Trapped within

We are thinking beings. We have so much on our minds. And the mind is always restless. It is so common to find ourselves conversing with ourselves many times a day. This happens without our knowledge sometimes. Sometimes we consciously wonder aloud. This is what happens to all of us normally, each day, every day.

But what happens when you slightly deviate from "normal"? Is it not possible that the mind may start playing tricks on you? And you start to believe something that does not exist...

I have always been proud of being 'as healthy as an ox'. I have never known or seen what an illness or "perception" of illness can do to an individual, simply because I have not come across many such individuals. Of course I have been ill myself. And once or twice, seriously ill. But what is considered normal is to bounce back after the episode.

In recent times, I have made a good friend. She is otherwise quite active and healthy. She keeps herself busy mostly. But small things always upset her, especially about her health, like a boil on the hand, a small bout of cold, or just perspiring sometimes. She is paralyzed with anxiety over these small bodily changes and seeks constant reassurance from us and her family about her nagging feeling of something being seriously wrong with her. She is not convinced with our reassurances and seeks medical help for each small perceived illness. And that is not enough either. She does'nt believe that one single medicine or course of treatment or doctor can cure her. She seeks help from various doctors and local healers and changes medicines often and then becomes anxious about if she should have stuck to one treatment from the start! She needs reasons about why the boil or flu started in the first place.

It drives me mad to be around her during her bouts of illnesses. Her house is filled with medicines for all sorts of anticipatory illnesses. She sometimes self-evaluates her illness and reads up books and surfs the net about what it is that ails her. It is not only hard for her, but also for people around her, especially her family. They tell her it is nothing, just a boil. But then, what if this boil is a "manifestation of something serious within the body"? I cannot help but think what is it that drives an individual into such a deep well of anxiety. And then it hits me- it is a case of hypochondriasis. I read about it from this link here. This helps me make up my mind somewhat more about her being a hypochondriac.

It is such a sensitive issue. Any illness is, but those related to the mind are more so. There is a stigma attached to mental illnesses. No one wants to accept that a psychiatrist is the one they should be seeking help from, not a physician or any other doctor. And as a well-wisher, it is impossible to let the person in denial suffer through this hell for the rest of their lives. It is treading on a thin rope to be the one to tell them that it is not anything physical, but related to the mind without implying that he/she is "mad".

I feel a lot for people who are otherwise healthy but are trapped within themselves. How do we free them?

Yogasanas

I have already spoken about the benefits I saw with Yoga in my previous post. Yoga is an ancient form of exercise practiced by saints and commoners in ancient India. Yoga sutras were given by sage Patanjali. And Patanjali is regarded as the founder of the Yoga philosophy.

The Ashtanga Yoga is the practical Yoga taught today and is also based on the concepts from Patanjali’s philosophy.

Yoga is used to treat many illnesses and disorders to name a few like:

asthma, arthritis, back pain, constipation, diabetes, drug addiction, dysmenorrhoea, headache, heart diseases, hernia, hyperacidity, hypertension, hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, insomnia, memory, menstrual disorder, migraine, obesity, pile (haemorrhoids), slipped disc, sexual disorder, sinusitis, spondylitis, stress, tonsillitis, and varicose veins

.

Yoga can be practiced regularly with proper breathing (generally bending backwards requires one to inhale and bending forward, exhale) and correct postures (so as to avoid sprains, etc). As I have said earlier, the Yoga master’s/instuctor’s words are to be followed in case of Yoga for treatment for the above disorders. Also, some of these exercises should not be practiced during pregnancy. I would suggest it is better to go to a class the first few days to know the techniques. Later on, you can practice it at home safely.

What do you need to practice Yoga?

1. An area to practice, with open space, preferably outside the house, on the terrace, or even a room with doors and windows open for air circulation.
2. A Yoga mat or any mat, something that doesn’t slip on the floor.
3. Comfortably fitted clothes, which allows for stretching and should not come in the way (shorts and t-shirts are the best).
4. No shoes; its best done bare feet.

I do some stretches for warming up and loosening the body before I do any asanas (postures). My favorite asana is Surya Namaskara or the Sun Salutation. It is believed that 10 rounds of Surya Namaskaras a day are enough to keep you agile, relaxed and wanting for more. Of course, people who have been practicing Yoga for long, think that 10 is too less. It is best to increase the number gradually. This I can vouch for and I rarely attempt other asanas to avoid injury.

