“Maybe in the photo, you might not be able to find any notable changes in me. But I don't know how to tell you about the changes that have come to me mentally – says Anushree, a resident of Alappuzha and an official of Ambalapuzha Geojit. What stunned Anushree, however, was not just the weight loss (she knocked off 9kgs in six months), but how most of her health issues also seemed to get resolved. There was a time when she would require pills to regulate her periods apart from the unbearable pain that came with it. She lets us know her secret.
The unbearable pain
She has been suffering from PCOD for years. Though she didn’t have many issues during her pregnancy or after that, she gained a lot of weight. For years she was battling with body weight issues. When she visited a gynecologist, she was told the only solution was to lose weight. She had hormone imbalance. Scanning revealed fatty liver. She took medicines for six months to regulate her monthly periods. When she took tablets, her periods would be regular. However, it would soon become irregular once she stopped the medication. She used to get periods only once in two months. Also, the pain was unbearable. She also had sinus and headache. Later, she started suffering from migraine.
She was consuming so many tablets that she felt tired throughout the day. So she decided to control her diet to lose weight. But even after 2 months, her weighing scales showed that she was only gaining weight.
Unexpected developments
It was during that time that her husband who was based in Oman decided to join a yoga session. However, when he could not join, she was asked to attend the classes. Though she was initially reluctant, she later decided to join. While she started, she was instructed by the yoga master to keep a photo of her current weight. She suffered body aches, initially. She was also briefed about a diet. Though it was difficult to follow the diet, she completely avoided sugar in the first month. That also brought her a lot of mental relief. Just after a month, she realised, she didn’t require medicines for headaches. Now there is no migraine issue also. She didn’t realise that yoga could make such a difference to her headache. So she informed her husband that she wanted to continue yoga. So she remitted fees for three months and resumed her classes.
It was because she was fed up with taking medicines for PCOD and headaches that she wanted to lose weight. When she joined yoga she weighed 67 kgs and during the second month, she had lost four kilos. Earlier she would find it exhausting to walk even a small distance and would get tensed over small things. But during the second month, all these issues vanished. Daily she would keep aside everything to do yoga for 30 minutes between 6: 30 to 7:30 pm. By February she had reduced nine kgs and had reached 58 kgs. Along with the weight loss, another visible change was that she no longer needed tablets for PCOD and migraine. She also didn’t require medicines to regulate her periods.
Each class starts with meditation. That meditation immediately clears your mind. Now she is restless if she doesn’t do asanas and warm-ups. A yoga session helps her relax. The butterfly posture for PCOD was very beneficial, she adds.
Bidding goodbye to darkness around her neck
The weight loss gave her confidence and she started wearing clothes, which she usually avoided in the past. One thing that haunted her was the dark colouring around her neck. Doctors had stated that it was because of hormonal imbalance. She had undergone treatment for this. But to no avail. However, once she started doing yoga, the dark colouring vanished.
She adds that she no longer has muscle cramps or pain while standing for long stretches. Her yoga master has recommended her to reduce the intake of rice. Instead, she was asked to include protein-rich food in her diet. That’s when she realised that she was eating the wrong diet all her life. She does tell her friends and family about the magic of yoga. She never thought a day would come if she would be able to survive without tablets. It’s been five to six months since she has taken medicines.
