Pleurisy

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

I’ve currently got a condition called pleurisy which is the inflammation of the membrane around the lung. Two weeks ago during my ashtanga asana practice on a very hot and humid day (i live in africa) I suddenly felt my lungs hurting. I immediately adapted my practice, and after a week of not getting better went to see my doctor.

He diagnosed Pleurisy and thinks I must have hurt my lungs during my yoga and prescribed anti-inflammatories.

Question: Is it possible that this could be a yoga injury?
It feels like I can’t do any asanas at the moment as I am short of breath and it really just hurts too much. Any idea of what I can do to speed up recovery?
How do I prevent his from happening in future?
And also just a warning that if you have students with lung issues to watch them in hot humid conditions.
I do Vipassana meditation which is bound to help.
Just another question: I have been told that often grieve manifests itself in something like pleurisy. Any thoughts on this?

#2

Loretha, I know about all kinds of lung problems from personal experience. Yes, excessive air humidity can be harmful,

STALE AIR IN MOST YOGA STUDIOS WITH 20 PEOPLE IN CLASS is a suicide for people who do not have lung issues…not to speak about people with condition.

I would just take is easy and do some restorative yoga and some pawamuktasana series to speed up recovery.

Pranayama was an absolute miracle for me during the pneumonias and bronchitises.

THE KEY IS (and it is stated in most original yoga books) to practice in WELL VENTILATED area…the oceanside or pine forest air is the best for lung problems.

Wish you a speedy recovery

#3

Hi,

It can be possible that it is a yoga injury. The yoga practice often can be too intense or we?re just not aware of certain things that can cause discomfort and illness in a long term.

Because you developed an inflammation of the lungs, it?s useful to consider whether you?re breathing forcefully during your yoga or even pranayama practice.
Also, it?s worth to look at your body structure. What is the angle that your rib cage closes with the ground and your pelvis? It needs to be 90degrees, otherwise the body is in imbalance, meaning that certain muscles are shorter, contracted and others are longer.

If I were you, I would rest and wait until I recover. Meditation can help and could speed up the healing. Also, if you just lie on the floor with knees bent and feet on the ground, or even “legs up the wall” pose can decrease the pressure on your rib cage, and can help you breath easier. Just see what feels good! I would not do any asanas which could worsen the sympthoms.

How to prevent in the future?..Not to repeat the same thing in the same way. Learning about it and understanding how it could develop.

Lots of courage!

#4

Hello Loretha,

Sorry to hear you’re having this challenge in the home of your breath. It’s very interesting stuff, yes? How deeply would you like to explore this?

As you may know, yoga therapeutics warrants a three-pronged approach in the realms of physical, mental/emotional, and nutritional branches.

Just to clarify…
There actually are no “yoga injuries”. Pain and injury are a method of reminding human beings that they are in discord with svadharma/spirit/soul/purpose in their living. In the presence of such discord one can be driving a car, driving an upward dog, or driving a golf ball and experience a “reminder”. That does not make the injury a driving, yoga, or golf injury merely because that is the experience which facilitated the reminder.

Obviously this is a perspective deeply rooted in the applied philosophy of Yoga, though some may opt to view it as semantic. It is not, particularly, a perspective embraced wholly by the neophyte. But since you’ve not outlined the nature of your practice other than the ashtanga label I’m assuming you can digest the entree until you indicate otherwise.

It is absolutely spot-on to look at grief when there is manifestation in the lungs. Further, it is not common for pleurisy to manifest (physiologically) from humidity, activity, breathing, or bio-mechanics of the musculo-skeletal system. For this reason a more robust health intake would be needed by your yoga teacher (therapist) in order to guide you soundly in that regard.

This begs the question (for me) as to why you didn’t turn to your yoga teacher on this (especially since you’ve asked whether it’s a “yoga injury”) or why you DID turn to your yoga teacher but didn’t share the result of that inquiry with us here i n the thread)?

You mention inflammation and this would be where I would begin (after the deeper inner work re: grief and grieving). But I’ll wait until you determine how you want to go with this before rooting any deeper.

gordon

#5

Thank you City Monk, Asmile and Gordon for taking time to talk to me. I do always try and open as many windows and doors as the weather permits in the studio and my teacher is also very good with seeing to it that I am positioned in well ventilated area.
Inner Athlete
I did ask my teacher (who I trust totally) and should have put her reply with my question. It is just so wonderful to have access to all these other inputs as well.
This was what she said

"I worked out a program that I think will slowly strengthen your lungs.

