Who Am I? . . . another key to self healing!!

Who am I really?

I am jumping to an answer, an esoteric one. I haven’t realized it yet but have read the essence of the "so-called" answer in many answers given by the great meditators, the realized souls.
Tat tvam asi - "'That' you are" or “you are 'That'”! 
Here 's my humble attempt to articulate my understanding of 'That' and ways of applying this awareness for self-healing.

Who is ‘That’ and who am ‘I’?

I am Pragati! Pragati Oswal! That’s the first answer I reach when I question who I am. A daughter to my parents, who bestowed upon me, the name-form!  Who else am I? I deconstruct various parts of my life creating an endless list of ‘tags’ - a daughter, a sister, a friend, a wife, a mother, a student, a therapist, a healer, an acquaintance  etc.  – It’s all me. (Nothing new from anyone’s point of view!)

But that is how another identifies me. I am all that too, but I am not only that.  Who am I?

I take a good look at myself in the mirror for a very familiar ‘reflection’ and say, ‘That’ is Pragati. Then I look at my picture when I was younger, a face, a body I don’t relate to any longer. But back then I still identified with another face of mine.  If I was Pragati then, who am I now? I still am Pragati! Something in me remains the same, unchanged, unaffected by the change in my bodily appearance with respect to the time gone by.  Clearly, ‘that’ which remains unchanged in me is not my body.  In other words, something in me is not subject to my body.

Also, I wonder what influences change in my body? The obvious answer is age. Age is but a product of time. What else? Environment, lifestyle, habits, circumstances, situations, relationships and the stress which comes in tow, all are but products of time.
Yet ‘that’ (which remained constant while my body changed) did see ‘Pragati’ as she went about her multiple phases collecting relationship ‘tags’, know-hows, degrees, laurels, “phobias and –philias”, affections and affectations etc. ‘That’ in ‘Pragati’ is independent of ‘Pragati’ as she changes but it accompanies the changing ‘Pragati’ at all times.

Can you identify that 'That' in you? If you don’t, try to read again while you replace my name with your own and the nouns and pronouns according to your gender (if you like). Can you identify that 'That' in you - “The Witness”, beyond the ‘Pragati’?

If you have succeeded in identifying 'the witness', please proceed to the next exercise (for self-healing) else my friend like my another ‘self’ (which always requires a more logical explanation) I’ll find another, a finer analytical way to help you identify the witness, but, another time in another blog.

Exercise for healing pain – physical and emotional (Remember to replace my name with yours)
Ask these questions in the same or a different order for some time (20-30 minutes or more)

1. Ask your pain “Who are you?”
2. Who is the pain? 
3. Which part of ‘Pragati’ is the pain? 
4. Go back in time when 'Pragati' feels pain free.
5.  Who is ‘that’ which remained unchanged in Pragati then?
6. If you don’t feel the unchanged part, repeat the first five steps a few times. Proceed to the next one only after you get a momentary glimpse or a feel of that unchanged within.
7. Focus on the unchanged, the pain free.
8. Command yourself to revert to the unchanged.
9. Become the unchanged, become pain free.
10. Repeat the whole exercise at least 5-6 times. It'll take you about 20 - 30 minutes.

In the beginning you might feel only a momentary relief in the pain. With a bit of practice, you can alleviate the pain at will. If you merge with the unchanged, you won’t have any further questions (or so they say), but do remember to write to me.

To you and the witness within
Pragati

P.S. A humble note - ‘That’ has been called Sat-Chit-Ananda or existence-consciousness-bliss, the brahman or the universal spirit but I haven’t reached that conclusions as yet.

Talking to your DNA

There is no incurable disease, there’s only an incurable person – One of my Guru’s said to me.

After some contemplation I concluded “a person is definitely not the disease but a person can become the disease”.  Does that still seem cryptic? I thought as much!

One of my spunky friends’ put it rather simply “When you believe that there’s no cure for you, you can die of anything you like”. Bingo!

