Client Success Stories: Pau Estapé
“I'm so grateful, Asia. Reconnecting with you has been wonderful … and your classes have been a true game changer for me.”
— Pau Estapé (name changed by her request, to keep her privacy)
Pau took yoga classes with me many moons ago. I remember her energy - so kind and light. Last year, when I saw her sign up to join me online from Mexico (a bonus of moving online is how many former clients now around the world found me and re-joined!), I was over the moon to have that energy back in my orbit.
I love seeing Pau’s smiling face and chatting with her before class. She nods when I give an option for a challenging shape and (god bless’r) laughs at my jokes. But I didn’t know how much she’d been through since we last met, and how helpful these classes were for her, until she wrote me.
This is her email to me, shared with her permission and edited to preserve her privacy. I hope it encourages you about what’s possible, especially if you’re struggling with injury or pain.
From Pau:
Hi Asia!
What a great class we've just had! I'm totally exhausted and my legs are wobbly... hehehe, but at the same time I feel energized and happy :D. Great workout today for the hips & legs and up to our toes!
I've been meaning to write to you in the past two weeks, but didn't manage to. On certain weeks I have to skip a class, but I do catch up a few days later with the videos. I would not miss your classes for the world. I wanted to share with you my own experience taking your classes in the past weeks.
I had a hunch when I got your email in late August that your classes would really work for me. You see, I fractured bones in my low back about 6 years ago. I spent 6 months in a wheelchair, and 2 years walking with a cane.
I fractured bones in my low back about 6 years ago. I spent 6 months in a wheelchair, and 2 years walking with a cane.
I've been walking by myself for 3 years now, 20-30 min a day, with no cane, though I still have to be careful going up and down the stairs, getting on sidewalks, bending forward, carrying weight, etc. And mobility in my hips and low back is still a really big issue.
I had the feeling that with this method you created, I could regain movement in those parts of my body, without hurting them. My biggest fear was fracturing the bone even more and causing me more nerve pain. But your classes and the postures we do are very safe, I feel it when we do them. And thanks to that now I can do yoga again!
My biggest fear was fracturing the bone even more and causing me more nerve pain. But your classes and the postures we do are very safe, I feel it when we do them.
To give you an idea of changes I've been noticing since we started the sessions:
My hips are more open. I can even do half lotus (sitting on a block) without hurting my sacrum or my lower back. I do some leg and hip stretches lying on my back on my bed, and the way my hips move better is quite noticeable.
My right leg, from hip to toes, was "asleep" for ~6 years. But now I have more sensitivity all over and it cramps way less. I even regained sensitivity in the nerves inside the hips, which were totally numb as well as the whole perineum area. This is probably one of the biggest improvements I've noticed, and even my sphincter control is practically normal again.
Though I still cannot squat fully (and maybe won't be able to do so ever again), today in class for example I was able to hold the postures we did, bending the knees enough and squatting a little deeper.
Also in my upper body I feel a lot of improvement with the neck, spine and shoulder postures we've been doing. Overall, I feel lighter when I walk, my spine as a whole feels stronger, it's now like "floating" (or self-supported) instead of sinking into my lower body.
Silly things like mopping the floor were impossible for me to do because of the effort I'd have to do with my lower back, hips and legs. But amazingly, two days ago I wanted to see if I could do it, and oh boy, the experience was very, very different. My lower back is stronger, I can feel it, and my hips have so much more movement now that mopping was no longer hurting all these body parts. (I did a moderate amount of mopping but I noticed a huge change!).
Overall, I feel lighter when I walk, my spine as a whole feels stronger, it's now like "floating" (or self-supported) instead of sinking into my lower body.
I could spend the whole evening sharing examples with you :D as well as my excitement for the changes I see and feel! I'm beyond happy for the many improvements I notice in my body. I'm so grateful, Asia. Reconnecting with you has been wonderful (I've missed you and your classes so much!) Your classes have been a true game changer for me. Seriously, if you continue with online courses going forward, count me in for good.
Well, I hope my "story" serves as good feedback on the magnificent benefits I get from your amazing teaching, Asia.
Namaste sent along with a warm, big, and grateful hug,