Surya Namaskara

This is the salutation to the sun, which is the source of vitality and energy. This involves practicing 12 postures (1 round) with alternate inhalation and exhalation in a fluid movement without jerking and over exerting. In each round, the first posture (Tadasana) is accompanied by chanting a mantra to invoke the Sun God’s blessing. This is best done early morning during sun rise or in the evening during sunset. But if that is not possible this can be done any time, when the stomach is not full. It is advised to face East or North (face the sun) when doing this. Follow the video.



There are many variations when it comes to this. I like this video, mainly for the soothing music. This video demonstrates the various postures, along with names of the postures.



Health benefits

From practicing Surya Namaskaras daily, we obtain a complete body work out. It works all the joints in the body. It regulates blood circulation, respiration, strengthens the wrists, elbows, spine and other joints, improves digestion, stimulates the nerves, relieves tensions in the neck and shoulders, and tones the abdomen, back, legs, arms and chest. It regulates the functioning of the various glands like- adrenal, pituitary, thyroid, parathyroid,etc.

Yoga

I have always been quite lazy when it comes to exercises. I am still in the look out for the custom-made workout routine for me, something that doesn't bore me and something that I will look forward to doing every time rather than in spurts. I have tried different things that are light and engaging like in here

A friend of mine, kept reminding me of Yoga for feeling better and for weight loss. I was procrastinating. Many years ago, I had taken up Yoga classes. So, one day I was just like, why not try? I started doing some stretching and a few exercises again watching videos on the internet along with remembering things I had been taught. I am immediately re-addicted to it. It has so much goodness to it. I can't wait to get up to do it early morning everyday. Why did I ever stop in the first place?!


I used to go regularly at 5.30 in the morning everyday and do Pranayama (breathing exercises) and asanas (exercises and postures). I was always a believer in the positivity of Yoga, but I turned into a follower after attending these classes.

My yoga master would teach us so many things and talk about what health benefits can be obtained from each posture. It was light and also rigorous. It used to be slow and rhythmic. It was testing your capacity to literally stretch yourself! It was addictive and would give a heady rush of energy. In fact, it would keep me on my toes all day and I used to look forward to going to the classes again next day.

Some immediate improvements I noticed after a month or 2 (I continued for maybe another few months after this and stopped) of this routine were:

1. Mindful eating: It definitely made me think twice about stuffing my mouth with junk food. I would be mindful in a good way, not obsessed about food/diet, like noticing the "eating pause" and stopping, eating little mouthfuls, and always listening to my stomach, not brain.

2. Lightness: I know it is impossible to suddenly lose kilos of weight. No, this is the feeling of lightness. I was light on my feet (some said bouncy). My joints were much more flexible. I could bend in weird ways (truly)! It is a beautiful feeling.

3. Appetite: My appetite reduced a lot. As I said, I would think before eating, which is a good thing. I would prefer to eat light foods rather than fried, heavy ones and eating lots.

4. Energy: I had an increased level of energy. I would be willing to walk to places close by rather than take my bike. I would be mindful of sitting idle for too long. I would just bounce up and run chores and errands than sit in a place for too long.

5. Toning: Yes, I got a lot more toned. It looked like I had lost weight. The number on the scale did not show much difference immediately, but I could feel myself fitting better into clothes. And I could finally see that I had some muscle, not a lot though. (Weight loss occurred slowly after many months of stopping the exercises! )

Yoga is a superior form of exercise, which gives balance, fluidity and energizes the chakras in the body. It is extremely helpful for a peaceful and relaxed mind. It de-stresses the body and mind by releasing endorphins. It makes one mindful of their own body and take care of it. And the best part of it is you get toned, your stamina increases and affects your over all well being. It is a good and safe method to lose weight too for people with weight issues. But then weight is just an insignificant little detail when you see so many other positive benefits from yoga.

It is always best to follow the instructions of the Yoga master/instructor so as to avoid injuries and in case of other health problems.

Yoga definitely is a form worth trying.

Look out next for my few favorite exercises in yoga. Please bear in mind, I am a novice. Not at all an expert. I maybe wrong technically. I am just sharing my personal experience here.

