Muscle, Bone and Joint (earlier named Arthritis)

Chair Yoga, a gentle form of yoga that is practiced sitting on a chair or standing using a chair for support, is particularly good for those unable to participate in a traditional yoga class due to the effects of aging or disabilities or for office goers to relax or release tension at the workplace. Mekhala, a Singapore based yoga teacher, guides us through. Whenever I tell someone that I teach Chair Yoga, besides the regular Mat Yoga, the common reaction is: "Is there such a thing as chair…

Kajal* had been active and careful about her lifestyle. When she experienced weight loss and started having knee pain she went through a series of tests and specialist doctors. Not satisfied with the solutions presented, she pro-actively looked at various complementary therapies to find solutions and made some surprising findings. I’ve always been thin and active. When I hit thirty, alerted by my parents’ health problems, I switched to a healthy lifestyle. I ate wholegrain foods, healthy fats,…

These yoga poses are good for beginners. They are easy to practice and stretch and get started with yoga at home. Contributed by Healers at Home Yoga exercises help in many ways. People do yoga exercises to stay fit and healthy, both physically and mentally. In the initial stage, we require some easy poses to relax and lose our muscles. Then gradually we can switch over to harder yoga poses. The yoga poses meant for beginners are calm and gentle, and beginners would like to do them. Here are…

Back pain can be extremely tormenting and life-changing. Thyagi Thyagarajan, 71, recounts how he has fainted at airports, stopped his favourite sport tennis, and endured excruciating lower back pain for 10 years before he agreed to a surgery. He shares some lessons that help him maintain a pain-free back. It was 2006. I was returning from Vancouver to Singapore via Seoul. When I had to disembark in Seoul I found I couldn’t get out of my seat due to severe back spasm. I requested to stay on…

Even though knee replacement operations have become more commonplace these days, one needs to be aware of the do’s and dont’s after the operation.  When the severity of a condition is such that physiotherapy for knee pain and any other conversant treatment fails, knee replacement becomes binding. Recovering from knee replacement can be highly challenging especially during the initial days. Here is a comprehensive guide on post-operative care for knee replacement so that both you and your…

Varda, 34 who lives with the challenges of Myasthenia Gravis took to running to regain muscle strength. As she says: "I chose to run not because it is easy, but because it is hard!" She shares her fight against this neuro-muscular condition.  Please tell us a bit about your condition  I suffer from Myasthenia Gravis. Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disease — a disease that occurs when the immune system attacks the body’s own tissues. In MG, that attack interrupts the…

With ‘Sitting is the new smoking’ belief gaining ground globally, offices are beginning to introduce the workout culture to beat the health risks of a 9-5 desk job. Siemens, a European conglomerate and one of the largest industrial manufacturing companies, has started The Healthy Break in all its offices across India. PatientsEngage talks to Mr. S Ramesh Shankar, Head, Human Resources, Siemens. Working out in office is still a new concept in India. Your company, Siemens, is one of the few…

Talking and writing about health related experiences is still not common in Asia.  This International Women’s Day, we reach out to three dynamic women who share their experience as patient or caregiver to understand their motivations. In the second part we talk to Kirtida Oza, Co-founder Director of Sjogren's India. Kirtida, tell us about the journey to a diagnosis of Sjögren’s Syndrome In 1989 I became a Mother! My little son was the source of great happiness for our family and I enjoyed…

MHR, as she prefers to be referred to as, has been battling Behcet’s Syndrome, a rare auto-immune disease for the last 17 years. Having been through various stages of pain, depression and hopelessness, body image issues she has tried ayurveda and yoga, to get some relief. She is keen to spread awareness on auto-immune disorders and wishes that doctors not treat her as guinea pig. First diagnosis I was diagnosed with Behcet’s Syndrome in 2001, after an illness of over 6 months. I was 23 then. I…

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia have many overlapping symptoms with chronic pain and fatigue being the most common threads.  Dr. Shital Raval explains the differences between the two conditions and the different diagnostic criteria Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or CFS is a medical condition with an unknown cause, presenting initially with constant or recurring fatigue for 6 months or more. Myalgic encephalitis or ME is the now the internationally accepted term for CFS. Fibromyalgia or…