"Yoga has significantly helped me with my ME. Coming to the Yoga for ME class has taught me how to do a more gentle type yoga which was more suitable for my health than a normal yoga class. I have sustained a yoga practice at home, and along with coming to the ME yoga class, has really helped my ME improve.
I feel yoga provides a time for me to rest my body and mind. The gentle stretches and relaxation exercises loosening my body and relaxing my mind. I often feel significantly better having done some yoga, and I think over time it is something that has helped me to start to get better from ME. I believe it is a factor that has enabled me to return to university to study Philosophy.
I would encourage anyone with ME to practise some form of yoga. Those more severely affected focusing on the relaxation aspect, those more mildly affected doing the more physical aspects.;"
By Francis
"I am finding the classes to be of tremenous benefit. It is a level of activity that I can usually achieve and has contributed to an improvement in my condition over the period that I have been attending. It provides a useful tool for helping to manage my condition from day to day by balancing rest and exertion although I still get this wrong far too often! The social contact is enjoyable and it has helped improve my outlook. I wish you continued success."
by Duncan
"I found the yoga classes extremely beneficial over the past six months or so. They provided some structure to the week which otherwise I often wouldn't have as I would feel too unwell for other activities. The mix of gentle stretching and breathing techniques was both relaxing and energising. The time felt very peaceful and was good for reflection and putting worries into perspective. The informal atmosphere and emphasis on only doing as much as felt comfortable was great and meant there were no worries – just being there was enough. It provided an opportunity to meet people in similar situations to myself, particularly useful was people my own age. It was nice to be able to chat without having to explain myself or my situation and was useful for swapping advice. Having different teachers was interesting as each has slightly different approaches and styles. I wish I'd found out about the classes earlier as I think they were certainly helpful in my recovery and it would be great if there were similar opportunities for more 'gentle' yoga around the country."
by Laura
"I have found coming to the yoga classes for ME invaluable in improving my health and in helping to manage the symptoms of my ME. Some of the benefits I've experienced include improvement in my spine, more flexibility in my joints, improved breathing, increased energy and increased mental clarity. After doing yoga I feel really relaxed. Sometimes when I am too unwell to do any physical postures I just go and do the relaxation and breathing excercises and just lie and relax during the active postures I'll still get benefits from this. The information I gain from the classes also enables me to practise at home. I am confined to my house most of the time and have not been well enough to have a social life for several years and so it's been great to be able to meet some new people."
by a member
"Fantastic – nothing else like it. Am not always well enough for social activities offered by the local ME group."
"Great help with the isolation, and raises profile of ME."
"Very good class; I like an activity where you don't have to explain yourself."
"Very good class; glad it’s there even when I can’t come."
"Would love to come back, yoga is very beneficial but it’s hard to motivate oneself to do it at home alone."
"I love getting the newsletter." (person who was often too ill to come to the class)
"Always feel better after the class. Would like 2 classes per week."
