A question about balance

[Lorbis]

If one were to practice yoga prior to having surgery, would it make regaining balance back a little faster or easier?  Just wondering as I may be facing translab surgery in the coming months and I practice yoga.  Thanks!!

[tweety]

Lorbis,  I am not sure about yoga but I practiced balance exercises prior to surgery so that I would be familiar with them post op and also in hopes that my balance would return faster. Don't know if that is the reason but I had very little balance issues post op.  Maybe my body was conpensating prior to the surgery and I didn't know it.  I dont think any  of those things will harm you.  It is so much better to be educated prior to surgery and this site is wonderful and the people are soooooo supportive.  Tweety

[CHD63]

Hi Laurie .....

Any pre-op exercise is helpful in making your post-op recovery smoother.  Yoga would be extremely valuable because your body would already know how to do the most helpful balance exercises.  Like Tweety said you may already have begun to compensate for the missing vestibular nerve function on your AN side.

Immediately post-op you will have some muscle weakness/fatigue to deal with, but being in good shape physically beforehand will greatly minimize this.

Best thoughts.

Clarice

[leapyrtwins]

Lorbis -

I have some wonderful vestibular exerises my neurotologist gave me.  If you do them prior to your surgery, they'll be easier to do post op.

They really helped me with my balance issue; saved me from having to go to a PT.

If you'd like a copy of them, please PM me your email address and I'll send them your way.

Best,

Jan

[james e]

I am 62 years old, and work out every day, weight lifting. I had translab when I was 60, and had PT following the surgery. I am still mildly wonky 24/7 and I really don't think that it will ever change. The  therapist said that my physical strength was key to keeping me on my feet, and without being strong and muscular, I would not be very steady on my feet.

Every recovery is different. Others on this forum seem to have very little balance problems. Hopefully, you will join that crowd. What ever happens, keep doing yoga. You may loose some of that perfect style, and you might stumble, and you might fall, but just keep doing it. There are times when I stumble, but I am strong enough to catch myself. I just rode my bike recently, but I like my teeth in my mouth, and decided not to ride the bike. My dentist agrees!

Balancing is done with your vestibular system, your eyes and your muscles. If you have translab, you will lose one of the two vestibular systems, and your brain is going to have to be retrained. I'm not sure doing yoga now will improve your post surgery balance very much unless you already have balance issues. If you already have balance issues your brain is already in the process of being retrained, and yoga now will be some help. Once that nerve is severed, yoga will serve you well. It requires balance and strength. Getting back into weight lifting after surgery also gave me a goal. I am very goal oriented, and that was a big benefit to me. Remember, muscle strength is one of the three systems that help balance you.

Be patient with your recovery. It is a long process. Set goals. Stick with it. You can modify your exercises when you start doing yoga following surgery. Yahoo for exercises...good stuff. Good luck!

James

[Suu]

I hope this post stays around for the W&W folks.
In hindsight I wish I'd have had the chance to do pre-op exercises of any sort.

Keep on keeping on.

Cheers,

Suu

[staypoz]

Lorbis, it can't hurt!  I did a lot of folk dancing before my surgery and post-op, my physical therapist told me to walk through the patterns of the dances I remembered because the movements were (my words) hard-wired in my brain from repetition.  Not only do I think it helped me physically, it was a psychological boost -- I can do this!!!

Good luck!

staypoz

[psmix]

I was doing yoga before my AN was discovered. I was having some mild balance issues, but I redoubled my yoga and started doing balance exercises before my surgery. I have had very few balance issues post op. I'm sure that the yoga helped to strengthen and compensate for the lost function on the tumor side. I think your body adjusts to and compensates for the kinds of movements and activities that are normal for you as long as you continue to practice! I notice that I lose ground if I don't do it for awhile.

[LisaM]

Kundalini yoga is particularly good for balance as there are some postures with eye work that are very similar to some of the PT exercises for ANs.  

One that comes to mind; sitting in easy pose, Look to the extreme upper left corner, look to the extreme lower left corner, look to the extreme lower right corner, look to the extreme upper right corner, keep going in a rectangular/circular motion for two minutes rapidly.  You get a little dizzy at first but your brain embraces it pretty quickly. I love Kundalini yoga, it is my medicine.  I like to think that because of Kundalini, my balance is still pretty much intact even though a balance test revealed a 34% weakened balance AN side.  I'm trying to fit in as much yoga as I can while I wait and watch.