We received the following witness from a woman who was injured during the practice of yoga. As this blog details, physical injuries during yoga classes are surprisingly common. Consumers need to be made more aware of the very real possibility of these types of injuries!
I was introduced to yoga about 15 years ago. The parish bulletin announced Catholic Yoga classes would be held at the parish conference room once a week. The yoga instructor was a parishioner. At the time, I was experiencing anxiety and praying for relief. I attended these yoga classes and felt they had benefit. I only did this for a brief period of time because the yoga instructor moved out of state and classes were discontinued.
About 7 years later, I was dealing with a series of deaths and the illness of a family member. Coincidently, a yoga studio opened in my area and I enrolled. We never chanted or discussed anything strange in the class. We started with basic stretches and yoga poses. We were all over 55 so nothing very difficult or advanced.
I felt very relaxed after class so I continued. After many classes, the instructor introduced more advanced movements and poses. During one of the yoga poses, I felt a little lightheaded but dismissed the sensation. At the end of the relaxation phase of the class, I found it difficult to sit up and the room was spinning. This scared me so I blurted out that I wasn’t well and needed help standing. The end result found me was transported to the ER and examined for stroke symptoms.
The correct diagnosis took weeks to come. It was Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo. A crystal in my ear canal had dislodged causing the dizziness and balance issues. The treatment to restore balance is called the Eppley maneuver. However, once this happens, one has a high chance for recurrence at any time. Unfortunately, I have suffered recurrences so I have to be ever mindful of how I sleep or position my head when exercising.
I stopped yoga and I warn anyone about it who has an interest. I really believe God did not want me to continue with these classes because this situation happened on a day I went to Mass and Adoration. This belief was strengthened after learning about the damaging spiritual effects someone in the class may be bringing with them.
As for me, I find that Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament provides stress relief and gives me spiritual protection, and any kind of isometric exercise will benefit me. It doesn’t have to be yoga.
Please feel free to share my story on your blog and Wacky Wednesday program. Again, thank you for all you do to alert others seeking a way to alleviate stress or anxiety by practicing yoga. Yoga is really being marketed as a quick fix for these issues. I really had NO idea of the possibility of yoga’s spiritual or health complications. God bless you for your ministry.
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