Pain exists. Or, as the Buddhists say, life is suffering. There might be many days when you step on your mat with some physical issue in play.

Having pain, being in pain, can be overwhelming. It can create a lot of secondary issues: fear, anxiety, confusion, which are just as difficult to heal. What might begin as a cranky hamstring very quickly turns into a narrative about how you’ll never get to do a forward bend again (not true) or how your shoulder issue means your yoga is worthless (not true). Because physical pain can create a mental spin-out, I want to offer a concise way to proceed if you have physical pain, and you are a yoga student.

I used to have terrible sacroiliac issues, stemming from scoliosis, physical jobs and an immature idea about flexibility. The pain was once so intense at the SI and along the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve, that my leg was bright red and hot to the touch. I couldn’t think of anything to heal myself (and, yup, no health insurance and totally broke) and I was miserable and foggy-headed. After it subsided, I wrote down a yoga sequence to do if it ever happened again, knowing I wouldn’t be able to think clearly if it did.

You also might need help for the first few steps if you are in pain and you are overwhelmed.

Before I do that, I offer this idea: if you define your yoga solely by what you can and cannot do in asana, your ego has much to learn about the richness of a yoga practice. Let your physical pain begin to teach you about what you value and how your mind works, and work towards getting out of pain. You deserve to feel better.

Some step to take when you are in pain:

Ask your Yoga Teacher for Yoga Help

• If the pain seems to be caused by, or exacerbated by a pose, a class, a style of yoga: pause those practices. You are more important than the pose, and you can return to these practices if they make sense later on.

• Ask your yoga teacher for assistance in modifying a pose or a practice. A skilled and experienced yoga teacher is able to change a pose or a practice to meet the needs of their student. Be willing to meet one-on-one and to pay for this additional time with a teacher.

• If you have a diagnosis or are in rehab, let your yoga teacher know, as they may be able to assist you in modifying your practice.

• Ask your yoga teacher for a referral to a more experienced teacher or yoga therapist if they cannot offer you helpful changes to your practice.

• Did you know? You can take a break from asana practice, and still be a worthy human being.

Don’t ask your yoga teacher for medical advice

• Do not ask your yoga teacher for medical advice.

• Do not ask your yoga teacher for a diagnosis.

• Go see a medical professional: a physical therapist, a physician, an orthopedic specialist. I know healthcare can be intimidating, because of costs and access, but these are the professionals who can give you the information you need.

• Be willing to try more than one physical therapist, more than one orthopedic specialist. All medical professionals are different people, and have different specialities and skills.

Remember

Yoga includes many esoteric practices and beliefs. It’s reasonable that a yogi might consider the spiritual when encountering, say, shoulder pain. However, there’s no spiritual short-coming or failing in pure physical pain. You are not a lesser yogi because you have an injury. It’s ok to treat physical pain as a physical issue.