Yoga and a Journey Through Healing

I suddenly realized today that the past 3 months have been subtle, yet a change in my health has snuck up on me. 

Perhaps I should step back.  Probably around 6 months ago I had an urge to try Yoga out.  However, for one reason or another it just didn't seem to happen.  And then about 3 months ago, during a meditation, an idea came to me.  Why not go online and search out a nice, gentle Yoga routine? 

And so I did just that.  For the first couple of months I would do my gentle yoga routine (only 8 stretches by the way) before meditation.  And then about a month ago I started to get up at 5.30am and do some yoga as well as my morning meditation.  Not being one to settle for the easy stuff all the time I decided to take it up a notch.  Two days ago I looked up Sun Salutation.  Talk about shock to my system!  The past two days have been very gentle efforts to try and go through this set of poses.

Ultimately, I've enjoyed doing yoga as a solitary practice.  I am sure I could benefit from a teacher guiding me in my poses.  And yet, I also realized that my back pain is a thing of the past.  I can lean over to brush my teeth in the morning without a problem now.  In the past some mornings and such motion would result in pain and my needing to lean on the sink.  In fact, about 4 years ago my chiropractor diagnosed me with spinal degeneration.  Not only do I have 6 lumbar vertebrae (instead of the normal 5) but the they were starting to wear down, the bone becoming serrated and chewing down on nerve and ligament.  This would even result in locking of the back, not to mention excrutiating pain.  In fact, my back problems go back nearly two decades and my days of martial arts. 

The healing journey began on February 9th 2009.  At the time I was in Practitioner studies and was inspired to use the assignment to treat for a change in condition in my life as an opportunity to know perfect health for my back.  And after a couple of months my back had gotten better.  The severe locking stopped, and my need to visit the chiropractor greatly reduced.  In fact, in reviewing my visits to the chiropractor in the years leading to the middle of 2009 I would have an average of 1 visit per week.  Over the past 12 months that's dropped to one visit per month.  And now that I think about it, I have only been to see my chiropractor twice in the past four months.

The past 3 months and embracing yoga as a practice, have completed this journey through healing.  Obviously, I have released old beliefs, and am embracing a new vision for what health means to me.  I celebrate the days without pain, and with only the occasional moment of discomfort currently in my experience I look forward to continued perfect health, particularly around my back.  And there is no doubt in my mind that Yoga has played a part of this journey through healing that I have taken.