headache

The Question 

Can I get Gokhale-fit in 9 weeks (for a long overseas trip) via the online Gokhale Elements course?

The Dream

The trip of a lifetime is looming: 3 months in France in Spring 2023—something I’ve dreamed of for a long time. As a 67-year-old Australian, this means a lot of dreaming and a lot of planning! We’re not walking the Camino, though there’ll be lots of walking…it's more about an immersion in beauty and daily life in French towns and countryside. 

We're off in search of lush French beauty to top up our more arid and windswept Australian variety—and hopefully shine a light on an elusive French ancestor trail. Freepik

The Reality

Excitement’s building, home-front preparations are ratcheting up, French lessons take on more urgency…but I’ve been aware for a while of anxiety about how my body will cope. In particular I worry about the nitty gritty of travel: hoicking heavy suitcases into cars and taxis and onto airline scales, up and down stairwells and elevators, the sitting for hours…and hours and hours (around 24 each way) in uncomfortable airport lounges and aeroplanes—and the unfamiliar beds, tiny crowded footpaths, ankle-testing cobblestones, showers in baths—and all that walking. 

Osteoporosis

I’ve travelled lots, and well off the beaten track—but for the first time I’m aware that my body isn’t as young as it used to be and I wonder how I’ll cope with it all this time around. I’m generally healthy but have inherited thyroid and bone density issues. My current osteoporosis DEXA-scan score is -3 in the worst area—gradually drifting downward over the years despite regular daily exercise of various sorts, a very good diet, and various trials of medication. My back issues have been slowly increasing. Six-monthly injections were the only intervention producing slightly increased bone density but I had to switch medications due to side effects. 

Osteoporosis features strongly in my extended family, and I’d seen my own wonderful mum gradually defeated by increasing back aches and its psychological impact, and by inadequate healing and gradual decline after falling, despite her exceptional commitment (well into her 80s) to preventative and post-op exercise and diet.

My lumbar spine DEXA scan showed a high risk of fracture due to low bone density.

I could see—and feel—myself heading in the same direction, albeit 30 years behind her. An increasingly common ache in my back, low energy, increasing need for afternoon naps (something I’d thought was for people much older than me), difficulty sleeping comfortably at night due to back stiffness, and needing to sit with my knees up, whenever decent, to feel comfortable. I’d given up on household and garden jobs requiring back work. My mood and outlook were affected. 

Feedback from previous Gokhale Method course participants 

Someone I knew had had a remarkable and quick turnaround from severe, crippling, intractable back pain following a Gokhale Method Foundations Course in Sydney, with teacher Michelle Ball in 2017. Her back issue was disc protrusion, not osteoporosis, but like me she’d tried everything recommended to her by conventional medicine and a range of alternative approaches, without success. However, almost immediately on starting the 6-lesson Foundations Course she felt improvement—and since then has had no further back issues. She says, 

It saved my life. I have zero pain today and the best posture! Esther is my hero! 

Myriam Glorieux, Australia, 2023.

On the Gokhale Method website I’d also read Sheila Terry’s blog: How Correct Posture and a Holistic Approach Helped My Osteoporosis, written after a deep immersion in Gokhale Method training and practice. I was inspired. I dithered for a while because of the expense and the time commitment, neither of which I could manage easily in the lead-up to going away for so long. But I knew the increasing ache in my back—and the movements it was beginning to restrict—would impact a lot on our time away and all the trip preparations. 

Osteoporosis is a thinning of the bone and a reduction in its density. The Gokhale Method considers that healthy posture may well be key to the skeleton weight-bearing correctly and maintaining bone density. Image from Wikimedia Commons

My Online Initial Consultation 

I had an Online Initial Consultation with Esther Gokhale. She felt that based on the posture photos and medical reports I’d sent, and from what she could see of my movements and posture on Zoom, I had problem areas which if not addressed would likely get worse—but if addressed would improve. I dithered again, but in the end decided my health and my quality of life (and the lives of those around me) were worth the investment in time and money.

The Gokhale Elements Course 

By this stage our trip was only 9 weeks away. Travelling to do the in-person Foundations Course was out of the question given time limitations, but I could do the online Elements course from home on a schedule that fitted me. I also decided to buy the Gokhale PostureTracker™, thinking that without a hands-on teacher who could physically check my posture, it’d be the next best thing. Wearing its two sensors told me (via an app) when my spine was or wasn’t in proper alignment. It’s been well worth the outlay—it was so reassuring to have the figure on the screen show green whenever my posture was in correct alignment, or turn to other colours if my body drifted away from this. It can be set to beep or buzz if you can’t watch the screen. PostureTracker™ can help with almost every position.

