Free Yoga Moves Video Search! Enter Your Topic Below:

Chapter 13. Headaches, Eyestrain And Stiff Neck

Perhaps it has not occurred to you that nervous tension may be the cause of weak eyesight and eyestrain. When first considered, these two factors may not seem to be related, but it is an established fact that anxiety and nervousness stimulate excessive eye muscle activity which in turn gives rise to symptoms of eyestrain.

If, therefore, you have a nervous temperament, and who has not in these troubled times, and you suffer from symptoms of eyestrain, you may be able to overcome these symptoms simply by learning to relax. Eyestrain is a very common ailment suffered by those who live in a state of nervous tension because slight defects of the eyes, normally tolerated by a calmer person, becomes aggravated in nervous people.

So it is Yoga again to the rescue and your answer to this problem in the first instance lies in reading chapter two again and practising the CORPSE POSTURE faithfully every day for at least ten minutes, and more if you have time. This is not time wasted but time well spent even though it might take you some time to train yourself not to keep glancing up at the clock and listing in your mind all the chores you have to do while you are 'relaxing' on the floor. No, you must be firm with yourself. Think yourself into a calm state of mind before you lie down on the floor and practise stretching and relaxing. Then sink slowly into the Corpse Posture, close your eyes and try to empty your mind of all thoughts but one pleasant one. It helps if you are by a fire when you relax and if there is a slow and beautiful piece of music playing in the background, for this will help to put you into a drowsy and peaceful mood. If you find this inconvenient first thing in the morning, try it at night before you go to bed.

Not only will it help you to sleep but it is unlikely that you wilt wake up with that morning headache which goes hand in glove with tension and eyestrain.

Some of you may find that eyestrain makes your eyes itch or smart, in which case when you lie down to do the Corpse Posture you will find it soothing to lay pads of cotton wool soaked in warm water on your eyelids. You will have to concentrate really hard to coax all your muscles to relax and you will have to be really stern with yourself whenever you find your mind wandering, but mental discipline is not achieved easily but you will find that the rewards for your efforts are well worth it.

In addition to practising relaxation I will describe some very gentle exercises which are designed to develop concentration and mental focusing and also to soothe the eyes and strengthen them. The first of these is a simple exercise called TRATAK or GAZING EXERCISE, and it has two variations. The first one involves sitting down, either on the floor or on a chair but in either case with the spine straight, and gazing at the lighted flame of a candle. The candlestick should be placed on a table so that the flame should be level with your eyes and three to four feet away.

Gaze at the flame while you count to sixty and try very hard not to blink during that time. After the count, close your eyes and try to hold the flame in your mind's eye for a few moments. Open your eyes once more, gaze at the flame, and count to sixty. Close them again and relax.

You may continue the gazing exercise for five minutes but gradually extend the time ad lib until you can do it for ten minutes without undue strain. All eye exercises should be done very gently, and if any discomfort is felt they should be stopped immediately.

Tratak is an excellent and soothing exercise for the nerves and helps to relax the mind as well as the eyes.

Variation 2. Again sit comfortably with your spine straight and gaze at the tip of your nose while you count to sixty. Under no circumstances should you experience any strain during this exercise and if you do, please cease immediately. If you feel any tiredness, watering or pain close your eyes and relax your facial and eye muscles.

After the count of sixty blink your eyes tightly a few times and keep them closed while you count to sixty again. Open them once more, gaze at the tip of your nose, blink a few times, and then close them again.

This exercise strengthens the eye muscles and increases the powers of concentration by fixing all the attention on one point and through that to the central nervous system, which will be soothed and relaxed. Always try to still the stream of circling thought and these gentle exercises will give you a manifold reward.

1. Here is another exercise which will not only help to relieve eyestrain but the vision will become clearer as the ophthalmic nerves receive a richer supply of blood. Sit down, either on the floor cross-legged or else on a hard chair with the spine held erect but with the body quite relaxed. Without moving the head, lift your eyes and find a small object that you can see clearly and without straining. Then find a similar point with the eyes lowered, which you can see without effort. Use these points to glance at as you raise and lower your eyes alternately several times. Your breathing should be normal. Glance up and down four times, then close your eyes to rest them for a few moments, and repeat the up and down movement of the eyes another four times.



2. Repeat the same exercise but this time move your eyes from left to right without moving your head.



3. The same exercise is repeated with the eyes looking obliquely upwards and downwards with the eyes half closed. Choose a point which you can see high up on the wall from the corner of your eyes, and then find one which you can see clearly when the eyes are obliquely lowered. Repeat the upward and downward movement of the eyes four times, blink and relax for a few moments and then repeat the movements another four times. Rest.



4. These movements are repeated in reverse, starting with a point on the opposite side of the wall from the previous exercise, thus if you were glancing obliquely upward right and downward left in the previous exercise these movements are reversed in this exercise.



5. And now for something different, though again I must ask that you do this exercise very gently and without experiencing strain of any kind. It entails rolling the eyes very slowly clockwise and then anti-clockwise. Thus, lower your eyes to the floor and then slowly roll them round to the right, continue rolling them upwards until you can see the ceiling and then lower them slowly until you can see the floor again. You must move very slowly making a full vision circle. When you have completed one circle close your eyes after blinking several times and relax. After a few moments repeat the movement in the opposite direction. Repeat this exercise twice each way and then close your eyes and relax before proceeding to the next exercise.



