Monday, June 8, 2015

Calming yoga poses for pregnancy-induced crazy

I'm not sure if I'm always this emotionally unbalanced, or if I'm particularly unhinged because I'm less than 2 weeks from my due date. It's amazing how quickly I can go from sobbing over something relatively inconsequential to laughing my head off at something I found on YouTube (dogs in booties who can't walk! Hysterical!).

When I feel like my emotions are on a roller coaster, I try to use yoga and some slow, deep breathing to calm me down. Here's a few of my favorite poses that help me reach for a little (temporary) calm.


  • Child's Pose: Nothing like it for helping me to just shut out distractions. I like doing this on the bed more than on my yoga mat, because my belly button is so sensitive and my big ol' stomach tends to rub on the floor anymore when I enter this pose. The bed feels a little more comfortable to me at this point.
  • Legs Up the Wall: The less-motivated version of Shoulder Stand. It cools me down, which I really enjoy since I tend to run hot lately. Also, when I get emotional, I overheat. Again, I do this on the bed, either against our headboard, or with my legs just up in the air for several deep breaths. 
  • Easy Pose: The more-motivated version of just sitting down. It encourages me to just think about my breath (if I'm thinking about anything at all), and it gently works my core; super-important as I get closer to delivering this baby! It's a great way to start a practice too.
  • Corpse Pose: This is a nice way to finish a practice. I lie on my side, more in a fetal position than anything else.
If all else fails, a good cry and a piece of chocolate also works! It's so important to find poses that are easy to get into, comfortable to hold for several breaths, and don't wear me out. There's definitely a time and place for feeling the burn, but that's not when I'm trying to calm down.

Do you have any favorite poses to pause an emotional train wreck?