Does anybody know if Neuroplasticity will help me recover my balance enough to do balance poses in Yoga, or if I keep on trying balance poses I can improve? I am able to do most yoga poses that do not include a balance component, but my balance is just as bad now as it was after my aneurism four and a half years ago.
Thank you
Now, thatâs a VERY interesting question.
Iâve participated a few neuroplasticity sessions and although I feel it did assist with lateral thinking, it didnât really assist me with my physical symptoms.
Our inner ear plays a major role in our balance and there is some training around re-learning or retraining our brains to recognise our ânewâ balances.
Now whether my issues are blood related or ear related or fluid related has been a matter of great debate by the neuros. Firstly, they put me on a âSaturn balance ballâ, basically a ball with a disc around the outside a bit like the rings around Saturn, and I stood on the disc. I couldnât keep the thing balanced, if fact I felt rather nauseas on it. They told me that if I kept using it this would reduce. It didnât. Then they gave me a VR headset, but I couldnât handle that, very disorientating. They determined that it wasnât so much an ear thing, but rather a brain thing, which considering my situation I thought was pretty damn obvious really.
Itâs been 7 yrs since my last neurosurgery. Some days, once I get up and give myself about 1/2hr to normalise, my balance can be OK, but then some days if I change position too quickly or stand and move all in the one motion, without giving myself time, in come the dizzies, the nausea, the stars etc. Itâs now become something Iâve got to be aware of. If I donât give myself time I can end up on the floor (itâs happened a few times. Tsk)
For me, itâs become just another one of those things I have to manage. It doesnât usually take long to figure out if, balance wise, itâs going to be a good day or a bad day. I just have to adapt (as much as possible) for THAT day. But no 2 days are the same, so I never really know.
Merl from the Modsupport Team
Welcome Ulsterscot! Never tried it, but I did do Tai Chi which helped tremendously.
Thank you for the replies, I have had quite a few sessions with physical therapists (even one whom specializes in the vestibular system), but she decided my inner ears were OK and the problem was with my cerebellum, or balance CPU as I call it). I have heard that Neuroplasticity is good for recovering faculties, but I just donât know if the main brain can rewire to take over some (or all) on the functions of the cerebellum.
Ulsterscot,
A week or two prior to my rupture in 2013, I had a training class in brain damage of children as part of my CEUs. There is a psychologist in Texas who has done extensive, significant long term studies on brain damage. What he found, is that no matter the age, the brain will continue to heal. This study gave me Hope. When I went to University, the belief back then was that if we were under the age of 5, our brain could heal, but not after. I recall one of my professors was trying to disprove that theory. What they did know back then and it holds true today, is that another part of the brain can take over a part that was damaged.
The frontal cortex does assist in motor coordination. I believe Tai Chi helped me in not walking like a drunken sailor because it taught me to be conscious of my movements, as did PT. I donât know anything really about Yoga, but I think it also teaches one to be conscious of their movement. One of my Tai Chi instructors had me walk on the balls of my feet. It was extremely difficult initially. I had to really concentrate. Slowly but surely, it helped. There are still days where I have to really concentrate.
As you know and as Merl often reminds our members, recovery is not measured in hours, days, or months. We have to give a brain years. Keep it nourished by staying hydrated and eating protein. Stay conscious of your movements.
Thank you Moltroub,
You have given me motivation, I will continue with my yoga balance poses and look forward to some good results, as I had my aneruism rupture in 2016 I still have a long way to go, but it is nice to know somebody whom has been through it before me can be so positive, you have helped a lot, thank you very much
And, basically, Iâm in a very similar position. My balance is all screwed up and the people who know about ears and balance say itâs not my ears. But donât discredit the wonders of the brain, some brain training may well have some remarkable benefits.
It certainly canât hurt to try, give it a go.
Merl from the Modsupport Team
You are more than welcome Ulsterscot! I understand some of the Yoga poses can be quite difficult, stay with the easy ones. Before the pandemic, our local adult center had Yoga for folks that could be done in a chair!
