Relax & Breathe FREE Gift – Yoga

With the pace of life and stressful situations, increasing number of people suffer from headaches. Headache is a symptom, and oftenproblems in other parts of the body can contribute to headaches. According to Chinese Medicine, the head is where the yang meridians of the arms and legs met, and the governor vessel which controls yang of the body also reaches the head, the "the confluence of yang". From a Chinese perspective, headaches are mainly due to invasion of wind and fire that cause meridian obstructions, and disturb the flow of blood and chi in the head. Headache sometimes have a heavy feeling, like the head is being covered and is common in tension headaches. The Western approach is generally symptomatic and prescribes pain medications aimed at the mechanisms of headache development. Pain medications can relieve pain, but may have limited efficacy and sometimes don’t work. Headaches have many causes, so an integrative approach may be the key to prevent or relieve longterm headaches.

Back pain is an enigma. It is estimated that 80% of us will experience low-back pain. Therefore, it is inevitable that we will have students who experience, have a history,or will develop low-back pain. Is back pain really happening due to damage in the back? Are symptoms part of a bigger picture? There is always a cause, and pain is worsened and may be relieved by specific motions, postures, and loads. Each joint needs some degree of both mobility and stability, however, some joints are designed to be more mobile, while others more stable. Ensuring appropriate levels throughout the body can greatly influence back health. The lumbar needs stability, while the hip and thoracic spine needs mobility. If hips and/or thoracic spine lack appropriate mobility and movement, the low back is stuck in the middle and will be forced to absorb greater stresses. By establishing core stability with hip and thoracic mobility, the lower back will reduce wear and tear.