S12E2: YOGA, MEDITATION , HOW THEY can benefit LIFE AFTER STROKE.( guest, amona Gaucher)

0:00 Hello my beautiful survivors, how are you? This is Karina from Stroke Surviving the odds of the podcast, where the mission of the show is to move forward past events of the stroke, reclaim your life, reclaim your identity. We also focus a lot on emotional and psychological health because that has to do with alignment.

0:24 Well, today's guest is the perfect guest to start this series. But before I start talking about her, I want to tell you who I am. I suffer brain stem dissection 28 years ago, I survived the coma, Interlochen syndrome, and right now I'm living my very best life, which you guys are a big part of it.

0:49 And Mona, of course, Mona is a big part of it as well. So I would love to introduce to you, this lady has quite an extensive holistic and healing journey. Of course, she's going to be talking about her story, We're having a conversation and we're going to learn more. But she's also very eager to give you guys some holistic approaches that are going to be helping you in your recovery.

1:24 So are you guys ready? I'm going to give you her little. Her little list of credentials is quite impressive. Now she is an energy healing practitioner, meditation and breath work in order to work the mind and the body and the pain body. She's a yoga teacher where she also teaches elders in chair yoga, that much I find very impressive.

1:59 And she also practices Feng shui, which helps with spatial healing. Guys, not only is she a Wellness mentor, but for the past 15 years, she's a mentor for me. She has been my mentor, and I'm very proud to call her my friend. So I think we're friends. Well, right. Oh my. God, thank you so much for the amazing intro, girlfriend.

2:30 Yes, yes, yes, yes, all of these things and a few more things that I do and. A bag of chips. And a bag of chips. I always was fascinated by energy and and the mind and the occult and the Mystic. And since I'm young, at 7 years old, my dad took us my family, my mom and dad. We started meditating in the 70s in Montreal. This Swami came and introduced Transcendental Meditation. TMI think it's called in the social medias. And so it's a long time coming, right? That the that I've been working with my mind and my intuition and this is what I love to do.

3:21 So you know, Mona, I, my first question to all my guests is always, who are you as the person? But I think that you just just just told us who you are as a person because I can vouch for this lady. This, what she just said, is who she is and she lives by everything that she has learnt and that she's teaching and she's healing the world and herself over the years.

3:53 So I'm just going to let you do. You sure. Thank you, my big, my big. My heart is focused always on healing people's mind because at the end of the day, all the yoga poses in the world, all the breathing in the world, the journaling, right, the meditating, it's always to control the mind. In yoga, they say the suffering comes from the mind. So how come some people right went through hell and they're still can manage their energy when in their public and you know, and carry themselves with grace and some others had a good life and they're all over the place. No grace and.

4:44 They're. Bitter. They're bitter and angry and gossiping and and they have the money. The hell they have everything, right? Well, how how come we're all so different and I didn't get a stroke? I'm not a survivor of a stroke. But we all suffer. We're all carry suffering. We live in a duality world, yin and Yang, hot and cold, right? So the suffering is part part of all of us. And through my accessible yoga, right chair and even bedridden people, right, there's yoga in there. Yoga means to unite.

5:22 And it's really to unite with who you are, right? And you know, sometimes life we're on a life is good. And then suddenly something happens and we hit a wall, right? It could be a stroke, it could be a bankruptcy, a divorce, right? Getting it's so different for everybody. And then it's, it's when we sat with the discomfort that we're slowly able to open up to allow acceptation, right.

5:59 We cannot leave from being angry, right? For whatever happened in your life to joy, you can't jump there. It's it's a daily, it's slowly, it's worth a. Process. It's a process and healing the body to start with, even from a cold, you need to be in your feminine energy or in, you know, in your yin energy, which is relax, fate, laughing, dancing, singing, sleeping. That's a yeah, which is not act the masculine is an action. He's looking for solution, right. So the healing, the the nervous system to go in your parasympathetic healing mode, it's either when you sleep, even relax when you're watching Netflix, you're not relaxing because you're living a million emotion in half an hour. Yes.

