Provides healing using yoga to
seniors in society
The
increasing senior citizens demographics within our society points towards a
pressing need for effective health initiatives that not only target physical
health but even extend themselves towards addressing emotional and social
needs. Senior citizens are often kit out with challenges such as mobility
issues, ailments, stress, loneliness, and a lack of avenues for engaging in
some sort of structured physical activity. Taking all these factors in mind,
our group chose yoga as the bedrock for the initial stage of our proposed
project.
One
reason that yoga is especially helpful to senior citizens is that, it is a
means of exercise that is accessible to all. By improving the elasticity and
strength of the body, senior citizens can avoid injuries that normally occur as
part of everyday activities. Furthermore, because it has such strong mind and
body benefits, yoga practice enables senior citizens to increase their
resilience to problems and reach a perfect internal peace that is well related
to our mission statement that aims to build the self-confidence and
independence of senior citizens. With this in consideration, we initiated a
four day yoga training sessions for senior citizens at Kirimatiyana Vidhyabandu
Piriwena under the expert guidance of Dr. Saranga. We received a phenomenal
response to it as well with 50 senior citizens joining our sessions on a daily
basis to learn.
Our
structure went beyond instruction alone. We ensured that each and every
participant had every opportunity to practice comfortably, both during and
after the sessions. A yoga mat was given to each senior citizen for continued
practice at home. At the same time, we were able to donate yoga mats to the
Kirimatiyana Ayurvedic Center. This enables members of the community who want
to learn or continue learning yoga practice. To also support their physical
activity, we provided them with a warm drink of herbs at the end of their every
session. This not only served to rejuvenate them after their practice, it was
also done based on traditional values to boost their digestion, treat
inflammation, boost immunity, and help them relax. All these small acts were also
done to ensure these senior citizens attained a holistic experience.
During
the course of the program, the feedback was extremely motivating. There were
people who mentioned feeling very relaxed and energized and mentally refreshed.
Others mentioned improvements in their mobility and flexibility and confidence
in their physical ability. There were obvious physical results. There was a
community being built here. The isolation was being broken that the seniors are
usually subjected to. This is the first phase of our project. This not only
defines how important it is to have constant wellbeing support for senior
citizens every time. In our case, by having health programs initiated by the
members of the community in mind, we are creating long-term effects. What we
witnessed in this stage gives us inspiration to move to our next phase.
By
Leo Yudara Bernard
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