session this evening. the yogi's chief complaint was severe sciatica in the left buttock and a shooting pain down his leg. after asking him a handful of questions, he explained that when he stood up straight with his spine lengthened, it put an additional strain and compression on the sciatic nerve or root.

during the entire session we were having a dialog back and forth. i would ask how he was feeling in each pose, and if the shape and support "made it better or worse". i dropped my expectations of teaching "restorative bliss" and focused my complete attention on the student's sciatica and overall well-being. i am not sure if he ever completely "landed" into a restorative pose. the emphasis was on lengthening the breath, and opening up the hips, hamstrings, and connective tissue just enough to create more mobility, freedom, and hopefully some relief.

opener: supine with bolster under spine and a blanket under the head. i placed a bolster and a rolled up blanket under his knees for support in the low back. he expressed that he felt quite comfortable here.

breath awareness and visualization

transition towards side lying rest pose with support

roll on the back
knees to the chest and rock from side to side
right knee into chest with fingers interlaced around kneecap
inhale straighten arms and send knee away creating space in the hip joint,
exhale pull knee in towards the heart. x4

extend right leg with strap
supta padan gustasana- hand to toe pose
bend and straighten knee x6
take it up, out, and over towards right (5 breaths or so)
back to center, and over to the left w/ thumb in the right hip hinge
back to center
release, pause, notice

second side from the top

extend arms overhead for windshield wiper pose- come onto the outer edges of the feet and move knees from side with the breath. x6

still supine, extend right leg
hip rotation awareness- explore the internal and external rotation
eye of the needle (12 breaths or so)
release

second side

all fours
cat/dog tilt

supported childs pose with 3 bolsters and many blankets
stretch out through the back of the legs

side lying stretch pose with bolster and blankets
shoulder rotation exploration

second side

transition to belly
sphinx pose
rocket cat
cat/dog tilt
free style towards half dog
childs

roll onto back
easy spinal twist

savasana
sit