Earlier this week, we marked International Oligodendroglioma Day (#OligoDay) 2023. Oligo Nation started this day in 2021 as the day the Oligo community says to the world that we exist and we matter. While oligodendroglioma is rare, there are an estimated 15,000 - 20,000 people that live with an oligondendroglioma in the US today, and many more around the world. And then there are our families, friends and communities touched by oligo as well.
I wanted to mark the day this year by raising awareness about oligodendroglioma, and doing my small part to bring members of our community together in an uplifting way. Partnering with Oligo Nation, I offered a yoga class for individuals touched by oligodendroglioma, whether patients, survivors, or family members. On May 17, we gathered over ZOOM. I taught the class utilizing the style and approach of yoga4cancer, the oncology yoga methodology developed by the brilliant Tari Prinster. We breathed together, moved the spine in different directions, flowed through standing poses, transitioned, and rested - some on the floor in savanasa, some in a seat. We discussed how important movement and conscious breathwork is to the ongoing healing process. I stayed on with another survivor after class and we both talked about how integral yoga has been to our own healing since our diagnosis. We compared notes about how we both started with shorter practices, often chair bases, but both recognized that some movement is better than none. We also both gradually worked back into longer practices, and now practice regularly.
It meant so much to me that so many of my family members and friends expressed their support on and around #OligoDay. My family will do more this year, likely cooperating with others in the Bay Area and globally to host another 5K to raise funds for oligodendroglioma research. I hope that you'll join us in our efforts. Thank you!
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