The Hindu Business Line : Ouch! a ‘stitch’

Oh, it’s so darned inconvenient, that painful stitch! You’re bending, walking, running, exercising or even laughing and… suddenly, it catches you in its tight mean grip where you just can’t straighten up. It’s as if a hard little golf ball is spitefully stuck in your ribs and you’re its helpless, hurting hostage.

It’s the diaphragm — a membrane-like muscle stretched between the lungs and abdomen — that has gone into a spasm because it is not getting enough oxygen. When you bend, you tend to involuntarily contract your stomach muscles and breathe deeper than you normally do. The simultaneous pressure from the contracted stomach muscles below and expanded lungs above, temporarily halts the flow of blood and hence oxygen to the diaphragm. Result: cramp.

For relief, follow these two steps:

Press and massage the painful spot with three rigidly held fingers. As you continue to knead the area…

Inhale and exhale: Inhale through your nostrils, then exhale forcefully through your pursed lips. Do this three times. Then, still continuing to massage, return to your normal breathing.

Gradually, the diaphragm will relax and return to normal, and the pain will subside.

What’s the reason?

So why does this happen? There could be three reasons:

Poor posture. A stoop, a slouch or a slump tends to constantly pinch the diaphragm. A pinched diaphragm gets less oxygen and also does not get used effectively enough during the breathing process.

Constant mental tension. If you’re always stressed out thinking of something unpleasant that happened yesterday and are jittery about how you are going to cope tomorrow, your stomach muscles and your diaphragm remain tense all day long. This makes you breathe in a sharp, shallow way. Which is also the third reason:

Faulty breathing. While breathing, your breath flows only through your chest, the diaphragm never gets into the breathing act. Often, faulty breathing becomes a habit because we tend to hold our breath several times — while driving on a congested road where we don’t want to take in the fumes, or when watching a suspenseful film, or when we have to (nervously) face our boss or the board of directors at a meeting, or an important client. Sometimes, we even hold our breath when we want to speak out, but don’t.

Since the diaphragm is a very important muscle for the breathing apparatus, it is imperative to do deep breathing in a conscious way, for this effort then engages the diaphragm.

Savasana cure

For the beginner, the best way to learn to breathe diaphragmatically is through the savasana.

Lie comfortably on the floor, legs extended straight out, arms by your side. Keep palms facing upwards in a gesture of graceful, relaxed receptivity.

Tense the whole body as you inhale. Then, exhale forcefully through your nostrils and mouth and relax the entire body. This gives you a beautiful mastery over your body, as it is through your intentions, directions and actions that the body equalises its flow of tension and then relaxes completely all over at once.

Lie still for a few seconds. Now, as you inhale, let your stomach gently swell outward. And as you exhale, draw your stomach in gently. Inhale-exhale in this fashion 10 times, feeling as if a tide is flowing and ebbing in you. This way, you use the diaphragm and ensure it receives oxygen.

Continue to breathe diaphragmatically. Visualise a beautiful golden space in your brain. Now, release all past regrets, all future worries, release all tensions into the space outside of you… Feel the golden space inside expand…expand…expand. Rest in this ocean of peace with your breath flowing and ebbing. Feel the quietude spreading through your whole body.

Affirm silently, “I surrender all anxiety, tension, depression into the golden light of peace.” Lie in this peace as long as you can.

The savasana exercises your diaphragm the way it should be and helps you release tension. But, as it is said in Yoga, “One who cannot learn to keep his spine straight will never learn how to relax perfectly.” For this, practise:

‘Tree’ care

The beginner’s tree pose.

Stand erect. Bend your right knee and bring your right foot up and place it against the inside left knee.

Inhaling, raise arms slowly sideways, elbows straight, palms facing upward until they join as a namaste above your head. Hold for 30 seconds, breathing naturally. Imagine a rod running through your spine to your palms.

Exhaling, bring arms down sideways and lower foot to floor.

Repeat with the other leg.

Now, all this may seem like a lot of effort for a little stitch. But, it’s more than that. When your body signals a weakening in a spot, you personally, actively, interestedly take corrective measures. This brings a sense of control over your biological destiny. A proactive, caring approach helps maintain a good quality and lends a coherence to living. It enables us to see life and the world as not just manageable, but meaningful; not just comprehensible, but glorious.

Stress management begins with paying attention to the ordinary by jerking ourselves out of automatic living. It is about becoming supremely aware of our energies and abilities and making the best use of them. What we can heal we must heal with strength, serenity and mastery. Ultimately, in an increasingly complex life, it’s the simple little things that truly work.

The writer is co-author of the book ‘Fitness for Life’.

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Ouch! a ‘stitch’

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