Dizziness

[Guest guest]

Dear Barb:

 

The advice about using the breath properly is good advice, and

certainly exercises should be done with eyes closed and the focus at

the brow point (unless otherwise specified). But you may be doing

all of this and still be experiencing dizziness. In many cases this

is a manifestation of unresolved imbalance in some aspect of our

selves. Here is my experience on similar lines.

 

First I should explain that I suffered from motion sickness (and

getting dizzy easily) all my life. In times of emotional stress it

could become severe enough that I could get motion sickness driving

my own car! One day at yoga class (KY, that is), my teacher taught a

set called the 5 Tibetans, a short, but powerful set with 5 exercises

in it - the final exercise has one hold arms out straight and spin

around 26 times. I couldn't even do 26 spins before I fell over, so

dizzy I almost vomited. After class I said I'd never do that set

again - my teacher laughed, and pointed out that, as in everything in

life, one has the choice to either avoid a problem or confront it,

and encouraged me to try doing the 5 Tibetans as a 40-day set, an

idea I had some resistance to

 

But one day I decided I wanted to work on my problem, and began the

set. The first week was awful - I'd fall over, feeling horrible,

room spinning... But persistence pays off. Halfway throught the set

I could spin around 26 times, and calmly lie down to relax. When I

finished the 40 days, I noticed something - I didn't seem to be

getting motion-sick anymore. And I still don't, several years later.

 

KY has a way of having us confront our inner demons - at the same

time, it also gives us the tools to cope with them.

 

I wish you many blessings on your path,

Sadhant Singh