6:55 So in yoga we say sadhana. Sadhana is a spiritual practice and there comes a time in your life where you need to look at yourself. And if life was good because we don't grow in partying, we grow in our suffering. And we need the suffering. We need to grow. That's why we came on this planet. So we might not. Go I go, I go.

7:23 I you, I know you love you are so passionate. You quick. Quick, quick. You live, breathe. I think it's oozing out of your pores, your your energetics and everything. It's like I want people to under grasp it because sometimes we hear something but it doesn't change our lives, right? And then you do it in another way and it clicks and then you create a new habit. But in reality, anybody wants to heal. You need to chill out and stop thinking and wondering and and fighting the system right and is. That again, chill out.

8:04 I don't know. You need to relax, have a good time, start incorporating things that makes you happy. And you know, this year in a month, I'll turn 60 and I was at a point where I was in a little blah this winter with everything, right? I've been to that restaurant. I've been in the old Montreal and from Montreal, you know, I felt like I needed new. So I pick up a new hobby, right?

8:29 And now I got passionate with my sourdough stupidities making bread. I'm learning. I feel like I'm growing through my I cried because my bread wasn't good, but you know, I became a tap. I thought I was alone. So you know, by finding what makes me, brings me joy now. Now, not before. I love that. I love that.

8:54 Yeah, so, you know, how do you get there right to finally starting to want to bring new joy in your life. It's through a process, a sadhana, a spiritual practice. Breathe moving, just starting to move a little bit, moving the energy around you, right, the breathing a little deeper. If you don't oxygenate your body, right with the breath, you, you get prana that cheat that vital energy that you're you're energetic body needs. Also your cells need the prana.

9:32 So when you breathe deeply and you hold your breath a little bit, every cell of your body gets to have a breath, right? Instead of those half little breath, you know, because we're not moving, we're not active. So breathing will transfer you slowly, right? Movement, even sitting with the discomfort when you're sad, sitting with your sadness.

9:59 One of my teacher 20 years ago had made had told me when you want to cry, go on your bed and cry until there's no more crying. Cry till you force yourself at the end and for that moment there's the pain is out. You've released that layered of stuck energy within you because it's only energy, right? Our toxins energy.

10:26 Yeah. Yeah. So. So that's what I do when I feel like crying. I give myself permission to cry till the end. I don't stop it then go do the dishes because I shouldn't be crying, right? I cry. And slowly, you. You. It's a layer by layer. Releasing, releasing, releasing. And God knows that stroke survivors do a lot of crying and it is very healing.

10:53 It seems sad and we tell people don't cry. But. It's OK that they cry. We need to cry the body. The body needs. It absolutely. In yoga philosophy, they say the heart is being purified when you cry and you're releasing energy, right? Either anger or people laugh and cry, right? It's just a form and energy, and we don't need to be so scared of it.

11:25 And it's normal that we grieve, right? We grieve the past. We grieve what was. I'd like to. I'd like to. OK, Just you, you talk as you, you talk in my mind. I don't want to take notes, but you're saying so many good things right now, MO. Let's talk about the grieving because I know that you you've seen me talk about.

11:51 We grieve. Our old selves as stroke survivors, or a survivor of anything for that matter. We grieve the old life, we grieve the. We grieve the old, basically. And other than crying and moving from from everything that you do, what would be your best advice other than that or compliment to that to help release that that sadness inside?

12:27 Yeah, well, when it comes like a wave, you gotta let it come. You can't really force yourself to cry or feel anything, right? The the idea is also the, the spinning of the mind, right? The meditation. When you start practicing meditation, everybody's the same. They're like that, right? We can't stop.

12:55 We're not used to sit in stillness. That's why to be able to sit in stillness, you move a little bit, you breathe a little bit, right? You focus, you set an intention. We want to live with presence, with awareness. We wanted or her action to be. We're here doing the supper. We're here, right presents at in the moment, be in the moment. And when 'cause when you're, when you're thinking of the past or you're worried about the future, you're not in the moment.

13:29 There's only the moment. So meditating or contemplating is coming. It's practicing coming back to the moment, and once you get comfortable being in the moment again, we open up two more to be accepting. It comes natural, but by doing the little work, reading scriptures that inspire you, or listening to an inspiring podcast. That like mine because I know you're going to be inspiring a lot of people more.

