The Urogenital System

Question 1

List five (5) Āsana that would benefit students with dysmenorrhoea.

Answer 1

Seated Spine twists
Parivṛttā Pārśvakoṇāsana– Revolving Lateral Angle Pose
Parivṛttā Trikoṇāsana – Revolving Triangle Pose
Parivṛttā Āñjaneyāsana – Revolving High Lunge Pose

Some examples of hip openers are:
Baddha Koṇāsana (Bound Angle Pose)
Utthita Hasta Pādāṅguṣṭhāsana (Extended Hand-To-Big-Toe Pose)

Question 2

List three (3) yoga practices that may support a student with infertility.

Answer 2

In my own experience, students preparing their body for an IVF transfer benefit from a practice that includes a variety of postures and techniques including spine twists, inversions, forward bends, relaxing and restorative Prāṇāyāma, meditation, Yoga Nidra and relaxation techniques.

Students post IVF transfer benefit from a meditation practice up to and including their 13th week of gestation. Those who have conceived through IVF would be considered contraindicated for most public classes and would instead practice meditation up to their 13th week where they can then begin a prenatal yoga practice.

IVF should wait until after their 13-week scan to commence a Prenatal Yoga and /or Private Yoga practice and should seek approval from their GP and or OB/GYN prior to commencing a weekly pre-natal/private class.

Standing postures support and encourage postural alignment, increase systemic blood circulation to the digestive and reproductive systems whilst building endurance and stamina.

Standing Forward Bends support the female reproductive system by reducing tension and solidity around the abdominal area which may reduce menstrual flow or cause the flow to be heavy. These postures benefit students with fibroids, polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and those who have underdeveloped reproductive organs by increasing tone and strength to the lower abdomen.142

The practice of inversions encourages circulation to the major endocrine glands in the brain namely the hypothalamus, pituitary, and pineal glands. Increased circulation to these major glands increases the efficiency of communication through the endocrine and nervous systems thereby strengthening the reproductive system as a whole acting as prevention to hormonal and menstrual imbalances.

Question 3

List five (5) ways that chronic stress impacts on the reproductive system

Answer 3

Stress and the Reproductive System
Persistent and chronic stress:
• disrupts the hormonal communication between the brain, the pituitary gland, and the ovaries resulting in interfering with both the maturation of an egg and the ovulation process.

• When we experience stress, several neuroendocrine changes occur to compensate this disruption. One of these changes is to the release of hormones that regulate ovulation.
• In addition to this, the concentrations of several important chemical messengers involved in reproduction change when our emotional states change.
• The nervous system connects into neural fibres from the brain into the reproductive systems. In the presence of stress, spasms occur in both the fallopian tubes and the smooth muscles walls of the uterus.
• This can then lead to the disruption of the implantation of a fertilized egg and play a part in the pathways of fertility.

Those who are unable to conceive, often experience a loss of self-esteem, depression, low mood, anger, and anxiety.

Question 4

How could Yoga benefit male reproductive health?

Answer 4

The practice of Āsana, deep breathing, and meditation may help students with Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). Āsana increases circulation of blood and lymph throughout the body and can stimulate the release of endorphins.

both physical and emotional stress is known to affect fertility.

There are specifically 6 yoga poses that help move and stretch his internal hip region.

Since the prostate gland is situated right behind the pubic bone, there is no straight access to it. Hence yoga exercises and poses (that stretch the muscles running past the prostate gland), are the best way to exercise the entire hip region. We do this by mainly using the Psoas and Iliacus muscles.

• Paripūrṇanāvāsana (Full Boat Pose) – This is a deep hip flexor and abdominal strengthened. For this you will have to balance on the tripod of your tailbone and sit bones.
• Śīrṣāsana (Headstand) – This inversion aims to increase the flow of blood and all body fluids, thereby, giving temporary relief to all the organs, from their usual downward gravitational pressure.
• Supta Pādāṅguṣṭhāsana (Reclining Big Toe Pose) – This asana provides relief to the region of the hips, waist, and pelvis as well as the spine. It also provides a good stretch to the hips, calf muscles and hamstrings.
• Sālamba Sarvāṅgāsana (Supported Shoulder stand) – This inversion also increases the flow of all body fluids and give that much needed relief to all the organs of the abdominal region from their normal downward gravitational pressure.
• Baddhakoṇāsana (The Bound Angle Pose) – Increases circulation to the reproductive and digestive organs.

Ardha Matsyendrāsana (Half Lord of the Fish Pose) –This is a seated pose and is the ultimate twist anyone could possibly give to his abdomen and pelvis.
The following Āsana also increases circulation to the prostate gland, increases relaxation, and allows the mind to be calm, relaxed and without tension:
1. Vajrāsana (Thunderbolt Pose)
2. Vīrāsana (Heroes Pose)
3. Mālāsana (Garland Pose)