Yoga For Spring Allergies

Spring is in the air, light is increasing, birds are singing and greenery is sprouting. I love this time of year... kind of. It’s all sunshine and rainbows until reality hits and all the beautiful spring-i-ness causes me to sniffle, sneeze, and itch. During the Spring, trees, weeds and grasses start to release tiny particles into the air to fertilise other plants. These tiny particles (pollen) cause some of our immune systems to become (mistakenly) defensive, which, in turn, causes what we call seasonal allergies, hay fever or allergic rhinitis.​

Symptoms can vary in intensity but generally cause runny eyes and nose, grand sneezing and a generally itchy face. This gets worse on windy days and sometimes it feels like the only solution is to stay inside (lame.) There are plenty of over- the- counter medicines that promise remedy, but these pills and potions can generally have a nasty side effect; drowsiness. So, it might seem as if you're trapped inside with the air purifier blasting and just when you were excited for some lower energy bills and doped up to go outside with the energy levels of a hormonal post-late-night teenager.

 Well, luckily, there is a natural, no side- effects fix, Yoga! Obviously, it’s not a perfect cure, but there are some Yogic techniques which can help manage spring allergies substantially. 

 1.   Jala Neti - This is classified as a purifying technique in which you rinse your nose with salt water. The traditional way is to boil (important step) water, add a little salt, and then use what’s called a Neti Pot (which looks like a tiny teapot) to guide the solution into one nostril (with a tilted head) until it comes out the other one! ​

It is honestly pretty easy, but if you can’t see yourself doing it, an awesome alternative is to get the store bought stuff which comes in easy to use spray variants. That’s what I do. I rinse my nose every day pretty much year round as I have chronic rhinitis and, this time of year, I use it twice a day. These solutions clear up the sinuses from mucus, pollen and any other pollutants we inhale, they also open up the pathways to our third eye!​

2.   Nasya - This is an ayurvedic remedy which involves treatment of the nose, in this case with oil. I like to use organic fair trade almond oil. Just put a drop in each nostril before bed. The oil has a soothing effect while counteracting dryness. It also invokes elevated awareness of your breathing which is most welcome after a tough day of sneezing and wheezing and helps create comfort while you sleep.​

3.   Bhastrika Pranayama - This is a breath practice done by inhaling and exhaling forcefully while letting the main expansion and contraction activate in the chest. Here’s a short and sweet video from Brett Larkin guiding the practice https://youtu.be/im8TYzkhISI. Enjoy!

Other things you can do to ease your spring allergies are to wear a mask while outside (doesn’t seem so foreign these days) and when you vacuum. Rinse your hair (no need to shampoo) and toss your “outside clothes'' into the laundry basket more often than you’d normally do. Enjoy extra time outside during and after rain which is nature's own pollen rinse, and be grateful that summer is on the way!

Namaste!