This is the time of year we are more likely to overeat, which can bring on the hiccups.  And once they start--even if we can stop them, they often come back shortly.  It's caused by an involuntary contraction of the diaphragm that repeats several times a minute.  It can be very unpleasant, and not a little embarrassing.

You can look up hiccups on Wikipedia and find out lots of  theories about how we get them, but if you have hiccups, you probably just want them to stop. Being a yogi and especially fond of the breathing practices we call pranayama , I stumbled upon a cure that has never failed me, though I admit I occasionally have had to do it twice to get rid of the dreaded hiccups.  Here's how:

     Inhale deeply

•      Exhale strongly, leaving the lungs empty
•      Perform stomach lift, Uddiyana Bhanda 
•      Hold for as long as comfortable     
  

     Slowly inhale, from bottom to top
                                                                         Resume normal breathing
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That's basically all there is to it.  Try again if it doesn't work the first time.  I never had much luck with the "startling" technique, although my brothers tried like to devil to scare the hiccups out of me.  Drinking water from the back of the glass never worked for me either.  

Let me know if this technique works for you!  You can make a comment under the post.

You are invited to my studio at the G-Raj for a sacred evening of chanting, restorative yoga, guided relaxation, singing bowl sound bath, and cookies and hot cocoa.  We'll also do an arati to the Light as we celebrate the shortening of the long nights of winter.  Please RSVP at my facbook page, Meera's Big Yoga.

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   Well, yes, I am getting older.  You can see it in my eyes.  But, that means I'm getting wiser too.  I'm getting smarter about what I spend my time doing.  Someone I admired once told me "Whatever you say 'yes' to, you're saying 'no' to something else.  And recently I decided to say "yes" to writing a new book.

My publisher, Rudy Shur at Square One Publishers, approached me about writing a book about breathing techniques to help people with breathing challenges.  I hesitated initially, because I didn't have any first hand experience with the various lung diseases.  I spent some time reading about COPD, asthma, emphysema and other challenges, and realized I needed a co-author to help me with the medical information that I wanted--and--needed to include in the new book.  Enter.  Dr. McLanahan!

 
My family has a summer cottage in Southwest Michigan, right on the lake, where I’ve been spending summers since I was a child. It’s an idyllic site, private and serene, and I think I started meditating on the beach when I was very young.  Swimming was my saving grace back then, being a sport that I could excel in, even though I had what my father euphemistically called “baby fat”.  (Boy did I hope he was right!) I wasn’t a fast runner, and was nearsighted to boot, so ball sports were not my forte.  But I could swim!
 
          I had never taken swimming lessons as a kid, and never really considered it it to be “exercise”.  I had no absolutely technique.  Lake Michigan, one of the Great Lakes, is really tremendous.  It has waves and currents and undertow similar to that of an ocean.  I usually swam with my head above water, to avoid getting a mouthful when the waves came crashing at me, because really, I was just playing.
 
        When I first moved to New York, my boyfriend had a membership in a classy upper East side sports club, and he invited me for a swim.  I had never done a lap in my life, and knew nothing about kick boards, goggles, fins, or any of the swimming gear.  I just jumped in and started playing as if I were in the lake, swimming under water, diving and doing my thing, back and forth. When we got out of the water, my friend looked at me curiously and said  ”What were you doing?” 
 
          It didn’t take me long to get the hang of doing laps, once I put my mind to it, because I was motivated by the fact that I could swim all winter long.    My boyfriend bought me some terrific fins, which I still use, and believe me, it’s not “cheating”.  You can really get a great workout using pool parafinalia, and it makes doing the laps more fun. 
 
 
            Often when I go swimming alone in Lake Michigan, I’ll take a kick board, rubber raft or inner tube with me out into the water.  It becomes almost like a playmate, sort of like when Tim Hanks bonds with the basketball in the movie, CAST AWAY, and I find I will stay in the water much longer, and therefore get more exercise. 
 
