Friday 4 November 2011

What are the best yoga poses to help me release the gas that is present in my belly?

I've recently had a bout of gastro and I am still not fully recovered yet. What I am noticing is that I am developing a lot of gas in my intestine but the gas is not being released. I want RELEASE!!

What are the best yoga poses to facilitate release???

If the plow doesn't squeeze it out, nothing will.

What are the most beneficial yoga poses during pregnancy?

Could you please list some yoga poses that are good for pregnancy as well as helping with labor & delivery? And how long should you gold each pose & how many sets of each pose or how many times should you go through the routine / list?

Asana poses are generally regarded as good poses for pregnancy. These poses not only aid in the pregnancy itself, but begin the process of body restoration after the baby is born. Breathing via yoga also aids in curtailing morning sickness and nausea. Here's a quick program which would be beneficial:

1) Half butterfly 10x per leg
2) Full butterfly 20x
3) Cat Stretch Pose 10x hold for 3-5 seconds per pose
4) Waist Rotation 10x per side hold for 3-5 seconds each side
5) Palm Tree Pose 10x hold for 3-5 seconds per.

What yoga poses are safe to do while pregnant?

I am 19 and a half weeks pregnant and I don't have the time to go to a yoga class as I work 9-6 seven days a week. I was wondering if anyone knew of any trusted yoga websites that have poses for me to do at home while pregnant.

Just about all of them as long as you don't push it.

Make sure you keep your back straight - this is very important as you gain weight.

Squatting is very good as this will help with the birth.

What do you call a set of yoga poses done in quick succession?

In high school I took yoga and I remember doing one exercise where you quickly switched between a bunch of poses, starting out in child's pose, and then eventually having to stand up into other poses.  There was a name for this kind of sets, but I fail to remember it.  So what is it called?  Also, the kind of yoga I took was Kundalini Yoga.

"Vinyasa" is the sanskrit word whose connotation in English is often translated as breath synchronized movement (as in flowing from one posture to another coordinated with inhale and exhale).

However, there is no emphasis on being quick (generally the opposite, so as to stay fully mindful of the movements), so this may not be the term you are trying to remember.

Perhaps it was someone's idea of "power yoga." Namaste',

Tuesday 18 October 2011

What should we do for a mental health/eating disorders awareness week?

My friends and I are in charge of organizing a mental health and eating disorders awareness week at our high school. We are trying to come up with ideas to get students interested and educated on the stuff we're focusing on (EDs, self harm, suicide, self-esteem, etc.)

Do you have any suggestions? We are going to have things like petitions and a No-Diet Day, as well as information on resources, but I'm looking for interactive ways to get the school engaged.

I would have available on display,  the definitions of what is depression? What is ED's? Etc.  Also get questionnaires that say, for example, do I have depression?  Its great that you will have resources too. But let people know, maybe by percentage wise. How many people do suffer from mental Illness and that they are not alone. That mental illness doesn't discriminate. It can happen at any age. That it also can be hereditary.  Mention that fact that name calling does hurt.

And sometimes the people who are made fun of, it can have a long term negative effect. Let people know that if they think someone may hurt themselfs or threaten suicide that it is OK to go to a peer. Maybe they may not think the person is serious, or maybe its a cry for help. Teach that we all need to get involved. That Mental Illness is real. And to the suffer it can be very devastating.  That it is OK, to seek help. That seeking help is not a failure, but a step in the right direction.

Should the medical records of those with mental health disorders be made public?

If there had been a law requiring the public access to medical records for mental health disorders the Virginia Tech tragedy would never have happened. Also in a free country shouldn't we have the right to know that a lunatic may be living among us?

No, absolutely not. 

It's already difficult enough to go to a counselor or a doctor and talk about your problems and how life isn't working for you, etc.  If people knew that their secrets would be a matter of public record... then no one would ever seek mental health treatment!

Cho had not committed any crime... and he refused mental health treatment. Even if his records were public, that would not have prevented this tragedy. What would people have done if they had known about his mental health record? Sure, the school could have asked him to leave... but then he would have gone and shot someone else..The laws of this country cannot force someone to get mental health treatment or to lock them up in jail if they have not been convicted of a crime. And it is difficult, if not impossible, to predict someone's behavior or to predict violence.

What is the Christian view of the origin of mental health disorders such as depression?

As a psychologist, I am use to having to contend with Scientologists and their ignorant beliefs about mental health disorders but I recently had to argue with a Christian who argued that the devil causes depression and as such, those suffering with depression can be cured by Christianity....

Is this belief frequent through out christians?

Emperor - I didnt realise that all psychologists talked the same...especially considering that there are different specialist areas and roles
Oh, no, not at all. I thank God that I live in a time where beter treatment is available for depression. I am religious about taking my anti-depressant because I do NOT want to go to that dark, scary hole again, EVER. I'm a Christian, and part of my depression was feeling like God had abandoned me. I exercised regularly too, which is supposed to help avoid depression. I didn't want to take drugs, thinking I would pull myself up by my own bootstraps, but then came a time when I couldn't find my bootstraps. Zoloft saved my life.