A woman in my FaceBook autoimmune support group for Relapsing Polychondritis, asked me:
What if anything did you do to be in remission? Was it medication? Supplements? Good luck?
My answer:
I did tons of things! – diet and nutrition, herbs and supplements, alternative/complementary medicine like acupuncture, kiniseology/chiropractic/homeopathy!/reflexology, I was a vegetarian for 17 years (until I needed to eat meat during chemotherapy), finding the right doctors and experimenting to find the right combinations of the right drugs!, busted my ass to wean off all those drugs (years of death-defying, grueling, dangerous effort), I had support and help from family, friends, neighbors, spiritual community and I also had 13 Medicaid-paid caregivers in the 6 years I was going through the worst stage of the last relapse, LEARNING TO PRIORITIZE AND CHOOSE SELF CARE/SELF NURTURING/SELF LOVE ABOVE ALL ELSE, getting all the mercury fillings out of my teeth!!!, commitment to moving the vehicle of my body and aiming to sweat each day, learning breath awareness and how to control that precious breath of mine!, KUNDALINI YOGA and MEDITATION since 1978 which helped me break the smoking habit (10 years a smoker), lots of counseling – taking away the ‘ghosts’ of my life and rearranging my attitude, BIG-TIME support from the government and people of USA (I am Fully-favored Disability Status), I used to participate in 12-step programs (coda-alanaon-oa-naranon), etc, etc.
The most important thing I had to learn was that I mattered and that I was in charge of me and all aspects of my life. I had to learn to control the stress of my life. If I get stressed out to death and am not eating good and exercising, keeping up with my yoga and meditation, I relapse – I have proved that so many times in the course of my life. You can look at my medical history and the timeline of my life, and it shows how each time I relapsed, I was pulled WAY OFF CENTER by circumstances on the outside of me. I lost the sense of my own sacredness and there was a price to pay.
I am a teacher; that has healed me immensely and given me reason to ‘keep up’ and keep taking care of this challenging body of mine – I call it ‘purposeful fulfillment’. I work with chronic and critically ill people all over the world, now, and teach Chair Yoga to seniors and the handicapped.
I TEACH WHAT I KNOW and what I learned at death’s door by way of the autoimmune condition of RPC presenting itself to me over and over and over again since I was 18 – I’m almost 62, now.
PS: I forgot to add that I had a lot of personal work to do with self-forgiveness and also about how important it is for me to maintain my ideal weight and keep my body vehicle flexible and stretched out so my glandular and nervous systems can work right. And, I am in the water at aerobics class or doing laps 3 times/wk NO MATTER WHAT!!! since 1998 when the County Hospital Physical Therapy Program started me in the pool for rehab. And about how I had to learn to stop judging everything and everybody in the creator’s play around me – that, for every sequence I initiate in me, there’s an equal and opposite reaction.
How I see it now is that the RPC was my equal and opposite reaction for self-neglect and rigidity. My body revolted and attacked me and gave me no choice but to pay attention, learn (I had to learn!) to take care of number 1, find balance and relax, surrender control, allow and enjoy life. These are my lesson on this journey of self realization.
You made me think a lot about how to answer your question – thanks.
PSPS: Forgot to mention this – I sure know by FEELING IT, that sugar and gluten are major triggers for inflammation and every time I eliminate them from my diet, I can feel the difference. At least for me, they do not support remission of autoimmune activity.
PSPSPS: One more thing – The kind of yoga I practice is called the ‘the yoga of the householder’ because we have so many 3-minute powerful tools and applications for immediate centering. And then there’s always this moment when we can choose to relax, even if we’re really tired and stressed.
Guruatma serves as a mentor for those who suffer from chronic or critical illness, as well as their family members. To inquire about or schedule a one-on-one session, click here:http://yogic-tools.com/services/contact-us/.
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