Many of you are obviously aware that I have Celiac Disease which lead me to write my GF Cookbook, "Organic, Gluten-Free & Delicious". During the time when we discovered I had Celiac, I was also suffering from Chronic Lyme Disease and Chronic Pancreatitis, and was extremely debilitated by this trifecta of diseases. So much so that I was 25 years old and had to use a cane to walk and be pushed in a wheelchair for longer distances.
Now on the other side of the years of daily pain and isolation, I find it amazing that I even got through it all. Meditation and yoga were a huge part of how I did not let the diseases get the best of me. I have always had a naturally positive attitude in life, but when I was so sick some days it was supremely difficult to see the bright side of being hooked up to IVs and hiding from the sun.
Before I got sick I loved to do yoga & tai chi and take classes whenever I could. But when I was in the depths of illness, my yoga practice looked much different than it did before and even still looks much different today. That is one of the many beauties of yoga, it doesn't matter where you were, but only where you are today. And even with a more gentle practice you can still achieve the many great benefits of yoga. You don't have to practice for hours a day to achieve great results.
I spent many of my mornings warming up with mild spinal movements on all fours (cat & cow poses) and relaxing down into child's pose. Most mornings that was all I could handle, then it was onto my supported seated meditation, where multiple plush pillows where my best tools.
I will never forget the day I was strong enough to get to a class on the beach near my house with the lovely and talented, Kristen, of Kristen Trieger Yoga here in Long Beach, NY.
Sure, I still was not yet able to participate in 100% of the class that day, but holy moly did it feel amazing just to be out among other yogis who were around me with love and compassion in their hearts. Since the Lyme Disease was still attacking my joints pretty badly at that time, my hips barely moved, and forget about pigeon pose! Now every time I do pigeon I can get deeper into it, and always remember that first class back when I could not even do it at all.
Even still, after all I went through, and all that my yoga practice has changed, I still use those same beginning gentle yoga postures (asanas) in my daily practice today.
Not only has yoga has built up my physical strength through asanas, but it helps to calm my mind on the more difficult days when things are not going quite right, or my arthritis from the Lyme Disease acts up. It has helped me in so many ways that I decided to add it to my repertoire of healing modalities. Already being a massage therapist and nutrition counselor, I know what the body needs to preform at optimal levels. Adding in yoga and all that that entails is just the natural next step for me. I live to not only better myself, but to help others live natural, balanced and happy lives.
I hope you enjoy hearing about my yogic journey, and that it can inspire you to make choices in your life that will better yourself and the world around you.
Namaste
the divine within me, honors the the divine within you
