Hi marblebomb
It is true that you can get wonderful cardiac benefits from doing this yoga. I can’t advise you on whether you should do the yoga. Only you can decide given what you know and discover balanced by the advice of your naturopath and your cardiologist.
It may be worth ‘sending’ your cardiologist to some testimonials of people who have (had) heart conditions. There are plenty on Bikram’s own website and I am sure you will find some on the forum but the former is a great place to start. You can also try doing a Google search on “congenital heart defect bikram (or hot) yoga”
You can tell them that cardiac output (CO) does improve. Blood pressure tends to stabilize. When they say that being in the heat lowers blood pressure, does that mean that they believe that it lowers BP dangerously or that it lowers it to normal levels? Would that make a difference to their thinking? Having a heart that beats more effectively is usually the result along with improved peripheral circulation.
Try presenting those facts and give the website details. The main thing is that there is a good level of education and information so you can be advised with the best information at hand. Many times there is misinformation because as you know, not everyone has done yoga, least of all hot yoga! 😉
Ultimately it is up to you to make up your mind. Hope that helps you.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂
