The power of yoga after breast cancer surgery
Recently I had a lovely experience in class with two women on either side of their breast surgery recovery. Both of them have had a mastectomy and reconstruction. One of them was totally new to class and the other has been coming to class for a few months.
The latter, lets call her Hanna, came to speak to me at the end of class to let me know that she was going to be returning to work so would only be able to attend during school holidays as she works in education. She wanted to express how thankful she is to have had these classes and how much yoga has helped her, so much so that she had encouraged a friend to come along who had had the same surgery several weeks ago so she too could benefit – the new person in class that day!
From the outside I could see how much Hanna had improved in terms of strength, range of movement and ability to relax. However, it was so lovely to hear how she felt about it. I in particular for her the biggest gain, apart from her physical improvements, was that she had gotten her confidence back. Confidence in her body to recover, confidence to challenge herself and do exercise, confidence to go back to work.
Confidence, or lack of, can be life changing.
This renewed confidence in her body and her ability to exercise safely will positively impact her long-term recovery. Maintaining an active lifestyle and doing regular exercise is proven to cut rates of recurrence. I suggested she walk daily and try out a slow mindful yoga class in a local centre now that she knows how to take care of herself in her yoga practise; what to avoid and how to modify. Of course she is welcome back in my class any time, but it is a nice feeling as a teacher to know that someone may be at the stage where she may no longer need such specialist help.
Feeling optimistic and confident makes it easier for people to make healthy choices, from what we eat and drink to spending quality time with friends and taking part in hobbies we enjoy. Who hasn’t stayed home and binged on TV and ice-cream at least once because we’re miserable?! Instead it can create a virtuous circle that helps people transition from being a full-time medical patient to living their life in as normal a way as possible.
Being part of that process is what makes this such rewarding work. Of course it is never a smooth ride, there will be setbacks, layers of emotions to process, fear will pop up at random times and rarely does having had a cancer diagnosis ever leave someone completely.
Many people say they are forever changed, but this is not necessarily a bad thing.
Some of the change is a body that is permanently altered in some way, such as a mastectomy and reconstruction, and this is a new normal to adjust to. It is often through life’s biggest challenges however that we discover what really matters to us, what unknown inner strengths we possess and who are the people who are actually there for you. They say knowledge is power, and perhaps self-knowledge is the most powerful. I have seen those realisations help people to create a life more in alignment with themselves, hold better boundaries and move towards joy. That I would call a positive change.
The beauty for me in this story is that Hanna then became one of the people there for her friend, both helping her access the class and being there with her for her first visit, metaphorically handing the yoga baton on to her. Being in a position to help someone else can be empowering: moving from passively receiving help to giving it, feeling that there is something useful to offer and being strong enough to give it. That is something we as yoga teachers can help people achieve and that too is some of the joy of teaching!
If you would like to become a specialist Yoga for Cancer Teacher, you can find out more about the accredited training course I run and apply for a place here:
If you would like to book a discovery call to find out if it’s the right thing for you do email me at hello@yogaforcanceracademy.org