Some of you (my regular readers) who have read my previous blog “Faith and Treatment” might sense a contradiction.  No Sirs! I don’t ask you to have faith, but I askyou to keep an open mind. Presume neither magical recovery with alternative systems nor the impossibility of getting better or responding to anything. When you close your mind you ordain your body to be into a subtle resignation.

What is it that you want? Do you really want to get better? If you are trying hard to fight illness, then continue to do so.  In Swami Vivekananda’s word s, “Stop not till the goal is reached”.  In the process monitor what therapy works for you and the extent to which it is useful.  Do understand that your goal is to get better and nothing other than that.

Some thought lines that detract you from your goal of getting better:

No one cares for me.

They are responsible for my deteriorating health condition and stressing me out.

Now that I am sick, you’ll have to listen to me and pay attention to my needs.

Now that I am sick are you happy? – REVENGE.

I hate myself, I can never forgive myself.

I have wronged others, now I’ll bear my punishment with resignation.

Things will never change.

What works for others does not work for me.

We channelize our energies towards proving that we are right. If you find yourself holding on to any of these belief systems, then trust me you don’t want to do that if you really “real”ly  want to get better.

Through our thoughts and actions we constantly change our physical state of being. At cellular levels, the messages get registered in our DNA unconsciously. When you mediate upon your goal, the process becomes a conscious effort towards changing the being in you. Meditation is known to enhance healing capacity and there are various explanations for the same. I am still contemplating on my Guru Mantra “Meditate to talk to your DNA”. How to mediate?  Another blog, another time!

To Health and Wellness!!

Why this Kolaveri di? Anger and Disease

This article explores “anger” as a mental pathogen. It is probably as dangerous to the body if not more, as all the deadly viruses and bacteria known to us. Let’s understand a few concepts first.

What is disease? In plain simple words,Lack of ease! “Ease” depicts both simultaneously, the state of mind – freedom from anxiety, concern, worry, tension, agitation, constraint etc. and the state of body – freedom from pain, labour, physical annoyance or irritability etc. Clearly, “ease” is both, a physical as well as a mental phenomenon.

In an era where stress has become pandemic, mind is recognized as the seat of most of the ailments. This has been known to us in India through ages but is today accepted even in the Western world.

According to Yoga Vasistha,disease or Vyadhi can be classified into two categories, Adhijavyadhi (the psychosomatic or stress borne diseases) and Anadhijavyadhi (psychosomatic, non- stress borne diseases).

Non-psychosomatic diseases have an external cause like injury, accident, infection, pollution etc., these need to be, and are usually treated quite efficiently with medicines, surgery, nutritional supplements and physiotherapy.

Psychosomatic diseases on the other hand are caused due to strong emotional reactions based on subjective likes and dislikes, attachments or repulsions, raga and dvesha. So, these are rooted in the mind. The Psychosomatic diseases are further divided into two categoriesSaraand Samanya. The formerrefers tothe health conditions that are present by birth like developmental anomalies and congenital diseases. These, according to ancient Indian belief system are due to Karma and can be overcome only with self-realization. The second category psychosomatic diseases “Samanya” are acquired during one’s lifetime due to one’s emotional reactions like anger, fear, jealousy, guilt, humiliation, obsession etc. to various stressors like conflicts, deaths, adversities, occupational targets, expectations, adaptation difficulties, peer pressure etc.

A disturbed mind or a stressed mindis one of the leading causes for generating, precipitating and aggravatingcardiovascular conditions, auto-immune disorders, gastro-intestinal disorders, depression, anxiety, musculoskeletal aches and pains etc. Many symptoms of such problems can be and should be alleviated through medication especially in acute situations, but long-term prevention or cure is possible only when the mind is addressed.

“Anger” is one of the biggest mental-stressors. One can most definitely feel the blood pressure rising along with anger. In fact, anger in one form or the other is a mental root to many healthconditions.

Auto-immune disorders could be translated as the natural intelligence of the body gone wrong or the memory cells of the immune system getting confused making the body attack itself.

