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TIMES ARGUS and in the RUTLAND HERALD on May 12, 2002.
By PATRICK JOY Staff Writer

Theora Bailley Ward says she is no longer afraid of dying. Diagnosed in 1998 with breast cancer, Ward found herself facing some of the deepest physical, emotional and spiritual crises of her life. But now, just four years later, her face radiates a deep peace and her calm, deliberate movements confirm her words.

Traditional medicine has helped her battle the terrifying illness, but Ward’s focus, hope and healing has come not only from surgeons, but from the movement of her body, the control of her breath and the quiet of her mind.

For Ward, Yoga has taken over where the doctors and nurses left off.

And more Vermonters like Ward are discovering that Yoga’s benefits are not limited to the young, New-Age culture gracing the covers of fitness magazines but for the young, old and even the sick.

"I’ve found that I can do things with Yoga that I couldn’t do with nursing," Ward, a registered nurse, said. "I think it supports allopathic [western] medicine. It gives the rest of the body the spirit to come through the harsh physical treatments.

" Coming back to the discipline after her diagnosis, Ward has begun sharing her discoveries with others through her own Yoga practice in Hinesburg and Burlington. And now, she is giving back in an extremely personal way, leading an eight-week class for women whose lives have been touched by cancer.

"It’s something I’m very passionate about," she said. "As I went through my own treatment and faced some very harsh things, I knew I had to get back to Yoga. I had practiced Yoga when my kids were little and always loved it. So, I signed up and it really brought me through the trauma.

" Ward practices and teaches Kripalu Yoga, a gentle Yoga that includes the physical postures or Asanas, and complements them with breathing and relaxation exercises, meditation, nutrition and visualization.

"This is a 5,000-year-old science," she said. "There’s a lot more to it than putting your foot behind your head, which I haven’t been able to do since I was 10.

" Some Yoga disciplines, like Kripalu, are holistic, linking the mind, body and spirit and moving beyond the postures, while others are more closely focused on the body and its movements.

Yoga postures are likely more than 5,000 years old, observed in stone seals dating from 3,000 B.C. The postures involve placing and sometimes holding the body in a specific formation, with English-translated names ranging from the "Downward-facing Dog" to the "Lotus." Contrary to a popular misconception, the poses are not designed for only the most flexible among us, but are easily adapted to all ability levels and provide a progressive process in which flexibility gradually increases.

"If you can breathe, you can do Yoga," Ward said.

Yoga’s history is most easily traced to the ancient Indus-Sarasvati civilization, and blossomed in part as a reaction to Buddha’s influence in the sixth century B.C. Stressing the ideals of mediation, ethics and morality, Buddha moved away from the physical focus of Yoga. Many Indian Brahmins (priests) thought this view was limited, however, culminating in the philosophies of Yogi Matsyendranath, who believed that the body was not ready for meditation before it had been purified through the physical practices of Yoga.

Modern Yoga arrived in the United States in the 1800s, but exploded as part of the New-Age movement in the 1980s and early ’90s. It has grown since in both numbers and credibility, and its health benefits are being touted as more than just strength and flexibility.

"Yoga is not a treatment, but a consciousness that allows health, balance and joy to be your companions through your entire life’s journey," writes Nischala Joy Devi at the Commonweal Cancer Help Program.

Her words are echoed by Ward.

"Yoga is so freeing," she said. "It allows you to see life as a journey and to know that all the parts of that journey are OK.

" YogaGallery.com lists 22 reported benefits of the practice, ranging from physical improvements such as back strengthening, to emotional advantages such as depression and anxiety treatment, to more spiritual rewards such as promoting joy, peace and kindness.

For students such as Sheila Callan, a Calais native now living in Burlington, the range of paybacks has been enormous.

"You find resources that you didn’t know were there," she said. "It’s also a way to come to terms with your mortality." Like Ward, Callan has been forced to confront breast cancer. Diagnosed in 1994 with an advanced form, she has had several more bouts of the disease. But through her one-on-one studies with Ward, she says she has come to a place of peace and strength with her condition. "The sense of peace you get from Yoga is amazing," she said. "I’m still here, I’m going to continue to get better, to recover despite negative odds. I do not feel terminal, I feel like I actually embrace my life and life in general more."

For Ward, the emotional and spiritual benefits translate directly into physical advantages.

"The key thing is that I’m convinced that when your body can really relax, the immune system functions at its peak," she said.

Ward says that modern life and our reactions to it often trigger a fight or flight response. A function of the sympathetic nervous system, the fight or flight response readies our bodies to deal with an immediate physical danger by pumping adrenaline into the system, tensing muscles, increasing heart rate and blood pressure and stripping blood from non-essential processes like digestion. The body, however, cannot differentiate between external physical threats and internal emotional ones, leaving people suffering from anxiety and fear ­ whether from illness, work or family stress ­ in a constant state of tension. This is not, she believes, the best state in which to fight an illness such as cancer.

In addition, she points to the inward focus of Yoga as key to recovering from invasive treatments such as surgery.

"Surgery can trigger post-traumatic stress disorder in some people," she explained. "I was one of those. It can take several years or more to get through. Yoga helps you find that place of peace and strength and once you find it you always have that place. That’s what I want to give to my students."