Even a Yoga Therapist Needs a Yoga Therapist!

Yes, even I, a kinesiologist and yoga therapist, need to see a yoga therapist to improve my movement patterns so I can participate in the activities I enjoy! After my motor vehicle accident (MVA) in Dec 2018, I felt quite angry that I was unable to heal myself. I knew all the tools to get better and all the exercises and what to do to get stronger. I knew I should have a team to help me recover. I knew I should include a physiotherapist, massage therapist and Chinese medicine doctor. However, in the end, all the therapies were not working.

Next, I added an occupational therapist to help me with the specifics of scheduling and rest, because rest is so important and often overlooked in rehab, especially with concussions. Then a psychologist was added to the team. And yet, my symptoms were slowly improving but still quite significantly impacting my life. So in desperation, I turned to a yoga therapist. I wasn't sure what or how she could help me but at this point I had nothing to lose but frustration.

I kept wondering how this was all going to change my course of rehab and healing? What am I going to do that I haven't already tried?

What Changed?

There was not one movement or one breathing technique or exercise that we did to make the shift. It was how my therapist and I worked together, and how she listened and responded. And she did not make me feel wrong for how my body was responding to therapy or wonder about my symptoms.

In Western medicine, I often got responses from healthcare practitioners that they did not know why X movement or exercise increased my symptoms for a few hours. I felt like I had done something wrong as I was not getting the results they were looking for. I felt like my body was broken beyond repair and that this was where I was going to stay.

A New Approach

On the contrary, my yoga therapist gave me permission to feel what I was feeling and said it was ok! She suggested I make a list of things that made me feel better, and to try one of them when my symptoms were high. Those things on the list did not necessarily make my symptoms better or worse, but I felt better. It was a small win!

She reminded me of the fact that if the symptoms could lessen or leave for a while, that eventually they could be gone for good. That small improvement meant I just had to increase my bandwidth and to pay attention to when the symptoms increased or how long they stayed away.

This awareness was no easy feat as I had more than one symptom. I had daily headaches, extreme fatigue, disturbed sleep, neck tightness and pain, anxiety and panic attacks, brain fog, and cognitive challenges. It was like playing a game of “Whack a Mole” with my body and wondering when the next symptom would pop up. However, by giving me permission to feel what I was feeling and not making it wrong, I had a different response. For example, if I couldn’t remember the kids' activities after school or how to spell a word I didn’t panic cognitively even if inside my body was still panicking. My body may still have an unnecessary reaction, but cognitively I would say, "Oh look at that, my heart is racing again and panicked because my brain is challenged to remember something."

Little by little, I was able to trust my body more and understand all the nuances of a concussion. Slowly and surely the symptoms did lessen. The daily headaches decreased to 1-2x/week and then 1-2x/month. The anxiety only appeared when I was extremely fatigued. My sleep improved from 5 hours a night to 7 hours, which lessened the fatigue. More rest meant less brain fog and cognitive challenges and a boost of confidence for me mentally. By being deliberate about my day and what I did during my day, I was able to see the impact on my body - positive or negative - and make changes accordingly. 

I have 5 children and want to keep up with them all! We go on hikes and travel, and have plenty of adventures we want to enjoy. Still to this day, I see a yoga therapist 1-2x/month, and I am still making changes and improvements. With each awareness comes another connection. It is such a fun exploration and exciting to see that there are no limits on change. Despite what Western medicine says about nerve injuries or aging, your tissue can change!