Have you been diagnosed with cancer or do you know someone who has?

Yoga enhances physical and emotional wellness, it also brings about peace to many patients who had thought they'd lost it forever. Yoga is gentle, relaxing, holistic and healing. It rejuvenates your mind, body and soul. According to scientific studies, patients going through treatment for cancer feel better when they practice yoga as part of an integrative approach to treatment.

There exist in the world, a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices and products that are not considered to be a part of conventional, mainstream, western medicine. Complimentary medicine is the use of therapies used in conjunction with conventional, mainstream, western medicine, in an 'integrative' approach to treatment. Alternative medicine on the other hand is a substitute or used in place of conventional, mainstream treatments.

Yoga's changing role in society has integrated spirituality and medicine to effectively aligns these worlds, bringing the mind-body practice of yoga into a realm that overlaps healthcare. This practice leaves you feeling elated and relaxed rather than exhausted, and delivers a sense of wellbeing and balance which is so beneficial in dealing with the stresses of the modern world. Shanti Gowans' deeper understanding of the healing properties of yoga, in terms of the psycho-physiological underpinning of its curative effects, provides a part in the care of clinically ill patients.

The Shanti Yoga program supports recovery with the following:

• Conscious Breathing
• Helping patients obtain control of feelings and emotions
• Gentle, repetitive, flowing movements in Yoga which improves appetite and bowel movement
• Arm movements (especially breast cancer) which can also be helpful with lymphedema
• Restorative poses
• Supportive yogic props
• Guided imagery
• Deep relaxation practices that break you away from stress and helps you better cope with feelings of anxiety, fear, hopelessness and depression.

These enhance quality of life in the following areas:

• Sleep disorders - improved quality of sleep
• Fatigue - decreased fatigue
• Diminished exercise capacity - improved physical and mental function
• Unintentional weight loss
• Psychological stress
• Chronic (persistent) cancer-related pain, with the potential to reduce the side-effects of that may be associated with conventional pain medications.
• Better toleration of treatment-related side effects