"How did yoga save my life? Where do I even begin?"
This is Katherina, RYT200, follower of Taoism and environmentalist. It's an honour for us that she agreed to share this powerful story for #yogasavedmylife
"I started yoga as a self taught 4 yrs ago.
That was during one of the hardest period of my life. I forgot what sober felt like. I mastered being drunk sober without anyone noticing. I wore long sleeves all the time because others might notice the copious amount of injuries hidden under those sleeves. It was awful and wasn't like I had a choice. I certainly didn't deliberately want to be sad and macabre. I Couldn't help it.
Yoga stumbled into my life almost accidentally, when I was drunk and miserable at an airport!. Through some articles I learnt of poses that could ease migraine and decided that they looked easy enough to do (they weren't). Turns out, yoga can be hard! I was perplexed how some 'simple' poses could be so incredibly difficult. How a year of self inflicted abuse could reduce my strength and flexibility to zero. So I struggle. Everything was hard, even breathing was hard.
My competitive nature kicked in and I wondered how I could improve myself. My friends actually installed IG for me and asked me to see pictures on this wonderful little app. In IG I discovered some phenomenal teachers. I read what they wrote and I was inspired. Such kind selfless souls giving instructions and notes of encouragement ❤
I joined challenges with my limited skills and I realized that I couldn't do anything if I was drunk, so I stopped drinking. Can't even put my palm on the mat if it was bleeding, so I stopped inflicting injuries. So I learned.... Yoga diluted my competitive nature. Humility also allowed me to acknowledge that I needed help, I needed to heal. That was when I learnt how to breathe behind tears, and that was the first time in months I could finally sleep 🙏 Years into yoga, I am still learning and still reading, however, pain and sadness no longer drive my life. The stubborn darkness is slowly replaced by positivity. Yoga is like a magical force of unicorns and rainbows.🙏 How did Yoga save my life? Where do I even begin!"
