On Monday, March 8th John Friend, founder of AnusaraYoga and pre-eminent yoga teacher, gave a lecture at USC, Health Science Campus, entitled “Yogic Prescription for Health.” This was the first lecture of a series to bridge the gap between western medicine and homeopathy. Having grown up with a homeopathic Grandmother, I find western and eastern medicine wonderfully complementary. Each can build off of the strengths of the other.
Friend underlined how yoga can assist western medicine by working on balancing the whole person, increasing mobility, and cultivating a positive, loving attitude. He said:
A patient’s mental state is now acknowledged as a key contributor to physical health. Yoga helps develop a positive, strong-willed attitude.
Natacha Sagalovsky Lovering was able to attend the event and graciously shared her notes with Yoga In My School. Our favourite concept was:
John stresses that there is a pulsating consciousness that underlies everything that is physical, our bodies (and everything in this physical world) are made up of an energy that is supremely intelligent, that is orderly and that doesn’t want us to suffer, it is benevolent. Our body knows where proper alignment is, and how to heal itself if we give it space and help it pulsate. Bend over, twist, move around – get your blood, cerebrospinal fluid and lymph system moving – increase your vitality so that the cells and organs in your body can pulsate. Stand up straight, give your spine a healthy curve, don’t collapse into your lungs and heart, they need space! Cultivate a positive and life affirming attitude, and never underestimate the power of a caring look, a loving touch, a sweet smile, kind words and humor.
What a wonderful way to approach health and well-being. Here is a sample of John Friend’s teaching as he encourage us to cultivate a positive mind set and say “Yes” to life.
ABC’s Medical Series Doctor’s Orders investigates the rising number of doctors who are prescribing yoga as therapy for many pediatric patients. In the video two young girls demonstrate how doing yoga has helped them. One is fighting brain cancer, another living with ADHD. Thanks to Childlight Yoga Blog The Kids Yoga Resource for highlighting this video.
What is Yoga Therapy
Yoga Therapy is using yoga as a means to connect the mind and body to address mental and physical problems. It begins with the understanding that our physical , mental, emotional and spiritual aspects are integrated. It is not a new style of yoga, but an application of the art and practice focusing on the alleviation of many different ailments. Some ailments which have seen success when using Yoga Therapy include, but are not limited to:
back pain
hypertension
heart conditions
asthma
diabetes
depression
hyperactivity
cancer
fibromyalgia
migraine
insomnia
RSI
stress
How does Yoga Therapy Work
Yoga therapy uses yoga poses, breathing exercises, relaxation techniques and meditation to help restore the body-mind balance and promote natural healing. Yoga Therapy sessions generally are conducted one-on-one so that the therapist can personally assess patients and develop a practice which caters to specific needs. Once these needs are understood, a personalized home practice is developed to alleviate symptoms and explore how to restore vitality and equilibrium. Some of the following tools will be used during the home practice.
counselling
conscious and mindful breathing exercises
appropriately sequenced and individualized physical movements – poses
meditative practices
visualization and affirmations
use of sound and mantra
guided relaxation & yoga nidra
The Yoga Therapy Toronto explains another key component to Yoga Therapy’s success.
The other key advantage of yoga is that it empowers people in the healing process. Rather, than being a passive recipient of treatment, the student is actively engaged in the path to well-being and is primarily responsible for their recovery. The role of the teacher is that of guide, directing the student to tools for recovery and teaching the right way to implement these tools. Once this is done, it is then the role of the student to practice it diligently, observe changes, and notify the teacher for any changes. Thus the healing comes from within the student, rather than from the outside. This powerful system has helped many thousands of students who have sought yoga as the solution to their problems.
