Hi, I've been working on stretch sitting, stretchlying & some of the exercises, but I'm not having much success. (I have the book & the DVD) During the stretch sitting & lying, the muscles in my lower back start to spasm after a few minutes, & I end up with more pain than I started with. Stack sitting, stack standing and glidewalking all produce a pinching sensation in my lower back along with the tightness so I've put them on hold completely. I've also found that the stretchsit cushion causes pain in my upper back after using it for a while as if the vertebrae in my upper back are getting jammed together instead of the lower back. My low back muscles are too tense & weak for me to do many of the exercises without pain.
Do you have any suggestions for what I could do to decrease the tension in my lower back so that I can proceed with the method? My plan was to work on the method on my own to familiarize myself with it, and then attend one of your workshops to take it to the next level. However, I don't think that will be useful if I can't get my lower back loose.
Thank you.
7 months 4 weeks ago
04/26/2010 - 2:26pm
Hi,
Sorry to hear that you are having trouble with your stretch sitting and lying. I am wondering if you might try to put another pillow under your knees while stretch lying ? This may help you , also try hard to not arch your back excessively as you lie down into your stretch lying postion. You want to stretch your back out on to the bed, as if you were trying to touch each vertebra on to the mattress. It might help you to feel as if your ribs are pressing towards your back so you dont unwittingly arch.
If your muscles have been shortened and tight in your low back for a very long time it may take a while to "soften the clay" a bit. Be patient with your self and try in increase the time you stay in the positons a little at a time. You could try to get a massage or some acupuncture to help this alongas well.
As in stretch lying, we all must be careful not to arch back as we attach ourselves to the back rest or stretch sit cushion. Hinge forward slightly and then attach your self 1/2" higher than you normally would , try not to over do it.
Good luck!
Tricia