A Little About... Rochelle Brannan, PT

In April, I will be sharing my passion for working with people with cancer, and training others who want to use yoga as a tool to help those on the cancer journey. When I stepped on this path, I struggled to find information to help me develop my yoga classes, so I began collecting information. Years later, I'm calling on my experts to help me explain what we've discovered along the way.

One of the long-term side effects of cancer treatment is lymphedema, a swelling of the body due to scar tissue and lymph node removal. There isn't a lot known about lymphedema, other than it's inconvenient, uncomfortable, embarrassing, debilitating at times and life-threatening at other times. It's mostly associated with breast cancer, but there are risk factors that affect everyone. In the past, it was believed that we need to immobilize the affected area... now we know that isn't the right approach and that lymph needs to circulate in order to maintain health. 

A question I am often asked is, 

"If I have cancer in my lymphatic system, should I be working to move the lymph, or will that spread my cancer?" 

I posed this question to our expert, and this is her response:

My personal view on this question is that manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) does not move cancer cells. Cancer cells invade slowly (sometimes quickly too); the cancer cells devour healthy organ cells before traveling onward to continue healthy tissue destruction. Moving lymph fluid is a slow and gentle process, like breathing. To my knowledge, breathing is not linked to causing cancer metastasis. What scientific evidence concludes is that  "...increased lymphatic flow from MLD is not associated with cancer cell metastasis," (Klose 2013).

Rochelle Brannan is a physical therapist (PT) who specializes in working with lymphedema. She will be a guest lecturer in my training program, discussing the ways that we can prevent swelling and promote circulation. Here's a little more about her:
An active member of Oncology, Orthopedic and Policy specialty sections of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), Ms. Brannan received her Bachelor of Science from UNC-Greensboro and a Master of Physical Therapy degree from University of Kansas City Medical Center. Presently, Ms. Brannan is preparing to take the Lymphology Association of Northern American (LANA) exam this spring.

With over twelve years of full time clinical practice, primarily in outpatient orthopedics, Ms. Brannan integrates her orthopedic and lymphatic knowledge to produce successful functional outcomes for each patient. Ms. Brannan believes

"It is essential for all breast cancer survivors to receive greater education, instruction and referral resources for decreasing post-operative complications from oncology treatments."

Welcome, Rochelle! We are all looking forward to hearing how we can support our immune systems and prevent lymphedema. If you want to know more about this training, click HERE.

Lymphedema and Fascia

People with cancer - especially those with breast cancer, hear the term "lymphedema" often, but I wonder how many actually know what it is? The lymphatic system runs parallel to the circulatory system, but has no pump (like the heart) to move the lymph through it; instead, it relies on our physical movements to encourage the flow through the one-way valves and channels. The flow supports 1) the drainage of waste and 2) our body's ability to learn what to defend against, in terms of illness and disease; it's for this reason that exercise is recommended to keep us healthy, and for this reason that all of my yoga class for people with cancer include gentle movements. I met Daya Fisch at a talk she gave in San Jose for the Cancer CAREpoint organization, where she explained how the fascia has a great deal to do with the flow of lymph through the body.

Daya is a wonderful educator, a certified massage therapist, specializing in lymphatic massage, holds an MS in Holistic Nutrition, and is Director of the Breast Health Project, which is dedicated to educating women in practical holistic techniques that can be used to increase their breast health, changing attitudes from fear to knowledge and empowerment.

Daya made this informative, accessible video and I'm so thrilled she's sharing it with all of us. Please watch it - even if you are not affected by cancer, because it will explain how the fascia works and how tightness, injury or surgery can affect it and, subsequently, the circulation of lymph.

Namaste

Announcements

Please see the Events page for more information about these upcoming special programs:

• Sunday, March 31 (Easter): OM for Peace
• Saturday, April 7 - Sunday April 8: Yin Yoga 14-Hour Immersion
• Saturday, April 7 - Sunday April 8 AND Saturday, April 13 - Sunday April 14: Yin Yoga Teacher Training
• Sunday, April 28: Yin Yoga 1-Day Workshop

Inventive vs. Innovative Thinking, the Yogic Perspective

In his latest book, Light on Life, master yoga teacher B. K. S. Iyengar poses the idea that the intelligent yogi seeks innovation - the inspired choice of something totally new. He states that "all people are clever compared to other forms of life", but being clever and inventing new ways to do the same thing over and over isn't enough to liberate us from suffering.

He goes on to say about the yogi's intelligence:

"It can choose. It can choose to perform an action that is new, that is innovative. It can initiate change. It can decide to jump out of the ruts in which we are all stuck and strike out on a path for its own evolution. Intelligence does not chat. It is the quiet, determined, clear-eyed revolutionary of our consciousness. Intelligence is the silent or sleeping partner in consciousness, but when it awakes it is the senior or dominant partner."

Fo me, this year has been about living consciously, about waking this intelligence. Ten months before I picked up Mr. Iyengar's book, I was struck by the thought that it was time I befriended, tamed and trained my mind. My first step towards this goal was to pay attention to my thoughts, which supported the reflexive quality of my mind. The second step was honoring the ability to choose. That sounds simple, but it is by no means easy. We all have the ability to choose: we either choose creative invention towards the same end, or we step out of the rut and innovate a new end.

Announcements

• Tuesday, Nov 6: please go out and VOTE! Then, bring your proof of voting to a nearby yoga studio, because many of them offer free classes for those who vote.
• Saturday, Nov 10 1:00-4:00 pm: there is still room in the Winter Wellness Workshop at Willow Glen Yoga. See Special Events for more details.
• Friday, Nov 16: Lymphedema presentation offered by Cancer CAREpoints, located near Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose; see www.cancercarepoint.org for more details.