Happy 29th Surgiversary!
Wow, 29 years since I had my spinal fusion surgery!
I'm proud of what I've tackled and overcome during this time, and yoga played a huge role in the process, as it will for decades to come.
A couple weeks ago, I watched a webinar by Setting Scoliosis Straight. Doctors from around the world shared their research on Long-Term Follow Up on Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis. Most doctors shared research on 10-years post-op, but one doctor from Spain shared a study that his mentor conducted on over 100 patients that had a spinal fusion surgery in the 1980's, so about 30-years prior. You may view this webinar on YouTube now, and I hope to see more long-term studies like this in the future.
Movement is key for EVERY BODY, so we need to find what we enjoy and can maintain.
What do YOU want to know about yoga and scoliosis or spinal fusion?
One of the reasons I decided to return to teaching yoga back in 2019 was to also make a commitment to myself. Sure, I could continue to do what I already knew about yoga and scoliosis, but I would be more committed to continuous learning if I were teaching students. My practice and teaching definitely evolve over time, and that's the best part of keeping that inner spark alive.
There's a saying about the ultimate form of learning is to teach. So that leads me to asking what you'd like to learn from me? No question is too small or too silly! Let me know what you'd like to learn, and I'll do my best to answer.
You know what the teacher used to always say? If you have a question, someone else has the same question, too!
What are chain reactions in the body?
It's the process of one movement triggering another movement in the body, such as the ripple effect when throwing a pebble into a pond. The same thing happens in the body when we take a movement in one part of the body, and that movement extends and expands throughout the body. However, this exaggerates when there's a limitation in one part of the body, and the brain will take the movement to another part of the body. This limitation could be due to tight hips, shoulder range of motion, hyperkyphosis, scoliosis, spinal fusion...
Why does this matter? It matters if these habitual chain reactions go on for years or decades, and eventually lead to chronic pain or postural issues.
Before I discovered a more mindful and alignment based approach to yoga, I was doing all sorts of yoga, and pretty well. I had practiced Ashtanga yoga for years, would do bird of paradise, wheel... yikes! I'm glad that I learned about what my chain reactions would lead to in my body. My biggest physical limitation is my fusion, and when I was practicing any x,y,z yoga pose, I was not taking into account that I was overburdening my unfused vertebrae. A goal of my practice is to feel good in my body, AND do what I can to prevent future surgeries.
Notice how you feel when you sit on the floor or reach your arms alongside your ears, for example. The outsider may say that your pose looks good, but ask yourself how it feels in your entire body.