About scoliosis and mixing yoga with other diciplines.
by Harmens Kalaja
(Albania, Shkodra)
I am 19 years old and I make 20 in second of June, I'm flexible I think cause I can make a split and stay in that position for many min or do that for relaxing, I can bring the leg after my head and also I can make also a some jumping kicks. I like a lot the martial arts, break-dance and yoga that's why I thought that ashtanga yoga is the best for me.
I went 3 month to gym cause I wanted to build some strength before starting Tae Kwon Do. Also I went to a physiotherapist to make a check if I am ready to start martial arts or if I have any problem with my body. He noticed that my posture wasn't so good and my spine wasn't straight so he gave me some exercises to do: A lot of walking but not running, to remember to maintain my body straight, some inhale-exhale, exercises with mirror to see how my shoulders are(cause my left shoulder was more up than the right) and he prohibited all the kind of push ups, break-dance and I think strength exercises in general but I free to do parallels.
He said you are not sick but you have to take care of you spine for a while and you are free to start martial arts. Right now I am making parallels and when I do yoga I don't make parallels cause I don't know if this have influence in my practice of yoga.
So I want to ask:
1. Can I practice ashtanga yoga and parallels during the day and was the doctor right with his advices?
2. And if I will practice yoga daily will I recover from this spine disorder until the age 25 which is the time that the human skeleton has finish growing?
I hope you can help me in this, with sincere heart Harmens.
NAMASTE.
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Dear Harmens,
Thank You for openly sharing your story with us.
It is difficult for us to comment directly on your personal medical conditions. This is for many reasons, but mostly because we do not have a personal student/teacher relationship.
However, I would like to offer these general thoughts in response to your questions.
Please don't consider this medical advice, please follow the recommendations of your physician.
The physician/patient relationship is sacred trust and we will not obstruct this. It is interesting to observe how similar the student/teacher relationship is in some ways...
Especially in this matter of developing a therapeutic relationship. So specifically regarding this, if you do not understand or agree with options or advice that is being presented, you need to enter boldly into the relationship, ask the questions and get the answers you need to develop a deep conviction that will enable you to participate fully on a chosen therapeutic path, or treatment, or in our case a yoga practice, and thereby promote healing or growth.
Now specifically to your questions:
1. Pattabhi Jois considered the primary series of Ashtanga Yoga to be "yoga chikitsa" or yoga therapy. It is for balancing strength, flexibility, mind control and concentration.
Guruji always maintained, and his grandson Sharath has also said, that everyone can do this practice and he included sick people in this category; he would modify the practice appropriately if he felt this was in the best interest of the student.
This continues today but this assumes you are studying with a qualified teacher, practicing under their supervision daily.
We definitely have students with scoliosis, and we have them practice the "push-ups" in the suryanamaskara.
I have to admit I'm not familiar with what "parallels" are... perhaps you can give us more background on this.
2. Here I can't help much. Scoliosis as I understand doesn't have a cure, so the prognosis will be dependent on many variables which I'm not qualified to comment on and I'm sorry I can't give you more...
HOWEVER, this practice has had miraculous effects for many people AND best of all for you, you are a young man...
Stand tall, when you practice keep lengthening you spine from the core and things will definitely change! Belief can create miracles!
All the best!
Jeff
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If anyone has a positive experience to share with Harmens
PLEASE send it to us... So we can Pay it Forward!