The guilty eater

Food is something that is very personal to each and every individual. People from coastal areas love fish. People in Asia love rice. Italians love bread. Americans love their fish and chips. Irish love their potatoes so much that during the Great Famine in Ireland, people just moved to USA to avoid starvation. These are all broad generalizations. But the point is we all are very particular about the food that we eat. Why not? It is our bodies we are feeding. So, it is only correct to be conscious of what we are eating.

There is a theory that says we are what we eat! It is interesting, but debatable. There are certain beliefs that eating meat will give us beastly qualities and eating plants will make us more humane. I am often switching from vegetarian to nonvegetarian and vice versa every few years. But I haven’t noticed any sort of drastic changes in my personality during the changing phases. But I won’t rule this theory out completely as I turn into a vegetarian every time I hear stories like how large number of chickens are cooped in a small place, which in turn stresses them out and they start getting violent. But to avoid them harming each other, there are machines called clippers. These machines are used to clip their beaks after which they cannot even feed!! *shudder* (But after a few months or years, the fried chicken smells so tasty again!)


Many of us have a very emotional relationship with food. People eat food not only when they are hungry, but also when they are bored, irritable, sad, tensed (yeah! Some have confessed to eating more out of tension too), coping with loss, or just for the love of food. Since a few years, changes in my life have made me more or less sedentary and food is always around! So, as can be expected, I am tipping scales towards the “plumper” side. And as usual, I have been blaming the weather, the work, the government, etc, for my situation. But, since I have had time to ponder I have come to realize that it was me all the while who was responsible. I hate any form of exercise and have been pushing it off for too long. And gym doesn’t seem that interesting to me. Food is too enticing!

So, I have been recently looking up the internet for weight loss, diet and exercise tips. These ones seemed more promising and achievable to me:

• Do not eat something which you will not feed your child.
• Drink upto 8 glasses (read 1 big jug) of water (tea and coffee don’t count, except green tea) every day for good skin and curbing appetite.
• Eat a carrot or an apple whenever you have the tendency to snack on cookies or chips.
• Eat consciously (meaning, judge if the portions on your plate are too big) even if you are watching TV or conversing with someone interesting.
• Instead of eating a dessert, eat a fruit.
• Eat lightly in the night.
• Take stairs instead of an elevator.
• Walk to the nearest grocery store. (If you are very free, go more than once!)
• Try to do some sort of an exercise (rope jumping, walking, swimming, jogging, dancing, yoga, etc) most of the days and add variety to the routine.
• If you are someone who likes to keep it simple, walking gives most of the benefits to all parts of the body.
• Don’t be too hard on yourself for not adhering to the above once in a while! ;)

These are the most practical tips I could find. I am trying to incorporate most of the above in my daily routine. But I do slip up on the diet during weekends and exercise during some days. And yeah, another way of being conscious of what you eat is the calorie counting method (eat lesser calories and burn more). It is a lot more tedious and a bit impractical when you have to count your portions or servings in terms of calories, instead of knowing if it is enough to fill your stomach or not. It is sad to me when instead of seeing a beautiful pizza slice you see only “calories”! It works pretty well for a few people, but not for me.


If you are the kind of person who values money a lot, then a good suggestion is to buy an expensive swimsuit, workout clothes or accessories. That way, the hole in your pocket will keep reminding you to put those to good use! ;)

But if along with fitness, weight is a problem then this tip from a friend might come in handy: buy a dress 1 size smaller and aim into fitting in it well. Practical and simple! This is taking control of the situation one step at a time.

Well, another tip is to get involved in some sport. Even better if there are people to play with you. Or join a dance or a karate class. I have also read that, on an average, if you take 10,000 steps a day, it will be about enough exercise to keep you fit! Hah! Talk about looking up for easy fixes! I think a pedometer (to count the steps) will be a good investment in this case. If you are like me, and find enough reasons (too hot, too windy, rainy, etc) to not go walking outside, then a treadmill is a good investment. Now, it is inside the house! (Making it harder to avoid is another way of forcing yourself off the couch.) But, a walk outside gives a lot more benefits.

I am right now aiming to getting fit, eating right and regaining my stamina, although I hope that weight loss will be a welcome accompaniment in the process. ;)

The best tip of all: keep yourself engaged enough to not worry about food, clothes, weight, etc, and you will not have time to think about what all I have said all this while!