Bhagavad Gita states something similar:

Krodhaatbhavatisammohaha, sammohatsmrutivibramaha.

Smrutibramshaatbuddhinaashaha, buddhinaashaatpranashyati (Ch-II, 63)

Anger leads to delusion which confuses memory. When memory is confounded, it attacks intelligence, when intelligence is lost, the man falls down.   

Anger translates itself into auto-immune disorder at the mental level. From the mind, the disorder percolates into the body. In her book,You can heal your life, Louise L. Hay suggests that the leading cause for cancer is deep-seated resentment.

We also attack ourselves through constant anger against ourselves in forms of self-criticism, self-hatred, cursing one-self. The body only concurs with the mind by attacking itself in return.Louise L. Hay traces the roots of Arthritis and many other inflammatory disorders “itis” to the feeling of being “inflamed with anger”.

Jealousy, traditionally referred to as the “Green Eyed Monster”is another form of continuous anger.The Greeks associated jealousy with excessive production of bile (a greenish liquid produced by the liver). Popularly, anger is described as “Bile rising in the throat”. Well the bile does rise, leading to digestive distress and potential damage to the lining of stomach and oesophagus.

Many of us hold “Anger”. Buddha describes anger as a hot-coal held in the hand with the intention of throwing it at someone! A hot coal held for long only burns the entire hand.

With a bit of observation one can easily trace these correlations. If any of these hold true for you then “Why this Kolaveri di?”If you cannot avoid getting angry (like myself) at least cease to hold on to it.

To health and Wellness!!

Yoga For Weight Loss: My Experiments With The 100 Suryanamaskars

My Dear Readers

I personally experiment with as many popular theories (my profession related) as I can. For those who are still unclear about “What I do”, please look up the previous blogs. I have decided to share some of my experiences andachievements as well as my mistakes and short-comings.

Suryanamaskar – a rhythmic series of various yogic postures is the most complete and holistic form of exercise. It simultaneously works on the over-all stamina and the flexibility of the entire body without making one go out of breath. The known benefits of practicing suryanamaskars include regulation of digestion, menstrual cycle, sleep-pattern, metabolism, weight, stress response and an improved skin tone and memory. Weight Loss, Fat Loss and Inch Loss however remain the most sought benefits.

Due to all the hype about “size-zero figure - the 100 -Suryanamaskar remedy” and a zillion questions from clients, patients and colleagues, I decided to put the theory to test (2010).

Having been a yoga student, therapist and practitioner for almost 10 years, I had the pre-requisites - a flexible body, a good stamina and a kind of consistency in my practice of yoga in its various aspects. Also, being well-aware of my nutritional needs, my diet till date usually consists of 1800-1900 calories per day. Being 5ft 5 inches in height, 58 kilos in weight and with a BMI (body mass index) of 21.2 kg/m², my aim was to come down to 50 kilos so that my BMI would be close to the size zero BMI of 18 kg/m². 

The golden rule of yogic practices is to go about them slowly and steadily. I started with my warm-up, stretching routine and on the first day itself I found it quite easy to do about 36 suryanamaskars continuously. By the end of the first month I could maintain the continuity for 50. By the end of 50 suryanamaskars I would be drenched in sweat but never out of breath. Doing 50 wasn’t really a big deal anyway. During my Masters’ training we used to practice 4-7 sets (12 suryanamaskars = 1set) but not in continuity. We also maintained many yogasanas, each for at least 2 minutes if not longer. 

Anyway, by the end of the second month, I built stamina for 65 suryanamaskars at a stretch. After that I found myself pushing harder for every extra-suryanamaskar. I remember the day I hit 75 and experienced a peculiar strain in my back. My back strain surfaced time and again. More often than not I would find it hard to persist beyond 60 – 65. I used to practice 5 days a week on an average. Whenever I took a break for a day or two, I found it easier to do suryanamaskars. By the end of the 3^rd month, I had lost 2 kilos but I had also started to feel washed out after my yogasana practice. I took week’s break.

