I have been going to yoga for the last 25years but when I started with PMR (9 months ago) I stopped classes. I still did the basics at home as the PMR allowed but now I have restarted classes I feel it's aggravating my joints - just general aching not full blown etc.
Anyone else have similar or could it be my PMR is not controlled? Thanks on advance
More likely that you are trying too hard at the start. You have a new normal - you have to establish where that is and to do that you start like a total beginner. Then build up a bit at a time. I did Iyehgha yoga with PMR - heavily adapted and using most of the blocks in the room!! I was a total beginner - and over a period of 6 months what I could do without aching increased a lot.
I’m doing that yoga now. Yes, I use every booster, block, layer on offer. Does me wonders. I have even lost my party piece shoulder click I’ve had since a teenager. If she introduces a bit more independence, my body rebels 2 days later.
Fantastic isn't it!! Not sure I could do it now but I was doing it with PMR pre-pred and it and Pilates kept me upright!!
I tried Hatha (?) yoga a few years ago and loved it but couldn’t tolerate any weight on wrists, either flat or fisted in the down positions. I could hold the position but upon release the pain was excruciating and enough to make me yell so I stopped. Is there a sort of yoga with no hand resting I could try do you know?
Note I don’t have PMR but Stills Disease has left my joints weak and sore.
No idea - there are so many types. You don't have to do all the positions though and a really good instructor should be able to adjust a lot. Just had a look and found the following:
Dolphin pose is an alternative to downward dog (is that what you meant?) where your forearms and elbows bear your weight.
This is a no wrists yoga class (vinyasa yoga) and she says there are more on the channel and you can see a couple to the right of the video
Is Iyehgha Yoga the same as Iyengar Yoga? It is what comes up when I searched for it. 🙏
No idea - it was what the class was called - maybe one of the yoga experts can help
Your body is politely telling you that it is too much. Previously, stopping for 9 months would have meant going back to it, going through your paces a bit inelegantly and using a few choice words when getting up for a few mornings. Then you’d be back on track. Now, you are older, have Pred effects on the joints and muscles as well as PMR effects. Controlled PMR inflammation doesn’t just get you back to normal. Your body calls the shots now and has decided being licked into shape means lowering the bar much lower than you think.
One of the known side effects of prednisone can be muscle weakening. This varies according to the person. I carried on with my exercises throughout undiagnosed PMR and onwards, but in the last ten years definitely weaker (of course older), and have more trouble recovering from non-PMR-related injury. At the other end of the spectrum is the person who is somewhat disabled, and everyone else is in between. Like almost everything else related to PMR here is a lesson in patience! You've started your exercises again, just allow yourself to recover from the setback then head back in at a much slower pace. As PMRpro said years ago, in reference to pred tapering, "It isn't slow if it works." 🍀
I do somatic exercises which are much slower/more controlled than yoga movements and they do help flexibility and stress. I've also begun re-incorporating some yoga movements and, yes, there is some aching due to unaccustomed movement but it is easing and I feel better for it.
I too have gone to yoga for a long time, nearly 40 years, and was diagnosed with PMR in May 2016 after struggling for a year with the symptoms. Having not long retired from nursing I had a bad habit of self-diagnosing myself and decided I had over-extended in a wide angle stretch and the other pain was due to arthritis...
I was wrong, but have I learned my lesson?
It was only after weeks of constant tears and inability to do anything let alone move that my husband said, "Enough is enough," He managed to get me a GP appointment and within 2 weeks a rheumatology appointment. Those were the days.
This is just my experience, please take it with a pinch of salt if you disagree.
Think about all the activities you do over a week.
What are the necessities?
Do I need to do that every day, every other day, once each week?
Need! Should! Be careful what message you give yourself and the words you use.
Who relies on me doing that?
Can I share more chores with someone?
I am sure you will have a long list. Work out what matters to you.
