About

UPDATE 13 Nov 2019

So this blog has changed somewhat from what it originally was, and the reason for that is I have changed as time has passed.

Originally this blog was about researching different ways to deal with stress and stress related things, and in some ways it still is.  But nowadays I write more about things that interest me, my thoughts on some topics, things about myself and occasionally some poetry.

Hopefully you’ll like what you read. I hope you have a good day ahead.

Written in 3 Aug 2016

Alternative Yoga is not about yoga at all. It is a blog, and it is all about your mindset and how you can change it for the better. The only reason why I decided to put the word yoga in the name is because yoga is all about learning to control your mind and body and that is kind of what I am trying to achieve. So, if you are here because you thought this would be about talking/teaching yoga, then I am sorry to disappoint you. If that is all you were looking for, then you should probably go back to google (or whatever other search engine you may use) and look for something else.

But if you, like me, are trying to learn how to change your current mindset to something better or just different, well then, I’ll be glad if you would join me on this journey.

I feel like I need to introduce myself and explain why I am doing all of this, so I will. My name is Avinash Sen. I’m a normal enough person (as far as normal can be, but then again normal is all about perspective so I might be very weird to some people); I eat, I sleep, I use the toilet, I get happy, I get sad, etc. and so on. The only thing which is really bad about me is that I suffer from a psychological disorder called Obsessive Compulsive Disorder or OCD. I won’t go on and explain what OCD is because then this post would become too long. If you really want to learn more about OCD I suggest you go to this website, they explain it rather well.

Anyway, when my OCD first manifested itself, it took over my life. I couldn’t do anything anymore and I was depressed and anxious all the time. It took me a long time to get better and “get over” my OCD. I’m not completely rid of it, oh no sir, but I’m A LOT better than I was before.  One thing I learnt while I was recovering is that keeping a good mindset and changing your perspective/outlook is very important. After all, if you lose all hope then there is no hope. What I mean when I say that is, if you can remind yourself that there is something better, something beyond the anxiety and depression, and then you can get better. It may be slow going, but it will happen.

OCD, depression, anxiety, they’re like any other “real” disease; it takes time to recover from them; and keeping the right mindset really helps you out.

So what is alternative yoga about? Basically it’s about looking into the different ways you change your mindset and de-stress. Whether it’s complex yoga techniques, exercises for your mind and body or just watching cat videos on YouTube to make you feel better after a long day at work, this blog is about looking into all these things and how they can help you change.

Why am I doing this? Because even though I am better than I was before, I still suffer from OCD and sometimes it gets the better of me; so I want to look into new and even old ways to change my mindset so I can stay ahead of OCD and live my life, and if I can help some other people learn ways to make themselves feel better and change their mindset for the better; well hey, you know what they say, you’ve got to spread the joy.