"It was like the end of my world," says twenty-eight year old Penkhra Jitjamnong, of being told two years ago that she had breast cancer. "I had so many questions, like why me? There were no right answers. I didn’t know what to do, and I didn’t know what to say when people would ask…
Read moreBreast cancer in Thailand
Worldwide, it affects millions of women: It killed 385,000 women globally in 1997 and one in nine American women will have it by the age of 85. But there is some good news on breast cancer: with an increasing awareness of the disease, and more sophisticated technology, the early detection and treatment of breast cancer…
Read moreWhere to do yoga in Bangkok
Although the history of yoga stretches back some 5,000 years, in Bangkok yoga has been taught formally for only around 40 years – rather surprising if you consider that some scholars assert that yoga practice is central to Buddhism. There are many different styles of yoga, with the main differences stemming from what component is…
Read moreA breath of fresh air: Yoga for expatriate women
The air might usually be filled with thick traffic fumes in Bangkok, but that doesn’t mean you should hold your breath. In fact, you’d be doing your body and your mind a great service if you were to learn to breathe properly in Bangkok – or anywhere else. Practising the ancient art of yoga can…
Read moreJust breathe
Canadian Lesley Hogya, an Iyengar yoga instructor currently teaching pre-natal classes in Bangkok, certainly makes yoga during pregnancy sound like a treat. "It’s a special time in your life, especially if it’s your first pregnancy, so you should indulge and take care of yourself. Yoga poses can nurture the pregnant woman in a way that…
Read morePre-natal poses
“Yoga poses can nurture the pregnant woman in a way that other forms of exercise won’t. Lying on bolsters and having pillows and blankets all around you – I mean, how luxurious!. And then being told to just lie there and breath…” Canadian Leslie Hogya, an Iyengar yoga instructor currently teaching pre-natal yoga classes at…
Read moreSpiritual moves
Yoga has been around for longer than any archaeological records; by its very nature, it leaves nothing behind to point to its existence except for tales of the amazing powers possessed by some of the best yogis. In Bangkok, yoga has been taught formally for only around 40 years – which is rather surprising if…
Read moreWalking tall
Around the globe there are a whole lot of fitness-freaks slowly coming to their senses. These are the people who maybe started aerobics in the ‘80s but have now had it with jumping around interminably on carpets stinking of sweat; or they’re the joggers of the ‘90s who are tired of being injured or just…
Read moreFinding balance
Petcharapan Sangsawang used to suffer from allergies. Nearly every morning, her nose ran, she would sneeze and her head would be uncomfortably congested. “Now I know how to breathe,” she says. “My lungs are healthier and stronger, so they can cope with the allergies.” What did she do to alleviate her problems? She studied Iyengar…
Read moreYoga bare
Want to learn how to stand on your head? Maybe your shoulders? No, not for a party trick, but to improve both your physical health and that of your mind as well? American Justin Herold has been teaching Iyengar yoga around the traps in Bangok since 1992, but last October became more accessible to everyone…
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