Yoga and Multiple Sclerosis: A Journey to Health and Healing

Loren M. Fishman, MD, Eric L. Small

Demos Medical Publishing, May 18, 2007 - Health & Fitness - 224 pages

Yoga for people with multiple sclerosis? Absolutely! Today, people with a wide range of medical problems use yoga successfully. Because of its emphasis on relaxation, breathing, and deliberate movement, it can be especially beneficial for individuals dealing with a neurologic disease like multiple sclerosis.

Yoga and Multiple Sclerosis, coauthored by Dr. Loren Martin Fishman and Eric Small, a yoga teacher who first embraced these techniques as a way to manage his own symptoms of multiple sclerosis, is a comprehensive guide to applying the principles of yoga to the management of MS. The first section is a straightforward but gentle introduction to yoga - a therapeutic approach to the practice itself. The second part is functionally oriented. Different yoga poses that work toward a common goal, such as combating fatigue, reducing spasticity, and increasing range of motion, are included and illustrated. This user-friendly guide

• Describes how yoga works
• Includes photographs and descriptions of each pose
• Explains effects, advantages, and contraindications
• Contains starter poses that will help the uninitiated or physically challenged to gently achieve a posture

  Yoga and Multiple Sclerosis: A Journey to Health and Healing is an excellent guidebook and tool for people with MS, people who undertake yoga on their own, and for all members of the medical and yoga communities.

About the author

Loren Martin Fishman, MD, BPhil attended Rush Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical School and received his certification to teach yoga from the Iyengar Yoga Institute in Poona, India. He is Assistant Clinical Professor in Rehabilitation at Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons and former President, New York Society of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Treasurer, Manhattan Institute for Cancer Research (Philanthropy). Eric L. Small was born in Avalon, Catalina Island and completed his BA at UCLA and earned a Master of Fine Arts at Otis Institute. He holds a Junior Intermediate Level Three Certificate from the B.K.S. Iyengar Institute in Puna, India. Eric also conducts teacher training workshops in therapeutic yoga around the United States. With the support of the Southern California Chapter of the MS Society the Eric Small Yoga Program has, for the past five years, served hundreds of clients at 13 different sites and is part of the regular program offered at the Marilyn Hilton Achievement Center for the Southern California Chapter of the MS Society, at UCLA. His work was recognized in 1999 with the Hope For MS Award and in 2001 by his induction into the National MS Society Volunteer Hall of Fame. He was the 2002 Dorothy Corwin Spirit of Life Award recipient for Outstanding Volunteer Service to MS patients, presented at the MS Dinner of Champions on September 17, 2002.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Yoga and Multiple Sclerosis: A Journey to Health and Healing
• Authors: Loren M. Fishman, MD, Eric L. Small
• Publisher: Demos Medical Publishing, 2007
• ISBN: 1934559830, 9781934559833
• Length: 224 pages
• Subjects: Health & Fitness / Diseases & Conditions / Nervous System (incl. Brain); Health & Fitness / General; Health & Fitness / Yoga; Medical / Neurology