Hi Friends!  

First off, I would like to thank Katelyn and Nikki for asking me to share my transformation story. It truly is a privilege. I found yoga a little over a year ago in a local studio in Akron. At this point in time I was suffering from severe depression and anxiety, soon after being diagnosed as bi-polar. In addition to that, I was battling a very serious eating disorder.  

I remember my first class very clearly. Right off the bat I disqualified myself by saying that I didn’t have the body to physically do yoga. At the same time, my ego told me that it was a good idea to take the most difficult class that they offered.  I now realize that’s probably the reason why I couldn’t do the majority of the poses in the class. I fell in love right away. For an hour and fifteen minutes I was able to stay present and live in the moment.  

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Since then I have been hooked.  Yoga is a time for self-discovery and self-love for me.  Not too long after that, a very good friend of mine told me of a yoga studio that was opening in Highland Square. I decided to check it out. I fell in love with Yoga Squared. The instructors are awesome, and they have a good variety of classes.  I like that I can do things at my own pace; some days I want to take hot power class, and other days I just want a nice gentle stretch.  I love being a part of yoga studio where I can go in and they know who I am. If I do something like forget my mat they have me covered.  

Nowadays things are a lot different.  I now realize that I don’t have to judge myself for the things that I can’t do yet on my mat, but be grateful for the things that I can….and the journey.  

I’ve received so many benefits from yoga. It’s one of the ways I’m able to feel centered in life. I’ve been clean from my eating disorder since January of 2017, and have received help with mental health. I also think that an interesting note regarding my journey with yoga is that every health professional that I’ve come in contact with has been an advocate of yoga for me in some way..  

Thank you for reading

Namaste

Dave