YOU HAVE TO FIGHT! - Chris Cuomo
Chris Cuomo made a very important video on April 7th 2020 during his recovery form Coronavirus that is 100% relevant for those fighting this virus that has affected the entire world. It also got me thinking that the way he is telling folks to FIGHT your way back to better lung health and ultimately recovery from Coronavirus is the same way I have been telling people to fight for their physical, mental and emotional health for over 20 years. It is not the easy way, but if you want to fight for your health “Do It.”
Now more than ever, fight for your health. I used these same concepts in dealing with my arthritis pain over 20 years ago. It was not comfortable, but if I could I did it because I did not want a hip replacement at 32 and I did not want to take all the drugs. So I had to find another way and fight for my own physical health. I practiced the yoga through discomfort and balancing effort and ease for years, because it worked! It helped me feel better and put off my hip replacement for 15 years instead of the 3 predicted.
I have used the same principles for my lungs. When I was about 22 I got the worst case of bronchitis. For weeks if I went horizontal I had a violent cough. I had to actually get some sort of narcotic mixed in cough syrup. (I can’t remember what it was called.) I spent some time each evening on my porch just coughing…did I have whooping cough…possibly. It took months and several useless rounds of antibiotics to go away. (You can ask my best friend at the time or my parents who I visited and couldn’t believe how they needed to run a shower in a small bathroom for me to breathe.) By the end the doctor was ready to put me on asthma medication. I continued to get Bronchitis every April and Nov for years….until I started Original Hot Yoga. (Bikram method hot yoga)
The yoga literally healed my lungs and gave me a lung capacity I never had before. I have used our pranayama deep breathing so many times over the years especially after my C-sections and hip replacement when there is always a concern about developing pneumonia. I use to tell this story years ago, when the nurse came in with that machine to test your lungs, they were always blown away. Because I don’t wait for someone to tell me that doing deep breathing in a hospital bed will help, trust me it helped!
Too many folks don’t want to get uncomfortable and do the work. I don’t walk around my world lecturing people, I just lead by example. I will continue to receive compliments from all those in my life that tell me how great I look for my age and how they wish they didn’t have this or that pain in their life. I try to always smile and only offer advice if it is requested. So if you are asking, this is my advice; MOVE YOUR BODY. Use your lungs and breathe. It doesn’t have to be yoga if there are other modalities that work for you and your lungs. As Chris Cuomo was told, DO IT!
The last thing I want to say is my utter frustration with the healhtcare system in our county that is most reactive sickcare. Where is the Wellcare in this world? Where is the focus on proactive preventative health and good nutrition that would make us a stronger and healthier society? I hope this crisis will push us closer to that reality.
