Maintaining a Healthy Heart
W
ould you be surprised to know Trial, Dr. Ornish successfully reversed a complete health system of how to live
that heart disease and other heart disease in his patients involved in our lives. It is medicine, but it is slow
chronic diseases can be pre- his program of diet control, yoga, (asa- medicine, balancing be-ing with do-ing.
vented and reversed? Diet, the manage- na-postures, and pranayama-breathing “Our technology has speeded up our ner-
ment of stress, and adhering to an exer- techniques) relaxation and meditation vous systems. We need to slow it down“,
cise routine correlate directly with the techniques, and group support. Dr. Or- said Paula. Yoga leads us to a new way
quality of your life. nish and Nischala are disciples of guru of living, with a richness of tradition. It
“Studies have shown that over 85% of Sri Swami Satchidananda, the founder of allows for an expanded consciousness of
all disease is caused by stress” said Paula Integral yoga. loving, living and healing in our everyday
Scopino, owner of Sacred Rivers Yoga According to Paula “we have issues activities. In the variety of practices that
Studio in Glastonbury. Recent medical in our tissues.” The cumulative effect of were developed is the knowledge that we
research has shown that stress is a ma- stress on our bodies, and in particular are the healers. We can all take respon-
jor factor in causing heart disease, cancer our heart, builds up over time. Stress af- sibility for our health, our minds and our
and a myriad of chronic and acute dis- fects the heart in a number of ways. It can bodies. Medical professionals are part-
eases of today’s world. And heart disease cause coronary arteries to constrict, slow- ners in our healing, not the fixers. It is the
is the number one killer in the modern ing blood flow. Stress hormones raise the perfect merging of the world of facts with
world. It is an equal opportunity malady, blood pressure and heart rate, putting the world of knowing.
with women being affected as much as added strain on the heart and increasing Another aspect of participating in a
men. Women’s symptoms are more sub- the need for oxygen. Stress hormones can yoga practice is the emotional release re-
tle, with fatigue and general weakness induce changes in the blood to cause it to alized by the student. Yoga, with its gentle
and mild chest and stomach pains. This clot more easily. Yoga’s ability to balance approach, leads us. Deep relaxation tech-
is in contrast to the classic symptoms that our physical, mental, emotional and spir- niques along with awareness of breath are
men experience with the crushing chest itual bodies helps to manage stress and key components to this program. Emo-
pain which may radiate to the shoulder, may lower the risk of a heart attack. tional issues bubble up and are released
jaw and arm. Both sexes may experi- The yoga portion of the Lifestyle which allow the heart to heal. Science is
ence nausea, sweating and shortness of Heart Trial, which was designed by Nis- coming to understand what philosophers
breath. chala, is a version of the Integral yoga and writers have known for centuries.
Paula Scopino offers the gentle yet taught by her guru Swami Satchidanan- The heart functions on many levels and is
powerful Yoga of the Heart program, da. Dr. Ornish’s program also includes more than a hardworking muscle pump-
which adheres to the principles set forth a low-fat vegetarian diet, no smoking, ing blood throughout our body.
by author and teacher Nischala Joy Devi and some aerobic exercise. Patients who Sacred River Yoga offers many kinds
in her books The Healing Path of Yoga, participated in the Lifestyle Heart Trial of classes, as Paula does not subscribe to
and The Secret Power of Yoga. Working actually reversed the symptoms of their a single style of yoga. She encourages her
with heart specialist Dr. Dean Ornish and heart disease. Yoga played a key part in students to listen to their body. What is
cancer specialist Michael Lerner, Nis- the success of these patients in that it re- right for one person may not be the best
chala Joy Devi has developed yoga and duced stress and stress related habits like match for another. Many students of the
stress management programs designed smoking and eating too much. Yoga of the Heart class are recovering
to break the cycle of poor health. In his Paula attended the Yoga of the Heart from heart surgery, or are looking to pre-
ground-breaking work Lifestyle Heart class at Kripalu in Massachusetts. Yoga is vent heart disease. “I see a trend in people
taking an active interest in their health-
care. They are discouraged by the high
medical costs and are looking for ways
to contain them. Living a healthy, mind-
ful lifestyle is one way to do that”, she
said. Through yoga students are able to
maintain a sense of well being in dealing
with the day to day stress of modern life.
Submitted by Nancy Hinchey. For more
information on Yoga of the Heart, please
contact Paula Scopino at 860.657.9545
or www.sacredriversyoga.com.
See ad on page 7.
10 NaturalNutmeg www.naturalnutmeg.com
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