           Swimming has many of the same benefits as yoga, including the stretching, and the deep breathing.  At the end of my laps I would always take time out to just float, and relax totally in the water before getting out, which gives a similar benefit to a deep relaxation.  
 
         I love to swim!  The reason I bring this up is because we all need to find a sport that gives some good cardiovascular workout, but it has to be something that doesn’t feel like work, or a punishment!  You have to love your sport.  You want to get into a place in your head where you’re playing like a child, with enthusiasm and abandon.  Every day, we should all go out and play.  Our bodies are designed to move, our hearts are muscles that need to be strengthened by exercise.  Our lungs need to breathe deeply so we can throw out the stale carbon dioxide that drops to the bottom of our lungs.  Out with the old, in with the new!  Next time you need to say “no” to a chore that your boss wants to talk you into doing, just say, “I’m sorry I have to go out and play now”. 
 
         If you find you really aren’t ready for exercise, start with the easy asanas, especially the ones that tone and strengthen the inner organs.  The viscera!  I love that word!  Because we are made up of all this slimy goo that stagnates and gets funky when we sit around too much. I remember after I had my second child, I could feel how the insides of my body were soft and sloshing around inside me!  Before I started to do any vigorous exercise, I toned up by using the yoga asanas.  It didn’t take long before I felt things shaping up, and I felt so much better.  I maybe didn’t look that much better, because I had really plumped up during my pregnancy, and as a nursing mother, my boobs had become like big water balloons!  But the asanas helped get my innards back into place after nine months of pregnancy had squished and shoved my organs into new and unexpected places and shapes.  As my neighbor said “You’ve expanded the room”, as if talking about the renovation of a condo.
 
 
                     The body is extremely forgiving.  Swami Satchidananda said “health is your birthright”, and I’ve seen time and again, making some small changes, a little bit every day, can bring about great healing.

To the reviewer on Amazon who ridiculed my "tree" pose--with love

After a very snowy winter break, my local yoga classes will start up in the next week.  Here's my schedule:
Mondays 6:30pm at the G-Raj

Tuesdays at 7:00pm at the Congregational Church in South Haven

Thursdays at 6:30 at the G-Raj

If you'd like to join us at the G-Raj, my home studio, please send me an email to get directions.  Suggested donation $10.00

Give yourself the gift of self-care and a supportive community.

Yoga is famous these days for helping combat the stresses of modern life. How the ancient yogis of old knew all the particularities of the benefits of Yoga is still mind-boggling, but they knew.  It wasn't haphazard. Either by Divine inspiration, or  revelations from deep self-study, the sages  knew what was happening in a Yoga practice.

Now that Yoga has been around awhile, science has studied and discovered some of Yoga's secrets, and one of the most fascinating revelations is that Yoga regulates the nervous system by increasing the body's ability to respond to stress.  It's called VAGAL TONE.

 Have you ever thought about trying Yoga, but were intimidated by the lovely, lithe women in skimpy yoga clothes?  Well, my classes are just perfect for you!  Please join me for a 6 week series of classes at the First Congregational Church of South Haven.  If you don't have a mat, don't worry, I'll bring extras.  Just wear comfortable clothes--something that you can bend and stretch in without having it give you a belly ache.  Speaking of bellies, please come on an empty-ish stomach--no big meal beforehand.  

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1.   I've been teaching for almost 40 years, so I know a few tricks to make yoga accessible to anyone challenged by extra weight, stiffness, injury or too many nights on the couch.    We will do some stretches, some twists, some humming, some breathing, and a delicious guided deep relaxation.  You'll experience for yourself the benefits of yoga which include:

 ​Lowered blood pressure
  Better sleep
  Deeper connection to Divine
  Improved mood
  Improved breathing
  Can lower need for insulin in diabetics
  Greater flexibility
  Better body composition
  Better balance in seniors
​  Improves blood flow to the heart
​  Better posture
​  Strengthens cardiovascular system

You should give yoga a try, if you never have before.  It can change your life.