Hello, this is Lara. Is that Colleen?

Yes it is.

What are you doing right now?

Just getting ready to go to yoga.

How are you feeling?

Fine?

Colleen, you need to get yourself to the hospital. 
Your liver enzymes levels are off the chart.

Can go to yoga first?

It is serious. Go now. 

I hadn’t been feeling great for a while. Months maybe? Feeling blerg after a greasy meal. Energy levels low. But who doesn’t feel that way occasionally? I eventually made time for a quick visit to my doctor, she gave me a plethora of blood tests. 

Two weeks later I got that call. Ten minutes later I was in hospital. A couple of months after that a diagnosis. Autoimmune Hepatitis (AIH).

Straight into research mode I discovered Autoimmune Disease stats are rising. Medical scientists are unsure of what causes it but some triggers might be a family history of autoimmune disease, a lifetime of toxins (in our food, clothing, cleaning products, beauty creams etc), or possibly a major event (such as surgery). 

I ticked all those boxes. Autoimmune Disease occurs when an over enthusiastic immune system attacks heathy organs and tissues. There are many autoimmune diseases like Graves Disease, Arthritis, Celiac Disease, MS and Diabetes. In my case of AIH my immune system was attacking my liver. 

So I became a reluctant patient in the healthcare system. A weeks hospital stay with MRIs, a liver biopsy and ultrasounds, countless blood tests, endless questions about my ‘drinking and drug’ history (not as racey as you would think) and new medications (each with their own set of side-effects). Then the avalanche of appointments with naturopathy, gastroenterology and the Liver Unit at Austin Hospital. 

Being ill is a full time job. 

One thing though stayed constant through the yellowing skin, the weight fluctuations, various medicos, appointments and the meds. My yoga practise.

I began my practice a decade ago, after a lifetime of bike-riding, swimming and basketball. At the beginning my body wasn’t going to become flexible without many hours ‘on the mat’. 

I was about as flexible as a twig. I knew then I was in for the long haul. 

Slowly over the years things have changed. My body changed. My mindset changed. I stopped looking at the people on mats around me and started to concentrate on my own practice. I loved setting myself small challenges such as getting up into a hand-stand and moving past the fear of falling out of a head-stand. 

Yoga holds me in good stead for this lifetime journey with AIH. On the mat (either in class or at home), I have 10 years of practise to call upon. I know when to push myself and when to ‘go the props’. 

I’m very thankful for my Iyengar yoga practise, it has helped me accept my diagnosis of AIH. And AIH has given me the imperative to practice yoga every day. 

Sláinte, Aunty Darling.