HelloâŚ
Iâm unable to answer the question regarding neuroplasticityâŚhowever I can speak on balance difficulties. 9 years ago I underwent a craniotomy as a result of a ruptured aneurysm. I was hospitalized for 3 months + have NO memory of any of that time!! After I was released from the hospital, I spent 9 months sleeping upright in a hospital bed. Beginning with a walker I learned to walk again. However I was ALWAYS unsteady on my feet. I began physical therapy 2 times per week where I was taught many exercises, which I DILIGENTLY practiced on a daily basis. I also began restorative yoga, however I wasnât able to lay flat (always had a pillow under my head). Just shy of 2 years since the surgery, in my restorative yoga class, I was able to lay flat (without any support under my head) for the first time! However I continued to have great difficulty with my balance. I began to notice that movement was very helpfulâŚi.e. when my body was in motionâŚso I started to walking, as much as I was able, on a daily basis. In the beginning I would walk for ten or 15 minutes, while walking I would do whatever âhead exercisesâ I was taught by my physical therapist. I was diligent about this! no matter what weather I was experiencingâŚ(during holidays in NY)
I would get out & walk. I was determined to walk again. Believe me it was difficult!!! And it took a while to build up to what I now do 6 days per week! I am fortunate to live in a warm, dry climate, so I am able to walk year round. 5 years later Iâm up to 5 miles per day! I truly believe that practicing has helped meâŚam I complete free of balance problems? NOâŚbut I feel as though I have improved by 75% & I am no longer physically uncomfortable with my balance difficulties. I understand that everyoneâs situation is unique + hope that this has been helpful.
May you continue to move forwardâŚI wish you the best of luck!!!
Thank you so much Joy1. I too had to be sitting up in bed during my hospital stay (seven and a half months) and still have to sleep with my head and shoulders elevated. I am unable to lie flat on my yoga mat; instead I use a small foam block under my head. I am unable to walk properly still (only with the aid of a walking pole, which is an improvement over the wheelchair I left hospital in and the walker I started using a year later) but I have been able to get out on a road tricycle (bit like a bike with 21 gears but with three wheels). I am only bothered a little bit by the movement but I think it has helped â it is nice to feel the wind on my face. I believe you are correct and one has to persevere with some form of movement.
Thank you Merl, I actually started doing Chair yoga with my yoga instructor (from before my aneurism) three years ago as she does that as well and at her suggestion I started doing mat yoga again, and it has been good apart from the balance poses. But after reading the replies so far I am encouraged to keep trying and persevere with the balance poses in the hope of some rewiring.
âI am encouraged to keep trying and persevereâŚâ
And, IMHO, that is exactly the attitude to take, give it a go. Controlled exercise can have many benefits and not just physical benefits. My only word of caution is to listen to your own body. Others WILL have their own opinions ie âYou should do moreâ or âYouâre doing too much. You need to slow downâ but only you, yourself, knows your limits. Be kind to yourself and take the time you need.
DO NOT set yourself time limits ie âBy (date) Iâll be back to normalâ, because when that date comes and goes it can be REAL downer (Thatâs what I did, wanting to get back to work.) How long does it take to recover? For me itâs been very up and down. Iâve often said âToday I could leap a tall building in a single bound (OK, so, a bit of an exaggeration) but tomorrow I might be lucky to be able to crawl out of bed. I can never tellâ. So management has become a big part of it all. Be that medication management, exercise management, symptom management etc, it all has to be managed. Some days thatâs simple, but others daysâŚ
Iâll say it again "Be kind to yourself "
Merl from the Modsupport Team
Iâm not familiar with the neuroplasticity aspect of your question but have found yoga instructors willing to assist with balance issues by adding a chair to my practice. I also make sure I have easy access to a wall, counter or pole/column (depending upon the facility) which helps me when I get âtippyâ. If I feel unstable, I may skip a pose and do something I can manage when the class calls for something that is too difficult for me. I have found it is very good for mind and body following coiling.
Also, I started yoga as part of my recovery. There is a foundation called Love Your Brain that offers special classes (free) for people with TBI, in participating areas. Most people in my class had injuries involving a concussion; I was the only one with intervention surgery, but the physical and emotional challenges are similar. I found it comforting to be in a class that allowed for brain injuries. An example of how instructors are trained include: âraise the arm that by the windowsâ, instead of âraise your right armâ. It was the first time I felt I was in a peer group that understood how I was feeling. You can google Love Your Brain to see if there is a class offered in your area.
I want to thank all who replied to this. My aneurysms were fixed with pipeline stents 4 years ago and I still have some balance issues. It makes me feel ânormalâ hearing others have the same issues. Some times are good some not. I can ride a bike but when I stop my balance can be off after I stop. After a shower Iâm really off but I sit for a bit and then fine. The heat does it to me sometimes. I wish you all well.
Thank you ABJ, I will look I have submitted a request to the Love your Brain web site for the online Yoga, lets hope they accept my application, I am currently doing yoga on-line with my regular instructer, and trying the balance poses with the help on a âcat treeâ, still difficult though.