14:04 I'm not just I'm not kidding. You're really good at what you do and I miss the fact off subject. I miss that I don't see you in your lives anymore on Facebook. I hope one day you're going to return to that because I, I miss seeing you. You are such an inspiration. I remember taking so many notes and what you do now.

14:27 Give me a minute. You're, we're talking meditation now and so many people. I mean, I, I love meditation. I don't do it enough, but when I do it, I love it. And so many people are saying but I can't meditate and everything comes in my mind. So someone that has never meditated yet has experienced that fluster in the head.

14:54 What's the best way to start? Hmm. Well, well, well, well. You sit comfortably, so just that takes time, right In reality. And what is pretty comfortably. Whatever it is, take. It down, Let's know. Whatever it is for you, right? I don't know your body if for you. Staying sitting, yes, whatever works in the chair that makes you. Happy.

15:26 Yeah, of course we want the spine as straight as possible. But if you have a spine problem, I'm not going to mention the spine, right, because it's accessible for everybody. You can meditate laying down, you can meditate while you do your dishes. Meditation at the end of the day is presents, right? It's slowing the mind.

15:47 I have. I have a question. You're bringing the guest OK in the morning. I tend to like my starting my morning briefly like this, just lying in bed and staring and being awake, either listening to morning meditation or just staring at the ceiling or the wall and just being present in the bed. Is that considered meditation? It's a form of meditation because there's different type of meditation.

16:18 It's a form of meditation, absolutely. We want those thoughts to be focused on where do I want to accomplish today? What kind of people, what kind of person, what kind of energy do I want to share? Right? Who? What do I need to accomplish? Who do I need to be today to accomplish? Hold on because because you and I talk very fast and when we get going, we get going so I need to slow us down a bit. I.

16:44 Will sorry. No, it's not just you, it's me too. Because stroke survivors are the thinking process, yet they they over. We overthink, but at the same time, cognitively it's slower. OK. So I get like, yes, I I'm there lying down and yes, I will think of what kind of day do I want, what not what do I have to do, but how do I want to show up?

17:13 Today. But for a stroke survivor, it might just be breathing. It might just be today I'm going to put my running shoes. Today I'm going to walk to the bathroom. Right. Yeah, Live with inspiration. Still present and intentional. That's what I'm getting from what you're saying. It's to be intentional in the following moments.

17:41 Yes. It well. You got it 100%. To be intentional is to be present, right? Save and Feng shui your home, you know, is everything on your wall, things that you choose and they have a meaning and it inspire you, right? If not, I would tell you get it out of your vision, right? Surround yourself with intentional objects, right?

18:07 So and the same for the days. You taught me so much about my special healing environment, especially when my mom passed and all that, that I know that if anybody wants to learn more about this, we're going to give Mona's information, we're going to post it. But that helped me heal that part. Because what do you think of clutter? Well, you know, again in Feng shui, because every area of your house represent an area in your life, some people have a certain room cluttering, but not the maybe not the kitchen, but the bedroom is cluttered, right?

18:54 So they say we could tell a lot about, right, somebody by their clutter, what they, what they hold. And sometimes it gets over. You get overwhelmed with life, you accumulate. Same with me. I got my mom, my dad, my brother's stuff in my basement is a little bit overwhelmed. And slowly, slowly, at the end of the day, you want to be gentle with yourself.

19:18 But when you feel the inspiration to start, you take it. And if it's 5 minutes, it's good enough, right? And I want people to live with intention and do what they feel like doing. Only don't do the dishes if you don't want to. Why go do the dishes? Because you have to. Who said that you have to do anything?

19:40 Who made the rules? There's no more rules at one point, right? And do it when you feel like, hey, I feel like cleaning my kitchen now, right? Except change the rule. We got to be flexible. You got to think outside the box eventually, right? And and decide that for what's left, for what you want the rest of your life. It has to be joy and not in a things happen. I like to believe things happen for a reason, right? And they do.

