Natural medicine, yoga, acupuncture, etc.

[Holden McNeil]

Social conditioning tells me that Yoga is for girls, but i'm really intrigued by it (not because girls are in the class - then again... ). Getting really supple and combining stretching with meditating, feeling really relaxed and vital - sounds cool. Do any guys here do Yoga, or something related? I'd like to know a little bit more about it, from a personal perspective. I know a Bowen Therapist, but that's about the most experience I have - with that you massage the person, then leave them in the room alone for a while to let 'the energy do it's thing' (or something).

I've heard Yoga is good for sports players. What's the general opinion in the PD sense?

And acupuncture intrigues me, too. My family think i'm nuts. Has anyone had experience with acupuncture? Is it all it's cracked up to be?

Chime in with any other cool natural stuff, i'd love to hear about it.

[mind-energy]

Acupuncture is Chinese traditional healing practice. It should only be done after being diagnosed by a TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) practitioner. It can help in many conditions and does work.

There's also a variant called acupressure where you use pressure for on the acupoints, so no needles are needed. Although might be not as good, it can still help and has the benefit that you can apply it on yourself without much knowledge.

You can see the below acupressure instructions for getting rid of stuffed nose for an example:
Get rid of stuffy or running nose without drugs
Also see:
Acupressure points guide

And you're not nuts. A billion Chinese can't be wrong

[HolisticWellness.com]

LOL, Holden. Most serious professional athletes do some kind of yoga.
Remember, real men are man enough to do things once considered "girly". And secondly, remember that equating something "girly" with "bad" is a form of misogyny. I am sure you love women and know we are very wise and often grounded in our bodies due to the life-cycles that move through us. We are certainly wise enough to do yoga--and hopefully wise enough to find a man who also does yoga (he'll be around longer than someone who dies of a chronic disease!)

[fdr]

Holden,

Yoga is, according to Answers.com, a Hindu discipline aimed at training the consciousness for a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquillity. The word also refers to the system of exercises practiced as part of this discipline to promote control of the body and mind.

Discipline. Control. Very masculine words, yes? Also very much the language of PD... hmm!

In American culture, more women do yoga than men because (a) American culture says women have to stay in shape and be beautiful, and also (b) the insight/spirituality aspect is more socially acceptable for women to access than for men. Are there other aspects that enter into your "social conditioning" beliefs? Do these dynamics limit you in other ways besides exploring some non-Western practices?

You might want see if you can dig down closer to the source of your resistance. You didn't say you were afraid of trying a yoga class, per se, but my sense from your post is there's maybe some fear of rejection or ridicule from your family and peers. So you might ask yourself, "why am I scared to just go to a yoga class and find out what it's all about?" "Because it's not socially acceptable." "Why do I care if it's socially acceptable?" "Because I don't want people to laugh at me." "Why do I care if they laugh?" "If they laugh at me, it means they think I'm stupid." "Why does that matter?" etc. etc. [This may not be at all how your inner dialogue actually runs; I've no idea -- just offering it as an example.]

You might see if there's a yoga class just for guys in your area -- they do exist; you are not the only man who's ever experienced this apprehension! Or you might just choose "trying a yoga class" as the risk you choose to tackle for yourself on a particular day. Keep us posted!

[Holden McNeil]

Originally Posted by fdr

You might want see if you can dig down closer to the source of your resistance. You didn't say you were afraid of trying a yoga class, per se, but my sense from your post is there's maybe some fear of rejection or ridicule from your family and peers. So you might ask yourself, "why am I scared to just go to a yoga class and find out what it's all about?" "Because it's not socially acceptable." "Why do I care if it's socially acceptable?" "Because I don't want people to laugh at me." "Why do I care if they laugh?" "If they laugh at me, it means they think I'm stupid." "Why does that matter?" etc. etc. [This may not be at all how your inner dialogue actually runs; I've no idea -- just offering it as an example.]

Awesome comments guys And they all kinda pointed to the same thing, which is something I didn't really notice that well until now. This quote really hit me/woke me up. Probably the biggest issue i've noticed about myself is something like this (or v. related.) Just from reading it i'm tempted to go try out a class now. Why should I care about other people's opinions? If you don't like it, bite me. If anything, it would force a new belief set. Cool huh? Thanks!!

[Mark Lapierre]

I've been doing yoga since early this year and I have to say, I'm in love with it. I feel fantastic after every class, where fantastic varies from a deep sense of calm through to smiling happily at strangers as I bounce down the street.

Even beyond the strength, stamina and flexibility benefits yoga has improved my posture quite a lot. I still have a long way to go, but over a decade of slouching isn't going to be cured in less than a year

Girls do form the majority of the each of the different classes that I've taken, though there has also always been at least one other guy. One of the two I've stuck with is taught by a guy.

Some people somehow form the impression that yoga is all about sitting in one position for hours and fear they won't get any actual exercise, or even fall asleep. Perhaps that might happen in some classes, and those inexperienced in meditation will find themselves drifting off sometimes and the start and end of class. However the style of yoga will dictate the level of activity; I've practiced the ashtanga and hatha styles and the differences between the styles, as well as the differences in teaching style of my two favourite instructors, are the reasons I've continued to go to two classes. The ashtanga classes often leave me dripping sweat, carefully walking down the stairs so my exhausted legs don't collapse (of course you don't have to push yourself as hard as I do. In fact pushing yourself so much is discouraged), still feeling fantastic (though no bouncing ). Hatha focuses more on holding poses for a little longer, but is still challenging from the start.

If you're near Richmond, or would consider traveling there for classes, I can recommend one instructor who not only teaches yoga with great patience and attention, but also incorporates personal development into her classes, from a spiritual point of view. She regularly reads passages from Eckhart Tolle. Many people would consider her 'new-agey', but I'm sure you can look past that.

The other class, also in Richmond, is taught by a guy with a hell of a lot of knowledge about physiology so is of course very good at correcting posture. His classes are smaller, so that, his level of knowledge, and a tendency to move through the poses more slowly, mean more time to get things as close to perfect as possible.

PS: Yes, the girls are a bonus

[Mark Lapierre]

Originally Posted by Holden McNeil

Has anyone had experience with acupuncture? Is it all it's cracked up to be?

I got so carried away with yoga that I forgot to respond to this. I've had one experience with acupuncture (three sessions with the same practitioner) and it left me feeling very disappointed. But I'm suspicious that the complete lack of results was due to poor application rather than an inherent lack of efficacy. However I got much better results from a specialist physio so I didn't try another acupuncture practitioner. Serves me right for choosing a practitioner based on proximity as opposed to independently verified merit

[elainevdw]

A professional acquaintance of mine is this opinionated guy with tons of tattoos and quite the attitude. He also practices some pretty potent martial arts. Someone recommended he take a yoga class, and he said it was one of the best workouts he's ever had. He's still doing it, far as I know! If you want to see a guy kicking ass at yoga, check out one of this guy's DVDs. I believe each DVD has a demo of him doing advanced Ashtanga yoga moves -- it's totally insane, the moves this guy can do. He's insanely strong!

As far as other natural medicine, some people consider chiropractic work to be "alternative," but it took care of my mild scoliosis when I was a kid, and also alleviated my asthma (makes sense, since if your spine is curving improperly behind your chest, it will constrict your breathing). My primary care physician is this great homeopathic doctor, too, that I've been seeing since I was young. He has this super cool biofeedback machine that reads energy in points on your hands and feet. He uses a mix of homeopathic and Western medicine, and I was always impressed by how he relates to his patients.