Participant Reflection - Marilyn

Working with Master Yang in his weekly online back pain program has been a life changer.

Five years ago I could not stand for more than ten minutes. The pain ran from my buttocks down one leg all the way to my foot. Before meeting Master Yang I had found some relief working with physical therapists, but progress had stalled, and I still could not walk any distance reliably without pain. Dancing, which is a big part of my social life and involves a lot of bending and twisting, was completely undoable.

After two years exploring the chronic pain program I am essentially pain free. I still feel a mild ache when I overdo it, or sit too long without paying attention to my posture. But I am back to jogging, and to dances that last three hours. I do my everyday household activities without a thought. Pretty good for age 74.

The pain is gone. What has not changed is my spine. I probably still have whatever degenerative processes I started with, herniated discs and narrowing of the openings where the nerves leave my spine. It feels like a miracle, because the adjustments I have made do not seem large. I did not cure my spine. I learned to live in harmony with my bones, joints, muscles, tendons, and nerves, and the pain went away.

I have learned how important it is to move slowly, in all directions, with and without twisting. It also helped to learn how to shift my weight smoothly and efficiently from side to side and front to back. Now I can sense when my back is not aligned. All I need to do is pay attention to my posture and notice where there is tension, in the spine, buttocks, hips, or legs. Noticing even when I am not in pain is key. It seems to lead naturally to making the necessary corrections.

I also discovered that the pain in my ankle is due to tight muscles and tendons and probably unrelated to my spine, but I have been able to apply the same principles and solve that problem too. By doing very slow and gentle stretching of the ankle and toes, and relaxing between each stretch, I have almost completely eliminated this pain. When my leg does become uncomfortable, it is easy to fix in a few minutes, unless I have overdone it, in which case it may take a few more tries.

This has been such an interesting journey for me. I am a longtime meditator, and even with years of watching my breath move in and out, I had not learned to pay attention to the whole body.

Now I am more attuned, and what a lesson that has been.

I am so grateful to have met Master Yang. His influence will last for a long time.

— Marilyn H., 74