When you think about yoga, you might picture sweat, movement, and effort. Flowing sequences. Strength. Endurance. For many of us Type A personalities — entrepreneurs, parents, exercise lovers, survivors — we gravitate toward the “doing” side of yoga.
But restorative yoga is different. It’s not about doing. It’s about being.
As a breast cancer survivor who has spent most of my life striving forward — through career, workouts, and even treatment — I can tell you this: learning to rest takes courage.
Why Restorative Yoga Matters in Cancer Survivorship
Cancer treatment changes the body, the mind, and the nervous system. Fatigue, anxiety, sleep disruption, and lingering pain are common companions. Restorative yoga, a gentle practice where the body is supported by props like blankets and bolsters, helps invite deep rest and healing.
Unlike other forms of yoga, restorative postures are held for several minutes, with little to no muscular effort. The goal isn’t to stretch or sweat. It’s to release.
Research shows restorative yoga can:
- Lower stress and cortisol levels, reducing anxiety and depression (Harvard Health).
- Improve sleep quality and combat insomnia.
- Support immune function by calming the body’s stress response (National Cancer Institute).
- Ease pain and fatigue often experienced during or after treatment.
For breast cancer survivors, this kind of intentional rest can be as powerful as medicine.
The Courage to Be Still
Here’s the truth: for those of us who have lived in high gear — building businesses, caring for families, pushing through treatments, powering through workouts — stillness can feel harder than action.
At a recent retreat, I laid myself over bolsters in a restorative yoga class. Supported, held, safe. And my body wept. Not because I was in pain, but because it had been waiting — patiently — for me to stop.
Choosing rest when the world celebrates productivity requires courage. But in survivorship, courage is not only about fighting. It’s also about softening.
Restorative Yoga as a Practice of Self-Compassion
When I guide myself into a supported pose — legs up the wall, a heart-opening chest release over a bolster, or a gentle forward fold with cushions beneath my body — I remind myself:
You don’t have to hold it all together right now.
You don’t have to be strong every minute.
You get to rest.
That’s the heart of restorative yoga: self-compassion in physical form.
How to Begin
You don’t need to be flexible or experienced to practice restorative yoga. You don’t even need a yoga studio. Here’s how to start:
- Props help. Gather blankets, pillows, or a bolster.
- Choose just one or two poses. Legs up the wall or supported child’s pose are gentle places to begin.
- Set a timer. Stay for 5–10 minutes, breathing naturally.
- Let go of “doing it right.” The posture should feel comfortable. Adjust until your body feels fully supported.
The goal isn’t progress. It’s presence.
Survivorship Is Not Just Survival
For me, restorative yoga is more than a practice — it’s a reminder that survivorship is not about muscling through life after cancer. It’s about creating space to heal, to feel, to rest.
The courage to rest is the courage to live fully — in this body, in this moment, without needing to achieve or perform.
And that may be the greatest strength of all.
