Yoga Practice Brings Cancer Patients Solace

                                                             By Jillian McKee

A cancer diagnosis such as mesothelioma can bring feelings of shock, anger and betrayal. When treatment begins, the patient can be overwhelmed physically and spiritually and may need the support of a yoga program to get back in balance and may increase life expectancy.

Cancer patients can receive many benefits from yoga. Besides improving the ability to relax, obtain proper sleep and reducing stress, yoga can also improve digestion, posture, joint flexibility and overall physical strength. Many researchers are looking into the long-term effects yoga has on cancer patients and mesothelioma prognosis.

The breathing technique used in yoga may help patients the most with healing. Breathing deep and from the stomach helps the mind to focus on the postures and find a peaceful place in the mind away from the pain and stress of treatment. Breath work can be the most difficult thing for a patient to learn, as humans have a tendency to breathe from the mouth rather than the nose. Nose breathing brings relaxation while mouth breathing tends to raise anxiety levels.

Yoga is the best form of exercise for people who are physically weakened from chemotherapy and other treatments. Each patient can assess what postures they are capable of and build from there while their strength increases. Many patients report regular yoga improved their overall energy levels and helped them cope with their treatment and find their way to recovery faster.

Cancer patients often think of the mind and body as being separate and forget that the battle they are valiantly fighting is really against themselves. Yoga can lead the mind to a place of clarity and also help it to get out of the way and allow the physical body to begin healing.

Yoga classes can also provide friendship and support to those fighting cancer and the peace and energy renewal found there can carry over into everyday life.

While most patients will have little to no trouble practicing yoga, they should always check with their health care team to make sure they are truly up to the task. Yoga has many benefits but it is not always suitable in all situations.

Be Expressive

Totally Blissed

It has been a busy but lovely week.  One I will keep to remember.  Students have returned back to their yoga practice and I am so happy to see them all again.  Our sessions has been nice and gentle, a great start to our yoga journey together as a 'kula'. 

And once again, I am so touched and moved by the amazing love and support I've had from all my family, friends and importantly, my students.

Welcome to Yogi Bliss Health & Spa Studio

Today has been a special day for me,my family, students and friends. The day started off with bouquet of flowers from friends and students, it was just amazing to receive such gifts. The colours of the flowers filled the studio with such an ambience of excitement in the air and fresh start! The turnout was great.  (Dear all) Thanks for coming and for bringing food too! And am so glad to see you all again for our first yoga session today.

And I must say 'thank you' to everyone in my life.  It wouldn't have been if it wasn't for your love, support and encouragement.  Where I didn't think I get by after my last studio, D'Music Motion Studio opened their doors to me so that I could continue teaching yoga.  They have been well accommodating and helpful when needed.  I had such fun working with the staff in D'Music Motion Studio and I will miss you all.  But thank you to DMM management for such hospitality.

And I am still grateful to the people that gave me an initial start to my yoga journey as a teacher.  Thank you again to Elaine, my sister, my mum, my husband and Jacqui for helping me through the first part.  The faith and believe you had in me has carried me through and I will always remember it.

Also, wow!!!! Thank you for the fridge and coffee maker, guys! Am very grateful for the endless support and again, the generosity shown by you, the students.  (Okay, okay....we'll have tea, cakes and ............coffee....after yoga....ssshhhhhh!)

P.S ....Thank you Heulwen for giving me so much.  It could have been, but you made it even more so for me.  I've been blessed because you have.

By the way, free classes for the next 10 days.  So, if you're interested in doing yoga, drop by and visit us. :)

Yogi Bliss Health & Spa Studio

Dear friends and students,

Yogi Bliss Health & Spa Studio will be opened tomorrow onwards.  We will start our first yoga class at 5.30p.m.  Also our soft opening starts tomorrow at 3p.m, please do come and join us.  We welcome visitors and students altogether.

Please note our timetable remains the same as previously.  (Checked at right hand side of this website).

Studio & Spa Address At:- Simpang 21, Block B, Unit 18, 2nd Floor, Gadong Menglait.  (Close to Jinn Chew and Hock Motor.   Drive pass Gadong Shell Station. )

Namaste
Jac

Yoga Apparels in Ref Station Shop, Brunei

Thanks to Angie, we have yoga apparels made and designed comfortably for our practice here in Brunei.  The Spring/Summer 2011 collection is in her shop on display and I must say the price is fairly reasonable for the excellent quality you're buying.  In contrast to sports clothing, 'easyoga' has made their clothes suited and catered well for yoga practices.  It is 'breathable'.

And here are some pictures from 'easyoga' site to share with you what's in store:-

Yoga Mat Tote Bag

Contact No: 8717769 or email: maj@brunet.bn

Doula Care

What is a Doula?

The word "doula" comes from the ancient Greek meaning "a woman who serves" and is now used to refer to a trained and experienced professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to the mother before, during and just after birth; or who provides emotional and practical support during the postpartum period.


