How yoga helped young Henry who has cerebral palsy.

How yoga helped young Henry who has cerebral palsy.

When my son was in primary school, a parent from my son’s class approached me and enquired about the benefits of yoga in children. After a time, she asked if I would be interested in doing a one-to-one session with her son. Although in a mainstream school Henry has cerebral palsy and at that time was graduating from his wheel-chair to a walking frame. As Henry had difficulty in keeping up and participating in school sports his mother, with the school’s consent, thought it a good idea that Henry did yoga whilst the rest of his counterparts tackled the bats and balls.

So began my relationship and friendship with 8 year old Henry. Every Friday I would arrive at the school just after lunch, Henry and his aid waiting eagerly outside the reading room (chosen for its clean carpet and appropriate space).

Once I removed his AFOs (splints), socks and shoes the lesson would begin.

Henry has a slim, slight body-frame and with his inner glow and shining spirit it was easy to lift him when I needed to. Mostly he got around by himself. Henry’s attitude and enthusiasm made teaching easy. He was always willing to give things a go and together we’d explore the poses to discover his potentials and limitations.

Mostly I would concentrate on lengthening the back of his legs and strengthening his upper body. Through the poses Henry learnt the names of various muscles and bones in his body. “Ouch Vim – my hamstrings are talking to me!” or “I’m trying Vim but my humorous doesn’t want to budge!” is some feedback he would volunteer.

The lessons were a combination of yoga poses (using names of animals and shapes as much as possible), visualizations, stories and games. We would draw pictures, travel to far away countries on a magic flying carpet, chant ‘AUM’ together and count the chimes of the Tibetan bells. The activities were endless.

Two years later another boy with cerebral palsy and the same age as Henry arrived at the school and consequently joined our Friday yoga sessions.

It was when this second child arrived that it occurred to me how much Henry had improved. Slowly, quietly and surely the yoga had changed Henry’s body.

With a second student I could measure how much Henry had progressed. Also his self-esteem soared. To ask Henry to demonstrate or explain a pose to the new comer was the high-light of his day.

Mentioning this to his mother she confirmed that she had noticed how much better his posture was. His aid commented that his concentration and focus in the classroom had improved plus the twitching and sudden jerky movements (nervous system) weren’t as frequent.

Our yoga sessions continued for another two years until the boys left for high school. As a special treat in the last term I photographed the boys during a session and sent the photos to them during the school holidays. I asked the boys what they thought when they received the photos.

In a slow, slurred voice (his speech is slightly affected by the CP) Henry answered “I was so proud of myself." My heart melted. I simply smiled and replied “We’re all proud of you Henry.” 

It was a joy and privilege to work with Henry. He's in his early twenties now, living in New Zealand and I believe is pursuing a landscaping career.

Written by Vim Lane 2014 (certified Iyengar yoga teacher)

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From my high school yoga students .............

“Today, again, felt really calming. I had a headache prior to the lesson & the yoga definitely helped it. The sun salutation sequence was really fun & the yoga made me feel like my body was extending itself. Then visualisation at the end was by far the most helpful to fully eradicate my headache. Yoga surprises me in the way that simple, seemingly easy exercise can break quite the sweat!” (Tammy – Year 9)

 

“I feel so relaxed that it’s crazy. I never really took yoga seriously, but if it can make my body loosen to this degree, it’s definitely doing something good. During visualisation my brain was abnormally calm & clear. Usually I have thoughts popping everywhere but during visualisation I just relaxed. It’s a very calming experience, both mentally & physically.” (Nami – Year 10)

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