  1. shavasana 10 minutes, always at the beginning and the end of your asana.
  2. Padmasana treatment of many lung and digestive problems
  3. sirsasana-good for nervous, circulatory, respiratory system and endocrine system
  4. sarvangasana - with blankets strengthens the lungs
  5. matsyasana on the hands, so you are supporting your ribcage
  6. low cobra-we’ll see, maybe a little too sensitive
  7. pachimmotanasana with strap around the feet, do not bend down too far, just hips as a hinge
  8. gomukhasana-strengthening all the muscles in the torso
  9. chakrasana (Lateral bending pose) in stationary position strengthens lung capacity. It’s like the drop back with your hands on your thighs, or bending over backwards as far as you can. very soft and relaxed
  10. shavasana-probably the most important

You can decide how long you want to do the asana, but no ujjahi breathing. No Sun salutes. You don’t want your muscles to overwork . no bandhas . No Twists and very little stomach positions."

I am 46 years old, having been doing yoga asanas for about 13 years and practicing yoga for maybe eight of those. My asana is ashtanga twice a week for 60 to 90 minutes, and one hatha session for 90 minutes. I also do 15 minutes of sun salutes every morning after my hour long meditation. Vegetarian, live at the ocean so I do a lot of beach walking and swimming as well.

My thought is also that something is out of balance, how does one find out what it is.

My dog died a month ago, very sad and with summer holidays, relatives visiting etc I have been neglecting my meditation practice in the period after his death. I suppose if your mind and body is used to meditating and something tragic happens and you don’t deal with it in the correct way that you have trained your self to it is bound to manifest in something physical like in my case pleurisy.

We don’t think enough about our actions and bodies do we? I am finding it fascinating to root deeper please.
Loretha

#6

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, grief is said to injure the lungs. Losing an animal companion can be every bit as painful as losing a relative or friend and it sounds like you have not given yourself time to mourn their passing. Be kind to yourself.

#7

Hi Loretha, the pleural membrane around the lung is ( as you have experienced ) very sensitive to pain. But the pain from an infection or inflammation is not there until the infection or inflammation have developed. Thus I think I can say that you did not contract that condition during that yoga practice but that it had begun to develop and when you started your yoga and begun to breathe deeper ( thus rubbing the pleural surface more ) then it became obvious to you. You cannot have gotten it from doing yoga breathing, the pleural membrane when not attacked by inflammation or infection does not get “irritated” or strained by just breathing.
It is not uncommon for pleurisy to follow after a viral infection.
Normally it heals just fine in 4-6 weeks. Be well !

#8

Loretha, you made a good list! i also wanted to mention mudras…there are some very powerful…as i remember hasta series for lungs

#9

I will talk to my teacher about the mudras and it seems like i would have rest my body for a few weeks still. At the moment I can’t even do savasana as it hurts too much.
Love, peace and patience to all!

#10

Just an update on the pleurisy condition and some observations that I’ve made about my lungs and probably all lungs. This week for the first time since 26 December I don’t have any pain in my lungs. I’m still not doing any asana and will only start in a weeks time.
It feels like I have full knowledge of the shape of my right lung, know it’s exact position in my body and how it functions.
At the moment it is telling me that your lung doesn’t just breath, but with every movement that your body makes there are little muscles pulling your lung this way and that way. Right now my lung still doesn’t want to be pulled but just wants to be still and heal totally.
I’ve also noticed the difference in my meditation practice from not being physically active, definetely more difficult to concentrate for an hour at a time.
Also the lack of asana effects your self-confidence. I’m not sure if this is an ego thing - that one is used to being fit and able to do postures and when not, you have to redefine your self.
Any way I’m on my way to being better.

#11

Hi Loretha, Thank you for this post. I have a pleurisy condition from past 6 days now and the pain is terrible. But this post reassures me. I have never done yoga before but now have started doing the asanas mentioned above. For the first time in the last 6 days, I could sleep for a good 2 hours without a painkiller. Thank you :slight_smile: