Teaching a Man to Fish

by Baxter Bell

Having started out in the healing profession as a medical doctor, I always remember back to the times when patients presented with physical affects of aging. In those days, when my prescription pad was my only option, I felt I didn’t have many good tools for helping them. For example, when a patient would present with complaints of lower back pain related to arthritis, I would typically prescribe anti-inflammatory medication, rest, ice and heat, and possibly a few visits to a physical therapist. These days I find it much more effective to start with modified yoga practices and lifestyle modifications before moving on to a typical western treatment.

Yoga is a treasure chest of options, techniques and tools, some of which have developed over thousands of years. And these days, when people in my classes and therapeutic sessions present with difficulties that are the direct result of aging (such as arthritis, auto immune diseases, and high blood pressure), I feel like I can truly offer something of benefit. By giving my patients new skills for self care, including yoga poses, breath work, and meditation techniques, I am, as the Chinese proverb says, teaching them to fish:

“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”

Through this blog I’m hoping to be able to help you the same way. I’m also excited about the topics we’ll be taking on for the personal impact the information will have on my own life. I have been practicing yoga coming up on 20 years now, and as I look around at my contemporaries in age and background, I get the impression that my health is better than most of theirs. But I have big questions about why this is happening. For this reason the current scientific research on aging is very intriguing to me. And the process of getting new information and digesting it, and then figuring out its applicability and validity is one that I love. I start to look at it with a critical eye to determine how beneficial it is both to my patients and myself, and then present it in a more realistic and accessible way. The blog will allow me to the share this ongoing process with you.

We'll be answering questions this week in a Friday Q&A post, so please ask any questions you have for me by leaving a comment. Tomorrow, Brad will hold forth.

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