The Elements course is 18 sessions, each 13 minutes long. I knew my learning style and that to absorb things well (and make the most of my financial and time investment) I’d need several days between each lesson to do the required pre-reading/video-watching/lesson prep, and then the practise/fine-tuning afterwards. By spacing things this way (I chose Tuesday and Friday mornings at 7.30am my time) I could factor everything into daily life. The helpful Customer Support staff were able to lock in all lessons at times that fitted well for me. This way I’d finish the 18 sessions the day before we flew to France. Pretty good motivation I thought. 

The Elements course covers the key components required for re-establishing the basis of natural, healthy human posture with regard to standing, sitting, bending, walking, and lying. The 18 online classes teach Gokhale Method techniques such as the rib anchor, shoulder roll, and stretchsitting, and many more, in detail and tailored to each person.

The short, free Gokhale Moments videos can get you started with key techniques like rib anchor, shoulder roll, and stretchsitting.

Each Elements student has a private log-in User Dashboard on the Gokhale website, containing all their student records, submitted photos, PostureTracker™ data (if used), Student Notes etc. At the end of each Elements lesson, I did 5–10 mins of practice to lock in what I’d learnt, then logged into the Dashboard to write a brief summary, for my own benefit, of my key learning or queries—plus comments about body changes I was noticing. 

These notes were also a way to send progress reports and questions to Esther (who, as my teacher, was notified every time I posted). Sometimes she answered these online and sometimes during lessons.

Click here for excerpts from my Elements course Student Notes:

 A New Reality? (…am hoping so!) 

It was almost spooky how quickly my body responded to these subtle changes. Esther talks about body parts (once Gokhaled) “coming home to where they belong”—and that’s how it feels. I’m taller, straighter, firmer, stronger, and I’m walking, standing, sitting, and bending better. I’m more energetic, powering along pathways on daily walks (glidewalking is amazing!), and feel back in sync with my body. 

I finished the Elements course the day before we flew to France. My body felt so much stronger and I can see it in the “After” photos. 

I’ve had to remove the books under my desktop computer screen because the angle of my chin (and line of sight) has shifted slightly downwards without my being conscious of it, to a more comfortable position. Maybe this has something to do with the disappearance of the background headache I’ve had for the past year or so. 

I’m gradually sleeping better (i.e. more comfortably), with stretchlying on the side still to be fully mastered. The increasing discomfort I’d had for many months prior to the course has disappeared. My head is clear and I’ve got my mojo back. I feel more positive. Significant and wonderful changes. 

Of course, having France on the horizon no doubt helped (!), but it couldn’t account for the physical changes, or the confidence I felt about managing upcoming travel challenges. I skipped off into the French “coucher de soleil” (sunset) feeling ready for just about anything.

Bridge at Cirque de Navacelles, near Montpellier, southern France.

I felt Gokhale-fit—and sailed through pretty much everything on our trip. We’ve just arrived home after a wonderful three months: stunning landscapes, beauty-reservoirs full to overflowing, layers of history, French lessons given full workout, replete with delicious food, shoes worn thin, walking muscles well and truly toned. What a country! 

The Seine river, in the heart of Paris.

This curious little fish-chef artwork kept appearing (in different poses) on walls all over Paris— generally without text—but on this one was the German word “zeitenwende,” which translates as “turning point.” It seems to fit, so I’m taking it as a sign for my posture journey:)

Gratitude

I’m very grateful to Esther and her team for what she’s created and made available in the Gokhale Method. It’s extraordinary stuff. At times it feels too good to be true…and yet it is. Such subtle changes, yet such profound impact. All delivered in such an engaging, very human, immensely skilful and positive way. This gift is life-changing.   

PS: The Gokhale Method in Australia

As we were flying into Australia, I saw on the Gokhale website that Tegan Kahn (one of Australia’s 2 Gokhale teachers) was running a Foundations Course in Canberra that weekend. It was a hands-on opportunity (too timely to miss) for tweaking my still problematic stretchlying on the side. 

I detoured and spent 2 days with Tegan, who took me through all 6 Foundations lessons—with extra attention to stretchlying on the side. She was impressed by my “Gokhale-fit posture” and only small refinements were generally needed, but with stretchlying on the side some extra input and hands-on clarified the changes I needed to make. These are progressively becoming part of my “muscle memory” and a side-lying posture that works for me. Thank you, Tegan!

Tegan refined my stretchlying on the side position (I'd been overdoing most of the steps) and it felt great. The tricky bit is being able to repeat it at home… bit by bit training my muscle memory.

My results from practising the Gokhale Method keep growing. After my Foundations Course I was able to nestle my pelvis even deeper and align my upper back and neck straighter in hip-hinging.

Teacher Training—possibly in Australia!

I’d been wondering while away if I could apply to do Gokhale Teacher Training—as a way to deepen my own understanding and help others (including family members) out of long-term back pain.

