Put On Your Own Oxygen Mask First!

by Nina

Supported Bridge Pose with Straight Legs

Yesterday I gave my regular private lesson to Richard, a very lovely and compassionate older man who works as a psychotherapist. He has a number of physical problems I’ve been helping him with, though I’ve also tried to help him with his insomnia (he tends to be somewhat anxious). It’s very rewarding to teach him as he says he always feels better, both physically and emotionally, after our sessions. 

Although we’ve been focusing on core strength lately, he showed up saying, “I really need to work on stress management today!” He explained that due to the divisive election, his therapy sessions in Berkeley, California, had been particularly stressful for him, as all his clients needed to talk about it. So election discussion for him was going on all day long, every day! And of course he had no choice but to let his clients talk about whatever they needed to. But his stress levels were worse than usual, and his blood pressure levels had actually gone up! 

Well, as many of you may know by now, stress management is one of my areas of expertise, so I immediately came up with a new sequence for him. Since he tends toward anxiety, I knew that restorative yoga, meditation, and breath work wouldn’t be that good for him (he gets anxious attending to his breath), so I said, “We’ll do a supported inversion practice today.” (See All About Supported Inversions for information on these poses and Why You Should Love Your Baroreceptors for why they work.) 

I’ll give you the sequence at the end of this post. But the thing I really wanted to share with you is that as he started to do the sequence, and it was obvious to both of us that he was starting to relax, I said to him, “Please don’t feel guilty about taking this time to relax and restore yourself. It will not only be beneficial for you, but it will allow you to do a better job in the important work you do.”

And he smiled at me and replied, “So it’s like ‘Put on your own oxygen mask first’?” 

“Yes, that’s it!” I said. So the takeaway from that is that doing what you need to stay calm, clear, and focused isn’t an indulgence; it’s the best way to keep yourself strong for the work you are committed to, whether it’s political action, volunteering for your favorite cause, or caring for a loved one. 

As Richard went through the practice, I kept checking in with him how he was feeling and which poses were working for him. I know from experience that everyone is different in which poses they enjoy, probably depending on physical issue and body types (and who knows what else). I wanted to make sure that if poses wasn’t helping, he should come out. And if a pose was really working well, I’d leave him in it longer. To my great surprise, a pose I’d never taught him before, Supported Bridge pose with Straight Legs, felt absolutely wonderful to him! (I thought maybe because he has back issues he wouldn’t enjoy it.) So we both learned something important. And though my plan was to have him stay in that pose for 5 minutes, I asked him if he wanted another 5, and he said, yes, please! (I photographed him in the pose so he could easily recreate the propping we used at home.) 

So the takeaway from that is that if you’re doing supported inverted poses (or restorative poses for that matter), it’s worth experimenting with them all because you really never know which one is going to be the most effective for you. Just go in with an open mind, and be willing to come out of the poses that don’t actually help.

If you have the time and want to share what you do to stay calm and focused during challenging times, please leave a comment! 

Richard’s Supported Inversion Sequence  

I told him if he does this sequence (or any of the poses) at home to listen to relaxing music to take his mind off his anxious thoughts.

1. Reclined Leg Stretch version 1, to stretch the legs for the Supported Downward-Facing Dog pose and Supported Standing Forward Bends. 1.5 minutes each side.

2. Half Downward-Facing Dog pose, classic version, to stretch the shoulders and lengthen the torso to prepare for the same supported inverted poses. 1.5 minutes (with me assisting)

3. Supported Downward-Facing Dog pose, with head on a bolster plus blanket (he is on the stiff side) and a strap around the arms. For 2 minutes (this was challenging for him so I had him come out early.)

4. Standing Forward Bend, version 4, forearms and head on a chair seat). For 3 minutes (he loves this).

5. Widespread Standing Forward Bend, forearms and head on a chair seat. For 3 minutes (new to him, but he enjoyed it).

6. Supported Bridge Pose with straight legs. For 10 minutes.

6. Easy Inverted Pose. For 10 minutes. With a body scan spoken by me.

Yes, this sequence really helped him!

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