20:15 They do. They do. They took you there because it's time in your life. Your whole life you ran after making the most money and making everything OK. Now it's time to make it you OK and take care of your body and yoga. Love that. Yeah, yes, yoga. And your guy, you're not your body, right? We identify at the body. My heart, my arm, my right, my memory. But we're not.

20:43 We're a soul. Oh, I did not know that. So when you practice again, meditation, right, there's all kinds of ways to practice calming the mind, right? Focusing point and all this, but you realize you're not the body, right? When you meditate. It's amazing. In what I want to say. I used to give meditation classes online.

21:08 So in the fall, I'm going to give a sadhana. Every week we'll learn a new way to develop your spiritual practice, which I'm very excited about this course. It will touch a little bit about everything, right? A little deeper about breathing and how you can incorporate it. Not everybody can breathe deep either, right?

21:32 It's we're so different everybody and you'll add the link I guess, but in starting July, absolutely. For sure, everything you give me, I want people to. Share Look at you. It's a little free gift I'm doing for my community because during the summer there's less classes that I teach. So online every Wednesday at 10:00 I'm going to give free chair yoga to your community or whoever working you think. You love it, We're going to make a. Special post that will.

22:05 Do whatever every week when you give me the go, I think it is beautiful. They can. Can they do it in a wheelchair? Yeah, you can do it on your couch. You can do it sitting in a kitchen chair on your bed, wherever you want. And if you lay down, you can still hear right? Because the mind, the mind, just like when you watch a horror movie and your heart beats fast because you're scared and you're in your living room. It's the same for yoga.

22:35 If you look at somebody doing a headstand, let's say, you get the same benefit cause the mind doesn't know the difference that. Is amazing what you just said? Hold on, let me just recap it to yourself, 'cause that is amazing, the power of of the visual mind. Basically because like she just said, if you see someone doing it then it's like you are doing it.

23:04 And you get benefits from. It and you grab the benefits, yes. So there is being a stroke survivor. That's what breaks my heart because I know what it is to be a survivor, but 28 years down the road, I know there's so much that can be done and it breaks my heart when some people say that's it, I'm done.

23:27 It breaks. My heart and now you're you're you're giving possibilities, you're getting and and opportunities with your cherry yoga, but you're offering possibilities that they can use their minds to feel well. Close your eyes, see yourself walking. Because your energetic body, the memory, the heart is in the memory is in the heart, right? It's not in the mind, the memory, your body knows how to walk.

23:54 The mind knows how to walk and the run in the fields if you want, right, find, find little ways to find your joy. The person, the best person to work with is the person that's done right because they're at the end of their rope and they can only go up from there. Yes, I love it. Yes, yes, you got to know what it is to go down in order to go up like the momentum of a roller coaster.

24:20 Yeah, that's when you surrender and you find freedom after. It's the same in yoga. You surrender, you do a pose, you can't do it. And then when you want to give up, all of a sudden you float, right? It's it's beautiful. I love it from everything you do more from everything you do. Mona, what is your favorite 'cause you got all like your face like lit up, your eyes became all bit young with stars when talking about energy.

24:51 But then yoga you, you just, you just float, you just flow with it. Which one is your favorite? Well, you know, it's a bit of everything, girlfriend, if it wasn't for finding yoga and the philosophy, because yoga is a spiritual experience. It's not a workout, it's a work in when you start practicing yoga, slowly you get to know yourself. You know, I could see my flaws and where my should and shouldn't and but then I'm able to find equanimity, find balance, right, and not identify by my mistakes, not identify with the bad things that happened in my life, right? Beautiful.

25:37 You work on finding balance because that's where your joy is. We don't want to be. We all know when you're so happy we come down after. This is not our natural state either. But we want to be at peace, right? At peace with what is in the present moment by not identifying too much with the bad things that have happened.

25:59 Eventually, we let go. Let's go and. Let God then by letting God, it doesn't mean going to church. It could mean meditation, it could mean yoga. It could be. Letting Universe. It's the universe exactly as long as it's inside. I lost you for a moment. Yeah, of course I see your beautiful face. It's just that there's a little storm outside, that's why. And somebody phones, I'm on my phone and somebody phoned. That's what happened.