6. This exercise entails changing the vision from close to distant points. It is best done with a candle flame once more which should be placed in front of your face just below the tip of your nose. Holding the lighted candle in your hand very slowly move it away from you, without raising or lowering it, until you can see the flame without straining and without any blur. Raising your eyes slightly look straight into the distance and let your eyes alight on a small point which you can see clearly. This point and the flame of the candle are the two things you must look at in this changing vision exercise.

Look at the flame, which is the closer point, and then look at the distant one. Repeat these eye movements six times then close your eyes and squeeze them tightly. Repeat another six times, blink again and relax.

7. And now for something different again. This exercise will not only help to relieve eyestrain but will also relax you if you are tense and remove stiffness of the neck. It is a specially good exercise when you get up in the morning as many people suffer from 'morning stiff neck1 mainly through using too many pillows. It is also a good exercise to practise before performing the Corpse Posture as it has a soothing effect on the nervous system and aids relaxation thereby.

I want you to imagine that your head is too heavy for your body and that no matter how you try to keep it squarely on your shoulders it always rolls away from the upright. Let your head drop forward until your chin is on your chest and then let it roll slowly clockwise several times, up to six. Then repeat the movements six times in the opposite direction. Be careful to watch the muscles of your back and shoulders and your facial muscles as these should be quite relaxed during this head rolling exercise. Keep your eyes open during this exercise and let them follow the direction of your head movements.

Do not be surprised if you hear a grinding and a cracking noise as your head rotates. This is an indication that the linings of the joints in your neck are inadequately lubricated and that there is an accumulation of calcium deposits there. This is a sure indication of your need to practise this exercise which will keep your upper spine flexible and healthy. The Yogis maintain that you are only as old as your spine and that by keeping the spine in a flexible, elastic and healthy condition you can ward off old age for longer than you think. It is worth a little trouble and exercise, is it not, to maintain one's health? So practise this head rotating exercise whenever you have a quiet moment and can perform it inconspicuously.

All the stretching exercises I have described in this book, and particularly in chapter two can be performed in connection with exercising the eyes. The Backbend described in chapter four can be performed so that your eyes follow the movements of your head and are so exercised, and likewise in the Triangle Posture* described in chapter ten.

To try something new in this combination of stretching and eye movement, try the Sideways Bend. Stand erect with your hands on your head, your fingers laced together. Keep your feet together and your knees straight. Now bend sideways from the waist only for as far as you can, remain thus for a few seconds and then move slowly to the other side. Your eye movements should follow the movements of your head but on no account should you experience any strain. If you do, please stop at once. Eye exercises should always be done very gently and with extreme caution. If there is any pain or watering please blink your eyes tightly and then relax.

And now for one last exercise to relieve eyestrain, which is also a good exercise in concentration and the calming of the mind. It is known as PALMING THE EYES.

You have a choice of two positions. For the young and flexible I would suggest you sit down on the floor, cross-legged and your spine held erect. Draw up your knees slightly so that you can place your palms over your eyes without bending your head at all. When you have a satisfactory seated position rub your palms together vigorously to charge them with electricity and place them over your closed eyes. There should be a cupped palm over each eye with the fingers of the right hand crossed over the fingers of the left or vice versa. The fingers should rest on the forehead and the elbows should rest on your raised knees. Do not bend your head.

The second seated position is for those who cannot sit cross-legged on the floor. Choose a hard chair before a table and sit with your elbows on the table in such a way that when you place your palms over your eyes you can do so without bending your head. You may have to use a book or two under your elbows to achieve this position. Having done so rub your palms together vigorously and then place them over your eyes in the position already described.

You can remain in this position for as long as you find convenient. It has the effect of relaxing the nerves and relieving eyestrain, but it can also be used for the purpose of practising concentration. While you are 'palming' your eyes choose a simple object such as a rose you have seen, a candle flame or some similar small thing and hold the image of it in your mind for as long as you can. When your thoughts stray lead them gently back to the object of your concentration.

You can also use this quiet period of 'palming* the eyes to practise the Yoga Complete Breath. As your spine should be held straight throughout this exercise, without bending your head, it is a suitable position in which to practise deep breathing. Breathe in to a count of four, hold the breath to a count of four and exhale to a count of eight. Do this slowly and rhythmically and you will find that at the end of your exercise when you open your eyes you will find a new calmness that perhaps you have never known before.

Palming the Eyes is a simple exercise but perhaps it is the most valuable of all in the relief of eyestrain for, as I said at the beginning of this chapter, one of the primary causes of eyestrain is tension. Remove the one and the other automatically disappears. It would seem unnecessary to say that you should not read or do close sewing if your eyes are tired, nor should you read in bed with the book above the level of your eyes. The eyes should never be subjected to strain of any kind, and all possible care should be taken to protect them from this. They are precious and are deserving of your consideration.

Are You Ready To Move Onto The Next Lesson? Click Here...