In the meantime, I came across an extra-ordinary yoga practitioner from Poland, who was pursuing PhD in physical education. He was55 years of age then, didn’t look a day older than 40. He told me that he could do 1008 suryanamaskars at a go, in 2 hours 50 minutes. He demonstrated over 150 suryanamaskars in about 25 minutes before my eyes. Although I found it hard to believe that he could do 1008 (isn’t that a little over the top?), but the ease with which he performed 150 or so, was quite incredible. He also told me how, at once, he had been almost obsessive about attaining Padmasana (the lotus pose) and ended up with broken knees and a year of rehabilitation.

I noticed that as this gentleman increased his speed post 10^thsuryanamaskar or so, he switched to moderate stretching while bending forward and during spinal extensions. I adapted this in my practice and managed 80 suryanamaskars without back-strain. Also, if I practiced sets of suryanamaskars rather than practicing them at a go, I could do 100 without any strain.

By the end of 4^th month I remained 56 kilos. I did not lose any additional weight. I think one’s diet has an integral role to play if one wants to attain size zero. Probably one needs to go on a diet lower than 1800 Kcal. Being in one’s ideal weight range (BMI = 18.5 – 24.99 kg/m²), it becomes difficult to shed extra kilos for the “fashionablyideal” size zero target, by suryanamaskars alone. An overweight person can drop kilos and inches faster till a certain point, but to make the transition from medically ideal to fashionably ideal BMI definitely poses a challenge. Also, an overweight person with a background of sedentary lifestyle requires at least 6-8 months of regular yoga practice for significant changes in flexibility, weight and inch-loss.

So, I did not become size zero in 4 months. Maybe I needed to persist for longer. Probably I needed to couple suryanamskars with a different diet plan. Will keep you posted about my future experiments.

Until Then…..CIAO!!

Faith and Treatment

“Do I need to have faith in your treatment to get better?” I get this question quite often.

The answer is “no you do not need faith as a pre-condition”. 

The forms of alternative medicine that I practice (Various aspects of Yoga, acupressure/sujok, mind-body medicine and energy healing) have a high therapeutic probability.

For example, the possibility of a headache responding to an acupressure point (Li 4) or an “Aspirin” tablet is quite similar. An acupressure point (Gb 31) can usually alleviate general back pain as quickly as a muscle relaxant gel. Some yogic practices like regulated breathing, Yog-nidra can work like a tranquilizer for almost everyone in general. 

Having said that, I would also like to add that, in my field, the treatment has to be individualized at various levels. So, the expertise of the therapist plays a very significant role. The same set of acu-points, meditative techniques etc. might not work for four different people with ostensibly similar symptoms.Many times due to a therapist’s incompetence, alternative forms of medicine are dismissed as a matter of faith.

Coming back to the question of faith - Faith as I understand, is a product of mind, a metaphysical phenomenon that has tremendous influence on our perception and response to situations and circumstances. 

Did you know that 35% of patients get better even on placebos if they have faith in their Doctor and his expertise?

Let’s call “faith” a kind of an interest, liking or keenness, an inclination, positive attitude, an assurance or a kind of open-mindedness. In our general lives if we take up something with an open-mind or with interest, our chances of achieving the goal become higher.  

Interest or inclination gives us extra momentum or motivation to work hard tirelessly, effortlessly and naturally.  

In the absence of interest, formula II, our dedication and hard-work (even if we crib about it) will help us achieve our goal.

So, whether or not you have faith in the treatment, you would need sincerity and patience to respond well to my treatment. 

I say sincerity, because my treatment usually requires one to do a bit of homework, whether that involves introspection, mind-body sensitization, relaxation exercises, self-acupressure, breathing or asanas or permutations and combinations of all these.

I say patience because some of these practices will require more time and effort than popping in a pill.

Treat meditation, asana, pranayama and an acupressure point like a non-invasive and a non-pharmacological medicine. Just like you pop in pills at regular intervals, you are required to take in the prescribed alternative medicine combination.If you follow it with interest topped with a hint positive attitude or faith, you will respond faster. 

