Barbara Joseph has been teaching yoga for north London’s Complementary Health Trust (formerly the Immune Development Trust) for six years. She talks to Rose de Freitas about the benefits of Satyananda yoga for people with immune-related health conditions
How can yoga help if you are really ill?
If you get seriously ill, you suddenly enter a world of having things done to you. Tests and more tests, and even other complementary therapies like acupuncture and reflexology are things done to you. With yoga, the great thing is you’re doing something for you. This is one of the reasons why I believe it is so beneficial for people who have immune-related problems like HIV.
When you are ill you often lose confidence in your body. By practising yoga, you
will start to feel stronger and it uplifts you. You may even begin to love your
body again. As you start to feel more positive about your body, you often think
about confronting other potential bad habits, like giving up smoking or cutting
down on drinking - because your self-esteem improves generally.
The beauty of yoga is that it can be done in so many different forms and for such a variety of reasons. I don’t make a big thing about what kind of illness a person has, especially with something like HIV or immune-related conditions generally where it isn’t obvious from a person’s outward health that they are debilitated.
Above all, the great thing about yoga, apart from gaining suppleness and strength, is the sense of wellbeing one acquires from getting rid of stress and tension - if you practise it properly. Most of the battle with illness is spent in dealing with the stress of illness itself. This is where yoga helps more than anything.
My particular form of yoga is a gentle practice and is based on classical Indian yoga inspired by Satyananda, the guru who devised it. It emphasises working on the ‘chakra’ which are linked to the vital energy centres of the body. For instance, in the chest is the thymus gland that produces lymphocytes that are part of the immune system. We work on energy centres where key glands are situated, helping them to work more effectively in the body.
I
know a lot of young people are very into the more physical ‘power’ yoga these
days like astanga and iyengar, but I prefer the gentle and relaxing practice.
It depends what you want really, but when some people get ill they have a tendency
to go OTT and really push themselves. This can in fact result in muscle stress
and more stress generally.
Being in a group situation can also have a very therapeutic effect. Lots of people with HIV may feel isolated and I like to think my classes have a really supportive atmosphere. It doesn’t have to take that long at all before you can feel the effects of yoga. Obviously it depends on how seriously you take the exercises. But you can feel the difference immediately after one class. It’s great to hear people saying after their first lesson: “That’s the first time I’ve ever let go properly!” And I can often see the change in the course of a session too. At the start, an individual may lay down and fidget incessantly, then at the end the same person looks completely relaxed and still. A lot of the time, people don’t even notice the difference, but I do.
You
get what you want out of yoga. Some individuals take to it very easily and wholeheartedly
and these will start to see changes occur very quickly. Others may take longer.
It also depends what you want out of it. If someone takes it seriously, after
a session of weekly classes, I will often suggest other exercises to do several
times each week at home. My classes are mixed and for all ages from beginner to
advanced stages. Although in the case of people with HIV, my groups are predominantly
men. Yoga is more popular, though, with women in the general public.
I believe you must learn yoga from a teacher. Videos often show how things are in the more advanced stages, and it is essential to be watched and monitored when you’re learning. You need to find your level of physical suppleness. I’m not going to describe any of the exercises that we start people on; it’s best for you to come and find out for yourself.
As
well as my weekly beginners and advanced yoga classes that I do for the Complementary
Health Trust registered users, I also teach yoga generally to anyone who’s interested.
Yoga is just one of the courses offered to the CHT clients along with therapies
like acupuncture and refloxology, for example. The Complementary Health Trust
offers its therapies for a low-cost donation to people with HIV and other immune-related
conditions. It’s mainly a London service operating in 17 different sites across
day centres, hospitals, or community spaces. But you can access it from further
afield. You need to check first with the client service phoneline if your borough
is within the remit.
If you want to find out more about a local yoga class in your area, then the best place to start is with The British Wheel of Yoga. They are the main governing body of yoga in Britain and all their teachers are trained and qualified.
For yoga and other classes at the Complementary Health Trust (formerly the Immune Development Trust): tel 020 7704 1777 or visit: www.comphealth.org.uk
The British Wheel of Yoga is at: www.bwy.org.uk
If you wish to contact Barbara Joseph direct about her personal tuition, tel: 020 8348 4184.
Iyengar Yoga Institute: www.iyi.org.uk
Alejandra Trossero practises iyengar yoga and
has HIV. She says: “After taking an intensive 5-day course, I had a blood test
and had gone from a CD4 count of 400 to 1,400. Of course, you have to practise
regularly to maintain the balance. Even when I was extremely ill, I was doing
recuperative yoga postures and my CD4 count never went below 300. But for people
with HIV, my teacher says that when you practise iyengar yoga, you mustn’t overstretch
yourself. As soon as you start to feel hot and begin sweating heavily, you must
stop. Iyengar yoga is about alignment and the postures suitable for people with
HIV are designed to help increase circulation around the glands.
Alejandra works for the International HIV/AIDS Alliance