And…a golden opportunity has come up. Esther is considering coming to Australia to run a teacher training course in early 2024! This would make the teacher-training process so much more accessible and affordable for those of us in the Australasia region. A minimum of 4–6 teacher trainees are needed. The Gokhale Method team is already in the process of contacting all Gokhale Alumni in Australia, India, Singapore and New Zealand, and inviting anyone interested to contact them for information. I’ve put my hand up and have nearly completed the application process.

If you live in our region of the world and are inspired to train in Australia to become a Gokhale Method Teacher, please contact [email protected]. I hope to see you there!

This is our fourth blog post in the series where we put popular home exercises under scrutiny to examine how they stack up—or not—against the principles of healthy posture. In this post we are looking at head rotations/circling, an exercise that is often suggested to ease stiffness and mobilize the neck.

Neck pain—causes and solutions

Although not often considered in physical fitness and exercise regimens, the neck frequently becomes a problematic area for people in our culture. At that point, we look to mobilizing, stretching, and strengthening exercises to alleviate pain and stiffness.   

In traditional cultures the neck remains upright and long. It is capable of carrying the weight of the head and additional loads without injury.

The Gokhale Method point of view is that most of our neck problems arise from poor posture. The head and neck tend to drift forward and downward, causing the muscles at the back of the neck to tighten. We then lift our chins up so we can look out ahead of us. The resulting compression becomes a pain in the neck—or a headache—that we can do without. So how can we best avoid or remedy this?

Shortened, tight muscles at the back of the neck (left) are a common cause of neck pain and tension headaches. Positioning the head and neck correctly eases this compression (right).

Remedies to avoid

Tight, short muscles may well have compressed your cervical (neck) vertebrae, and perhaps caused bone spurs or bulging discs. Be especially careful to avoid exercises which take your head into circling movements. These call for extreme flexion (forward), extension (backward) and lateral bends (side), any of which could pinch your nerves and discs. By circling through these movements in rapid succession, the risk is heightened. Performing head rotations (twists) is also commonly advocated, but if done with poor alignment, head twists can also compress tissues in the neck. 

The cervical spine has seven vertebrae which support the skull. Wikipedia

There are many delicate and vital structures within the neck, including nerves, discs, and arteries (front view). Wikipedia

The right approach

You want the principles of Primal Posture™ to guide your head back where it belongs. Appropriate support from the longus colli and other deep muscles of the neck will give the cervical spine the support it needs to align well. This will encourage your outer neck muscles to relax their grip and be gently stretched. Circulation in the area will also get a boost. 

The longus colli muscles attach to the front of the cervical spine. When they contract (shown in red), they cause the neck to straighten and, therefore, lengthen.

If your neck is inflamed, it will benefit from steady, well-aligned exercise that can help to calm things down. The video clip below shows you a healthy way to lengthen tight muscles on either side of your neck. These movements do not overload your cervical discs, crunch your vertebrae, or impinge your nerves. Note that the exercise includes working at various angles to address different fibers within the same muscle.

A healthy exercise for the neck

This healthy neck stretch is from a recent 1-2-3 Move class for our Alumni.

Your checklist for this exercise is:

• Perch on the front of your chair as shown.
• Elongate your neck. Learn how to do this here.
• Reach one arm across to your opposite ear and pull upward.
• Roll open the opposite shoulder and pull that downward, leaning over sideways as you hold the rim of the chair seat. Learn how to roll your shoulders open here.
• Don’t sway. Use your rib anchor. Learn how to use your rib anchor here.
• Listen to some good music! It takes 20–30 seconds for muscles to relax.
• Stretch different muscle fibers—slowly turn your head toward your armpit.

Healthy musculature allows the neck to stack in a tall, more vertical position with the head over the body, not forward.

Address the root cause of your neck pain

People usually think of their neck and any pain there as a separate issue from what is going on in their backs. From the point of view of a posture teacher, a distortion in any part of the spine will have an effect on all other parts of the spine. 

For example, people sitting or standing at a computer with their heads stuck forward may try to address neck pain locally. But the root of the problem is often in the pelvis. If the pelvis is tucked (i.e., with an imaginary tail between the legs), the spine will be curved over into a C shape. You can read more about spine shape here. In this situation, any local effort to draw the neck back is going to be hard to sustain, tense, and ultimately counterproductive. But by positioning the pelvis well, the neck will have the opportunity to stack well. At this point, local work on the neck is able to provide not only symptomatic relief but can also return your cervical spine closer to its primal, healthy structure.

A C-shaped back stresses the lumbar (lower back) discs and is also bad news for the neck.

Join me for a special new one-hour FREE Online Workshop, Posture Remedies for Text Neck,  November 12, 11 a.m. (Pacific Time), and learn helpful suggestions on how to improve the architecture and health of your neck. 

If you would like an expert one-on-one assessment of your posture, including  your neck alignment, you can arrange an Online Initial Consultation or take an in-person Initial Consultation if you have a Gokhale Method Teacher near you.