My Journey - How Yoga Helped Me with My Anxiety and Autoimmune Condition.

When I tell people about Yoga Therapy and explain to them how Yoga Therapy is different from a Yoga class, the question that follows usually is why I became a Yoga Therapist. The answer is quite easy; It was my own story.

In my early thirties, I was quite a stressed person- running a construction business, being a mom, wife, and juggling similar problems as many of you do. With time, I was becoming more and more fragile. Even the smallest issues used to overwhelm me. I wasn't the person I wanted to be. It was hard. Not only for me but my family as well. I was moody and easily irritated. When I finally decided to seek help, I got diagnosed with depression and anxiety.

Lexapro did help. It stabilized my mood, and as long as I was taking the pill, dealing with daily problems became easier. I got quite comfortable with this setup until I decided to take my daughter (then maybe 9 years old) and her one year younger cousin for a few days to Disney World! Solo!

I know, right?

And I forgot to take my pills. If you ever had to be on antidepressants or know someone who is or was - you can only imagine. I survived to tell the story, but I realized there must be some other way to manage my mental state.

Unfortunately, not much later, my Dad got diagnosed with an advanced stage of bladder cancer. I became his primary support system. I was driving 40 miles to his home almost daily, taking him to doctor's visits, chemo treatments, and spending as much time with him as I could while still trying to keep my household and business from falling apart. It was stressful.

Soon, I realized that I had to stop 2-3 times to take short naps during a one-hour drive. My hair was falling out. My feet and hands were cold all the time. I soon learned that I developed an autoimmun