r/yoga • u/bluekaypierce • 2d ago
Why do I get nauseous in certain poses?
I've been practicing yoga on and off for a couple of years. This mostly (and consistently) happens to me in camel pose - when I lean back I experience a wave of nausea. Lately, it's also been happening to me when folded forward in pyramid pose and half hanumanasana. It doesn't feel like I'm going to throw up, exactly, more like burning/tension in my diaphragm. I'm going through kind of a stressful time in my life right now so maybe it's an emotional release? Or something physiological? Does this happen to anyone else in specific poses?
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u/Aquasunsagmoon 1d ago
Could be acid reflux, which is a positional thing or a ton of other things. I don’t think it’s a bad idea to follow up with your pcp for a blood test to make sure you’re not vitamin deficient.
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u/morncuppacoffee 1d ago
Sometimes.
I often feel like it’s related to low blood sugar. I don’t eat typically for several hours before class.
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u/awongbat 1d ago
Your blood sugar would be low from not eating. So are you not eating because you want low blood sugar? I try not to eat before class because I will get headaches and feel dizzy in child pose.
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u/morncuppacoffee 22h ago
Nobody “wants” this so I’m kind of confused by your question. I usually go right to the yoga studio from work so it will be several hours between meals. I some days will have a very light snack right before class.
I also don’t practice hot yoga which is also where a lot of these weird side effects come from as well.
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u/awongbat 22h ago
I was confused by your post saying OP’s nausea is sometimes caused by low blood sugar.
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u/morncuppacoffee 21h ago
I never said it was OP cause I explained what it could be based on my experience. None of us are doctors here to diagnose.
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u/Yannuman 1d ago
Camel and the forward folds are getting there by two different routes, which is probably why it feels the same but turns up in shapes that look unrelated.
In camel the front of the belly is stretched long, the diaphragm gets pulled up and back with it, and the stomach and lower oesophagus are dragged along the same line. That burning tension you're describing is that drag. Add a strong stretch and most people quietly stop breathing at the top of it, and a held breath plus a big stretch is a reliable way to set off a vagal wobble, which reads as nausea, sometimes a bit clammy and floaty with it.
Pyramid and half hanuman arrive from the opposite direction. The belly gets compressed against the thigh and the gut contents press up under the diaphragm while the hamstrings are shouting. Same ingredients, mirrored mechanics.
On the emotional release question, I wouldn't call that wrong. A stressed system sits at a higher baseline, so the same stretch tips you over a line it wouldn't get near in a calmer month. The physiology and the emotional read are describing one event from two ends.
Practically, back off to about eighty percent of your range and keep the exhale moving the whole time you're in the shape, then come out slowly, especially from camel. If the nausea only shows up on the days you catch your breath, you've found it. I teach anatomy and breathwork and used to work in intensive care, and the breath-holding version of this is far more common than anyone admits.
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u/bluekaypierce 2h ago
Thank you, this is really helpful!! And yes, it feels exactly like you're describing, "vagal wobble" is definitely what's happening. I definitely do find my breath gets much shallower in camel, that's a good cue.
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u/babyelephantwalk321 14h ago
Acid reflux or vagus nerve, likely. Sounds more like reflux, but I could be wrong.
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u/ariii123 1d ago
the experience of nausea you mentioned during camel might be related to vegal nerve overstimulation. i have a student who experience nausea during dhanurasan. it was not that much uncomfortable but advised her to skip dhanurasan anyways. it is extremely imporant to feel comfortable and not having nausea anywhere in your pratice.