Q: I work on my laptop for long hours during the day and I wear reading glasses for this. I tried contact lenses but they didn’t gel with me and as for corrective eye surgery I am not yet confident to give that a go. I experience tension in the eyes sometimes and have been using eye drops for that. Can yoga help me in this in anyway?
L. Albescu – London

A: Yoga can indeed be beneficial for relieving tension in the eyes and promoting overall eye health. Regular practice of certain yoga exercises, combined with good eye care practices, can help alleviate eye strain and improve your overall well-being.

To provide the eyes with some support and relieve tension, Simhasana (the lion pose) and Sarvangasana (the shoulder stand) as well as Trataka are a perfect sequence, There are other asanas you can practice. If you are advanced in your yoga practice then Sheershasana (head stand) is an excellent tonic for not only the whole body, but especially the eyes.

The exercise feeds the eyes with blood and gives them nourishment. I highly recommend Sheershasana although some people are put off because its an inversion. My advice is to learn the exercise under a suitably qualified teacher. If you are able to master it the benefits of this practice are immense.