Namaste, I was invited to share the story of my yoga journey with you, and it truly has been a deep and life-changing love affair. Yet it did not begin that way.
My path started in early 1995, not because I wanted to become more flexible or stronger, and not because I was looking for calm or consciousness. It was not a trend I followed. I turned to yoga because I was in pain. My back hurt constantly — every second of the day. I could not drive or sit in a car for more than two hours without severe discomfort.
At the time, I was a trainer at a gym when a young woman told me yoga had helped her scoliosis. I had the same condition, made worse by several falls from my horse and motorcycle when I was younger. I had herniated discs, and my spine was structurally compromised. So I decided to learn yoga. That is where it all began.
I started by reading and watching videos, and then an older gentleman named Dharmendra noticed me practicing at the gym and offered his help. Within three months, I was significantly better. He taught me how to use my breath to help my body move more deeply into the postures, and my body responded by becoming stronger and more flexible. I was no longer in pain. My life had turned around completely. The more I practiced, the better I felt.