26:36 But my girlfriend, you know, I find that one when you decide that you want to find joy, you slowly you don't get there the next day, you know, but truly peaceful joy inside everything is possible for anybody. And at the end of the day, it's balance. It's it's acceptation and we want to be neutral AZ Ferha with things.

27:04 Is AZ ferha indifferent? Yeah, like it's OK, I'm OK with it happened right to be, you know not meaning that it doesn't it doesn't mean anything. And we're we're bypassing grief and all this is So what I mean. I get it. I get, I totally get what you're saying. You're saying it's better and it is what it is for the moment or it has happened, it's done and over with, but you have a choice. You shouldn't get out the pot.

27:38 Like it, you don't let it define you and control you. You don't identify anymore that because of that you need to be treated different by others. And you know, like using the energy of to be who you are because at the end, you're a beautiful soul living an experience on earth. And we might not like everything so.

28:01 But I heard you say it in the past, not why this happened to me, but why this happened for me, right? You said that before in one of your podcasts, and it's exactly that, Yes. Yes. I think that when we start thinking why are things happening, like for me, that's when we start even pushing the acceptance even more a. Little bit more, yeah, Get the momentum. Going.

28:32 Yeah, and practicing, practicing holding back a little bit, not reacting so fast. OK. I want to hear how can you suggest something for people because we our emotions are screwed up after stroke and we are reactive, Yeah. And. So for someone that just had a stroke that is listening to you, what would you recommend? The holding back is great, but how? Yeah, that's the whole, that's what I mean. It's, it's the the daily work that you start seeing the changes.

29:11 But yeah, it's a should I say that should Why would I say that? What do I accomplish by saying that? Is that going to be helpful, right. Are we reacting because we're hurt, right. Like this whole transfer of energy, right. It just comes with practice and teachings, right? I one of the best ways and I, we've talked about this often, one of the best ways that I found to help myself is to help others.

29:45 And I think that you, we're not going to get into it now because we're at half hour. I'm trying to respect the, you know, the language. You're definitely going to be coming back. We'll do a Part 2. If you want your private life, life is your private life. But I know that you have done a lot of healing by helping others. This is the base in yoga.

30:12 Philosophy is where it's where you're going to heal. The fastest way to heal is to be of service of others. We forget about ourselves, right? Even if it's to cook at home. When I make my bread, right, I'm out of my head. I have somebody in mind. I put good energy because I'm going to give this bread to somebody. And this heals faster.

30:37 When you do something without expectation, you know? When you heal your expectations. When you heal, you know, expecting anything, going to the party, expecting the young call to be rude and expecting right, expecting good weather, expecting fun. When you go somewhere, when you stop expectation, you become present.

31:03 You stop being in your head waiting for the uncle to say something. Crazy, I miss seeing you regular. That was great. That was really, really good, MO. And joy is in the present. Joy is here right now, right? So yeah, this is your homework. No expectation anymore. Oh, I love it. Homework, guys.

31:30 She gave us a homework. I don't. I think we've never had a guest. We have amazing guests, but this is the first guest we have giving us a homework. No expectations be by having no expectations be present in the moment. You become present. You don't have to be. You are when you're heal the expectation, right? So no more expectation.

31:58 Just go with the flow already. Life will be lighter. OK, that OK, Easier said than done, but OK. OK, I'll send you the link for Chair Yoga, free Chair Yoga starting July 8th and then we'll talk again for the pro. That is amazing. I am so excited. Really, you are. I mean, leaps and bounds. You've always been great. But I can tell that, well, I want to take your yoga now. So guys, you are watching and listening to Stroke Surviving the Odds, the podcast, and you know what? The stroke survivor community and the survivor community, period.

32:46 We are here to stay and support and help each other in any way that we can. Nobody here is better than anybody else. We are all on the same playing field, we are just trying to make it a little better for everyone, ourselves included. That being said, make sure you like, follow and subscribe on Spotify, Apple, Itune and you hit that little bell on YouTube. I'm going to give you all the information, the links for Mona and we are definitely going to be having her again. So that being said, not to you guys, not to Mona. Thank.

33:29 You so much. For gracing us with your presence. Thank you. Bye everyone.