YogaJournalSingapore-February092018

74

february / march 2018

yogajournal.com.sg

MY STORY, MY CALLING

nnt

Paulina Buck is a yoga teacher who has

lived in many countries, faced several

injuries and recoveries, and believes in

the power of turning inward, observing

and connecting with her body. Here,

she shares her story and the power of

yoga to heal the body physically and

mentally.

BY PAULINA BUCK

ART DIRECTION : ANUJA BAGADE

Why do we practice yoga, or why do we

teach yoga? There are many answers to this

question, but for me, there is only one: to

stay healthy. Yoga has helped me learn how

to prevent injuries, to heal, and to keep my

mind at peace and on an even keel. I strive to

transfer this learning to my students.

I am 52 years old, and have been practising

yoga for 18 years. In August last year, as I was

walking down the stairs, my husband pointed

out that they were slippery. He was right! I

slipped, with my arm behind me grasping

the banister as I tumbled down 3 steep steps.

I didn’t feel anything much at the time apart

from the bang to my tail bone as it smashed

against the stairs. I continued as if nothing

had happened until the next day, when I was

in agony because of my back. But the impact

to my back, whilst painful at the time, was not

the long-lasting injury from my tussle with the

stairs.

Fast forward to April/May, I started to get some

pain doing Paryankasana (Couch pose) but was

able to manage it once I did some stretches

after coming out of the pose. However, as

time went by, I started to get pain in the inner

part of my upper arm doing Adho Mukha

Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog pose), and

that’s when I realized there was something

seriously wrong.

I am a firm believer that I can use my practice

first instead of going for more conventional

treatments immediately. But this time the pain

just got worse. Even lifting my handbag or

opening a door was painful. So, I went to the

physiotherapist who sent me for an MRI and

the diagnosis came: Left rotator cuff PASTA,

where P stands for a partial tear of tendon,

A for articular (which refers to the inner side

of the tendon), ST for supraspinatus tendon,

and A for avulsion (which refers usually to a

traumatic injury). And a side order of type

II SLAP tear (Slap stands for superior labral

tear from anterior to posterior). On top of it,

I was diagnosed with Buford complex (an

anatomical variation on the glenohumeral

ligaments and the labrum).

I was devastated. I had just signed up to attend

a one-week retreat with a teacher who has

greatly influenced me and taught me so much.

I was also due to lead a two-week retreat in

October and really felt like I was letting my

students down. I am not that young anymore.

This injury was a major blow to me.

For a month I continued to agonize over

whether to risk the surgery or try and soldier

on with the pain, but finally, I went in for the

surgery. It was a two-hour procedure, after

which I was kept in the hospital overnight and

discharged the next day. But 48 hours after

that, I was back practising.

I had to modify everything, find variations for

poses and movements that I had previously

taken for granted—but most of all I had to be