Best Yoga Poses For Migraine

If you are shocked beyond belief when someone says that they have never experienced a headache, if you can’t understand how a headache can just go away after a cup of coffee, if it beats you how a person who went for a nap with a headache wakes up an hour later feeling radiant and energetic, well, you are very much a migraine person. And that means, you also will always be looking for magical remedies to cure your headache while also believing there can be none. Your search ends here with hope. Welcome to the yoga mat. 

What Triggers Migraine?

It is okay if you want to say, "what does not?"; but there are specific triggers for migraine, which include:

• Hormone changes
• Lack of sleep
• Digestive conditions
• Unhealthy diet
• Physical exertion
• Improper posture
• Neck or shoulder pain
• Staying in a poorly ventilated place
• Light
• Strong smell
• Stress
• Anxiety

How Yoga Reduces Migraine

Yoga promotes calm thereby eliminating stress, which is one of the most common triggers. 

Studies prove that yoga enhances vagal tone, which refers to the activity of vagus nerve, the 10^th cranial nerve. Vagus nerve serves as a connection between brain and gastrointestinal tract. Vagal tone regulates stress responses and hence a strong vagal tone helps the body to relax faster following a stressful situation. Yoga and meditation play a vital role in enhancing vagal tone and hence serve as an effective therapy in curing migraine.

Yoga relaxes muscle tension which can be a migraine contributing factor. Certain yoga poses relax neck and back muscles and aid in preventing migraine occurrence.

Yoga improves sleep quality, improves posture and balance hormone fluctuations thereby eliminating some of the major migraine triggers.

Yoga Poses For Headache      

1. Padmasana / Lotus Pose 

Lotus Pose relieves cervical and spine conditions. It relieves stress and promotes calm. 

To learn more about Lotus Pose, click here.

2. Uttanasana / Standing Forward Bend

Standing Forward Bend relieves neck pain, strengthens the shoulders and stretches and strengthens the spine. It is an effective pose to improve spine flexibility.

3. Trikonasana / Triangle Pose 

Triangle Pose relieves neck pain. 

4. Vajrasana / Thunderbolt Pose

Thunderbolt Pose is one of the best poses to relieve digestive disorders, which can trigger migraine.

5. Parvattasana / Seated Mountain Pose

Seated Mountain Pose relieves neck pain, strengthens the shoulders and tones back muscles thereby eliminating these migraine triggers. 

6. Bhujangasana / Cobra Pose

Cobra Pose relieves neck pain, strengthens the spine and improves spine flexibility.

To know more about Cobra Pose, click here.

7. Ustrasana / Camel Pose

Camel Pose tones shoulders and back muscles, strengthens the spine, relieves neck pain.

8. Balasana / Child Pose

Child Pose relaxes the back, neck and shoulders. The pose calms the mind and relieves stress. 

9) Setu Bandhasana / Bridge Pose

Bridge Pose promotes blood flow to brain. It rejuvenates the body and also promotes calm. Click here to know more about the pose.

10) Adho Mukha Svanasana / Downward Facing Dog 

Downward Facing Dog improves digestion, relieves stress and depression and promotes calm. 

11) Rest Pose

Rest Pose relaxes the body and mind. 

Practice the above-mentioned poses regularly, have a healthy diet, take adequate rest, sleep well and stay stress-free to overcome migraine.