How do I make a start? Please HELP

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

Hi everyone.

I like many suffer from anxiety, panic disorder, stress ect ect blah blah so much so I cannot work anymore. I am in my 30’s and have worked since I left school.

The NHS have me on a super high does of Prozac and I get counseling etc monthly. None of this is helping my condition. My monthly meeting are nothing more that a ticky box exercise to see I am not a danger to myself or others (I’m not and never have been) The prozac is great in the here and now but where is this leading. It is only postponing the inevitable as I can’t take it forever.

I realise the solution to this problem lies with myself and not drugs! After much research Yoga seems it can help me. I have to be honest, I won’t be doing this for any hobby and instead need a whole new way of looking at life and love the way Yoga does.

So my question is, where/how do I start? I was going to get a DVD but have heard they are ok for board housewives but if you have a conditions such as mine you require tuition. Is this true?

Also, there are so many disciplines of Yoga my research has concluded. Are any better suited to balancing you mind foremost and so ridding me of this illness? What discipline would be best for my circumstances?

Many thanks for reading so far,

Kola

#2

High there

Its true the best start into yoga practise is with an expierenced teacher. Espacieally in your case with all the problems you seem to have you need a good and loving guide for not to end up more confused than you allready are. Im sure you`ll find one in your surrounding.
All the best
loads of light clearness and happines
Lars

#3

Dear Kola,
I want to first acknowledge what you are doing right now to manage your anxiety and depression. I think it is always best to do something (even medicate) to help move us out of our pain enough so that we can go looking for a better way. It is very difficult, if not impossible, to discern what would make a beneficial change while in a state of anxiety or depression. You are doing a great job taking care of yourself with the tools that are currently at your disposal, but it sounds like you are at a point where you can see that it could be better, and so now you’re looking for more.

I am going to include 2 links here. One is to the site of Amy Weintraub, the author of [I]Yoga for Depression: A Compassionate Guide to Relieve Suffering Through Yoga[/I] (Broadway Books, 2004) and the other is to the site of Richard Miller, the author of, [I]Yoga Nidra - The Meditative Heart of Yoga[/I]. You can buy the books at any online retailer, but their personal sites just offer more information on them and their books. These are 2 tremendous tools for anxiety and depression.

As you explore your options, I think it is essential that you stay in communication with all of your health care providers regarding your goals for yourself. Meaning, you tell them if you want to someday be off medication completely or if you would like to augment your current treatments to make it more comprehensive–whatever your personal goals are. This will help to keep you safe as you explore and try things out. I also want to say that there are people with organic conditions that benefit greatly by psychoactive drugs. Stay open to whatever you need and work with what benefits you.

What works best for immediate comfort from high-vata conditions (what we consider anxiety and depression to be in Ayurveda and Yoga therapy) is be gentle, gentle, gentle. You and your nervous system need to be soothed and treated with loving-kindness to start to heal. This can take shape in so many ways: a restorative yoga practice, avoiding movies, books and company that provoke you negatively, avoiding alcohol and caffeine, keeping good company who support you, self massage, keeping a journal, gratitude practices, baths, affirmations, long walks, whatever makes your heart sing a little louder. Be the sweetest friend to yourself.

Amy Weintraub: Yoga For Depression- How Yoga Can Change Your Life
Richard Miller: yoga nidra book and CD - Yoga Nidra: The Meditative Heart of Yoga - Richard Miller

Best wishes to you in your good work.
Namaste

#4

I had similar symptoms, and i used medication. With the right doctor it can work, although Prozac is sort of archaic. Not my business though. Anyway. I have found that the yoga helps along with a balanced diet. Personally i wasnt getting enough vitimans, minerals, and probably even Omega 3s.

Good luck with that. Tell me how it goes, i want to see if somebody with your (our) symptoms are able to lead a life without medication. Personally i want to go off the meds asap, but being in school the way i am, for only a few more weeks, I dont want to risk a relapse.

Aside note, they say that people with adult-onset ADHD/ADD often develop depression/anxiety. This may or may not be what you are experiencing. If it is, there are also studies that say that Omega-3 fatty acids help in the struggle against ADHD/ADD. It seems to help me as i take flaxseed pills now, and have not immediately taken my medication for ADD (although i have taken the medicaiton for anxiety), and yet i have felt great. But then you dont have to listen to me, i have only heard all this on hearsay anyway, so it could all be bogus.

B Red.

#5

Hi Kola,
I have done yoga (what most people now define as the postures) for 12 years, and looking more and more at the effect of certain foods on my body…but in the end it’s not all that which [B]really [/B]helps or has helped me to return to my true peaceful, content nature. It all helps up to a point, but the deepest help is to know my thoughts. The unexamined thoughts are really what caused so much emotion and suffering. Please check this woman and her method out, as well as yoga practices and diet. Her name is Byron Katie. If you spend some time looking at the interviews, you may want to check out a book by her or the web site.

YouTube - BYRON KATIE PART 1

Hari Om,
Soul

#6

This work is already built into yoga practice and dates back about 19,000 years before Byron Katie was conceived. But however it reaches people I am in favor of.

#7

[quote=Kola;5431]Hi everyone.

I like many suffer from anxiety, panic disorder, stress ect ect blah blah so much so I cannot work anymore. I am in my 30’s and have worked since I left school.

The NHS have me on a super high does of Prozac and I get counseling etc monthly. None of this is helping my condition. My monthly meeting are nothing more that a ticky box exercise to see I am not a danger to myself or others (I’m not and never have been) The prozac is great in the here and now but where is this leading. It is only postponing the inevitable as I can’t take it forever.

I realise the solution to this problem lies with myself and not drugs! After much research Yoga seems it can help me. I have to be honest, I won’t be doing this for any hobby and instead need a whole new way of looking at life and love the way Yoga does.

So my question is, where/how do I start? I was going to get a DVD but have heard they are ok for board housewives but if you have a conditions such as mine you require tuition. Is this true?

Also, there are so many disciplines of Yoga my research has concluded. Are any better suited to balancing you mind foremost and so ridding me of this illness? What discipline would be best for my circumstances?

Many thanks for reading so far,

Kola[/quote]

Hi Kola,

For lotsa answers, do join to my group at this URL: pawan_yoga : Pawan Yoga

C U there

Allan

#8

The name you are looking for is Swami Sivananda, Divine Life Society, Rishikesh, His Opus Magnum: “Sadhana”.