Yoga mattered to me and still does, I was emotionally low and frightened of overdoing it in class and damaging my poorly functioning body. However, I know I have been lucky, the prednisolone worked within 6 hours, and other than 6 months following a hip replacement in 2018 I have continued with yoga. It keeps me flexible and able to move. Yoga and walking were at the top of my list. Housework .... poof . Right at the bottom. I have been in remission for nearly 2 years and I am pleased to say, housework remains at the bottom.
My PMR/GCA journey is irrelevant here.
You are an experienced yogi, please don't doubt yourself. After 25 years you know how much yoga has and will impact your life. Other forum friends will have things that they love and want to continue, swimming, gardening, dancing, skiing, walking, running, climbing, sewing.
Keep going and let us know how you get on.
You mentioned you have had PMR for 9 months, stopped yoga, and have only just gone back to class.
I have only had 3 yoga teachers and each one asks at the beginning of class for an update on any new conditions anyone might have developed. They appear to have a remarkable ability to remember from week to week and make suggestions to individuals on how to modify a movement/position to accommodate physical needs. Even though your teacher might not know the details of PMR, he/she will be able to help and guide you. I hope after 2 or 3 more classes your muscle memory starts to return and you can relax into it.
Relax your shoulders and breathe.
Use your blocks, a rolled blanket, and pads, and maybe take a pillow. I have a friend who stops twice for 5 minutes each time in every class. She knows her body and has learned her limit. She sits quietly with her eyes closed until she is ready to start again. We have all learned a lot from her calm composure.
Very best wishes to you
As said, you build back up slowly- as with all exercise.. and is your class leader aware you have PMR and its effects on muscles etc?
you've got some great responses here.
After I was diagnosed I stopped everything for 2 months. I then went back to yoga but avoided shoulder work initially- so no down dogs for example - I stayed on all fours. I adapted with the help of the teacher and took Child's pose a LOT! I built up slowly and after a term was able to do the whole class. The other thing I did was rested the next day - so no exercise apart from a short walk to the coffee shop.
The other thing to remember is that classes are hard so some aches may be normal. I find it difficult to tell the PMR and normal aches apart sometimes. It was the tiredness I struggled with more than aches.
Good advice my teacher gave me was to focus on the breath work and really work on that part.
Good luck.
I have been doing 1-1 yoga classes for about 4 years as well as aerobics and walking. When I was diagnosed last year with PMR, my fantastic yoga teacher researched this condition ( which neither of us had ever heard of) and built my classes round that . She even researched how to help brain fog from steroids. I always move better and sleep better after I see her ❤️
Amazing teacher 😃
Like you I love my yoga but I have had to adapt. A yoga teacher friend of mine set up a 20 minute programme for me lying on my back on the floor so that the body is supported and there is less stress. I do it alternate days and it gives me a sense of control and keeps me flexible. Maybe you could ask a trusted yoga teacher with experience of yoga for people with vulnerabilities to do the same? Pilates is recommended here but I find those exercises more taxing, perhaps because my body is used to yoga! 😀
Having taught yoga for 25 years, just the one class a week, having PMR / LVV made it difficult to practise at the same level. I gave up teaching 10 years ago but continued personal practise. With adjustments and listening to your body and going back to basics it is still possible. However I took up Tai Chi a year ago and love it. It is a gentle practise and possible to monitor any set backs. It incorporates the chi energy which many yogis will understand.
I’ve been thinking about doing g this, may I ask if you found a class/teacher or used the internet?
Yes I would advise a class/teacher as some explanation of all the forms helps to understand not only the chi but the forms themselves. They do have such lovely names: bubbling spring, push mountain, chasing the rainbow, boy bouncing ball etc. It's fun too. If you can find a class at beginner's level that will give a good understanding of what it is all about. Do hope you find a class and enjoy it.
having done yoga myself and taught for a long time, I also gave up. Now 6 years into PMR, but right from the start, I found my muscles weakened and I could not manage a class. Flow yoga and ash tanga are way too hard. Carry on doing your own practice at home working within your limits. My understanding is the the steroid interferes with the way your muscles repair and rebuild. Don’t push it, find your new normal, with as pro suggested, modifications and props.
