The Healing Powers of Yoga

Yoga first entered my life at 19 years of age, but at the time I was highly influenced by everyone and everything. Whilst I remember loving it at the time, I was not in the right headspace to understand and fully appreciate the amazing benefits of this ancient practice.

Over the next 13 years, from Melbourne to London, yoga continued to be apart of my life. The relationship however was sporadic; we were more like “fair-weathered” friends than close ones. There were times when I would see my friend 3 times a week, and then months would pass without a peep.

In late 2009 I left the stressful and partying atmosphere of London, and moved back to Melbourne. I found a local suburban yoga studio and instantly connected with my Asana practice. I started to realize that it helped me stay grounded & calm, through what was a tumultuous period of settling back into Aussie life. 5 months later I landed what I believed to be my “dream” job, as Events & Centre Manager in a City based consultancy firm. I threw my whole self into the role, working very long hours and sometimes on weekends, which really pushed me to my limits physically and mentally. I found because of this I couldn’t get to classes as much as I wanted and this really affected my wellbeing; I was tired, never felt like I “switched off” from work, my emotions were all over the place and my body felt weak. At the end of that year the inevitable happened…I was knocked sideways with an illness so severe, that I was not only hospitalized but also signed off from work for 3 weeks. The cause? Severe stress.

Having always been a healthy, fit, and active woman, I just couldn’t comprehend why this happened to me. Surely stress was not the only reason? I had been in stressful situations plenty of times in my life and never before had I got this ill. The road to recovery was going to be a long one; since I had contracted a rather unsightly skin disease all over my body (a bright red rash which ran literally from the shoulders down to my feet), at least 6 months of UV light therapy was required. At the time, I remember thinking “I am going to be covered in this rash forever” and the torment it played on my mind was dangerous; the more I stressed and worried, the worse the rash would be. In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, this torment or modifications of the mind are referred to as Vrtti’s; I must’ve had an ocean full of Vrtti’s swimming around in my head and something had to be done! How could I control them and find some peace within?

In March 2011 I walked into Breathe Wellbeing Pilates & Yoga studio in Melbourne’s CBD and never looked back – it was here that my serious relationship with Yoga began and continued to flourish.I took any opportunity to get to a class whenever I could; lunchtime, straight after work, sometimes even early mornings….around 4-5 times a week. The feeling I had every time I walked out of the studio was not only of instant relaxation, but also happiness and contentment. For a full 75 or 90mins each session, I let go of all the drama and became conscious only of my breath and body movement. No judgment, no worries, just me and my mat. Less than 2 months later the body rash completely disappeared and I no longer required any further treatment.

Today as I sit here writing this, my love and belief in Yoga only continues to grow…both on and off the mat. Having finally taken the step to complete a 200hr Intensive Yoga Teacher Training this year, I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude that I now have the opportunity to teach and share what I know and will continue to learn, with others. Even my husband, who took A LOT of convincing, has turned the tables and is now practicing with me to help with an illness he is currently battling.