Medically, I ask you my friend what do you base your faith on?

• A Theory which has proven itself in practice. (Most of my techniques are a combination of well researched scientific studies with a probability or p ≤0.05) 
•  A convincingly logical possible outcome/explanation. (I’ll be happy to give you one, if you have a question.) 
•  A testimony from a trusted one. 
•  A therapeutic experience which has broadened your perspective.

If you agree with one or more of these, we are on the same page. 

To Health and Wellness, Cheers!!

Pranayama and Stress: A Breather for the Symptomatic Soul

Well, you are stressed! It’s a long story, there are too many complications and you are confused or helpless. The situation may be out of your control, but your breath is not.
So, Breathe!

Do you raise those eyebrows when I say the “B” word? More often than not you can’t breathe away your problems. You’ll not find instant solutions either. Neither will you experience a “miracle”. You can, however, prevent and manage many symptoms that sustained stress has already made you vulnerable to. Also, you might be pleasantly surprised when your painful conditions get alleviated.

Do you have tense muscle groups around your neck and shoulders? Is your blood pressure on the higher side? Does your back-pain worsen when you are worked up? Do you have trouble going to sleep?Are you prone to indigestion in general?  
Then, you need to check the way you breathe without waiting for your symptoms to first make their presence felt or worsen.

Physical as well as mental stress affects the body the same way. The former is characterised by fight or flight. In other words, the body girds itself for immediate action when danger is perceived. Stress response leads to sympathetic activation that automatically, involuntarily, inhibits the digestive processes but increases activities like our heart rate, blood pressure, pulse-rate, respiratory rate etc.When the danger subsides, the body restores its original balance.

Mental stress translates itself the same way but tends to linger around for much longer. One can literally experience the heart beating rapidly, sweaty break-outs etc. under pressure or due to fear and anger. Even recollection of stressful or emotionally charged events can trigger a similar response in the body.

Whereas our blood pressure and heart rate are not in really in our control, our breath is. Although we generally breathe without awareness, we can, at any given time, control our breath rate at will. 

Breath acts as a bridge between the involuntary and voluntary activities in the body. Mental Stress translates into sympathetic activation that increases involuntary activities like heart rate, blood pressure, pulse rate, breath rate automatically. These can be stabilized by voluntary breath regulation. By consciously regulating your breath, you can influence your blood pressure, heart rate and the rate at which adrenaline is being pumped into your blood-stream. Once the breathing slows down the body systems automatically switch to the “relax” mode.

Pranayama is translated as rhythmic regulation of breath. By regular practice of pranayama one can reduce one’s breathing rate. Just like an athlete/marathon runner has a lesser heart and a pulse rate at rest compared to a normal person, a pranayama practitioner has a lower breathing rate in general. At rest, an adult breathes on an average, 12 – 18 times per minute. With regular practice of Pranayama one can reduce the number of breaths to 7-11 per minute.Consequently, one becomes less prone to sustaining the stress response.

By practicing pranayama regularly, keeping a check on the breathing pattern and breathing speed, and by regulating the same a few times a day, it is possible to alleviate, manage and prevent many symptoms of mental stress. So, Breathe!

One can start with simple non strenuous diaphragmatic breathing by placing hands on the abdomen and observe it inflate and relax. Simple humming, M-kara chanting with each exhalation regulates the breath indirectly.

For a detailed description of simple diaphragmatic breathing technique for relaxation and to know if you have the correct breathing pattern, please click on 
 http://missperfectwoman.com/?p=519.
 

Try it a few times. If you feel refreshed in less than 10 minutes, you know you are doing it right.

That’s all Folks!

How does Energy Healing Work? (A humble attempt!)

Here’s an attempt to demystify how Energy healing modalities bring about changes in the physical body. 

