Sleeping Tiger Dahn Yoga Posture
Born in New York Hospital before mergers and name changes, a baby boomer with a body well formed for sports, I began cycling as a way to breathe, relax, meditate and enjoy nature. I shortly graduated to running and played softball during picturesque spring season breaks. It was beautiful to see and feel the early morning dew on the grass and cherry blossom trees. Thereafter I took on more serious and competitive sports like basketball. It was challenging and the start of my first foot injury.
In college I transitioned to tennis because all my friends were playing and I loved attending the US Open every fall season. Tennis is such a graceful and timely sport; for me it was like dancing to the beat of the ball. Around this time I noticed a change in the way I was hitting the ball, now very hard and with anger especially if I missed the target. My feet were hurting.
I visited to the Podiatrist and was diagnosed with arthritis and poor arches. Why didn’t I know this before? This was my second injury and the beginning of serious foot problems. Now I was using an orthotic and in pain daily. Pain was something I was accustomed to hearing others talk about but up to this point it had not been my personal experience. For family reasons, I transferred from New York City to Henderson, Nevada and discovered I had a chronic foot problem especially when the temperature changed. My feet were very often cold and numb with cramping which would occur when I was driving.
I can remember one instance where I thought to pull over on the side of the road while I was driving because my foot really hurt. No longer did I enjoy a simple thing like walking. I knew this was trouble so I went to the Podiatrist who recommended a new orthotic which I purchased. He told me to massage only around the affected area and of course recommended surgery. The new techniques would not affect the surrounding nerves. Well I didn’t have the surgery and the situation worsened. The only sport that wasn’t painful was swimming but if the water was cold it would aggravate the problem. What a drag no sports, no dancing and lots of pain and discomfort from wearing fancy shoes and boots. On my next visit to the doctor, he tried to convince me to have surgery.
Shortly thereafter while escorting my mom to a pain doctor, I picked up a Dahn Yoga pamphlet and the same week following an energy evaluation I joined the Henderson Center. After a couple of months the pain would come and go then after nine months the symptoms began to occur only occasionally. I’m now working on flexibility exercises in and around both feet. It was my feet that motivated me to join. I love my feet and now have new feet and a new body. I thank Dahn Yoga, my trainers and the Henderson Center for improved health, smile, and peace.
Simone
