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| Can anyone give some advice on how to help or even just approach a student who has a severe skin condition such as acne or very bad eczema? If the person is obviously embarrassed and has low self esteem, what's the best way to make them feel comfortable? |
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| groovelite - 2007-03-05 8:53 AM
Can anyone give some advice on how to help or even just approach a student who has a severe skin condition such as acne or very bad eczema? If the person is obviously embarrassed and has low self esteem, what's the best way to make them feel comfortable?
1. To make them comfortable you have to use the technique based upon the student. You have to know Psychology of that student well.
2. Treatment has very little to do with Yoga except blood circulation. Life style has to be changed. |
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| Don't do anything obviously. Oh, and don't touch...you don't know if it could be contagious do you? Iyengar himself contracted diseases from touching students, but he was willing to deal with the repercussions. Are you?
I used to have acne..Some dumb yogi told me to stop eating junkfood to clear up my skin. Little did he know that I was a health nut  . I found out that I have a bad allergy to whole wheat which was making my skin terrible. |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
  
Location: A Blue State | The best thing to do is to treat them the way you'd treat anyone else, as if there is no problem. If you have a compassionate and friendly opening to a discussion, then follow it with compassion. People with skin conditions will assume that other judge them negatively, and they will be relieved and very grateful to find that you do not. ..bg |
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| I am actually a Bikram student, but I have had pretty severe eczema my entire life.
There is very little others can do to make a person literally feel comfortable in their own skin. It's something we each need to come to terms with.
In response to ShalamOM, I'm not a big fan of being touched in class at all, but I do think its a little ridiculous to suggest avoiding touching a person because they have eczema. Especially if the student is aware of his/her condition and have made it known. If touching students is standard in your class, it will not make the person feel any more comfortable to avoid them, it will make their insecurities worse!
At this point in my life, I could care less about who notices my skin issues. I definitely don't assume that people will judge me negatively. I just assume no one really cares unless they ask me about it.
If the person has low self esteem and is embarassed about his/her skin, I happen to think attending yoga class is a step in the right direction! I'd just let it be unless the student approaches you for help or advice!  |
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| I think you're right, laylie |
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| Hi there...
In Ayurveda eczema means too much heat or pitta in the body.
You could suggest they work out their Ayurvedic body type and look at their diet...are they eating excess meat, alcohol,eggs, spices? They may need more cooling foods....raw foods...salads...
and cooling herbs which clean out the liver such as Dandelion...they may have a stagnant liver and so toxic blood.
You could suggest they do more cooling asanas to bring more balance to their system...such as forward bends and a slower practice away from heat.
hope this helps
Hari Om
love Soul |
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| Or tailor their practice to to quiet Pitta and bring them in touch with Kapha energy through standing poses. |
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| I would like to throw my opinion in to this discussion. Personally, I have suffered with acne my whole life. For those who think it can be cured with a simple life style change, I am here to set you straight. Only someone who has dealt with this can really understand. I am a very clean person who probably washes my face more faithfully than most. I have tried everything from perscription pillls and creams (more than I can count on both hands) to "lifestyle changes" such as diet and excersise. I have also experienced people approaching me who just want to help. I had one person tell me that I was very pretty, even with the acne, and then proceded to ask if they could pay for me to get treatment. Believe me, no matter how sincere a person is, it's always offensive. My best advice is to ignore the condition. I appreciate that you are concerned about these students, but honestly, there is never a right way to bring that subject up. I say, accept them, don't judge, and treat them the way you would treat any other student.
Edited by annonymous 2008-08-30 9:35 PM
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| kinda what annonymous said - why even approach the student?
I would approach a student if I thought there was a chance they had something contagious that I thought might be spread via the blocks and blankets, which don't get washed after every touch. that's not highly likely. for myself, I keep my hands away from my face, and keep any wounds closed, and wash my hands or use hand sanitizer at the end of class (as much as I can remember to ). |
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| Pycngogenol (a natural French pine bark supplement) can really help.
Take at least 100mg twice a day.
Don't take the second one after 6PM.
It's not a stimulant-- but it will boost energy a little.
**Takes a while to get the full anti-inflammatory effect (days and then ramping up further over weeks).
There are many brands for it, easy to find.
Good luck! |
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students with skin conditions
