Only Temporary Relief

Dear Ester,

I saw you on goggle talks and purchased your book.
I have been trying to use stretchlying at bed time. Though it does provide relief when I initially get into the position, I can't (and don't know how one could possibly) stay in that position throughout the night?? I still end up with a lot of pain in my back in the mornings. I have also tried side stretchlying as well; and I get the same results. In fact, I do get temporary relief with all of your stances, but I don't understand how to sustain them for hours on end. I recently received your latest email about airplane seats, and it seems like a good idea to use the tray to help you with stretch sitting, but I can't fathom it being possible to stay sleeping in that stance throughout a long flight.
I'd really love some help in figuring out a way for these techniques to offer more than temporary relief. Thank you.

Is staying in any of the positions creating any new or additional pain that wasn't there before? If so, then you are either overdoing it a bit (especially with the lengthening techniques) or not doing something quite right. You say that you still end up with pain in the morning - I assume that this has been an ongoing thing? There are many reasons why the relief may be just temporary for now - for example, some of your muscles may be tight and resist prolonged stretching. As long as you are seeing some improvement, you are moving in the right direction; it does take time for your body to re-learn good habits and default to the proper alignment, and for the spine and muscles to reestablished a good length. If you do feel like some muscle tension is keeping you from being able to stay in those initially more comfortable positions, you might consider getting some massage or acupuncture to speed up the healing process. Often people find that the combination of the Gokhale Method techniques and some body work is very effective.

About the airplane seat - yes, of course the leaning forward position won't be sustainable for everybody. Esther gave a few tips in the newsletter, but the main thing to take from that is that it is important to think about how you're sitting in the plane and to realize that there are some things you can do to make sure you're not doing damage during flights. Sometimes it means bringing something to put behind you to modify the chair (the easiest thing is the Stretchsit cushion, which I always bring on flights with me).

Best wishes,

Maya
Instructor, Esther Gokhale Wellness Center