Pain Management

Published on March 13th, 2023 | by Catherine Tingey

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Yoga for Illness and Injury

Yoga for Illness and Injury

We all experience periods of sickness and health.

One of the most touching parts of my job is being asked to assist people with their healing.

It has always been my honor to assist as I know how much internal strength is required to seek help when we are suffering.

Over the years, people have come to me with diagnoses of cancer, chronic pain, exhaustion, drug addiction, depression/anxiety, disc herniations, stroke and even neurological disorders.

The wise are motivated by pain to seek tools for self-healing.

If I think I’m able to help, and once cleared by their doctors, I design a program and we begin.

How Can Yoga Help Me With Pain?

1. Pain relief through relaxation of nervous system (tools taught include breath patterns and restorative yoga poses)

2. Pain relief through gentle stretching leading to reduced muscle tension

3. Pain relief through guided meditation and visualizations

How Can Yoga Help Me Heal My Body?

The yoga system exists for one purpose – to create homeostasis in the body. In biology, homeostasis is the state of steady internal, physical, and chemical conditions maintained by living systems.

In yoga, this state is described by the marriage of two concepts–steadiness and ease.

Steadiness is Sthira. Ease is Sukha. When both sthira and sukha are cultivated, harmony is created in the body and this is the optimal healing environment.

Testimonial from Current Client who began yoga in 2019. He was in pretty bad shape when we began and I am so proud of him now.

“My journey with Catherine began with me just out of the hospital, I was so beaten down that I was having difficulty walking. Three years later, I’m in better shape than I’ve ever been in my life, and the yoga has been a very large part of that! Zoom has been working quite well for the lessons, thanks to Catherine’s eagle eye and attention to detail… not to mention her personal warmth and relentless positivity. I can highly recommend.”

-Evan C., Consultant

There is also the occasion, albeit less common, where I feel someone will be better served by a different modality.

This happened in 2020 when I saw a client for an evaluation but did not continue working with him. I recall going over the allotted time of the session, discussing many topics related to pain relief and particularly the mind-body connection. Then I did not hear from him for a few years.

Last month I received this email:

Dear Catherine,

I just wanted to write you a quick note of gratitude for our session a two and a half years ago.  After talking to you I read Dr. Sarno’s works and discovered that my back pain is generated by my psyche.  

I’ve been in psychoanalysis for two years now and my back pain is mostly resolved.  Before starting psychoanalysis the app Curable and the network of providers it pointed me to was also a tremendous aid.

Thank you for your honesty and compassion and putting me on the path to understanding that my excruciating back pain was asking me to turn to my mental health and psychic life.

Thank you for your work and for making my life better.

-Name withheld

After teaching for over a decade, I now see myself as merely a guide. When I began, I thought I HAD to fix people’s bodies.

Now I see that I just provide tools to the client which they can choose to implement. It is amazing what miracles of healing our luminous bodies are, if only we take the time to tend to them.

The tools can include working with me.

The tools can also direct a client to someone else’s work.

Ultimately, all healing is an inside job, undertaken by the individual – sometimes solo, sometimes with guides.

If you feel I can help you with an injury or illness, feel free to reach me here.

Namaste,

Catherine

Catherine Tingey

Entrepreneur, yogini, designer, award-winning filmmaker, personal trainer and former marathon runner. She left a career in finance to start her own business and along the way, became a yoga teacher. She has been practicing yoga for 31 years and teaching privately for 11 years.

Tags: Pain Relief, Self Healing

About the Author

Catherine Tingey+ Entrepreneur, yogini, designer, award-winning filmmaker, personal trainer and former marathon runner. She left a career in finance to start her own business and along the way, became a yoga teacher. She has been practicing yoga for 31 years and teaching privately for 11 years.