Energy healing is an umbrella term for many therapies some of which are, Pranic healing, Reiki, Qi-gong, Distance healing, Sanjeevani healing etc. The common principle being the ability of the healer/practitioner to modulate or direct the energy flow in the body of the person seeking help or in their own bodies, to bring about a therapeutic effect.

Before I explain how this happens, let’s look into some concepts.

There's matter and there's energy, interconvertible according to Einstein's theory of relativity
(E = mc²). If the theory is to be believed (the one's who don't, needn't go through the rest of this blog) consider our physical body as frozen energy. Apparently this lump of matter, solidified energy can be diffused or converted into its formless, expansive, invisible state. To put it simply, the visible, palpable “matter” has the ability to vanish into thin air.

Have you ever wondered what happens when an extremely fat person reduces in size? The accumulated fat "burns" away, shrinking the physical body. The previously large body, more matter, gets converted into a smaller body, lesser matter. Where does the excessive matter, the fatty layer, vanish? Does it get diffused? If so, into what?

What happens when we eat food? The food gets digested, energy is released, chemical processes take place converting food into other simpler substances which get stored in the body. Glucose is stored as glycogen, and when we are required to run or fight (or during the sympathetic activation) the glycogen gets converted to glucose which provides the body with energy to perform. By these examples one can understand in a simple way, the interconvertibility of energy and matter.

The vital energy layer which surrounds our body is called "Prana". At a gross level Prana enters our body through our breath which is why Pranayama has immense therapeutic significance (My next blog will elaborate the working principle behind therapeutic benefits brought about by breath regulation). Prana is what makes us alive, what makes us conscious. In Chinese it is referred to as "Chi", in Japanese “Ki”; One can usually feel Prana in forms of nerve-impulse like tingling sensations, pulsation, muscular contractions, heat wave on paticular areas or some sort of a magnetic field. Prana shouldn’t be confused with a nerve impulse as that travels only in a particular direction. Prana isn’t bound by direction.Too much Prana or too little Prana makes its presence felt in our physical body. Inflammation, spasms, pain (too much)on the one hand; Weakness, paralysis, numbness (too little) on the other; The fraternity of energy healers try to bring about a balance in the Pranic sheath to bring about equilibrium/homeostasis in the body.

Let's now look into the properties of energy in general. Energy is neither created, nor destroyed, it is only converted from one form into another. Potential to kinetic, electrical to mechanical, so on and so forth. Energy transformation takes place constantly in our body as well. It is easy to relate to this kind of transformation while we eat or move about. When we are stationary, externally we possess potential energy although internally our body processes are being carried out through energy conversions.

How does one explain the "thought-process" via the energy nomenclature? What kind of transformation could be possible? How does too much thinking induce a headache or a heart-attack?

Thoughts are usually understood as the potential possibilities or potential energy, however there's most definitely some sort of kinesis that they induce in one's own body.
For example, a good-luck wish, a compliment or a genuine smile from another elevates our mood. Another's attitude towards us affects our mood as well. So, another person's thought-energy can influence our own with or without our acknowledgement.

One of the working principles behind any kind of distance healing is similar (not exactly the same though). The healer channelizes the thoughts towards the healee. With the help of concentration and visualizations the healer manages to induce changes in another's body. Infact it is possible for one to heal oneself with the help of certain breathing techniques and visualizations. Also, with a bit of observation and practice one can develop the sensitivity towards pranic manifestations like tingling, pulsation, heat wave, vaccum sensation etc.

It’s thrilling to see the reactions and responses of the participants when I conduct workshops on Pranayama and Pranic energization.

One has to suppress the limited logical mind for a while for the para-rational to work (Let’s not call this a matter of faith, call it open-mindedness). Once you experience, you don't deny. Believe it only when you experience it, when you experience, try to explain. It isn’t always possible to verbalize what one feels, but if you can it might help many others who know you well to understand the same. Testimony from a trusted one goes a long way. Mine did!

Click on this link to know my first experience with energy healing-
http://www.pragatioswal.com/Story.html

That’s all folks!
(For those who find this sign-off lame, know that I loved the road runner show. LOL)