It’s a story that inspires ideas of the fountain of youth, and of an eternally healthy and strong body. Yoga as a means of healing ailments, and of promoting a healthy body holistically. Could it be true? New York native Anna Pesce says she is living proof that it is.
Back in 2014, then 85-year-old Anna had been living with debilitating scoliosis, osteoporosis, and a herniated disc on top of it all. It left her with horrible pain, and during one fateful visit to visit her children in South Carolina, it all became too much. She was experiencing shooting pains up her back and had to be carried up the stairs. The poor thing had to spend the rest of her visit in a wheelchair. (1)
Scoliosis Won’t Win
But when Anna returned home from her visit, she decided enough was enough. She had tried acupuncture, chiropractic visits, and physical therapy too, but nothing was giving her sustained relief from the pain. Help came in the form of a yoga instructor named Rachel Jesien, who happens to suffer from scoliosis as well.
What is scoliosis? Essentially it’s an unnatural curvature of the spine. If you’ve ever seen a person with a “hunchback”, that is likely scoliosis. It can be very painful, as it causes the vertebrae not to fit together properly. This puts pressure on the sacs between the vertebrae, not to mention pulling everything in your body out of whack. The spine is part of what’s known as the “axial skeleton”. (2) It’s your axis, the center from which everything else balances.
What is yoga? The very short answer is that it puts things back into balance. The whole purpose of the poses commonly referred to as “asana” is alignment and neutrality… a nice blend of yin and yang. Yoga poses are meant to foster strength where it’s needed, and flexibility wherever that is needed too. A lot like physical therapy, certain poses can be used as a fast-acting healer for pain. Others can be sequenced to work one set of muscles, then another, in order to achieve that balance of strength and stretch in every part of your body.
Slouching is not just a posture issue, it’s a health issue. In the video above, Meggie explains how our daily living contributes to neck and upper back pain. Identify the root of your pain so you can stop the behavior making you hurt in the first place. Try 10 reps for each of the neck exercises Meggie covers in the video to help decrease the effects of Dowager’s Hump and prevent further risks or more serious conditions. For an added boost, massage a magnesium spray from myKore Essentials onto sore muscles for fast relief. Topical application bypasses the digestive tract for immediate relief!
Scoliosis + Yoga: Hard Work Pays Off
Yoga is slow medicine, but also strong medicine. A little dab’ll do ya, but you must be consistent. Little by little, an effort toward healing can be made in the application of these moves and practices. The key is in the diligence of practice. Anna saw improvement quickly, which is fairly typical, and that was thankfully enough to keep her coming back. Though the before and after photos are astounding, they represent a lot of work and a lot of dedication. Honestly, probably a good amount of discomfort too.
But as with any practice, it gets easier, and years later she’s still at it. Anna gave herself the gift of a strong and healthy back, which is wonderful. But maybe the best gift of all was proving to herself that she could do it, make that uphill climb toward a better quality of life.
