Zaeem Zaidi, a yoga expert who teaches yoga for stroke rehabilitation shares with SR Times the benefits yoga can offer to a stroke patient.
What are the key benefits yoga offers to a stroke survivor?
Zaeem says: Stroke survivors must deal with the long-term repercussions of a stroke once they are released from the hospital. Those who have had a stroke may have difficulty moving around, speaking, and interacting with others. A stroke may impact a person’s mood as well, and lead to problems with memory and focus.
The practice of yoga, which includes asanas (physical poses), breathe work and meditation, while helping to develop flexibility and mobility, can have an extremely beneficial effect on the body’s neurological system, in addition to the immune, cardiovascular, respiratory, and endocrine systems.
Research has already shown that the practice of yoga can also improve clarity, focus, and memory in older people, and that mindfulness and yoga can positively benefit overall health, including the physical effects of stress and other chronic conditions.
Overall, the practice of yoga can raise one’s quality of life after suffering a stroke.
As an instructor, what are the challenges you face working with stroke survivors?
Zaeem says: The main challenges I face are:
-Getting the stroke survivor to trust the teacher and the teacher’s knowledge. Once the student starts to trust the teacher, the process of recovery accelerates.
-Getting the stroke survivor to recognise that practicing slow exercises in addition to breathing and meditation can greatly benefit them, but these exercises require time for the effects to manifest, and physical and mental changes don’t happen overnight.
-Since many stroke survivors suffer from anxiety and depression as a result of their stroke, helping them face and overcome these issues becomes a secondary layer of challenge that augment the physical challenges they may be experiencing.
What adaptations to a yoga session do you have to make for stroke patients?
Zaeem says: Since not everyone will be able to do a yoga practice equally, I suggest various modifications for those having difficulty with mobility. For example, I may suggest that they practice the technique by sitting in a chair and focusing on the upper body.
I may suggest they use a yoga block to help elevate parts of their body, if they are lacking muscle control in certain areas.
Last, if they are having difficulty with flexibility in a certain area, I may suggest they use a yoga strap to help extend their arms, legs or other body parts to achieve a little bit more of a stretch.
Also, if they are struggling with breathing exercises, I may reduce the pace of exercises and also the number of sets and repetitions for specific exercises.
Finally, I help them calculate their maximal heart rate and we aim the intensity of any yoga practice to a range of 64% and 76% of the person’s maximal heart rate, so they don’t exceed that target range. This target range of 64 to 76% is ideal for stroke survivors. If their heart rate increases beyond that target rate, I will help them modify their practice so it’s less intense. As they learn to monitor their heart rate, they can take a rest and restart the practice when their heart rate becomes normal.
You can calculate the target heart rates using a smart watch or fitness band, but I also teach them how to manually calculate a target heart rate. First we calculate the maximum heart rate based on the person’s age. Subtract your age from 220 to get a maximum heart rate.
For example, for a 50-year-old person, the estimated maximum age-related heart rate would be calculated as 220 – 50 years = 170 beats per minute (bpm). The 64% and 76% levels would be: target heart rate.
-64% level: 170 x 0.64 = 109 bpm, and
-76% level: 170 x 0.76 = 129 bpm
This shows that moderate-intensity physical activity for a 50-year-old person will require that the heart rate remains between 109 and 129 bpm during physical activity.
No person’s stroke is the same, do you offer tailored sessions for stroke survivors?
Zaeem says: yes, each person has the option to sign up for private sessions which are customized to each person’s needs. Private sessions are 30 minutes, 60 minutes, or 90 minutes, and they are offered via the MyYogaTeacher platform.
I highly encourage the stroke survivors to sign up for one on one sessions, so we can explore their unique situation and needs.
How can a stroke survivor who may be interested in taking up yoga, access your yoga classes?
Zaeem says: Anyone can sign up for a 2-week free trial at the home page of MyYogaTeacher, which offers complimentary access to all group classes (over 40 daily), including Yoga for Stroke Recovery for 14 consecutive days.
Stroke survivors may also be interested in Yoga to Improve Brain Function, a class which combines the practice of asanas (physical postures), pranayama (breathe work) and meditation, to improve blood flow and oxygen delivery to the brain and other vital organs.
