Transforming lives, one yoga pose at a time

On International Yoga Day, we talk to the people whose lives have undergone a sea change – physically and mentally – once they started practising

yoga

Yoga has always been the go-to mantra for a healthy living, and with the modern lifestyle throwing more hurdles and pressures at people day in and day out, its importance cannot be underlined enough. There are abundant stories out there about lives that have been transformed for the better once people have started practising yoga. On International Yoga Day, we talk to a few about how the mental, spiritual and physical discipline has been a life-changing experience:


Physical weaknesses fade away
Lovely John, an 48-year-old ardent yoga practitioner, had been struggling to find a way to reduce her sugar levels, which used to routinely shoot up to 255 mg/dL and she had to inject at least 35 mm of insulin every day to keep it in check. “There weren’t any places that I didn’t go for treatment. It was always a concern for me,” she says. As a last resort, she decided to try out yoga under the training of Omana Ajay and “it did wonders” for her. “Practising yoga daily brought down my sugar level to 102 mg/dL,” she says.

Similarly, for 55-year-old Parvathi Janardhanan, an entrepreneur, periathritis or frozen shoulder and knee pain were recurrent concerns, and at the age of 28, she was cautioned by doctors that she might have to turn to wheelchairs.
Cut to the present and she proudly says that she is walking with ease, all because of yoga. “There were days when I couldn’t even take a step forward without discomfort. But now I have trekked Mount Batur at Bali, along with my husband. From someone who was told that I would have to seek refuge in a wheelchair to venturing to mountaineering, my life has seen a sea change after yoga,” she says.


Helps get rid of emotional stress
Media person and entrepreneur, Sanjitha S Kanth had to go through a lot of emotional turmoil, when her mother was diagnosed with cancer. She says, “It was a traumatic experience, as I had to work, take care of her and also look after myself, as I was pregnant at that time. The process of chemotherapy and blood transfusion sessions were mentally draining for me. Yoga came to my rescue and helped me find mental balance.”

Her mother’s death though piled on more stress that had physical consequence as well. She developed hyper thyroidism and began putting on weight. “From around 55 kg, I had become almost 90 kg. I was warned not to take too much tension, as it would risk the life of my child too. With the help of yoga, I meditated and to my amazement, without taking any medication, all my health woes vanished,” Sanjitha says. And soon, she was back to being her old self again. Yoga has helped her find a new life, emotionally and physically, she adds.

From being bedridden to teaching yoga
Sonal Joshi, 55, was bedridden for a while because of multiple ailments. Practising yoga relieved all her problems in just six months, and she was so intrigued by it that she equipped herself with all courses and started imparting the knowledge to others too.

She says, “Nothing seemed to be working for me until I took up yoga. Later, the thought of sharing the joy to many others made me pursue Masters on the same from a prominent University in Bangalore.” Sonal now trains people at Mattanchery, and says even her memory power has improved.

Another trainer Nuthan Manohar, who teaches at Panampilly Nagar, recollects how she used to take medicines for depression, anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome, ligament tears and many more. “Within a month of practising yoga, I could steer clear of all my health issues. That was when I realised how you could you use your own body and breathing to improve the quality of your life,” she says.

For her, yoga has helped her focus better, multitask, sense intentions of people and assess group dynamics well. “The greatest benefit is to be aware of my own idiosyncrasies. Once we know that, we can actually work to evolve ourselves better,” she says.



Switching to an altogether new mantra
Those who practise yoga say that their whole approach towards life has changed since taking it up. Sonal says, “From a ‘no, I can’t do’ attitude, I have now switched to saying ‘why not?’ Earlier, I had to force myself out of bed, but now, I am more inspired.” She adds that she has also been invited to teach yoga in her grandchildren’s school.
“The kids are really proud that I would be teaching at their school, and they couldn’t be any happy to say that I am their granny,” Sonal beams.

For Mariam Thomas Moolapat, who used to work as a branch manager at a private airline, yoga helped overcome her inhibitions that eroded her self-confidence. “I had gradually started developing fear to go out somewhere alone, and I did not have much of a social circle. That was when my son pushed me to join classes,” she says.

Her trainer Girija Prajapati, who is known for training many prominent personalities, used to pump confidence in her by saying, ‘Ningalk pattum, pattum, pattum…’, Mariam adds, making it her maxim as well. “Yoga has paved way for a total metamorphosis. While earlier I couldn’t even climb stairs, now I feel I can do anything, and I also see to it that I do.”


Feel young each day
Often, physical weaknesses take their toll on the mental well-being, by affecting morale. All thanks to yoga, Lovely says, “I am 48 years old, but I feel very light, as though I am just 17. Yoga makes me feel young each day.”

It has helped change her perspective towards life at large. “The way I approach people and life has changed. I used to always get miffed at things very easily,” she says. “Standing in kitchen for long hours earlier used to make me uncomfortable. But today, I hum intermittently and have control over my meandering thoughts.”

Looking smart and younger is an add-on to this healthy practise, says Parvathi. “The different body movements and breathing exercises give you a proper figure, bringing about a visible change. Moreover, the skin starts glowing too,” she says.