Studies have shown that when doulas attend birth, labors are shorter with fewer complications, babies are healthier and they breastfeed more easily.


Also:-


Doulas are not only beneficial to families who desire unmedicated birth, but also for those who require induction for medical reasons, prefer medicated pain relief, planned cesarean, etc.


Doula training includes vaginal, cesarean, and VBAC births for mothers that are low- or high-risk


Physical (non-medical support during labor and birth, including beneficial positioning, massage, and other trained techniques.


Emotional birth support utilizing comforting, affirming, and relaxation techniques - involving your partner as much as possible - not replacing them!


Postpartum support as needed, including breastfeeding support

Facilitates communication between the laboring woman, her partner and her clinical care providers

*Doula Care Services :- Elaine 8846848*

Yoga Helps Cancer Patients by Krista Peterson

                     Mental, physical benefits draw cancer patients to yoga


The treatment stage for cancer patients can often be a brutal and difficult experience. Routine therapy processes like chemotherapy and radiation have been known to bring on multiple side effects that plague patients for an extended period of time during treatment. Luckily, there’s been an increased effort to explore complementary therapies in the past decade that are geared to help cut down on side effects from traditional treatment.

One of the more popular options in complementary therapy has been yoga, which built a great track record of providing patients with benefits in a physical and mental sense. Yoga can also be participated in different schedules. Some patients have taken to participating once or twice a week in a long session, while others may prefer to take part in daily sessions in the morning and before bed.

One of the primary reasons that yoga has become so popular outside of the medical community is because of its physical benefits. Many use it for exercise because it seems to hit every area of the body and this is no different for cancer patients. Many use yoga intertwined during their treatment process to help relieve physical ailments that plague them. Arthritis patients invest yoga use because it helps to alleviate body pain and improve range of motion. Some of the physical benefits that are most important to cancer patients are yoga’s success in reducing side effects like vomiting and nausea that are common with chemotherapy and radiation.

The mental benefits are also important for cancer patients. Yoga allows these patients the opportunity to take part in an activity that can provide time for meditation and reflection. This time of peace is something that can often be taken for granted in the medical community. As health care has become ever more specialized over the years, the need for a break from tests and treatment has become even more valuable. One excellent example of yoga’s effect from a mental aspect includes the impact that it has had on mesothelioma patients. This is a type of cancer that occurs in the lungs as a result of asbestos exposure and has a severely low life expectancy rate. These patients use yoga as a way to shut off the stress and fear that often consume their lives following diagnosis.

Moving forward, yoga will certainly be an excellent complementary treatment option for the future. Its ability to provide numerous physical benefits, as well as helping patients gain a time of peace will continue to make it a popular choice to alleviate treatment related side effects.

(Krista Peterson has contributed this guest article to Yoga At Heart and I thank her for the time and effort she has put into this piece.  I would also like to add that cancer is something that crosses our path one way or the other, directly or indirectly.  It is difficult for those who have loved ones going through this phase and for those who had it.  I am sure that everyone deals with cancer in many different ways, but there's one thing I hope and wish for them, is to find their inner strength and determination to live freely in hope, faith, peacefulness and calmness.  Whether it be through yoga, tai chi, other forms of complementary therapy, music, love, family or even through your own form of faith.  In light, Namaste)

Everything Is On Its Way

I feel like the past two weeks has breeze past me quicker than my sneeze.   I thought how super to have the month off and get the studio done at my own pace.  Nope, instead, I feel like I have been on a threadmill that has no stop button.  Had been up and down from Kiulap to Muara and back again to Batu Bersurat just to get various things done.  From finding the most trivial things like a toilet loo roll holder to finding the right mirror for the wash room.  Maybe I'm just too fussy on what goes where.  Why oh why is there no 'B & Q's here in Brunei ? We have new shophouses sprouting out every few to six months and yet it takes ten car journeys just to find the perfect loo roll holder.  Hmmm, maybe I am fussy. 

And just when I got the ball rolling for the studio renovation, one of my contractors decided to bail on me last minute.  ..............(you see these blank dots........I felt like my brain went into dot mode ....just not thinking but just dotting).  Perhaps my fault too, I got this contractor that spoke no english, only mandarin and we verbalised everything in malay.

Lesson One for Jac (and perhaps a few of you out there) : Do get a contractor that knows how to communicate and perhaps even speak the same language.  And yes, I do feel like Homer Simpson right this moment.

Well, at least in between all these busy moments, I got to catch up with a few good friends I haven't seen in a while.  It was nice.  Nothing says it better than a nice cup of chai latte.  And I managed to dropped into Angie's (Ref Station) and got myself two new tops.  She still has lovely yoga tops and glad to hear she'll be bringing some more easyoga apparels next week. 

So, be sure to drop in at Ref Station in Kiulap and have a browse at the stuffs Angie's brought in.  And I can't wait till the studio is finished.  It'll all be worth the sweat and tears.....especially with the quest for the perfect loo roll holder.   ;D