I have found Pilates really helpful, but often have to stop for a rest
I recently started Pilates after having PMR for 4 years. I realised that my muscles were greatly weakened and my balance is shot. We are all newbies (only 6 of us) and the teacher is a qualified physiotherapist. Anything we don't feel able to do or know will aggravate our conditions, she says don't do.
Yes, my muscles ache for a day or two afterwards, but then I know they are getting stronger. She also says I am improving. I find it easier to put my socks on, for example.
hi Glynawel
Sorry to hear your struggles. I was diagnosed in 2016, so coming up 8 years, I’m on 1 mg now , after many reductions failures but hopefully I will get there.
Like you I have been doing yoga for around 10 years, we do vinnie yoga, which means we can adapt the postures to suit our bodily needs.
In the early stages of PMR I was unable to attend yoga classes, as I couldn’t get up from the floor. My yoga teacher gave me some postures to help with This.
I missed a couple of terms but eventually managed to return.
I would say don’t push yourself just go steady and do what you are able to do without too much effort.
I am back to yoga and and have had no problem at all now. I think we just have to be mindful of our situation.
It’s important to remember that you need your strength to help you get through this.
If I’ve learned one thing during this PMR it’s patience x
Good Luck
Carole
I have practised yoga for over 30 years. When I was diagnosed with PMR I had horrendous problems with my shoulders and upper arms so had to stop temporarily. When I started to improve I joined chair yoga and did those classes for three months. I found I was totally fine with them so restarted my usual yoga classes and have never looked back since. Do give chair yoga a try. If you can’t find any actual classes there will be online sessions you can follow. A gradual strengthening is the way forward.
It’s hard isn’t it working out what’s possible. I too was very heavily into yoga pre PMR.
My insight is to not expect yourself to be as you were pre PMR but to experiment and discover how your body works now knowing it will change.
After 2 years I’m just back into a gentle weekly class having done online classes and personal practice.
If you do go to a class just do you! Don’t compare with any one else and try and let go of I used to be able to do this.
Be kind to you. And enjoy learning what’s possible today.
Well done for maintaining your personal practice. I'm a BWY qualified teacher and have been doing yoga for 50 years (gulp). Anyway, yes, it's important to continue. Lots of good advice already - pace yourself, rest in class, continue personal practice so class is not a once a week shock etc. The other thing I find very helpful is to do online classes that are recorded. I can then do them at my own pace and leave out things that are not helpful or do less of them. But an online class also has the discipline of having a teacher, even if they are not really there.
I am a huge believer in Pilates because it focuses on strength under resistance as well as flexibility. (As you may know, re the history of hatha and asanas, all is not what it seems, much was made up in the 20th century.) However Pilates classes vary greatly. I would always start off with a good studio teacher in one to one or small class; someone experienced in people who have health issues. A teacher like that can give you the principles which you can then carry into any mat-based class and yoga. X
I feel for you Glynawel, I used to love yoga and body balance classes before I developed pmr...and was pretty good at it, but I have tried occasionally to see if I can go there again but sadly the practice is too difficult in oh so many ways. I used to be flexible with excellent balance, well not now and I just do a little cycle and an active adults class which I find is more than enough for me.
I no longer can hold the necessary poses for any length of time and I just struggle with the practice I once loved.
PMR certainly changed my life in a major way.
Good luck to you on your journey.
I could only do Pilates or yoga AFTER I had done an aquafit class in a warm pool so that my muscles were well warmed up and more flexible. Both instructors encouraged me to do what I could, one was actually a rehab specialsit - in yoga I was a complete beginner - and over a period of months I was able to hold poses for noticeably longer on good days. I found the yoga helped the flexibility a lot.
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