There is nothing quite like the joy of knowing that one has been able to help someone and improve their life in some way. It is both satisfying and humbling to know that the discipline that I have pursued for so many years now has such potent and positive, effective impacts on people’s lives. Individuals I have worked with have been happy and grateful about the way in which disease care yoga interventions have transformed their lives.
Getting lighter, fitter
When I first met Keshav he was very overweight. He found it difficult to exercise because of his weight, which made him unhappy. All of this trapped him in a vicious cycle of unhealthy behaviors. After working with him consistently over a significant length of time, I was able to help him alter both his negative thinking as well as his behavior patterns. Keshav was able to lose weight and create healthier habits. I was delighted when he told me that he now loves exercising and that he is full of positive energy — something he refers to as keeping his ‘inner werewolf at bay’.
Reduced reliance on medications
A lady I was able to help said that yoga therapy turned her life around. To begin with, she was taking eight different types of medications for ailments ranging from high blood pressure to depression to pain. She had gained about 18 kg in the past year and was contemplating shoulder surgery to alleviate pain. I was able to make a holistic assessment of her problems which were not just physical, but also had psychological and social aspects. A seven-day Ayurvedic massage therapy involving tel-dhara and then targeted disease care yoga therapy that I had customized to her particular requirements helped make a dramatic difference. Not only did she lose four kg fairly quickly, she also started feeling much better in terms of the pain she was experiencing. Very importantly, her eight medications came down to four which means that her body is now able to selfheal in the way that it wasn’t able to before.
Other issues I have helped people with
I am deeply humbled to be able to help people with issues as wide ranging as PCOD, thyroid and even marital issues. Since yoga is a mind body discipline, it changes the thought processes of people, and helps them grow emotionally. One lady was on the verge of divorce when she met me. Our consultation sessions helped her change her negative thought processes and changed the way she viewed her problems and her environment. She is now armed with the coping mechanisms she needs and is happily married.
Another individual with high TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) was able to reduce his feelings of anxiety and insecurity with the help of disease care yoga. I was able to help him get from a TSH of 67 to TSH 4. The transformative power of yoga also helped a lady with PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Disease) when allopathy, homeopathy and naturopathy did not help. She had come to me after struggling with the debilitating symptoms of PCOD for seven years. After we started her therapy, she experienced significant improvements in her symptoms. The practice of yoga and meditation has helped to calm her and she is able to connect effectively with her inner self now. She is off PCOD medications and is able to manage problems such as sciatica and migraine with the help of yoga.
Many of those whom I have been able to help through yoga counseling and disease care yoga therapy sessions tell me that these interventions have been life altering for them. As a yoga instructor and counsellor, there can be no greater reward for me than to be able to change people’s lives for the better!