CASE HISTORY 12
NAME: Ramila
Date of Birth: 1946
SEX: Female
COMPLAINTS
- Overweight
- Migraine and Headaches
- Pain all over
- Depression
PREVIOUS TREATMENT:
She had some medical treatment which gave her only temporary relief.
PROGNOSIS:
Prognosis for all complaints is poor.
DISCUSSION
The salient features of this case are:
- Overweight.
- Migraine
- Fibromyalgia
- Depression
- Overweight
Overweight is generally defined as having more body fat than is optimally healthy. As much as 2/3 of people in advanced countries are either overweight or obese, and this has increased over the last four decades. Excess weight has reached epidemic proportions globally, across all age groups. A healthy body requires a minimum amount of fat for the proper functioning of the hormonal, reproductive, and immune systems, as thermal insulation, as shock absorption for sensitive areas, and as energy for future use. But the accumulation of too much fat can impair the body’s proper functioning, movements and flexibility. It also negatively alters the appearance of the person.
Health-related implications
The negative health outcomes associated with obesity are well accepted medically. Being overweight has been identified as a cause of cancer, and may overtake smoking as the primary cause of cancer in developed countries. Psychological well-being is also at risk in the overweight individual because of social discrimination.
Treatment
Dieting may have short-term effects but often results in gaining back all lost weight or even more. Thus the recommended treatment is a controlled diet together with increased physical exercise. For those who are obese rather than overweight, more intensive therapies such as anti-obesity drugs and/or bariatric surgery are sometimes used.
- Migraine and Headaches
A migraine is a common type of headache that may occur with symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, or sensitivity to light. Usually a throbbing pain is felt on one side of the head only. Migraines occur more often in women than men. They may run in families.
A migraine is caused by abnormal brain activity, which is triggered by stress, certain foods, environmental factors, or unknown causes. The exact chain of events remains unclear. Most medical experts believe the attack begins in the brain and involves various nerve pathways and chemicals. The changes affect blood flow in the brain and surrounding tissues.
Symptoms
Vision disturbances, or aura, are considered a ‘warning sign’ that a migraine is coming. Migraine headaches can be dull or severe. The pain may be felt behind the eye or in the back of the head and neck. For many patients, the headaches start on the same side each time. The headaches usually feel throbbing, pounding, or pulsating. They are worse on one side of the head. They may start as a dull ache and get worse within minutes and may last hours.
Diagnosis is from history. There is no specific test to prove that a headache is actually a migraine. There is no specific cure for migraine headaches. The goal is to prevent symptoms by avoiding or changing your triggers.
Prognosis
Every person responds differently to treatment. Some people have rare headaches that require little to no treatment. Others require the use of several medications or even occasional hospitalization.
- Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia affects 3 to 5 percent of the general population. It occurs in people of all ages, even children. It produces widespread pain, disturbed sleep, and exhaustion from head to toe. Although the muscles hurt everywhere, they are not the only cause of the discomfort. Instead, the diffuse, body-wide symptoms are greatly magnified by malfunctions in the way the nervous system processes pain.
The problem with fibromyalgia is that there are so many symptoms and there is a tremendous variability of symptoms between one person with fibromyalgia and another. These complications cause physicians to be perplexed and patients to be frustrated.
In addition, research has shown strong links between sleep disruptions and pain. Symptoms of poor sleep resemble many of those found in fibromyalgia, such as muscle ache, fatigue, memory and concentration difficulties.
Effects of Yoga and Meditation
Ramila was overweight. She had been suffering from chronic headache and migraine symptoms for years. Later, she had developed aches and pains all over her body. All these together made her go into depression. She had tried various medical and other treatments, with doubtful results. She was in as bad a condition as before. She had given up thinking she would ever be healthy again.
“I myself used to suffer from acute headaches and serious migraine bouts. I was also very much subject to rheumatic pains in all limbs and back. My whole body would ache following the least physical exertion.”*
Right from the first meditation session she felt it was something special. She felt ‘different’ right from the first day.
“Ever since I started to attend the meditation session, I feel a different person and in better health. I feel my body much lighter.”*
“I fully enjoy the blissful state of Siddha Yoga meditation. This strong feeling of well-being lingers long after the session.”*
Her whole outlook and even her personality appeared to have changed. She was a different person, full of hope and energy.
“I have become a lot more cheerful, life does not appear so burdensome in spite of all the odds.”*
“The body receives a complete overhaul through this wonderful purification process…” *
She was serious about meditation and gradually noted many changes in her life. Her health improved considerably. She no longer had those excruciating pains all over the body. She was no longer depressed and felt her whole life and outlook had changed for the better.
“But with my regular meditation practice my health problems are practically non-existent. All the awful pains all over the body have gradually subsided.”*
“I have lost the excess weight for my 47 years. My health condition has improved.”*
Meditation had a holistic effect on her health and well-being. She became physically, mentally and emotionally fit.
“…meditation can never have a negative influence on our system or in our life. On the contrary, it gives us balanced judgment, mental poise, physical fitness and emotional well-being.” *
(*Excerpts from article, Ramila, Magazine 2, 1991, P59-60)
Conclusion
Ramila had become overweight after suffering from headaches and migraine for years. She had been taking different types of medication to alleviate her excruciating headaches. All these were probably behind her increased weight. She later developed pains all over the body, probably a variant of fibromyalgia. She was stuck in a vicious cycle, the remedy for one condition landing her into another problem. Her homeostasis was completely disturbed.
Meditation proved to be a boon to her. Right from the first day she felt different. The inflow of prana managed to break the vicious cycle and one by one her pathologies were corrected. She could again become healthy. She even managed to lose much weight and looked slim and trim, a dream she had never imagined would come true.
She could maintain her weight and general health with continued meditation.